FOCUS: YEAR-END REVIEW - BBH strengthens Asia-Pacific operation

<p>I don't think 2000 turned out to be the cake walk that everyone </p><p>seemed to think it was going to be, but at least it was a return to </p><p>helping clients create more value in their brands. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It is a much more preferable pastime to discussing how long the crisis </p><p>will last. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>My observation would be that the industry has reaped the rewards of zero </p><p>investment during the crisis. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>We are now paying the price of shortage of good people in account </p><p>management and competing with ridiculous freelance rates for creative </p><p>staff. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And what are all these expensive freelancers producing anyway? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>I said last year we were in a period of transition at BBH and I think </p><p>that this year that has started to show the results. A return to the </p><p>simple pleasure of doing great and effective work. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The creative highlight was undoubtedly having creative work running in </p><p>four different countries almost simultaneously for four different </p><p>clients that were the most talked about ads at the time. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In China, our Alpenliebe commercial made that brand the most famous </p><p>candy in the country. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In Japan and the region, our work for Levi's Engineered Jeans played its </p><p>part in creating the most successful launch since 501s. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The launch commercial for Unilever's Refresh brand in Indonesia has not </p><p>only created a new star in the main character (a fish) but also created </p><p>fame for the brand that drove immediate trial. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And in Singapore, the SingTel ICC Card became famous again with the </p><p>Irene Ang Diner commercial. I'm just bursting to tell you the tracking </p><p>results, but I'd have to shoot you and SingTel would shoot me! </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And now I think of it, the real highlights were: the ecstatic internal </p><p>client email about the Alpenliebe performance, a drunken journalist </p><p>going on and on about the Levi's work, seeing the Levi's sales figures, </p><p>hearing consumers say they bought Refresh because of the advertising and </p><p>hearing people talk about and enjoy the SingTel ad in the cinema. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>After all, and we should never forget: isn't that why we got into this </p><p>business? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Creativity in all we do is far more likely to end up with creative </p><p>product at the end. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>What kills creativity more than anything? Focus groups. One highlight </p><p>for me this year was actually a piece of research we did. Research? </p><p>Yep. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>But not focus groups. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In a region where it is notoriously difficult to get any kind of handle </p><p>on consumers across borders, we developed one of the most interesting </p><p>and insightful pieces of work I've seen or been involved in. It was </p><p>called Elixir. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Elixir was co-sponsored by Unilever, DeBeers and MTV, and it gave us a </p><p>powerful insight into the hopes, dreams and motivations of the youth </p><p>market around the region and their implications for marketing. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Thanks to our sponsors. It was not only of value to them but helped </p><p>inform our creative output by helping understand what will really get </p><p>the attention of youths and young adults across the Asia-Pacific </p><p>region. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>When we set up here, we wanted to create a regional business from our </p><p>office in Singapore. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The two challenges were consumer understanding and opportunities from </p><p>this geographic location. This year I believe we have really started to </p><p>achieve it. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>And when you add Unilever to your client list you have to believe you </p><p>are starting to get some of the basics right. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Thank you and happy new year to our staff in Singapore and Japan, and to </p><p>our clients. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>