Power Graphics, Inc

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (March 25, 2009) – Long-time Louisville advertising executive Mike Power has decided to call it a career after more than four decades in the business. The founder of Power Creative, one of the largest privately held agencies in the region, will retire officially on April 1, April Fool’s Day, the day it all started in 1968. Power will complete the transition to his son, David, who has been running the company’s day-to-day operations for more than six years. Mike Power has been an innovator in the industry, championing the strategy of developing in-house resources as a means to delivering on the creative ideas and strategic concepts developed by 150 employees on a five-acre campus in Louisville’s East End. “We built a strong reputation for meeting deadlines and budgets, and that was the result of being an early adopter of the technology that changed the advertising business,” said Power. “I started that by investing in typesetting and computer-generated graphic design capabilities more than 20 years ago; then we built an electronic pre-press department with industry-standard, Kodak-approval proofing for every image produced in our 25,000-square-foot commercial photography studio and a data storage and management system that makes our images and information available immediately to our clients all over the world. “But David really saw where all this was headed and he convinced me that we needed to invest in the people and technology, so we now have a large Interactive group that’s fully integrated with every other department,” said Power. “By sticking with that, even in the early years when we didn’t make money on it, we have been able to produce some very cutting-edge work in a niche where not a lot of agencies work — business to business to consumer — and deliver relevant messaging through the right channels for the target audience no matter how challenging that might be,” added David Power. “As a result, we’ve been using social media tools in incredibly unique ways for a long time and are very excited about the opportunities for the future of the company.” The agency’s growth has been steady over the years, from a core group of four employees and a $10,000 loan from the old Citizens Fidelity Bank to the size it is today. When Mike Power retires, he’ll be followed out the door by Rita Buntain, the company’s chief financial officer and one of the original cast of four to join him at the agency. “Rita always promised she’d stay as long as I did, and she’s been completely true to her word. People like Rita made the business,” he said. “The fundamentals of Power Creative will remain the same: We sell ideas generated by very smart people. I’ve been lucky to work with some of the brightest. My 40-year relationship with the terrific people at GE’s Appliance Park has been the most wonderful experience anyone could ever ask for.” As an art major from the University of Louisville, Power had a lot to learn about running a business. “What better place to learn than from the brilliant people at GE?” he said. “Dad is really going to miss the constant interaction with everyone here, especially the clients,” said David Power. “But we’ve got all that worked out. He’s going to hang around as a consultant when he feels like it, and he’s agreed to pitch in wherever we ask him.” “I’ll do my best to stay out of the way,” added Mike Power. “David’s taken the business to a new level and added a host of new clients. The work that he’s generated is truly amazing and I feel really fortunate to turn the reins over completely to him and step out of the way. He’s very talented, has a strong leadership team in place and has a good head on his shoulders. It’s going to be a lot of fun to watch the company - and him - succeed for a long time to come.” Founded as Power Graphics, Power Creative has grown into one of the largest full-service advertising agencies in the Midwest. With capitalized annual billings of more than $108 million, the company is an all-inclusive creative resource of customized services for a host of clients, including GE Consumer & Industrial, GE Aviation, GE Security, ResCare HomeCare, Ashland, Hillerich & Bradsby, Lennox International, Incorporated and its affiliates, Lexmark International, Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies, Bentwood Luxury Kitchens, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana, Brown Jordan International, Incorporated, Commonwealth Bank & Trust, Hollenbach-Oakley, InsiDesign, Olmsted Parks Conservancy, Sud Chemie, Trinity High School, Tempur-Pedic, Thornton’s Incorporated, Whip Mix and Zeon Chemicals, L.P. Additional information is available at www.powercreative.com.

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