New "Geyst" in the agency world

A whole 1200 square meters, two open-plan offices worthy of the name, a photo studio, meeting rooms, lounges and a "culture room/lab". There is truly enough space in Zurich-Altstetten for the newly founded Geyst agency. 52 people moved into the offices at the beginning of the year - all the staff previously employed by Hesskisssulzersutter, Profil1 and Straumann. The walls have been freshly painted, the carpets cleaned. Otherwise, the investments have been kept within limits. The offices in the older building complex, whose future is still uncertain, could be rented inexpensively for temporary use. If all goes according to plan, this will be Geyst's home for the next two to four years. The foundation for the agency's creation was laid by Straumann and Profil 1. The service provider, which specializes in visual communication and the development of corresponding web application solutions, and the graphic and web design agency decided last year to go their separate ways. Expertise in other areas, such as text, was to be tapped through cooperation. That was the original idea. When Hesskisssulzersutter heard about the planned merger and came into play as a cooperation partner, plans were soon made for a three-way merger. The chemistry was right. And with Hesskisssulzersutter, Profil1 and Straumann expanded their strengths in the text and classic consulting areas. At the beginning of the year, the merger was completed. Geyst is headed by 10 Managing Partners. These include Tamás Kiss (previously CD/Member of the Executive Board of Hesskisssulzersutter) and Johannes Just (previously Managing Director/Partner Profil1). The post of CEO has been taken over by Florian Walz, who until now has led the business at Straumann.
 
WW: How did the merger come about?
Florian Walz: We wanted to unite all services in the communications sector under one roof: creation, consulting, text, graphics, design, digital, development, software, infrastructure, research etc. By merging into one agency, we can serve customers holistically. At the same time, it should be possible for customers to obtain only a subarea or a specific service, such as animation or creative retouching.
 
How much of the previous agencies' structure will remain?
Johannes Just: The structures are completely dissolving.
 
How does the new leadership work?
JJ: Each Managing Partner has a field of expertise that he organizes. But all employees are on the same level. We want to maintain the flexibility we had as small agencies. In the end, the CEO bears the overall responsibility.
 
Tamás Kiss, your former business partner Roland Sutter left Hesskisssulzersutter at the beginning of 2013. Does the merger have anything to do with that?
Tamás Kiss: No, we didn't look for a new solution after Roland left. The decisive factor was rather the power of the idea. It was Geyst's vision that convinced us.
 
What does this vision look like?
FW: Many agencies have incorporated web and prepress services in recent years for strategic reasons or to expand the value chain. However, only a few have succeeded in joining forces. Hiring ten polygraphers alone does not make a prepress department, and five media specialists do not make a media agency. The problem is the lack of an overarching overall culture: the disciplines have been integrated, but they are no more valued than they used to be. The service providers in the traditional prepress and media areas - those who used to be called "polygraph zombies" and "bean counters" - are still not valued enough. But integration can only work if everyone is on an equal footing. We live this vision. At Geyst, all areas operate on the same level.
 
What is Geyst's strength?
JJ: In the vision I just mentioned. And in the breadth of services and our experience in the disciplines. Each agency has developed clear performance characteristics. Straumann's tradition is in prepress and web-based industry solutions, Hesskisssulzersutter's strength is in brand strategy/management and copywriting, Profil1 has a close connection to artists and street art with a young team of graphic and web designers.
 
How have customers reacted to the merger?
FW: Very sympathetic and cordial. Many consider the merger to be extremely courageous. We are convinced that this courageous step is needed, especially now that the industry is undergoing change. We are sure that we are meeting a need.
 
Which customers would you like to see in the portfolio?
FW: Our existing customers, with whom we have long-standing relationships. New customers who want an agency like Geyst. And: We are open to working closely with agencies, as we have done up to now. Provided they don't see us as a competitor with whom they want nothing more to do. We can work with all agencies.
TK: In general, we look forward to customers who, like us, want to try something new, want to make a difference.
 
Previous clients include companies such as Alprausch, Heineken and SBB. For Citroën, Profil1 accompanied the launch of a new model on the Swiss market (Xaver Award "Best Live Communication Campaign"). Hesskisssulzersutter created image spots for Aldi Suisse, and Straumann developed a Web2Print solution for Roche (Gold at the Best of Swiss Web, in the Business Efficiency category). Geyst can already announce a new customer at the start: the ZKM (Zürcher Kantonale Mittelstufenkonferenz). Its publishing house, which specializes in teaching materials and is today known primarily for its exercise material for Gymi preparation, is to be strengthened by a redesign. The ZKM logo and the website have been revised. In addition, many of the ZKM publications are to appear in a more contemporary look in the future.
 
Will the work be more expensive for existing customers? The offices are quite large ...
JJ: For our existing customers, everything remains the same in terms of price. We want to retain the freedom to design "smaller" jobs in the future. The merger will not only make us bigger, but also more efficient. An example: We used to design a flyer at Profil1 in a short time. We had to invest a relatively large amount of time to make it printable. Time that could not be charged to the customer. Today, we have the expertise in-house and solve the problem much faster. That benefits the customer.
TK: The office space is large - but not luxurious and without monster infrastructure. Thanks to the possibility of interim use, the rent is kept within limits. We didn't invest the money in appearances, in pomp and luxury, but in resources and tools.
 
Geyst operates a platform for media experiments, research and art. How do you have to imagine it?
JJ: Our goal is to create a meeting platform for the creative industry. Many agencies close themselves off to talent because they prefer to function self-sufficiently. We want to open up the agency to the creative market and - to a certain extent - to the competition.
 
How?
 JJ: We would like to make the photo studio available to photographers, e.g. for shootings. We offer artists the opportunity to exhibit their pictures with us. This can also be an AD of another agency.
TK: A book author could use our "cultural space" for his vernissage, a customer who has not yet found a store location could temporarily set up a showroom.
FW: The idea of research is also part of the concept. We want to accompany communication as a whole and cooperate with universities and research institutes. Today, unfortunately, results from research often don't make it into everyday life.
JJ:. It is conceivable, for example, that we could bring students together with agencies for scientific work. Geyst is not meant to be a closed framework.
TK: We want to break new ground and try out new things. The inventive spirit unites us at Geyst.
 
 Isabel Imper