David Wilgus

1980, B.F.A., Communication Design: Graphic Design
Instagram: Launch Agency
LinkedIn: David Wilgus
Website: Launch Agency

Please tell us a bit about yourself.
I graduated from what was then called North Texas State University in 1980 with a B.F.A .in Communication Design. For the past 20 years, I have been co-owner and creative director at Launch Agency in Dallas. I’ve had a long, successful career in advertising, and I feel blessed and lucky to have pursued a career in something I love. I’m extremely grateful for the teachers and learning experiences I had at CVAD and proud to be part of the legacy of a college that continues to produce some of the most talented students in the country.

Successful advertising careers for many creative people involve moving around the country from one agency to the next. I saw the toll that took on their families and was determined to build a career in Dallas. After starting my career 40 years ago, I’m still here…a sixth-generation Texan and Dallas native and married to a Dallas native! We have four amazing children and, at last count, 14, yes fourteen, grandchildren!

What is the idea's origin for your business; what is the backstory?

After 20-plus years as an art director and creative director on some of the largest national and global brands, I left the world of big advertising agencies with my two partners to start our own company. We adopted the characteristics of the startups we worked with – lean, scrappy, and innovative.

The name Launch perfectly fits what we wanted to build a company that can give innovative businesses the strategic thinking and creative firepower to launch or relaunch successfully.

For over 20 years, Launch Agency has helped lead and develop award-winning creative for Fortune 500 companies and fast-growth startups.

As a creative person, owning your business certainly has its challenges, but I have no regrets. It’s allowed me to work with some of the most amazing clients and terrifically talented people you’ll ever meet.

Has there been a point in your career where you took a scary risk?
Creativity and risk go hand in hand. There’s always an element of fear in taking a risk on a creative idea that stands out. In advertising, production and media costs are involved, too, so the risk is very high for everyone involved, not just the creative team that came up with the idea.

One of the more intimidating and probably most stressful advertising experiences I’ve ever had was working on a brand launch campaign for a new Las Vegas property called Paris. The hotel was still under construction, and the cost would be nearly a billion dollars.

We created a clever commercial to introduce Paris Las Vegas to the world, featuring men dressed in white jumpsuits stealing everything in Paris, including the Eiffel Tower, and having it all shipped to Las Vegas! As you can imagine, the concept was not cheap to produce, and the stakes were very high. After the shoot, we went to show a rough cut of the commercial to the president of the hotel. He met with his board that day and invited them to watch it with him. Before my creative partner and I showed them the spot, the president approached us and whispered, “This better be great.” I’ve never been more scared in my life. I thought if they hated the spot, they would bury our bodies in the desert, and we would never be heard from again. Thankfully, they all loved the spot! Paris Las Vegas had a triumphant opening and was hugely successful. The campaign went on to win many creative and hotel-travel industry awards.

As they say in Vegas, “You have to play to win!”

Did you participate in an internship or apprenticeship while you were in college? What lessons did you learn there that have proven helpful in your career?

I had the opportunity to participate in the internship program offered during my senior year. Unfortunately, no advertising agency internships were available, which was the career path that interested me most.

Tracy-Locke was one of Dallas's largest and oldest ad agencies then, so I called them and somehow talked my way into an internship. I got to work with Vin Scheihagen, one of their talented art directors and pitched in on several TL accounts, including Philips Petroleum and Frito Lay.

Vin was a Dallas native who left Texas to study advertising at the ArtCenter College of Design, Pasadena, Calif. He was a terrific mentor, and thanks to Vin, I learned more about advertising art direction during that internship than could ever be learned in a classroom.