Jalandhar-based entrepreneur is acing in ‘Out of Home Advertising’

Alumnus of Apeejay, Kamal Mittal, is a learner by nature. With no plans of establishing a venture in the advertising field, today he is just acing it. Kamal launched Creative Designers – Outdoor Publicity Solutions in 2006 with an intention to offer a platform for OOH or Out of Home Advertising to several brands. And soon, Creative Designers became a one-stop shop offering brands ample medium for advertising such as OOH, radio, cinema, malls, railway stations, and DOOH. Till date, Kamal and his creative team has completed 250k projects while making more than 1000 clients happy. Read edited excerpts of the Jalandhar-based entrepreneur: 

How did you start your entrepreneurial journey and what intrigued you to launch a venture in the advertising field?

I was  born and brought up in Jalandhar. I completed my schooling and graduation from Apeejay institutes. After which, I went to Lovely Professional University to pursue my MBA. While I was doing my MBA, I kind of started my professional journey with an advertising agency, which was a startup. While doing MBA and simultaneously working with a startup – it helped me gain necessary experience. I would  personally suggest doing an MBA after at least 2 years of work experience.

Honestly launching an organisation of my own was never on cards. It was someone close who asked me to get some work done related to advertising and then it went on. 

Were you always keen to become an entrepreneur?

Yes, that I can say I always wanted to. Moreover, there was a family business too, so entrepreneurship was running in my blood. 

How did you plan to start your own venture? What is the USP of your firm?

As I already mentioned, it was never on cards. I got into it by chance and then loved doing it. We started the journey of Creative Designers – Outdoor Publicity Solutions in 2006 with an aim to offer the platform of OOH media to several brands for advertising. However, we soon became a one-stop shop for our clients as we have been offering them ample mediums of advertising such as OOH, radio, cinema, malls, railway stations, and DOOH.As far as USP is concerned, being into the service industry the focus has always been service. 

Were there any challenges initially?

There were a lot of them – the biggest was when I started it off I had no knowledge about advertising and how to do it. With only intending to learn and grow all the hurdles became too small. 

What are the current creative advertising trends?

We are primarily into outdoor advertising with about 500 owned outdoor sites across Punjab. So, the key creativity in outdoor advertising is making the aesthetics of media look beautiful and making media backlit. 

How is digital intervention playing a role in this sector?

Digital or digitisation is the need of the hour for every brand. The evolution of multiple digital tools and mediums is eating a major pie of the market in the current scenario. However,  outdoor advertising has its own essence and will always grab the attention of an eyeball. Our company is also installing digital screens. 

Tips for aspiring entrepreneurs

Put your 100% into whatever you do.