Don Schilling was diagnosed with cancer in April and died Sept. 2. He was 47.
Springfield/Sellmeyer continues without chief executive
Jeremy Elwood
Posted online
Don Schilling, co-founder of Springfield advertising agency Schilling/Sellmeyer & Associates Inc., died Sept. 2 at age 47 after a months-long battle with cancer, leaving behind a company working to continue in his absence.
Schilling, a Rogersville native, was president and CEO of the ad agency for more than 17 years, according to his obituary in the Sept. 4 Springfield News-Leader. He and his company won numerous industry awards during the course of his career, including his being honored as the 2007 Professional of the Year from the American Advertising Federation of the Ozarks, formerly Springfield Ad Club, of which he was a member.
Matt Sellmeyer, vice president of design and production and co-owner and co-founder of Schilling/Sellmeyer, said that Schilling's shoes will be tough to fill, but the remaining nine employees at the company will continue to operate.
"Don was very important to the business, especially being a small business," Sellmeyer said. "It definitely leaves a void that everyone has had to pick up. Plus, most of our clients have been around for many years - many of them for all 17 years - and there's a person missing now that dealt with those clients every day. That's our biggest job right now."
No personnel titles have changed since the loss of the company's chief executive, and Sellmeyer said the remaining employees are working to absorb the extra work rather than trying to find someone to fill Schilling's role.
"Everyone in the company wears lots of hats," Sellmeyer said. "I have a great group of people that work here, and everyone has picked up and kept things as seamless as possible with all our clients."
The company's clientele include City Utilities; Guaranty Bank; Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper Bottling Co.; Springfield Cardinals; health care firms such as Oxford HealthCare, CoxHealth Plans and Healthcarefirst Inc.; Community Foundation of the Ozarks; O&S Trucking; UnderCover; and The Whitlock Co.
Sellmeyer noted that Schilling was diagnosed with cancer in early April, and the medical treatment he was receiving made it impossible for him to maintain a regular work schedule.
"It hasn't been overnight," said Sellmeyer, who is now the firm's sole owner. "It's been more gradual for us in the office."
That gradual nature may have helped alleviate some of the issues many small businesses run into when faced with the death of an owner.
Attorney Julie Brown of Carnahan, Evans, Cantwell & Brown PC, said that while she has no direct knowledge of Schilling/Sellmeyer, she advises small-business clients to have in place arrangements, such as buy-sell agreements, to prepare for these circumstances.
"It basically provides the company and the shareholders the opportunity to buy one of the shareholder's interest in the company in certain circumstances - for instance, upon the death of a shareholder or upon the disability of a shareholder where they can no longer participate," Brown said.
She added that buy-sell agreements work well if a co-owner decides they want out of the business.
"The main thing is planning early - sitting down while everything is good, while people are working together, and saying, 'Where do we want to take this company?'" Brown said. "Sit down with the potential players and plan what you want the company to look like."
