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The Richards Group: Striving to Inspire the Next Generation

STAN’S DECISION TO REMAIN RESOLUTELY INDEPENDENT HAS INSPIRED THE PATH OF AGENCIES L IKE OURS. HE STILL BELIEVES IN WORK THAT REFLECTS THE POWER OF EMOTION AND CRAFT.Stephen Curry, Executive Creative Director, Lewis Communications

STAN IS A GENIUS WHO MANAGED TO BECOME AN ICON IN THE WORLD. HIS WORK IS THE BRICK IN THE WALL THAT INSPIRES US AND ALLOWS US TO BUILD GREAT IDEAS.David Chandi, Art Director, Grupo daDá

I WOULD HATE TO THINK WHAT THE DESIGN AND ADVERTISING LANDSCAPE IN THE SOUTHWEST WOULD LOOK L IKE WITHOUT STAN. PRETTY BARREN IS MY GUESS.Glenn Dady, Creative Group Head, The Richards Group

I WOULDN’T BE THE DESIGNER I AM TODAY IF IT HADN’T BEEN FOR STAN. HE TAUGHT ME THAT ADVERTISING ISN’T A JOB, BUT A WAY OF L IFE.Woody Pirtle, Designer, Artist

STAN RICHARDS, L IKE THE ADVERTISING HE’S CREATED OVER THE LAST FOUR DECADES, HAS NEVER BEEN T IED TO ANY PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS OF HOW THINGS SHOULD BE DONE.Chris Sekin, Co-Owner/ECD/Managing Partner, Johnson & Sekin Branding Agency

“GOD MADE A FARMER” WAS ONE OF THE MOST CELEBRATED SUPER BOWL ADVERTISEMENTS OF ALL T IME. HE IS ALSO DEVELOPING SOME OF THE BEST YOUNG TALENT IN OUR INDUSTRY.JoAnn Sciarrino, Director Chair in Advertising in the Stan Richards School of Advertising & Public Relations

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(Page 35) “EAT MOR CHIK” Water Tower; Client: Chick-fil-A; Art Director: Todd Tucker; Writer: Clint Carter; Creative Group Heads: Dennis Walker, Ron Henderson; Creative Director: Stan Richards / (Page 37) Photography by Brielle Netherland / (Above) Photography by Barth Tillotson

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“SCI-FI” Poster; Client: Fiat Chrysler; Art Director: Dean Oram; Writer: Chris Cannon; Creative Group Heads: Lynda Hodge, David Canright; Creative Director: Stan Richards “HUMAN ABARTH” Print; Client: Fiat Chrysler; Art Director: Dean Oram; Writer: Chris Cannon; Creative Group Heads: Lynda Hodge, David Canright; Creative Director: Stan Richards

Introduction by Michael Schillig, Creative Director, PPK

How do you introduce a trailblazing legend who has been inducted into not just one but two

halls of fame: the Art Directors Hall of Fame and the Advertising Hall of Fame? Very care-

fully. As the founder and longtime creative director of The Richards Group in Dallas, Stan

Richards is truly an industry icon, and his work has received awards in virtually every major

competition in the world. To put it in perspective, what Michael Jordan is to basketball, Stan

is to advertising. He officially started The Richards Group as a full-service advertising agency

in 1976 and has fostered its amazing growth over the years—now recognized as the largest in-

dependent ad agency in America. His name and lofty achievements are almost as big as Texas

itself. His work has inspired countless advertising creatives like me, but what really stands out

to me are some of the long-term relationships he’s built with clients. Like his nearly 23 years

with Chick-fil-A and his agency’s equally long-standing and revered “Eat Mor Chikin” cows

campaign. This is eclipsed only by his over 33 years with Motel 6 and unforgettable spots fea-

turing the voice of Tom Bodett. Today, at the spry young age of 86, Stan is as passionate as

ever about creating great work. Yet for all his accolades and fame, he remains a truly genuine

and humble leader who believes in “giving back what has been given to you.”

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(Top) “MAKE DUST” Print; Client: Ram; Art Director: Jimmy Bonner; Writer: Rob Baker; Creative Group Heads: Jimmy Bonner, Rob Baker; Creative Director: Stan Richards

(Bottom) “SUSPENSION” Print; Client: Ram; Art Director: Kellyn McGarity; Writer: Sue Batterton; Creative Group Heads: Jimmy Bonner, Rob Baker; Creative Director: Stan Richards

Q&A: Stan Richards

Who is or was your greatest mentor?

Someone I never met: John Wooden, the famed UCLA basket-ball coach. As a kid and young adult who played basketball as often as I could, I patterned my life after the way he lived his.

It’s been three years since you moved into your new West Vil-

lage headquarters. How has it been in the new offices?

While our old office of 20 years was retrofitted to reflect our culture of openness, collaboration, and energy, our new build-ing was designed with our culture at the core. The bench seat-ing, the center stairwell, the vibrant colors, and floor-to-ceil-ing light were all intentional architectural choices, and they’ve served us well since our first day in the new office.

At 86 years young, Stan Richards seems to still be involved

with a lot of the company. How does he do it?

Stan still does today what he’s always done: make the work better and inspire others to do the same. Here’s what a normal day is like for Stan Richards: Let’s take this past Tuesday. His workday started at 8 a.m. as a participant in our Tuesday Morn-ing Meeting – a standing weekly meeting where someone from brand management presents to the rest of brand management on a topic of his or her choice. All the principals attend, and Stan is no exception. He followed that with a 15-minute catch-up from one of our principals with a client update. Then he interviewed an art director candidate. He interviews all the creative candi-dates, by the way. A few creative teams popped by his office to share some thoughts for an internal campaign to encourage people to use our state-of-the-art gym more often – a particular passion of Stan’s. He saw something he liked and gave them a few thoughts on how to make it better. Right after lunch, he gave a talk at SMU’s Cox School of Business as part of the Executive Speaker Series. Back in the office, he had a staffing conversation with our head of analytics, a meeting with another principal about a new business opportunity, and an hour-long interview with a copywriter candidate. His last meeting of the day was a two-hour regroup to review creative ideas for Jeep in preparation for a client meeting later in the week.

There was nothing out of the ordinary on his calendar that day. It could have been any day of any week of any month. Full from before the office opened until the time he headed home at about 6 p.m.

What is his drive to keep innovating and moving forward

with the agency?

It’s really simple: to do the best work of any agency anywhere.

What is your (Stan’s) greatest professional achievement?

I’ve been fortunate enough to be recognized a number of times throughout my career. In 1999, I had the honor of being induct-ed into the Art Directors Hall of Fame, alongside such lumi-naries as Walt Disney, Andy Warhol, Norman Rockwell and, as I say to the discomfort of some, a bunch of other dead guys. In 2014, the University of Texas at Austin named their nationally ranked number-one undergraduate advertising program after me: the Stan Richards School of Advertising & Public Rela-tions. And in 2017, I was inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame. Those have all been remarkable achievements that I never could have imagined when I started this whole thing

in the corner of my garage apartment. But I think the achieve-ment of which I’m the most proud is that when people come to The Richards Group, they stay. As best we can determine, we have the highest retention rate of any agency in America. That says a great deal about what we’ve built here. It’s a culture of mutual respect for every individual. A place where we put the work and our people ahead of everything else. As a fiercely independent agency, we never have to worry about the insta-bility that comes with being part of a holding company. With a focus on the work and none of the uncertainties that come with remote ownership, people stay. And the ones who have moved on went on to have illustrious careers of their own. This includes but is not limited to Woody Pirtle, David Fowler, Grant Richards, Brian Jessee, Margaret Johnson, Hal Curtis, Rex Peteet, Don Sibley, and Jack Summerford.

What are the most important ingredients you require from

a client to do successful work?

It may sound clichéd, but our ideal clients treat us like a part-ner. They communicate early and often, and they invite us into their boardrooms, their workrooms, and their day-to-day oper-ations. They trust us and know that we’ll produce better work if we understand them and their business from the inside out. They also want us to do great work. They share our burning desire to move their business ahead by producing consistently great work in all disciplines. And as you’d expect, they also share our focus on results.

What is the greatest satisfaction you get from your work?

It’s really two things: making a difference in our clients’ busi-nesses by helping them build strong, enduring brands; and do-ing the kind of work that others aspire to do.

What part of your work do you find most demanding?

I really don’t find any of it demanding. I enjoy every minute of it. Sure, there are better days than others – losing a client is never fun – but there are always new clients coming in who want to do the kind of work we do.

What do you hope Stan Talks: Lessons from Luminaries

will accomplish?

I hope it inspires students to set high bars for themselves. It’s unlikely they’ll ever get the chance to sit in a room with Lee Clow or Keith Reinhard or Jon Steel for a conversation about the lessons they themselves learned in their storied careers. SoStan Talks gives them the opportunity to hear from the people who blazed trails in the advertising industry at a time when they’re just beginning their journey.

Where do you seek inspiration?

I’ve never thought about seeking inspiration, because it’s ev-erywhere. I’ve always thought that inspiration finds you.

Where do you see yourself in the future?

Right here, doing what I love to do.

The Richards Group www.richards.com

See their Graphis Master Portfolio on graphis.com.

STAN HAS TO BE INTENSELY INVOLVED IN EVERY CREATIVE MOMENT. THAT’S WHAT DRIVES HIM.Steve Horn, Photographer, Commercial Director, Art Directors Club Hall of Famer

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(Top) “INSPIRATION CANYON” Poster; Client: Ram; Art Director: Mike LaTour; Writer: Chad Berry; Creative Group Heads: Jimmy Bonner, Rob Baker;

Creative Director: Stan Richards / (Bottom, Opposite page) “COLD WATER,” “TURTLE,” and “NIGHT SKY” Print; Client: Go RVing; Art Director: Jimmy Bonner;

Writer: Rob Baker; Creative Group Head: Glenn Dady; Creative Director: Stan Richards

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Client: Ram | Art Director: Jimmy Bonner | Writers: Rob Baker, Paul HarveyCreative Group Heads: Rob Baker, Jimmy Bonner | Creative Director: Stan Richards

F A R M E R

Client: Chick-fil-A | Art Director: Todd Tucker | Writer: Stuart Hill | Creative Group Heads: Dennis Walker, Ron Henderson | Creative Director: Stan Richards

B E T R A Y A L

Client: Fiat Chrysler | Art Director: Lynda Hodge | Writer: David Canright | Creative Group Heads: Lynda Hodge, David Canright | Creative Director: Stan Richards

B L U E P I L L

Client: Orkin | Art Director: Peter Everitt | Writer: David Morring | Creative Group Head: David Morring | Creative Director: Stan Richards

P I Z Z A D E L I V E R Y

Client: Hobby Lobby | Art Director: Tim Tone | Writer: David MorringCreative Group Heads: Tim Tone, David Morring | Creative Director: Stan Richards

S H E E P

Client: GameStop | Art Director: Greg Smith | Writer: Joey Googe | Creative Group Heads: Lynda Hodge, David Canright | Creative Director: Stan Richards

Y A Y

Client: The Home Depot | Art Director: Rob Hollenbeck | Writer: Greg ChristensenCreative Group Heads: Gary Gibson, Greg Christensen | Creative Director: Stan Richards

H E N R Y

Client: Bridgestone | Art Director: Shane Altman | Writer: Mike BalesCreative Group Head: Glenn Dady | Creative Director: Stan Richards

S C R E A M

“BROCCOLINI” and “CORN” Print; Client: Sub-Zero; Art Director: Dennis Walker; Writer: David Culp; Creative Group Heads: Dennis Walker, David Culp; Creative Director: Stan Richards