Summertime meant big news for many downtown companies. Some local businesses announced new headquarters, while new businesses introduced themselves to the community.
Swanson Russell also celebrated, but for a different reason than most. The ad agency announced their “Super Big Non-Move,” an event which announced plans to expand their current location and stressed the importance of remaining in the downtown community.
To celebrate the news, each employee received an invitation to a groundbreaking ceremony, a commemorative t-shirt and were invited to a reception on the parking lot (the future site of the addition) featuring NitroBurger, drinks and cupcakes.
Mayor Chris Beutler, members of City Council and the Chamber of Commerce were also present at the groundbreaking.
“Being in a downtown location is important to us on several fronts,” said Brian Boesche, partner and chief creative officer at the company. “Our employees like being part of the downtown community and having access to all of the local restaurants and watering holes. We have a number of clients come to Lincoln from outside the state each year and it’s important that they see what the business community of Lincoln has to offer, as well as close proximity to hotels, the Haymarket and other social establishments. We also like being close to the UNL campus as we draw many of our employees and interns from the University.”
Since the June 19 groundbreaking ceremony, CEO and partner Dave Hansen said construction has been on schedule. He said he expects to be done with work on thefoundation and bearings in the next three to four weeks, with an overall expected completion date of May 1, 2016.
“Our new building is really about better and more efficient use of space rather than sheer size,” Boesche said. “As our business has evolved we wanted to have the ability for our different areas of discipline to collaborate more and to be more integrated.”
Boesche said the new space will be better suited to accommodate future growth and will have room to accommodate up to 30 additional employees.
In addition to the “Non-Move” event, Swanson Russell also recently celebrated winning six Tellys and four awards at the Hospital Marketing National Conference.
“We generally do very well in the annual Telly competition and last year was no exception,” Boesche said. “Producing great work is a team effort among our staff, our production partners and our client marketing teams. While winning awards is never our primary goal, it’s certainly nice to be recognized for the work that we do.”
As day-to-day business continues in the office, and although no major disruptions have taken place with major construction next door, the buzz of the future building is still felt by employees.
Hansen said employees gather at the north-facing windows, interested in seeing things begin to take shape.
“We’re just looking forward to getting the building done and utilizing our new space,” Hansen said. “We think the future will be very bright on the corner of 12th & P.”
Hansen said if people are interested, they can follow progress of the “Super Big Non-Move” at TheSuperBigNonMove.com or follow the hashtag, #TheSuperBigNonMove on social media.
Follow Swanson Russell online at: Twitter: @SwansonRussell
Instagram: @swansonrussell | Facebook: /swansonrussellcommunications Website: www.swansonrussell.com
by Terry Uland, President
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Founded in 1967, the Downtown Lincoln Association provides services and champions initiatives for maintaining and enhancing our vibrant downtown. Our vision is to create an energetic downtown environment where we live, learn, work, invest and play. DLA has evolved into a multi-faceted organization supporting a wide range of programs and activities including maintenance, economic development and advocacy. For a complete listing of downtown businesses, events and residences visit downtownlincoln.org. ‘Like’ us on Facebook at facebook.com/downtownlincoln.