Gordon Sutton - President and CEO
Starting and running a business is not an easy thing, especially after having built yourself up in a brilliant career. Gordon Sutton, President and CEO of Sutton Integrated Solutions, Sutton Compliance Communications, and DisclosurePlus, left a great career and a great pension and took the chance, and is now one of the most successful in the marketing and communications industry.
SIS has enjoyed many years of successes now. SCC offers the most comphrensive list of in-house services offered by any company in the industry here in Canada. DisclosurePlus itself is the most advanced CMS solution for public companies currently available, and has already helped companies win awards for best compliance practices. In all, Gordon Sutton’s group of companies bring in over $3,000,000 in revenues, and he now enjoys his work more than anything else.
Please tell us a bit about yourself, how did you start?
I have only ever held two jobs in my life. My first job was working as an apprentice journeyman at the Globe and Mail. My second and current one is working as an entrepreneur running my own business.
At the Globe and Mail I spent 15 years learning a variety of tasks from being the youngest Foreman in the history of the Globe and Mail to being the Production Director of the Globes Magazine Division with many other management positions in between. I soon learned I wanted to be my own boss and started Sutton in 1998.
It must have been a pretty big change for you to go from a 15 year career at the Globe and Mail to running your own business.
No, I felt that there was not a big jump from producing a magazine of a world class stature to producing an Annual Report with the same stature. My first annual report client was Falconbridge Gold – it was 22 years ago and believe it or not the contact that I sold to at Falconbridge Gold is still a client to this day, having moved now to First Nickel.
That is a relationship of 22 years based on great service, exceeding expectations, and now, a long term friendship. The friendship is a bonus of course. It has always been my company’s motto to never get out-worked and that we will do “Whatever it Takes” to make sure my client’s expectations are met and exceeded.
The hardest part was that I had to work from my basement for the first year and did not make the same money as I had made at the Globe and Mail until my seventh year.
Could we have a brief description of Sutton’s group of companies? What are your financials like? What markets do you serve?
As we are a private company our financials are not public, but they are in excess of $3 million and we do have 18 full time employees. We have a substantial amount of core products and the full list can be seen on our website or brochure. Our geographic market is anywhere in Canada that we feel can use our services and make the trip beneficial for both parties.
SCC – Sutton Compliance Communications – founded January 2011
At SCC, we deal primarily with companies listed that are on the TSX, Venture and CNSX exchanges. We are one of Canada’s top 10 annual report producers, dealing in all aspects of compliance materials including websites, branding, annual and quarterly reports.
SCC started as a part of Sutton Integrated. It was spun out to focus more exclusively on publicly listed company with a more concise and focused service offering centered around our new tagline of “Turning Obligations into Assets”.
DisclosurePlus – founded 2002
DisclosurePlus is Content Management System (CMS) web solution that takes the worries of disclosure away from the client by making it automatic and easily maintained.
Fully developed in-house, we offer unparalleled ease-of-use to managers of public companies looking to streamline and manage their entire disclosure and information publication process. DisclosurePlus is there for the CEO or CFO looking for a cost-efficient way to manage the image they present to investors automatically and at all times.
Sutton Integrated Solutions – founded 1988
Where SCC usually works with public companies, Sutton Integrated Solutions deals primarily with marketing initiatives for private companies. Of course, there are times when the public market needs the same things and there is an opportunity to cross sell Sutton Integrated Solutions to our SCC clients.
At Sutton Integrated Solutions, our list of deliverables ranges from branding, brochure ware, websites, and complete marketing solutions to basically anything a client may need to sell his product or service and ultimately increase sales.
What was it that inspired you to start your own business?
I started the business because of a drive from within that I did not know I had until I finally had the nerve to quit a job paying 6 figures and a juicy pension.
It happened when I looked at the business to business sector and realized that the design and marketing that was going on for these businesses were lacking to say the least. It was an easy sell to show them world class design with a clear and concise marketing measure compared to what they were doing.
This was great, except that when I did my job properly the clients would end up needing me less. Since my client’s sales would climb, the need to change their messaging would again diminish. I soon realized that annual reports were done every year – whether good or bad times they were needed. And, a great job each time meant clients generally stayed with me and became loyal customers.
Jeff Sutton (VP, Sales) and Maite Soria-Sutton (COO)
It has always been my company’s motto to never get out-worked and that we will do “Whatever it Takes” to make sure my client’s expectations are met and exceeded.
What ended up being the hardest part of starting out? Where did you get your seed capital from?
The hardest part was that I had to work from my basement for the first year and did not make the same money as I had made at the Globe and Mail until my seventh year. The business seed to start came through a second mortgage on the house. It may be a tough way to start but it sure teaches you discipline and money management.
It must have been quite a move from your basement to where you are today.
After the first year I was able to rent out a space just north of the 401 off Kennedy Road. A long trip to the core of the city but the price was right. At this time I hired a full time Creative Director who became a partner for 10 years. During that time we moved to Victoria Park and 401 and also opened an office in Calgary.
After 10 years we separated and my partner took over Calgary and I stayed in Toronto and finally moved downtown for the first time. We have been in our current space for seven years and we feel that being downtown is now crucial to the success of our business.
Kylie, Gordon Sutton's First Grand-Daughter - Photo courtesy of Gordon Sutton
So how did you build up your team and what compels to them stay?
My staff is very loyal and we have grown our team over a very long period of time, most of them have been with us over 5 years. Everyone working with me is now infused with the Sutton philosophy, having been steeped in it for so long. My current Creative Director is a partner and has been with Sutton for over 12 years along with six other key members that make up a strong management team and are the nucleus of the company.
Our team has stayed together for so long because we have built an excellent working environment for them. We actively promote the idea that each individual’s success is based on their ability to write their own job description and do what they want to do.
What are your recent successes and milestones?
One of our recent successes revolves around our technology. Last year we launched our SEDAR Push product for public companies. The simple explanation is that when a public company files on SEDAR the file will automatically install the file in the appropriate spot on the client’s website. We have divided up the SEDAR filings of companies into nine areas and our software that is connected to SEDAR will push the filings to the right spot on a DisclosurePlus client’s websites at the right time.
Another success for us is finishing off development of our PDF Generator. This is a product that can take random information from your website and print it out as a Fact Sheet. This alone is not that amazing but what is amazing is that you can make a change to your website and the PDF that does the printing will also change automatically.
We also now sell a Digital Reader which takes a PDF and turns it into an interactive online version. Again, we provide even more value by making sure that the online version is Search Engine Optimized and the user can track the views and clicks.
We have also just finished our fourth version of our Content Management System (CMS) and this update just has no rivals anywhere. It is a strong first-to-market product and puts our clients far ahead of the pack in nearly all aspects related to their communications and image.
At Sutton we measure success by the length of time we can successfully keep a client working with us. From that perspective we have been working with RioCan REIT for 18 years, with ClubLink for 12 years and with Great-West Life for 10 years, to name a few.
In these trying times where money seems more important than your work or your relationships with your clients, it is great to know that with some clients, exceeding their expectations and actually doing a great job means something to them.
Ian Graham (VP, Business Development) and Jennifer Sawyer (Production Manager)
I love being an entrepreneur; I wouldn’t change it for anything.
How do your future plans look like?
Our future plans include a lot of possibilities, especially around acquisitions and or mergers. Our products have reached a point where the need is there and our clients and potential clients are beginning to understand how the web works and how the new media can actually change their business in a positive way.
What is your exit strategy?
My exit strategy is based around finding a partner to buy out part of the business and to also sell some of it at a discount rate to my employees who are interested. I hope to start slowing down in the next couple of years with a total exit in about five years.
What is it that led you to your successes?
My wife always tells anyone who is willing to listen about one of my virtues, “I have never failed, because I never quit”. She is correct in that statement but I would go even further in that success is measured not only on how well you succeed but how well you handle your failures.
I truly believe that statement because if I call myself a success, it comes from a lot of pain and the ability to pull myself up and try again. I never quit or lose my positive outlook on life or my goals no matter how hard it gets.
Mahmoud Ramezani (Creative Director)
If you were to recommend a movie to other entrepreneurs, what would it be?
My favourite movie is the original Four Feathers. To me the movie is about true friendship and the ability to stick to your beliefs and to not fall into the trap that you should do it because of what other people are telling you.
The courage comes from your convictions to do what is right for you and to take the right advice if it fits but not be swayed or to buckle from what everyone else thinks of you. Stay true to what you believe and stay on track with your goals and aspirations, but do not believe what Donald Trump says, “It Is Personal” (at least to me).
You now have been an entrepreneur for longer than you’ve worked, how do you feel about it all?
I love being an entrepreneur; I wouldn’t change it for anything. All decisions I make, I make in them knowing they are my decisions. If wrong, it is my fault. If right, I feel great in knowing I control my own path.
Geoffrey is the inspiration for Gordon's philanthropy and Kylie, Gordon's grand-daughter.
If I call myself a success, it comes from a lot of pain and the ability to pull myself up and try again. I never quit or lose my positive outlook on life or my goals no matter how hard it gets.
The Right Mind-Set and Dedication for Success
Gordon Sutton has shown over and over throughout the interview that it really does take a dedication to what you want to do to succeed. From taking that first plunge in choosing to leave The Globe and Mail to start up Sutton, to his complete dedication to absolutely satisfying his clients through quality service and exceeding expectations.
It is his mind-set that allows him to set himself apart from the rest. And by infusing a great core team with the ”Whatever it Takes” motto, he built a strong nucleus for his business. Add to that his absolute positive attitude, and you can see why Gordon Sutton has never failed.
