When was the agency launched and what gap were Kawal Shoor and Navin Talreja trying to address with The Womb?

Labour Day, 2015.

The gap? Well, we just wanted to do what good agencies should be doing. And had stopped doing, because they had gotten blinded by the flashy new. And that is – get to the wicked hard problems that clients themselves can’t quite define. They need a partner who is ready to roll up the sleeves, dig deep, understand, and then solve.  

What’s the current size of the team? 

Size and profile are two entirely different things. With a median experience of more than 10 years, The Womb has a significantly senior workforce profile. So clients get senior counsel, and a far greater chance of getting things right the first time – which is crucial in the times we live in. 

Einstein once said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions” In our business, good planners increase the chances of getting to the right problem to solve. The composition of our team is very different from a typical agency. While most other young agencies try and appear current with tech hirings, we’ve over-indexed on planning and strategy. A 33:33:33 split across account management, creative and planning is unheard of anywhere in the world, but this has been The Womb’s approach from day one.
We are currently about 70 people excluding support staff. 

The agency has maintained its ‘no pitch’ mantra since launch. Has it been tempting to sometimes drop this?
 
Just to clarify, when we say we don’t pitch, we don’t pitch with any speculative solutions of any kind – no strategy, no creative. Not even for a pitch fee, because then you’re accepting a nominal value on your thinking. We don’t share thoughts, but we share how we think. That is what a perceptive client truly seeks. A match of minds, and an ability to work together. And unsurprisingly, when we get into a room with potential clients, they invariably see the logic and it works. 

Do we get an itch to pitch with potential solutions? Of course, yes, sometimes. Especially when we know we know what to do. And when big brands come calling. Which agency would be happy saying a no to Spotify, Swiggy, Netflix and Unilever? On the other hand, the same approach has got us into long-term partnerships with Mahindra Auto, Britannia, Asus, Vini, Piramal Finance, Danone, and so many others. Our decision to not pitch has had no negative effect on our own growth. And the benefits far outweigh the temptation – very high engagement with decision makers at client organisations (as only they can circumvent the pitch process and get us on board), real business issues to grapple with, and real influence throughout the client organisation. Not to forget that our own people are happier, and it has built for us a no-nonsense reputation. It also keeps us honest to the job at hand, as the only way we get new work is through the work we put out. 

We want to make brands big, rather than just work on big brands. We want to build case studies of tomorrow, not just a brilliant campaign here and there. And we already have them. We want to see long term success of our clients, rather than just bask in the halo of an award-winning campaign. Our attitude of not-pitching has got us into the kind of client relationships that we thrive in. Equal, un-vendorised, unapologetic, yet really demanding in outcomes. 

It’s also considered a ‘strategy powerhouse’ with multiple wins across the Effies. Is this what clients are looking for more than creative awards? 

Clients are trying to grapple with a very fragmented media and selling environment. The marketing systems are fragmented too. The CMO is now no longer one. Marketing accountability is highly questioned. And in this chaos, clients need to find a way to grow, and simultaneously build their brands. The more we as an industry focus on these things, and find creative ways to help clients grow, the better it will be. Awards, of all kinds, are just validations. Junior to mid-level clients want these a little more, while decision-makers are focused on profitable growth and brand equity. Having said that, yes, when our work works, we like to enter effectiveness awards, and we have won some. But they don’t define us. Good work, happy clients, and long-term partnerships is what gets us going. 

Any perceptions of the agency you’d want to correct...

A few: 

One – 'The Womb is just a strategy powerhouse'. We are perhaps unconventionally creative. We like to do work that’s simple and un-ignorable. We’re not complaining about our strategy perception, but reality is a lot more well-rounded than that. 

Two – The Womb is a ‘film’ agency. Yes, what gets seen are video campaigns, films, etc. But we’re about where they come from – large brand platforms than can give birth to truly integrated campaigns. See every ‘film’ of ours, and you’ll see why we’re saying that.  

Three – 'The Womb is about the two founders'. Nothing can be further from the truth. We have a core bunch of very senior and respected leaders across creative, account management and planning, most of whom have been with us for half a decade or more, and do the invisible heavy lifting on the work that everyone sees. They are also shareholders in the company by the way. I suspect we must be among the most ‘institutionalised’ among all young agencies started in the last decade and a half. 

This article was part of a special focus on Indian independent creative companies circulated alongside Manifest's June issue, which can be bought here.

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