The Burrell style was as much destiny as a trip to the guidance office. As a high-schooler, Burrell was unsure of what he wanted to be when he grew up. A high school teacher suggested that the would be good as an advertising copywriter. At that time, Burrell barely knew what advertising was, let alone if he would like to write ads.

Burrell began his advertising career in 1961 after receiving an undergraduate degree in English at Roosevelt University. His first job was in the mailroom of the now defunct Wade advertising in Chicago for $50 a week. In six months, he moved into copywriting and has never left.

In 1971, Burell left Needham, Harper & Steers and opens his own agency with Emmitt McBain and Frank Mingo. Before the agency was up and running, Mingo backed out and Burrell McBain was born. Three years later, McBain left the company to pursue his art carrer, and Burrell Advertising was on its own with Burrell at the helm.

Burrell didn't start with the idea of a niche market agency. His main goal was to own his own business. After 12 years of experience, he didn't want to start over with small clients in a general market. He knew he could be successful with targeting the Aftican-American segment. But he had to convince corporate giants that he had a worthy product. With little start up capitol and undersized staff, he could never compete with the expense accounts and fancy buildings of his competitors. So how did he do it?

Burrell never says never. He began without a single loan and worked with a system called the "mail-order" strategy. "You save enough money to pay the rent on an office, get a desk and telephone, set aside something for other expensesand enough to eat for about six months, and then you get started," (Advertising Age, 1977).

The break for the agency was in 1972, when McDonalds joined its list of clients. McDonalds is still its oldest and biggest, with Coca-Cola added in 1973. A branch office of Burrell was opened in Atlanta in 1983 to service the Coke account.

Awards such as the Clio for both Coke and McDonalds, and honors like those from the Advertising Federation of Chicago, prove that Burrell has made his mark on the history of Advertising. His career also proves, as stated in the June issue of Advertising age, that "in 30 seconds you can build a brand and break a stereotype."

In 1984, the Burrell organization received its first general-agency account for Garneau Co.'s Martell cognac after it tested better than Benton and Bowles' general market ads. This proved Burrell's belief that "whites are easier to reach through Black advertising than vise versa." (McGeehan, 7).

Thomas J. Burrell was the first African-American advertiser to how ordinary Black people in ordinary life situations. Previously, Black ads consisted of caractures at one end or the other of the economic spectrum. Burrell labels his creative style the "Huckleberry Finn" approach. This means that his ads work on different levels depending upon the audience member. For one audience (white), it doesn't seem targeted to Blacks alone--they are entertained and feel positive about the interesting slices of life portrayed in the ads; however Blacks seem to see the extra meaning, those identifiable characters and realistic messages Burrell and his staff create.