Golden Time with 77 Ventures’ Galen Bernard
Has he seen the Boss? That’s a good question, one we should have asked Galen Bernard, Partner and Creative Director at 77 Ventures, the New York and Nashville-based independent agency. Galen lives along the Jersey Shore, plays and records his own music when he’s not working and has hung at The Stone Pony, Bruce’s Asbury Park haunt of lore. Then again, if you spent time in New Jersey, seeing Springsteen is almost a requirement.
Galen’s agency, 77 Ventures, often works in partnership with the action-sports specialists at Boomshot Productions. With a solid niche in the sports and entertainment space, Galen has led the creation of fast-paced work for brands like ESPN, the Southeastern Conference, NASCAR, the NFL, MSNBC, Fox Sports, Wyoming Whiskey, Tabasco and others.
Prior to joining 77 Ventures, Galen was a creative director at such agencies as Brooklyn Brothers, Arnold and Publicis. A second-generation advertising creative, he describes himself as something of a sports and pop culture whisperer for brands. The Howler caught up with him recently to find out how he spends his Golden Time.
Where do you live? What do you like best about where you live?
Galen: I live in Beach Haven, New Jersey (part of the year). I love living in a place where I can see and hear and smell the ocean. It reminds me of growing up on the south shore of Massachusetts.
How’d you get into the ad business? And how long have you been in your current role?
Galen: I was born into advertising, so to speak. My father was a Creative Director in New York and then Boston. My earliest memories of anything to do with work was going to the office with him. It seemed like his job was to draw pictures with magic markers and then use press type to spell out words. It seemed like fun…because at times it was. I have been in my present role for 13 years.
How often do you end up working on the weekend?
Galen: I don’t think I’ve ever adhered to the traditional 40-hour work week. That’s not to say I’m some sort of workaholic. I just think that a creative director in this business is always ‘on,’ to some degree. To me, watching a brilliant film or going to an art gallery or listening to a band live is all feeding the creative collective consciousness. But if the question is, do I work on the weekends, the answer is yes…especially at certain points during the year for certain clients.
What’s your favorite weekend decompression activity? How often do you get to do it?
Galen: My favorite thing to do to decompress is to play and record music. I do it all the time.
It’s a three-day weekend. How do you spend that bonus day?
Galen: If it’s spring/summer…I’d play beach volleyball. If it’s fall/winter…it’s building a fire in the firepit and listening to music.
How much time do you spend on your phone/tablet/laptop on a typical weekend?
Galen: Laptop quite a bit, if I’m making a new song. Phone…probably too much checking of sports scores and the occasional doom scroll.
What have you been watching lately?
Galen: I’m rewatching the show “The Americans. I am also watching “Slow Horses” on Apple.
Who do you listen to? What’s on your playlist?
Galen: I listen to all sorts of stuff lately. Here are ten music acts that are in my heavy rotation at the moment: Viagra Boys, Perfume Genius, Zig Mentality, Searows, IDLES, Japandroids, Failure, The Barr Brothers, Wet Leg and Momma
Best weekend live experience of the past year?
Galen: Day of volleyball and night of Bad Religion and Dropkick Murphys in an outdoor concert at The Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park.
So it’s Sunday night already! How do you get ready for Monday morning? What’s your Sunday night routine?
Galen: I’ve really never been a believer in the dreaded Monday, so I usually look at Sunday night as pasta night and maybe a movie or two over a glass of wine.
