Jarek Ziebinski, president, Apac (Asia-Pacific), Leo Burnett has always been bullish on the agency’s performance in the region (Apac), and especially India which grew by 38% in terms of revenue in 2010. Leo Burnett Apac itself grew by 12% in revenue last year, and the network hopes to touch the 14%-mark by the end of this year in the region. While growth this year may not be as robust as last year owing to the economic slowdown in the US and Europe, Leo Burnett’s Delhi office has achieved the status of being the agency’s fastest growing office globally. ?It’s great to see the how fast our Delhi office has grown. While we grew by more than 90% here last year, we look forward to a steady growth till the end of this year too,? he says.
So how did this all happen? It was certainly not the work of any magic wand and didn’t happen overnight. ?We have been growing steadily from the past four years by investing in our people. This involved hiring across the board with a special focus on senior creatives. So hiring and retaining the right talent will always be critical to our growth,? says Samir Gangahar, executive director, Leo Burnett Delhi. With the year yet to end, the agency’s Delhi office has managed to grow by 25% in terms of revenue in the first three quarters from that of the corresponding period last year.
While the agency’s anchor businesses like Thums Up, Minute Maid and Maaza from Coca Cola’s portfolio and McDonalds have been there for a long time now, an aggressive approach was adopted in terms of participating in more pitches. The objective is not to have a basket full of clients but to work with some and build relationships over a period of time. For instance, after handling a few projects some years ago for consumer electronics brand Samsung, the agency is now handling Samsung’s mobile phones and refrigerators businesses. Also, Leo Burnett’s association with cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris has deepened with the agency handling consumer activations for the brand. This year, the agency added businesses such as Coke Studio, Samsung retail and refrigerators.
The creative landscape in India has undergone some big changes of late and the agency is paying keen attention to these. Today both independent agencies and networks may seem to co-exist but there is always the pressure to prove who has the ability to retain a business beyond one or two projects. ?As long as we can come up with ideas that cause behavioural changes in consumers, there is no need to fret over what others (independent agencies or networks) are doing. There is nothing wrong with people carving a niche out for themselves,? says Gangahar.
When asked if Delhi can replace Mumbai to become the Mecca of advertising, Gangahar says, ?NCR (national capital region) has spurred the growth with Noida and Gurgaon providing office space to many multinational clients. We will be bigger than Mumbai in the next five years. Mumbai is more popular because of its place in the history of advertising.?
Sainath Saraban, executive creative director, Leo Burnett Delhi, who leads a team of 45 creative people shares that the agency follows an open office policy as part of which employees can walk up to colleagues across the hierarchies to discuss anything. ?We are part of an industry where a great campaign can be overshadowed by something way better. It’s hard to ignore the fact that the number of good writers in advertising is depleting. So agencies now have thinkers and ideators who are not necessarily great writers. This shift happened because advertising has evolved as a multifaceted business. If you (as a professional) are good just in radio, you need not be a jack of all trades by being equally good in other mediums,? he adds.
