SHS partner Tom Bertels announces retirement

Sullivan Higdon & Sink partner Tom Bertels plans to retire from the advertising agency.

Bertels, 62, who joined the agency in 1997 as a vice president, will retire at the end of September, according to a news release.

Prior to joining SHS, Bertels was a co-owner of Lenexa-based aviation advertising agency Avion Group, which SHS acquired and expanded into the Kansas City area.

Before Avion, Bertels worked for a variety of aviation businesses and organizations, including the Federal Aviation Administration, a fixed-base operator and an avionics manufacturer. He served as an air traffic controller in the Navy and earned instrument and commercial ratings as a pilot.

Bertels left SHS in 1999 to work for the former Raytheon Aircraft Co. but returned to the agency in 2001.

The agency said Bertels’ retirement “is part of a well-planned succession of leadership” at the 145-employee firm that will be managed by co-CEOs John January and Ali Mahaffy and partner Rand Mikulecky.

This story was originally published August 12, 2016 at 9:43 AM with the headline "SHS partner Tom Bertels announces retirement."