By Dropout Dudes started a campaign #StartupRevolution2017. In which DD is looking for some innovative startups and brands who are actually doing good and trying to make a difference! Today we have Brandonama with us; before continue let me introduce what is Brandonama?
They describe themselves as “A bunch of young enthusiastic people, sensitive about the creative space, working at making your brand stand out in a fresh and out of the box manner.” And for knowing more about Brandonama Creatives and it’s journey we went to interview one of its co founder Vasundhara Sharma and she answered each and every question of ours very confidently. Brandonama’s journey may help young generation to gain motivation towards their passion. Let’s check it out! 😉
Dropout Dudes: What was the push behind Brandonama? What inspired you guys the most?
We are a bunch of young, creative enthusiasts, we enjoy Risk Advertising campaigns, Guerrilla Marketing, clean Branding work that is aesthetically sound and minimalistic excites us- and that’s something that isn’t prevalent at a big scale here in India.
Sandeep S. Dahiya started out early & has over 9 years of experience in Client Servicing and Business Development. At Letsintern.com (recently acquired by Aspiring Minds) he was the first employee, helping them expand to 4 cities with a 30 member team, while successfully handling over 5000 clients.
I, on the other hand have studied Advertising and Graphic Design from NiA (National Institute of Advertising), followed by Wigan and Leigh College, UK. I started my career as a Graphic Designer at McCann Worldgroup, followed by a few Design Studios based in New Delhi NCR.
We both came together with a vision to start a Design and Branding agency that we could eventually be able to sustain ourselves on, on the basis of our creative skills. Thus, Brandonama was born in September 2013. In the last couple of years, Brandonama has delivered 350+ projects successfully before time.
Dropout Dudes: Who was your first client? What made Brandonama stand out?
Our very first client: WWF (World Wildlife Fund) India.
What makes us stand out: We work hard, but also have understood over time; what’s more important is to work smart. Don’t become a part of the rat race, so much that you can’t look around and pick the most amazing things from what you see. Pause, slow down, breathe deep, do all things that you loved doing as a 5year old (be it gardening / bathroom singing), it is relaxing and it really works, helps you stay connected to the real you. 😀
Also, something we have learned over the last few years – some of us creative individuals are nocturnal by nature, while some like working in the day. It’s important to understand that it is alright to be flexible in terms of the timings, in order to have the team work in a productive and passionate manner. Drawing strict rules regarding work hours only cuts down on the creativity. It’s important to understand what suits whom in the team and then follow the same accordingly for each individual to be productive.
Vasundhara & Sandeep, Co-founders, Brandonama Creatives
Dropout Dudes: Where do you & Sandeep see your brand in next 5 years?
Slow sustainable growth is what we are looking at in the long run. We worked very hard in the first 2 years, were delivering projects over night, but we want to look at quality work with the right work and personal life balance now.
Dropout Dudes: What Does Success Look Like for the Company?
2016 has been a special year in terms of growth since we have started getting International requirements through references from the US, Canada and Netherlands.
We have also explored work in newer industries this year, like Teas, Herbs and Spices, Skin Care, Luxury Clothing, the F&B sector – this is also the space we really enjoy working in.
Read also: THE STORY BEHIND THE CREATION OF A MILLION DOLLAR STARTUP
Initially we focused a lot on the tangible indicators of growth, but in the last year or so, we are looking at the intangibles as well. We wish to create our niche in the F&B space for branding, spread our work across the globe in different countries, to travel a lot more than we have gotten a chance to in the last 4 years (owing to all the endless hours of effort and time we devoted to this venture), to absorb more, and to be in a creatively lucrative space mentally. As entrepreneurs we often forget to balance our personal and work lives, and up until a point, it is fine, it is required. Your business is like a new born baby, you will be required to devote a lot to it initially, but once it gets walking and running, the ride is much smoother, and that is something we have seen happening in the last year.
Success to us is:
- A well running business on auto-pilot.
- Great quality work which is creatively stimulating and satisfying.
- A well brought together team who are like minded and who feel as strongly for design as we do.
- A good balance between our personal lives and work lives – where we get to travel and do all that we love.
Dropout Dudes: What is the Current Runway, and do you have any future funding plans?
We have not been inclined towards getting an investment since we did not want any interference in the functioning of the company.
Dropout Dudes: How many times have you shown your creativity to the world?
We have worked on about 350+ projects, 300+ clients in the last 3.5 years.
WWF India, Care India, Pernod Ricard, Chivas Regal, IKEA, Absolut Vodka, The Glenlivet, Jaypee Hospitals, Business World Group of Companies, Bacardi Breezer, Delhi Daredevils, Sab Miller, Ballantines, Ray-Ban, Schweppes, Pizzahut and Livon are some of our clients.
Read also: Investors Said NO as they believed that it wasn’t Scalable!
Dropout Dudes: Your feelings as a working 9am-5pm girl & as an entrepreneur?
A 9-5 routine was something I never understood; it does not suit my style of working. While we look at meeting deadlines very strictly, as an individual I do not like too many boundaries and rules on my process of working or the time I am working at. What matters to me is that the end product turns out well, irrespective of which process you may have followed. Each designer has a different style and design process, and it’s for them to see in the long run what may have worked the best for them. It’s a hit & trial sort of thing. I have had my share of learnings as well, there were many times when I would work from 11pm to 5am (as I felt the most creatively productive at this hour), and then the next morning I had to be ready for client meetings at 9am, and get down to working on the creative briefs by 11am, I would be zonked, so the time management and work life balance bit, it is difficult to keep a clear line between the two, but I feel I have learned to draw the balance much better in the last one year.
Vasundhara Sharma, Co founder of Brandonama Creatives
As an entrepreneur you work on what you really believe in and love doing, so the hours fly by. I would be at work station for 14-16hrs at times without a break. And in no way am I promoting this maniacal way of functioning, but this is how engrossing and obsessive it can get.
I now put an alarm / reminder on my phone to remind me to take a 10 minutes break off work and stretch a bit.
Taking your cup of coffee along and going downstairs to the park for 5 minutes, or zoning out and grabbing a magazine for 10-20 minutes in between work hours helps break the monotony and keeps the mind fresh.
Dropout Dudes: Are you guys willing to sponsor events in future?
We have not thought in that direction yet, but we would be open to it depending upon the budget we have and how much of a visibility the event would provide us.
Dropout Dudes: Tell me something more about your journey to forge towards your passion?
While the journey up until now have been very exciting, I feel once you do catch the bug of entrepreneurship, the mind works at it nonstop, there are multiple other interests I have on my mind all the time, and it would be a wish come true if I could make some of them work out as well in the coming few years. But as of now, my energies are devoted to Brandonama.
Though alongside I do run a kitsch, handcrafted items brand by the name of Nukkad Art as well, it keeps me creatively charged up.
Dropout Dudes: What changes do you feel in business since last 3 years you started?
We were rookies back then when we began this venture. We had and still do have a lot to learn.
Sandeep Singh, CoFounder of Brandonama Creatives
In our field, a lot of freelance designers and agencies are taken for a ride by prospective clients as they apparently wish to provide you with a ‘platform to showcase your work’. And we got sucked into that cycle as well. Over time this is something we have learned, understand the value of your work and stand by what you believe to deserve. There will always be the options for a client of getting a job done at Rs.500/- or at Rs.1,00,000/-. Make your work worth it, for the client to want to invest that extra amount of money and faith in your service. You can choose to be a Maruti 800 or a Mercedes 🙂
Dropout Dudes: A message that you would like to give to the youth to inspire them to dream big?
- One tip to success:
There are so many pseudo-passionate startups who spend days and months planning. It is sad to see so much talk and no action.
Follow your passion and go all out. If your gut says yes, then don’t listen to anyone, but be ready to face the consequences if things don’t work out the way you planned them. And if you happen to fall, get yourself up, have a wide smile on your face and begin once again…
- One mistake you believe every individual must avoid:
A mistake which doesn’t have a U-turn. Mistakes help you learn.
A mistake of being still. There must be movement. Upwards. Downwards. Just don’t let there be no movement.
- One most important lesson that you have learnt till now:
Business is a marathon, not a sprint – Initially, one needs to accelerate hard, but once you catch the momentum, keep the pace steady. Don’t rush, pause, breathe, look around, keep your eyes and mind open and your mental horizon wide. Absorb as much as you can, learn from everybody, from your mentors to your interns. You never know who’s got what cooking in their minds, and what may ignite to next fire to create something huge.
Rapid Fire Round!
Success / Money
Facebook / Instagram
Handcrafts / Digitally print images
CorelDRAW / Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop
9 to 5 job / Working late hours for your passion!
That’s all our Startpreneurs! I hope these guys will help you to take one more strong step towards your journey of entrepreneurship. Don’t give up!
Do share with someone whom you wanna motivate!
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