Unconventional Means

Tony Savarimuthu reveals some of the secrets to standing out in the competitive world of advertising, writes Tien Chew

With a string of impressive credentials to his name, Tony Savarimuthu is a proud Malaysian and an advertising industry veteran. He has worked at Leo Burnett Malaysia as its general manager and group director, Mccann Worldgroup Malaysia and Singapore as its CEO and also served as the president of the Association of Accredited Advertising Agents of Malaysia, to name a few of the impressive posts that he’s held. He now helms Merdeka LHS as its CEO and founding partner alongside two other founders—a company which began in 2013 that acts as a strategic brand consultant and provides creative communications solutions to businesses and brands. The name of the company is a double entendre of sorts, with the ‘Merdeka’ portion of the name referring to our country’s defining moment as it gained independence, as well as the moment the founders experienced the independence of running their own company after many years of working the grind as corporate men. The ‘LHS’ part of the company’s name refers to the founders who are Lee, Huang and Savarimuthu, while also doubling as an acronym for ‘left hand side’, which refers to their preference for the unorthodox. Unconventionality is a major part of the company’s DNA, so much so that the three founding partners have labelled themselves as ‘enemies of the same’. “Creativity and business growth does not come from being the same as everyone else but by being unique, different and special. Doing the same thing and expecting different results is called madness,” says Tony. “Very often companies try to appeal to everyone because there is this perception that appealing to everyone gets you market leadership.” Tony argues that a great ad must be intelligent, clever, witty and also written to treat the audience like they aren’t morons. “The customer is a pretty good judge and they don’t sit around all day in a focus group room behind two-way mirrors being aped at,” he says. And he’s right, audiences don’t react well to ads that insult their intelligence. Tony’s venture into advertising stemmed from a mix of his love for British ads and his desire to enter an industry that prevented him from becoming bored in the long run. At his first job, he had thought that he wouldn’t last the first week, but then came across a magazine article written by Lim Kok Wing. In it, Lim touted that anyone who could stay a year in advertising deserved a gold medal. “I set about trying to get that imaginary gold medal and ended up staying 11 years,” confesses Tony with a chuckle. He goes on to add that he enjoys working with people and using creative means to find inventive solutions to solve business problems.

“Doing the same thing and expecting different results is called madness”

The ability to run his own business is, in his own words, “quite liberating.” Tony and his partners have helped to invent and create a few brands, as opposed to traditional advertising that comes from a marketing or communications viewpoint. Merdeka LHS has since worked with brands such as Nescafe, Renault, and Bad Lab to name a few. In fact, the company has been doing so well that the Dentsu Aegis Group has recently acquired Tony and company. When it comes to seeking inspiration, life takes precedence. Tony enjoys watching people go about their daily lives and the occasional conversation as he walks about KL in his shorts and traverses the city via public transport. As often as he can, this father of two prefers to spend time with his family.