Lester Wunderman
Chairman Emeritus and Founder
Wunderman HQ, New York
Lester Wunderman, consultant, professor, author and photographer, is Chairman Emeritus and founder of Wunderman. In 1958, Mr. Wunderman left his post as Executive Vice President of Maxwell Sackheim & Company to found Wunderman, Ricotta & Kline. In a legendary address at MIT in 1967, Mr. Wunderman identified, named and defined “Direct Marketing.” Since then, he has led the theoretical and practical growth of the industry.
Mr. Wunderman’s numerous awards and tributes include inductions into the Direct Marketing Association's Hall of Fame and the American Advertising Federation Hall of Fame. His book, Being Direct, was published by Random House in January 1997. An earlier book, Frontiers of Direct Marketing, was published in 1981, and his speeches and articles have appeared in publications worldwide. His next book, to be published in 2008, is titled The Wunderman Papers, with another about the industry evolution toward personal advertising to follow. Read the Lester Chronicles to find out what's on his mind.