Vasundhara Sharma has over 5 years of experience in the design space. Having started her career at McCann World Group, she has worked at other Design Agencies as well. She has worked on about 400+ projects, 200+ clients like IKEA India, Chivas Regal, Jacob’s Creek, SABMiller, Pizzahut, WWF India, Business World, Absolut Vodka, Ballantines, CARE India, Jaypee Hospitals to mention a few.
Her heart never lay in a confined space, what she loves about the creative Advertising life is it’s ever present buzz and scope for innovation, and that keeps her going.
Tell Something about Brandonama Creatives.
We at Brandonama create brands. Our concepts and designs define us- we like to come across as a young, chirpy and fresh brand, ready to in still simple, catchy and fresh ideas into the market by setting absolutely no boundaries.
A quick overview of our services:
What ignited the spark in you to start a company of your own?
The spark got ignited when i realised a 9-5 job wasn’t really my cup of tea, i am not the kind to fancy a routine, a set way of working, working on a fixed style of work. When i would be sitting in office, i would look out of the window and wish i could sit in a park and work. When i would be stuck in traffic, driving daily through the Gurgaon toll, i would be wishing i could drive off to the hills or the beach and take my work along. I always had this bug in my head. I wanted to paint kettles, furniture, design dummy risk advertising campaigns, and a job wasn’t leaving me with much time for all of this. I had begun getting frustrated, and finally quit my job in September 2013.
Why brandonama – One, because graphic design and doodling are the only things i can do well other than making great filter coffee. And two, since in India, while there are many agencies creating great work in the design space, i feel it lags behind in some respects, and when it comes to design a lot of small to medium sized companies face issues in finding the right agency.
Please share your future goals.
We worked very hard through the first 3 years, I had to undergo a surgery due to lack of rest and crazy hours at putting this together, and i think that was the point i realised we needed to slow down and relook at things.
From here on, i would say my partner and i are looking at slow sustainable growth. We are pretty clear on the kind of projects we want to pick, how and when we want utilize our resources.
Something about the challenges you faced while starting.
We had no investment when Brandonama was founded; cash crunch and delayed payments are the major challenges on the logistics front.
On the creative front; the ride has been smooth (fingers crossed), we have been lucky to create some good work and that’s what keeps us going, but then what’s a journey without a few exciting bumpy rides. We have had clients in the past who are pretty unsure of what they are looking for and find it difficult to close the project, and such projects linger on for a bit, and that in turn shakes up finances and timelines.
Share a few important goals of your venture?
We aim at creating our niche in the creative industry, we are already working with multiple client across India and overseas, but it’s a dream to have our offices located overseas to explore the market / work styles, explore, travel, learn and expand.
What are your views on the thought, that as compared to male counterparts, it’s harder and more struggling for females to make a mark professionally?
I personally have never really given this point a though. I just work on what i love doing and have fortunately been given due credit for it, or maybe I’ve been lucky till now. Choosing to have a startup is a tough journey you willing jump into, the struggle is hard, you go through highs and lows, there are days you wake up feeling that this is heading in no direction, on other days like when you see your work in print, on hoardings, and in newspapers, it’s a feeling i cannot put into words. My partner, Sandeep has struggled as much as i have – we both have worked equally hard, so, this journey till now has been equally rewarding for both of us.
Though the general feeling or the undercurrent at times from a lot of people including friends and family has been that i am the one who gets it easy, gets time to relax and just conveniently be the face of the company, while my partner slogs it off. And that’s a mentality, it may or may not change, but i don’t let it affect me since i love my work too much to really care. What matters the most to me is that my partner and i know we are equal.
What piece of advice would you like to give to the aspiring youth who wish to pursue their dream of becoming an entrepreneur?
If you truly are crazy passionate about something, you day dream about it sitting at work, you have saved up money to sustain yourself through the tough period, take the plunge and give it a shot. The initial grind is hard, but once you make it through the first 2-3 years, you won’t regret the hardships you went through initially.
According to you, what are the top three essential skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur?
What are your views and opinions towards the ambiguous need to promote women entrepreneurship and women empowerment in India?
Women need to change the way the world thinks about women. Women need to do what they are passionate about, dream bigger, and go all out and achieve it without giving two hoots about what sexist comments may come in their way. Nothing hurts your haters like you not giving a damn and going on to succeed.
