Saatchi & Saatchi, Delhi, targets Rs 50 crore in billing

Saatchi & Saatchi, Delhi, prefers to be known as small, focussed and beautiful.

When Anand Narasimha took over as the head of Saatchi & Saatchi, Delhi, earlier this year, his mandate was not just to grow the business but "to continue to do great advertising". Add value and motivate people. And he is happy doing just that, setting himself a target of Rs 50 crore in terms of billing by end 2003, as against the Rs 34-odd crore the branch did last year.

Narasimha says Saatchi & Saatchi represents an opportunity for him to do great work. "I have always belonged to Delhi and joining Saatchi & Saatchi is like coming home after 16 years," says Narasimha, who quit consumer durables company BPL recently to get back to "where he belonged".

Homecoming it was. Narasimha has spent a big part of his 16-year career in advertising working at agencies like JWT (where he began his career in account planning), McCann-Erickson, Enterprise Nexus and Contract where he was head of its southern operations. After a total of 12 years in advertising, Narasimha joined BPL as head of brand management and chased volumes for the next four years.

But no, he will not aimlessly chase numbers at Saatchi & Saatchi. "Saatchi & Saatchi does not want to be a factory, churning volumes." Narasimha believes chasing bottomlines ends up frustrating people. "I know this is an aberration in today's understanding of advertising. While we want to be profitable, we will not chase volumes. Volumes dilute efforts," says Narasimha who is not only clear about the kind of work his agency will do, but also the kind of clients he wants to work with. "We want to work with clients who have a vision, who have leadership qualities and who are very serious about their brands. Which is why we are happy doing work for Hyundai's Santro, Bharat Petroleum's lubricant business and the Taj Group of Hotels, Delhi."

As a group too Saatchi & Saatchi has had a lot to cheer about in recent times. Recently, Saatchi & Saatchi was elected as the "Global Agency Network of the Year" by Adweek and AdAge. In an internal congratulatory letter to the Saatchi & Saatchi network, worldwide, Maurice Lévy, chairman and CEO, Publicis (Publicis bought out Saatchi for $1.9 bn in 2000), wrote, "The designation of Saatchi & Saatchi as Global Agency Network of the Year is an official acknowledgement of the outstanding work accomplished over these last years by CEO Kevin Roberts, Chairman and Worldwide Creative Director Bob Isherwood, along with all of their teams who today personify the motto ‘one team, one dream'. More than ever, Saatchi & Saatchi today embodies ‘the Ideas Company' concept and we can all hail this accomplished performance and remind ourselves that this crowns an already impressive year for 2002 (Best Agency at Cannes, Top Ranking Worldwide Network in International New Business…)."

Lévy, also added, "…The Publicis Groupe "la Difference" is a catalyst to our success…"

And it is by making a difference in the lives of its clients that Saatchi & Saatchi, Delhi, hopes to touch the Rs 50-crore mark. © 2003 agencyfaqs!