Agency

Rudolf Farner establishes the first PR agency with a modern structure in Switzerland

The first clients are Confiserie Sprüngli and the Coca-Cola Corporation

Gustav Däniker becomes the agency’s first partner and takes charge of its operational management

Farner conducts the first groundwater campaign and makes environmental protection a media issue

Rudolf Farner becomes World President of the International Advertising Association

The agency produces a film for Expo64 called ‘Wehrhafte Schweiz’ (English title: ‘Fortress of Peace’), which is nominated for an Oscar (in the Best Live Action Short Film category)

Farner promotes Barbie – with fashion shows

The PR agency cuts its legal ties with Farner Advertising and becomes a separate entity

Farner launches the Mitsubishi auto brand – with a race in Sockental and a Japanese buffet with sake

The ‘Uf d’Socke mache’ health campaign gets half of Switzerland moving – our annual company day out has been called ‘Sockenmarsch’ ever since

Dominique Brunner and Heinz Gut assume operational management of the agency; Däniker takes up a position in the Swiss military

Farner wins the referendum campaign for the Zurich S-Bahn on behalf of SBB (Swiss Federal Railways)

Farner helps to rebuild the McDonald’s Stauffacher restaurant in Zurich following an arson attack and continues to work with the company on the opening of a further 36 restaurants

A Social Democratic Party (SPS) initiative on Swiss banking is defeated by 73% of the voting public – thanks in part to six years of work by Farner

The first Farner office in Geneva opens

Farner designs the Swiss pavilion at Expo88 in Brisbane – complete with a chairlift and ski slope

Farner wins the Berlin-Brandenburg airport project, coming out on top of 55 international agencies

The first agency in Bern is founded, led by Walter Spahni and Andreas Kurz

Farner is the first major agency to exhibit at the Internet-Expo in Zurich

Farner launches a campaign for the Swiss Aids Federation and organises a demonstration for a political mandate that is attended by 35,000 people, the largest since the 1930s

Christian König returns to Farner and joins the management alongside Dominique Brunner and Heinz Gut

The first ExRelations event for former employees is held

Christian König takes over operational management of Farner in a management buy-out

Other partners are Dominique Brunner, Jacqueline Moeri, Walter Spahni and Andreas Kurz

The agency becomes a member of the Vereinigung für ökologisch bewusste Unternehmensführung Schweiz (Swiss Association for Ecologically Aware Corporate Management)

The theme of the fourth ‘Farner Forum Investor Relations’ is investor relations on the internet

Jacqueline Moeri becomes President of the SPRG, and Farner launches the first hybrid car, the Toyota Prius, on the market

Farner comes in first in the BPRA Ranking again and continues to consolidate its position from this point onwards

Farner wins the IPRA Golden Word Award for Public Relations for the ‘Diabetes Breakfast’ preventive campaign

Farner marks its company anniversary by hosting a free workshop for volunteer organisations

Farner sets up a separate Creation and Advertising unit under Philipp Welti’s management as well as professional development and fitness programmes for employees

The agency changes its name to Farner Consulting AG and becomes the exclusive partner of global Omnicom agency network Porter Novelli

Daniel Heller and Urs Knapp become company partners

Christian König represents the BPRA in the umbrella organisation ICCO, and the agency obtains CMS certification

Farner becomes the exclusive partner of Regester Larkin, the global market leader for crisis communications

Christian König is the first Swiss and second German-speaking European to be accepted into the ICCO Hall of Fame

The first Farner office in Basel opens, managed by Baschi Dürr, a future member of the Basel Executive Council

The agency creates a new service package combining event management and sponsoring

Roman Geiser takes over operational management and acquires the majority of shares, making him the fourth majority shareholder in over 60 years of agency history

Farner is the first Swiss agency ever to win the Holmes Report award for ‘DACH Consultancies of the Year’

The agency becomes a partner of the global Omnicom agency network FleishmanHillard

Frédéric Jacquemoud becomes a partner

Daniel Jörg establishes the first Farner Digital Marketing and Research & Analytics unit

Philipp Skrabal takes over management of the Advertising & Events unit as chief creative officer

Michel Grunder, head of the Bern agency, becomes a partner

Farner is named the winner of ‘DACH Consultancies of the Year’ once more

The agency acquires Enzaim, which specialises in change management and communications

Daniel Jörg and Frédéric Jacquemoud become company partners

Farner enters into a partnership with the Reputation Institute and acquires YJOO Communications, a branding agency based in Eastern Switzerland

Nina Krucker sets up the Brand Communications unit; the company owns its first agency in Eastern Switzerland, YJOO by Farner

Nina Krucker, Philipp Skrabal and Martin Zahner become company partners

In April, a special 40-page supplement on Farner appears in ‘persönlich’, the sector’s leading magazine

The agency joins the LEADING SWISS AGENCIES association

Farner is awarded ‘DACH Consultancy of the Year’ (The Holmes Report) for the third time

Michel Grunder takes over the Public Affairs department as Daniel Heller’s successor

Tim Frey becomes a company partner and heads the offices in Berne, Geneva and Lausanne

The agency opens the Farner Lab, an innovation lab in Zurich

Farner takes over a majority share of DU DA and launches Data & Commtech offer

Markus Gut becomes a partner at Farner and builds up the new business area for branding

Farner acquires Rod Kommunikation; Regula Bührer Fecker, Pablo Koerfer and David Schärer become partners

Farner enters into an exclusive affiliate relationship with Edelman, the largest global communications firm