The main topic was the impending deregulation of the industry. The letter of agreement between the agency and the bank was mailed out with a minimalist address:Ī few weeks after we landed the Pacific National Bank account, the American Bankers Association held its annual convention in Atlanta. Fortunately, both my degrees are in history-degrees whose worth had often been questioned by my parents and other more practical folks. And from the start he declared that our direction would be historical. He could sum up an idea or concept more succinctly and more colorfully than anyone I have ever met. Hank the Bank was a natural at marketing. Hank the Bank, photo courtesy of the Nantucket Historical Association I couldn't help thinking that I was addressing a midget Mel Brooks. Kehlenbeck himself, who remained seated on the floor, his legs skewed to one side. First appeared a pair of thoroughly tattered Nantucket reds. Then there slowly emerged the president himself. Standing above the desk, I politely called his name.Īfter a few moments, I heard a few salty expletives. She pointed to a pair of battered loafers poking out from under one of the desks. I inquired of the receptionist, Linda Davis, "Is Mr. Looking over the busy floor there was no bank president to be seen. When I first went to meet Hank on a busy summer Saturday morning, I was told that he was out on the bank floor. They always controlled the money here on the island."Īt the time I was one of the owners of a small Boston advertising agency-what was called a creative boutique. "We're marketing Nantucket, not giving away toasters!" was his gruff explanation. Kehlenbeck not only knew his market, he understood what drew customers to the bank. In the end, the bank not only created a new old image, but produced historic booklets that were distributed by the thousands. What started as a campaign to increase the bank's business soon took on a historical aspect of its own. The marketing was based on a simple fact: what the bank had to sell was its illustrious and interesting past. In today's era of mini-bite messages and pseudoscientific branding, the marketing of the Pacific National Bank in the "Golden Era of Hank Kehlenbeck" seems very strange.
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