Ken Stallman may have headed for a career as a pharmacist, but after graduating from Montreal’s McGill University with a BSc, he was bitten by the pharma bug instead. “I felt that there would be too much time entrenched in filling prescriptions rather than talking to the customer, unlike today,” says Stallman, who sought a way to “marry his love for the sciences with his desire to meet and mingle with people.”

Stallman’s quest was aided by recognition of the fact he had “an innate selling ability,” a talent that would land him a sales position at Parke-Davis/Warner Lambert in 1969. There he would begin a 12-year journey through a variety of sales and marketing positions. “I wanted to be in the pharmaceutical industry because I felt I was selling something that had meaning in terms of benefits for people. I really felt good about the products I had to sell,” he says referring to the range of OTC and prescription products he handled at the time.

In 1975, Stallman accepted an offer to relocate to head office in Toronto, along with his wife, newborn baby, dog, and bird, which was “no easy feat.” Six years later, he succumbed to his “entrepreneurial spirit,” taking the leap to the advertising side at the SMW agency. In time he became a partner with the company, which was subsequently bought by Publicis, and he was appointed Senior Vice President, Managing Director, heading the Publicis Wellcare division in 1998. During his 20 plus years with both organizations, he worked on various ethical brands with Ciba-Geigy, Hoffman-La Roche, Ferring, AstraZeneca, Organon, and Alcon as well as OTC brands with Bayer Consumer Care, Sandoz, and GlaxoSmithKline Beecham, and pet care nutrition with Waltham Veterinary Diets.

“Then I said I want to re-invent myself. I like the idea of being independent, where the buck stops here and I live and die with my decisions for me and my clients,” says Stallman. In 2002, he would realize his dream by starting Cundari Health, a fully integrated healthcare division of Cundari Group Ltd. where he’s been for the last five years. “Within six weeks we had a good solid [client] base,” says Stallman, adding that his healthcare expertise and his partner’s creative, promotions, and packaging background were a winning combination.

Looking back on the independence that Cundari has afforded him, Stallman remarks, “I was able to develop a totally integrated offering, not just base advertising and collateral, but all services including continuing health education,” which was later enhanced by the purchase of the CHE company, Minerva.
One of his proudest moments came in 2003 when son Darren joined the organization. Darren is now Director, Client Services.

The elder Stallman currently sits on many industry committees and boards where he can help influence healthcare policy in Canada and provide value for his clients.

His energies are also focused on creating and developing proprietary offerings. One that he has just developed will meet the needs of the biggest emerging cohort, the 50+ generation. “We’re also exploring more opportunities to work in the social media area. There’s a very skeptical audience out there. We have to be careful that we’re not always pushing the drug as much as pushing information, and that the drug is one of the solutions.”

But today, his most important role is that of grandfather to his beautiful granddaughter, Maya Samara, to whom his daughter gave birth this past August. “It’s a new, exciting, and different role and I must admit, I’m loving every bit of it.”

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