M&C Saatchi opens in Indonesia with former Phibious boss Anish Daryani at its helm
M&C Saatchi is to open an independent operation in Indonesia headed by South East Asia ad land veteran Anish Daryani.
Daryani, who was previously the chief executive officer of independent agency Phibious in Jakarta, will serve as a partner to 20-year-old agency network.
The agency has no clients on its books as of yet, but is understood to be undergoing a period of rigorous pitching for business in what is South East Asia’s largest market.
Daryani has 25 years of advertising experience in India, Kenya, Nigeria, Vietnam and Indonesia, holding senior leadership roles at agencies such as Ogilvy, Leo Burnett, Lowe & Partners. He joined Phibious as deputy managing director in Vietnam in 2015 and moved to open the agency’s Indonesia operation in 2016.
Joining him at M&C Saatchi Indonesia is former Dentsu creative director Dami Sidharta, who will act as the agency’s executive creative director.
Sidharta previously worked on accounts for the cigarette brand Gudang Garam, Pocari Sweat, Panasonic, Yamaha and the Indonesia Tourism. According to the agency, his campaign ‘Gudang Garam Rumahku Indonesiaku’ was recognised as the best commercial by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Indonesia in 2007.
Completing the founding team is Elki Hendria, who follows Daryani from Phibious as M&C Saatchi’s executive planning director in Indonesia.
Speaking to Mumbrella about opening in the market, Daryani said: “Indonesia has been growing 5.5 per cent for the past five years. Last year there was a small slowdown, but this year is going to be very exciting.
“The Asian Games are coming to Indonesia, there are regional elections and globally there is the football World Cup. Indonesians are football mad. There are a lot of local brands here that are giving the multinational brands a run for their money; there is a very forward-looking environment and an entrepreneurial zeal. All this results in giving a very exciting market”.
On his decision to leave Phibious for M&C, he added: “M&C is a very entrepreneurial agency with a system built around simplicity in advertising. That appealed to me at a time when everything is getting complicated in advertising.”
M&C Saatchi Indonesia will also launch its other specialist brands: CRM and big data analytics agency LIDA, M&C Saatchi Mobile, and Australian specialist performance-marketing agency Bohemia, which the agency acquired last year.
The network has been in Asia since 1995 when it first opened up in Malaysia. It has since opened bases in Japan and Singapore.
“M&C is a (sic) very (sic) entrepreneurial agency with a (sic) system (sic) built around (sic) simplicity in advertising.”
Simplicity. Nice. Just what you’d expect from Dryani’s simple Calcutta childhood. Quiver and quake, all ye who build the mighty WPP, Publicis and Omnicom in Indonesia. The buffoon has landed, to add to the embarrassment of his already beleaguered M&C compats in Sg.
ReplyA “veteran” with Asian experience in India, (Indian advertising expat’s second home) Vietnam and (Indian advertising expat’s third home) Indonesia?
Not China, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Regional APAC (Singapore/HK)?
Are we seriously on the same page? Nice try, Eleanor.
Replywtf is phibious anyways?
ReplySeriously, people that are leaving snide comments clearly have an agenda or are very insecure, petty minded individuals.
India is a huge market, Vietnam is very fast-developing, and Indonesia is the largest country in Southeast Asia. Since he’s in charge of Indonesia this seems to be a pretty strong and relevant background.
I’m would love to detail the amount of times a Singapore or Hong Kong (or globally) led initiative has been an utter regional or local market disaster for so many brands. But this would take forever. The point being, what works in La La Land doesn’t always work in Indonesia or Vietnam or Laos etc.
This is why you hire people with experience in those markets who can say to overseas clients and global agency ECDs, “No, that won’t work here. The local population will hate it. Try this instead…”
Note: I’ve never met the guy. I have no affiliation with his past or present agencies (we have competed but only very indirectly). I’m just sick of these uncalled for, bullying, jealously-tinged comments that proliferate. If he’s a buffoon then prove it and stop looking down your nose at the rest of Asia.
ReplyChill.
Aspire.
Grow.
Lead an office in Tokyo, Shanghai, HK or Singapore. Before/After stagnating in any other Asian city..
Then bark.
Chill. Again.
Reply[Edited under Mumbrella’s community standards]
No problem with wishing him well. Just that he appears to have achieved very little for his age. Guess that’s why it’s wrong for him to be featured here. Marketing-Interactive would have been a more appropriate place for a struggler.
ReplySure a lot of ignorance and bile here. Indonesia may be poor but it’s economy is still bigger than Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand combined. And it’s advertising industry is worth about a billion USD more than Singapore’s – and growing at about 4x the pace. It’s an important market. Good luck to these guys. I hope they thrive.
ReplyI agree with the comment from sb. Nice combination of facts, opinion and positive attitude.
I tend to favor wishing others in adland my best (as long as we’re not competing in a pitch…)
ReplyThis isn’t about Indonesia the country or its size, market potential and national ad spend.
This is about such a giant’s pathetic investment in agency talent and (consequently) its advertising.
Global agency leadership has long cut corners, settling for the low cost hires of lacklustre Indonesia heads, in agency and creative management.
The pursuit of local insight doesn’t exonerate local management from raising the creative bar, the way (say) the Japs and Thais have in Asia.
You can’t get away with lame excuses like “local insight”. That’s brilliant market research, not advertising.
So while the Milward Browns and Nielsens will continue to earn our respect, the Ogilvys, JWTs and Publicis will continue to embarrass.
Not sure about Piphous or Vietnam, but it will take the brothers Saatchi a lot more than these three kids (or even any of their peers in Indonesia) to pull off the kind of work Tokyo, Bangkok, Shanghai, HK or Singapore do.
ReplyI don’t know much about the MC Saatchi team in Indonesia, but you’re absolutely right that there’s been an underinvestment in talent in the country, and it really shows in the output. It’s a pity because it produces remarkable work in the fine arts, graphic design, fashion etc. With some exceptions the advertising industry has failed to keep pace and has now become distracted by the scam game.
ReplyIndonesia’s growing at about 4x the pace of Singapore?
Well, I once knew a guy named Prick who grew at about 4x my pace – in all the wrong places, including his brain. Let’s not confuse overpopulation with progress, can?
ReplyWith that excess billion USD the country ends up with the worst agency talent among Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand?
ReplyYes, it’s a missed opportunity.
ReplyIndia, Kenya, Nigeria, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Poor chap could have been better off with even a few days of global grooming in the US, Europe, Australia/NZ, Japan, China, Singapore or Thailand.
Exclusively toiling in developing markets (however large their potential or pace of growth) definitely affects one’s outlook enough to be shunned on the global scene.
His body language is all wrong, for starters.
ReplyWonder if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, given that I haven’t a fucking clue about that Phibious hole, in the first place.
ReplyHave your say