Colin Hutt, president of Primum Marketing Communications, Milwaukee
Name: Colin Hutt
Title: President
Company: Primum Marketing Communications
Company address: 400 E. Wisconsin Ave., 2A
Company web site: www.primumagency.com
Industry: Marketing communications, including advertising, public relations, social media, Web sites, strategic planning, and video for B2B, consumer and health care.
Education: Bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame; master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Family: Wife, Colleen, and five kids, ages five months through 10 years.
Hobbies and Interests: "I’d like to skydive, but right now I’m more of a golfer and hiker."
Favorite book and/or movie: Books – "The Inferno" by Dante and "The Brothers Karamazov" by Dostoyevsky; movies – "This is Spinal Tap" and "Ferris Bueller’s Day Off."
Favorite musician/band: "Johnny Cash. My wife has a tradition of closing out all wedding receptions by singing ‘Folsom Prison Blues.’"
Favorite place to visit/vacation: "I’ve only been there twice – most recently this past summer in an RV – but I think the Black Hills of South Dakota is just about perfect. It’s so American: scenic mountains, canyons and lakes, great roads for driving, free roaming buffaloes, caves, poker and whiskey saloons in Deadwood, Mt. Rushmore, the smell of pine and campfires everywhere, Harleys, horses, kitsch. It has it all."
Favorite local restaurant: "Sobelman’s – best burger, hands down."
Words to live by: "You can’t make an omelet without breaking some eggs."
What is your core philosophy for doing business?: "Three things: 1) Go where others aren’t. 2) Have a sense of curiosity and urgency. 3) Treat everybody with dignity."
Who is your role model and why? "I admire anybody who is creative and works hard. It’s quite rare. I’m thankful to know a few and to be the son of two."
What was the funniest thing that has ever happened to you? "We went to the basilica dedication of Holy Hill a couple years ago. I chased one of my unruly toddlers around the back of church the entire Mass and was totally exasperated by the end. When we walked out, a TV reporter shoved a camera and mic in my face. She asked me what the event meant to me and – for reasons I cannot fully explain to this day – I just burst into uncontrollable laughter and could not get a word out. For someone who does media training, it was pretty humiliating. It added a new rule to the training manual though: ‘Don’t wrestle a toddler right before an interview – you’ll likely be insane and your hair will be messed up.’"
