“We are groups of overlapping packets: we are ‘independents’ that can work together, but not always under the same roof.” -Carlos Casa
Carlos and I have been team mates in a project before. We were a part of a team that had to build, market and promote a product built for the iPod. We had to make a business plan and marketing plan, figure out prices, promotions-the works. So one year ago when Carlos announced that he and his brother were going to launch their new advertising agency, Azul & Green, I was not surprised.
Although Carlos has some involvement building a business and an idea of the advertising business, he had to build A&G from scratch, learning how to run, pitch, innovate, and keep business himself. Today, A&G is made of four people: Engelbert, Carlos, Allen, and Shiann. Engelbert handles mostly the day to day operations as well as the buying for the business and clients. Allen is their creative that has some industry experience. Shian and Carlos are more of the account planner roles: researching, talking with clients, helping creatives, etc.
“The difference now is that in the past, you had to have an office,” says Carlos.
A&G is based out of the Casas’ home, but each employee working wherever they please. They come together when they need everyone’s help, input or cooperation. They heavily rely on phone calls and e-mails to keep up to date on status and news.
Azul & Green is an agency that is relevant to one of Adbridge’s core discussions about generations and the industry. A&G is a Generation Y agency where it did not matter how much money they started with, they were going to make their own waves–and they have.
Azul & Green has more challenges but even more opportunities.
A&G is anything but short on great, innovative ideas for their clients-their challenges lie within the budgets. They might have a great idea for a billboard but the affordability of that vehicle compared to others makes it just out of reach. Carlos says they do quite a lot of collateral and newspaper within the Hispanic sector. “A lot of the time, Spanish speaking businesses will advertise in Spanish magazines and the creative will be all wrong.” Azul & Green is in a holding pattern at the moment until Carlos graduates. “We don’t mention that most of us at A&G have not graduated yet but only one client has asked and he was impressed.”
There has been opportunities and new windows opened to A&G that run horizontally to growing the agency including A&G Publishing services. The publishing division develops Spanish targeted educational posters for teachers; available via their website www.azulgreenpublishing.com
Small Agency in the Big Pond
To wrap up this long description on Azul & Green, we at Adbridge are sending out the message that this is only one Gen Y agency of many out there working in advertising because they love it. Personally, Carlos loves advertising’s creative and idea generation process, where seeing an idea develop and be executed is self-actualization for the client and himself.
“Idea babies” are the core reason for wanting to work in advertising because good advertising makes a move, a push, a new notch in the road of the future of advertising. Generation Y agencies are one of those new notches, and they compete with Generation Boomers and Generation Xrs. As previously mentioned, there is a variance in work organization and ethics between these three generations. Boomers organize and systemize, Xrs will work and build, no matter the budget; and Ys will do it together. The challenge is having to play the game by the Boomers rules and ways of doing things.
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One of the things that Adbridge has said is that the internet is changing the ideas pressed and refined by industrialization and systematics. Instead of the vehicle working the way media vendors are accustomed to, everyone has to work based on how internet works. The internet makes things, ideas and change more mallable.
–Jennifer Hallabough
