Among the 600, mostly creative types, who crowded into the small
function room at the Singapore Art Gallery to welcome the American
hotshop were a surprising number of big wigs from rival agencies.
Spotted in the crush were Lowe Lintas CEO Addison James, head of art
Craig Smith and art director Ng Pei Pei, both from Ogilvy & Mather, and
Starcom managing director D Sriram.
What better way to check out a competitor, especially one which clearly
has nerves of steel to launch in such a miserable time. Despite the less
than fortuitous moment for an agency launch, Fallon Worldwide chairman
Pat Fallon believes the agency's business game plan is conservative
enough to see it through the rocky economy. Then again, one could hardly
expect an early profit after having to provide food and drink for 600
people - many of whom were from rival agencies.
In fact the large number of rival agency executives in attendance had one wag speculating that perhaps it was the competition's attempt to derail Fallon's conservative game plan by drinking the newcomer dry, so to speak.