303 calls last drinks

Tuesday, 23 July, 2002 - 22:00
ADVERTISING agency 303 is leaving its Northbridge headquarters for the advertising belt of Subiaco. It will be setting up shop at 1 Outridge Crescent.

The firm has been operating out of the old Fitzgerald Hotel for the past seven years.

303 director Ray van Kempen cited changing needs of the business and a lack of infrastructure in Northbridge as reasons for the move.

“So much more of the work we do here is done electronically now so the size of real estate we need for our people has decreased,” he said.

“I also feel Northbridge hasn’t delivered on what we need. Subiaco has much better infrastructure for a business such as ours.

“There’s also been a change in our direction – more fun and less arrogance I guess.”

The agency has struggled through an arguably tough year in which it lost two of its biggest clients – HBF and BankWest – and top creative Mike Edmonds. Managing director Stephen Wells also left the firm.

Mr van Kempen said the bad run was coming to an end.

“We’ve won two lots of business from the Health Department and won the Rottnest Island Authority business from a field of 40 firms,” he said.

“These sort of things go in cycles. We’ve managed to retain some good staff and put on more good people. Our staffing levels are back at where they were at the end of last year.”