Blakes is now in Chicago, Eh?
Doing a deal in Canada, eh? You can't miss that Blake Cassels & Graydon, which more than 500 lawyers and offices in Canada, the United States, Europe and China, has arrived in Chicago. (Click on the image to see it full-size.)
Blakes threw a snowball into the Chicago market, announcing their arrival right in the Loop on 181 W. Madison Street, with a giant glued-in postcard in the September 18 issue of Crain's Chicago Business. It was no accident that the issue featured a special Focus section on law firms expanding to global markets.
Why the card was so effective:
- You couldn't miss it -- it had a big red maple leaf on the front of the card.
- The tag line: "Blake's is the only Canadian law firm in Chicago." Nice point of distinction.
- They don't practice US law (no competitive threat to the local law firms) but rather assist US companies doing business up north.
- It listed six representative transactions -- ranging from $325 million to $5 billion for companies like Ford Motor Company. Very impressive.
- The entire message fit into one 8 1/2 by 11-inch sheet, which fits perfectly into a file folder.
- It named two people to contact, complete with their actual names, phone numbers and email addresses.
So who ya gonna call when you need some law done north of the border? Ya for sure, it's Blakes.
