Campaign India Agency Report Card: Fortune

Type of agency Advertising
Company ownership WPP
Key personnel Suranjan Das, managing partner
Accounts won Mitsubishi Electric, DWS, British Council, TI Cycles, Toshiba Corporate, Bridgestone Tyres
Accounts lost K-Lounge, Tech Mahindra

Fortune’s main highlight this year is its 50:50 joint venture with Japan’s third largest advertising firm ADK to create a new agency ADK Fortune. The new agency will tap into Japanese brands that are planning to enter India. ADK Fortune will be headquartered in Delhi and headed by H Jay Araki. The agency has already got accounts like Nokia and Bridgestone.
Fortune appointed Mahendra Bhagat as its national creative director and Sumonto Chaudhuri as VP and CSD.  James Mani joined as a creative director and Yashraj Rege joined as VP and branch manager for Fortune’s Delhi office.
It won accounts like Mitsubishi Electric, DWS, British Council, TI Cycles, Toshiba Corporate and Bridgestone Tyres but lost out on K Lounge ans Tech Mahindra. Despite a number of wins, the agency is yet to make a mark with a high decibel, creatively distinct campaign. Now that they have the clients, the time to create noticeable work has come.
Campaign Score: 5

How FORTUNE rates itself: 7
In a less than 3 years Fortune has grown by leaps and bounds (400%), won creative awards, not just in India but internationally at the most coveted festival (Cannes).
Even in 2007 Fortune got a Cannes shortlist in the direct lions category as also winning a bronze at the Goafest. Very few agencies have managed this in the their first 2-3 years of operations.
We have finally managed to step out of our parent JWT’s shadow and stand on our own right. Clients now call us for pitches, whereas earlier we would have to approach to get included.
We have attracted bright talent from good agencies (Leo Burnett, O&M, Lowe) to join us.
We could have however, done more in terms of PR mileage for our agency and profiling of our key people, hence the 7 score.