AROUND TOWN:
Giving back at wine auction
I’ve often wondered why some companies use their marketing dollars to host golf tournaments while others might hold a big reception or buy a chuckwagon tarp or perhaps invite staff and clients to an evening of theatre.
I noticed in the ‘Save the Date’ e-mails for Willow Park Wine & Spirits’ Charity Auction on Nov. 8 that Simpson & Associates Executive Search is again the event’s major sponsor, so I paid a visit to Cathy Simpson to ask why she had selected that particular event.
I learned the focused and determined businesswoman is far more than the sponsor, she’s also a big bidder who has used it as a thank you to clients.
She invites 80 to 100 each year to what has become one of Calgary’s premier must-attend galas.
That Simpson is determined is reflected in her successful business. She moved to Western Canada from Ontario in 1979 and worked in human resources with the government, in banking and with a law firm before moving to Whitehorse, where she continued her HR career for three years with the Yukon government.
It meant working with senior level executive search firms across the country and Simpson became intrigued by the business and decided to explore that career path.
After moving to Calgary in 1994 she tried to get a position with search firms here but as she says, “A woman from Whitehorse with no contacts was not on anybody’s A list.”
So she decided to start her own company, and with some help from Al Lennox of Lennox & Associates, began building a client base.
In 1998, moved into her own office space in Sun Life Plaza where she still works from today.
Simpson & Associates has grown into a top brand search firm with a staff of eight who are client engagement driven working for a portfolio of high-impact corporations, mostly in the management to senior executive level in the energy sectors of oil and gas, service, power and pipelines.
Simpson is proud of her longstanding relationships as a trusted adviser and as an extension of her client’s staff.
Calgary is naturally the base of her business but searches mean a good number of her clients here require worldwide research and there is a growing demand from international companies for her expertise.
Simpson’s association with Willow Park began with her purchase of a ticket to the wine auction.
After complimenting the organizers on how they raised funds for charity, she decided eight years ago to support it in a more meaningful way.
Peggy Perry, vice-president of marketing and purchasing at the store, said Simpson has been instrumental in raising the bar of the Vintage Fund auction that to date has grown to almost $4 million.
She also continues to win bids on good wine and champagne and tours that have taken her to wineries in Spain, Chile, Italy and France.
Simpson’s influence is such that she was asked to name a charity to support and she was thrilled to remember the sacri- fice her father made during the Second World War by having the Veteran’s Food Bank and the Calgary Poppy Fund included, along with the Alberta/B.C. Guide Dog Services.
Doug Niwa and Ian Franceschi led the talented design team at MartensGroup that was responsible for the new office premises for Gowlings on four floors of the TD Canada Trust Tower.
Last week, they were in Toronto with Gowlings Calgary general manger Shawna Campbell to attend the ARIDO Awards (Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario) of which MartensGroup principal Sharon Martens is a registered member.
The Calgary firm not only won the award of excellence for its Gowlings work, but also the coveted highest honour — project of the year — for an unprecedented two years running. MartensGroup won last year for its BDP office project in Eighth Avenue Place.