THE SHORT VERSION

At 27, one of Iran’s leading ad agencies invited me to join them. Having grown up in England and just spent a year exploring my paternal homeland, I was tempted, but unsure about staying in a country freshly branded part of the “Axis of Evil.” It was a challenge wrapped in opportunity. In advertising, we solve challenges; in Iran, we like to create them, too. I accepted the offer—but how long could I survive as I set out to master new creative skills, in a new language, within a fast-emerging market?

 

Sony planned to capitalise on Iran’s emerging market and chose our agency to help. Through a series of account management mishaps, I found myself pitching to a Japanese chap—and won him over. Naively, I took it all on, unaware that creatives don’t get as involved as I did. However, the excitement of having my first national campaign accepted was met with frustration. Many creative nuances were lost during a pre-production meeting in Dubai, and even more during filming in Lebanon. It was a tough lesson in collaborating with production teams, but I was determined to do better.

 

Three years passed, and my tenacity—and my superior’s frustration with me taking the lead—resulted in what they called “letting me go.” They let me go straight into a lead role in a sister agency they were launching. I was thrilled, yet nervous. I built a team and developed new ways to gain and maintain major clients. Sourcing talent was tough; retaining it was more so, but I quickly adapted from working in teams to leading them.

 

Unilever trusted our young agency to launch six brands and go beyond simply localising international campaigns. We adopted their brand principles, navigated strict regulations, and won over audiences with new approaches. Sony stuck with us and let us explore emerging digital advertising. Samsung awarded us for devising their best CSR initiative—audio libraries for blind children—and expanded it across the region. National clients reaped the rewards of our ideas without paying a penny. Through all that—sanctions, triple-digit inflation—we survived and thrived. Looking back, I can take only a little credit. I was lucky to have the support of wise leadership.

 

So why did I leave, and why did I return? I needed to see how it worked on the other side. A brief stint in Dubai with McCann and another in London with Publicis gave me that insight. Things weren’t exactly wild in the West, but I accomplished what I set out to do: learning how things are done when the challenges are only within the brief.

 

I planned my return to Tehrān around the Nuclear Deal, hoping the promise of prosperity would follow. It didn’t. I set up a branding agency, but like the deal, it didn’t live up to expectations. Then, as I was packing to leave, an old client called. A multinational had an exciting challenge, but the manager was unsure if the project would suit our services. “Not to worry,” I said. “I’ll visit tomorrow.” And so, my creative agency, DYMO—and a new chapter in my story—began.