Finally

"Lights On" without the "Lights Out"

Talk about vertical take-offs: Creative talents Vian Berzenjie and Christian Feldhusen and their ELEVENSEVEN agency for visual communication and design burst on to the Berlin agency scene at the beginning of 2007, and have since come up with great work for clients like Bridgestone, Sony or the artist Modeselektor. They're already a recognized name.

But before they could even turn on the lights there were about 1,000 things to do, from "Acquisition" to "Website." But given their strong design heritage, IT was at the top of this list. Designers means they were of course passionate Mac users. So imagine how surprised we were with one supplier's offer. "They wanted to sell us a giant PC server for a Mac network with ten workstations," recalls an astonished Vian Berzenjie. "And for 'only' 20,000 euros!"

Responding to their emergency call, CODE COUTURE took on the case. ELEVENSEVEN started out like many new businesses: without a lot of cash for investment. So an interim solution was created based on already existing elder hardware. It was basic, but fully adequate for a start. "But when it comes to software, we're talking about more than a temporary solution," says CODE COUTURE's Andreas Kühnel. "As soon as ELEVENSEVEN gets through the start phase, all we'll have to do is upgrade the hardware." CODE COUTURE is specialized in solutions for ad agencies and publishing companies, and was able to provide both hardware and software, as well as telecommunications network for the client. Planned are four network ports for every workstation, in case the agency grows even faster than expected. "We got our network and everything we need for it for less than half of our first price quotes," says ELEVENSEVEN co-founder Christian Feldhusen. "So we are very satisfied." How was this possible? Well, lets talk about the server. Instead of a pricey, local mirroring or tape-backup for securing data, there's a mobile network with a double floor: external hard drives back-up the data on a daily and weekly basis. You could call it "data protection to go." CODE COUTURE also checks the condition of the server on a regular, automatic basis by remote monitoring. "If problems crop up, we're now in a much better position to respond before it becomes a problem with day-to-day business; says CODE COUTURE's Kühnel.

Critical for a smoothly running operation for both the IT company and the agency is the commitment to a long-term working relationship and assurance that everything is coming from one source. ELEVENSEVEN has to know that everything's working, but there are extras, too. Like a structured cable system based on the company's color scheme. The cables on the white ceiling are yellow, imparting a warm "industrial" charm to the otherwise purist white and off-white color scheme.

"We want start-up customers to conserve what they already have too little of," says André Jay Meissner. "That's money, time, and nerves." So Meissner and his staff are doing everything they can to keep the lights on for ad agency, with both remote monitoring and on-site support. Finally the agency's mascot, the dog "Eddie", is far much happier to see CODE COUTURE folks than the mail carrier. Maybe that's because the mail carrier doesn't arrive in camo pants, tattoos, or tasty skate-board shoes to chew on! How boring... :o)