Creative veteran Farrokh Madon sets sail with own independent shop PIRATE

Farrokh Madon, former chief creative officer of Wunderman Thompson, has launched his own branding and communications agency PIRATE. Confirming the news to Marketing, Madon said that PIRATE will operate as an agency that believes in creative solutions to business needs.

We believe that some clients need ads, but all clients need business solutions.

Speaking to Marketing exclusively, Madon said he does not believe in "organisation structures the size of a pregnant whale". "We crew up depending on a client's needs. It means clients get the right quality inputs at the right times. It also means they only pay for what they use. It is a faster and fairer way of working. It is similar to how the pirates of yore operated and I believe it is very relevant today," he explained.  According to Madon, he is is looking to work with clients that prefer fresh ideas to age-old processes.

"It's the mindset that matters more to us than the size of the business. Creative people rarely like to get pigeon-holed into one category. I am always stimulated by the diversity of products and services and their varied challenges. It keeps me fresh and creative, and over the years I have learned a lot by working across many categories," he said. 

Madon was most recently chief creative officer of Wunderman Thompson, which he left in March this year. Madon first joined Wunderman Thompson under the J Walter Thompson (JWT) brand in 2017, prior to the merger with Wunderman, as chief creative partner. He then took the role of chief creative officer in August last year.

Prior to Wunderman Thompson, Madon has held leading creative roles in agencies such as Y&R Singapore (which has now merged with VML and carries the name VMLY&R), along with at McCann Erickson Singapore and BBDO Singapore. He first launched his career in Mumbai, and has also worked for agencies such as Ogilvy & Mather, Saatchi & Saatchi, Batey, M&C Saatchi and others. Madon was also previously the global creative lead on SIA and the regional creative director on MasterCard, Gillette and Caltex. 

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