Hats-off to you guys for making it in The Hindu (Metro Plus Coimbatore), I certainly know that it is one talent pool and people out there have loads of potentials to bag lots of honours and accolades..
“Normalcy is crippling,” screams a white board on the wall of an advertising agency on Avanashi Road.
Scribbled in bold black letters, these words rule the lives of a bunch of 21-year-olds — owners of the agency.
Anybody who walks into this plush office will be intrigued by its unconventionality.
Creative colour schemes, lights to match the working hours, a chill-out zone … and also an inspiring story behind it.
Making their mark
A creative studio and advertising agency rolled into one, the company, named 14, has already made its presence felt in the field of advertising.
It provides advertising and branding solutions, brand development and web-based services.
14, that came into being in 2003, is the brainchild of Arjun Ganesan, then a student of B.E Computer Science, Kumaraguru College of Technology, and George Mathew, who was pursuing his Visual Communication at GRD College of Arts and Science.
Friends since school days, the duo dared to be different and decided to set up an advertising agency with nothing but their initiative as resources.
“Our ideas were big. But, we were just 18 then and didn’t know how to go about it,” they recall.
They started taking up projects for college functions, designing posters and hoardings and writing catch lines.
“At that time, we didn’t know what a portfolio meant and didn’t even have a professional visiting card,” says George, who now handles 14’s art direction and designing.
“We started from a basement with one computer and hardly slept during those days, sitting up the whole night brainstorming,” says Arjun, who does the marketing and is the Creative Director.
Now, the company has an impressive list of clients such as Pricol and Roots in Coimbatore and Reliance Dyeing Works in Tirupur. They are also currently involved in the complete brand promotion for Chennai-One, an IT chain coming up in several parts of Tamil Nadu.
During their initial days, they got noticed by some colleges and in less than a year’s time, they had a couple of plum offers from others. “We did projects for PSG College of Arts and Science, PSG College of Technology, Dr. GRD College of Science and Kumaraguru College of Engineering,” George says. “Though we worked hard, the remuneration was not all that great and we didn’t know what our work was worth,” chips in Arjun.
Slowly, they approached bigger companies who gave them projects but, the response was not very encouraging.
But giving up was the last thing on their minds. While one scribbled endlessly in college note books, the other went door to door, marketing their fledgling agency.
“Attending college was difficult; I almost got debarred once. Because, even during class hours, I was busy designing logos,” says a sheepish George. But, their parents were convinced of their creative potential and didn’t wish to be a hurdle in their creative pursuits.
The new entrants
Then, they bumped into another school friend, Vijay Krishnan, who was doing his Electronics and Electrical Engineering at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham.
An animation freak, Vijay was more than happy to join his old friends in their creative venture. He declined an offer from Cognizant Technology Solutions and became part of 14.
Soon to join the team of three was Killivalavan Solai (fondly called Killi), a B.E Computer Science student at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham.
Harish A.N, a mechanical engineer is the latest addition to team 14. A few others were part of it but, had to leave due to familial pressure. “Our growth was step-by-step and we reinvested our profits (though meagre in the beginning) in the company,” Killi says.
The partners have now channelised their work, each one taking care of separate sections.
Now, 14 is a professional agency that also has an impressive international clientele. Like Link-Ed Japan, a trading firm based in Japan, Vu-Group, a U.S.-based company, and Michelle Murphy, an U.S. fashion designer company.
They have also completed the branding solution of a Tamil movie slated for release at the end of this year.
Expansion mode
In addition to this, they have done the concept cover for Southside, a shortly-to-be launched magazine.
Their client base has been on a steady rise since the last five months and they are also looking to expand to other cities.
“We want to make it a corporate company in every sense of the term,” says Vijay. When asked about their earnings, he chips in with smile: “We earn a lot more than the IT professionals.”
But, earning is definitely not the ultimate high for them. They are more kicked about the creative challenges their assignments offer. “The company does not equate everything with money. They think ahead, travel a lot and are bursting with ideas,” says one of their clients Madhav Das, Chief Executive Officer of Desi Beats, a music company.
However, the success of their enterprise has not meant end of studies for this inspired bunch. “We plan to retire by the age of 25 and get back to studies,” they chorus.
Courtesy The Hindu
The moment I saw this article felt really happy and great, for I can say it people to whom I know, that they (14 Creative Studio) were my good old friends…
