At first glance, one might wonder if the newly minted name of Havas Village X is merely a placeholder for a yet-to-be-seen rebranding of the Havas Health & You agency. Perhaps its principals are still toiling away behind the scenes on the kind of monikers seen all too often in the pharma ad world, debating the respective merits of “Digital Communications Worldwide” and “Patient Empowered Health and Wellness.”
But upon closer examination, it’s clear that Village X was the result of an intentional and thoughtful rebranding effort, speaking to the agency’s unique history and evolution within the broader Havas Health & You network.
“It sounds a little edgy, which we are,” says group president Cheryl Fielding. “When you place an X, it’s about making your mark.”
Village X is simultaneously an explicit nod to the agency’s maturation. Known as The Villages at Havas Health & You up until the end of 2020, Village X was originally conceived to serve the needs of a single massive client in Sanofi, working on its multiple sclerosis business.
But while the agency was initially tasked with Sanofi alone, leaders kept a watchful eye on expansion possibilities.
“We all know this is a dynamic, fast-moving industry,” Fielding notes. “Drugs approach loss of exclusivity, brands don’t last forever … so we started to make the pivot even when the Sanofi business was big and healthy. We said, ‘Let’s brand it and turn it into a real agency.’”
Village X appears to have effected that transformation with ease, expanding its remit well beyond Sanofi to brands across therapeutic areas. In 2021, the agency added assignments from Kyowa Kirin (in Parkinson’s disease) and Arena Pharmaceuticals (in the GI space) as well as Otsuka’s neurology portfolio and Ipsen’s oncology business.
That growing roster translated to 20% revenue growth for the year, according to MM+M, with the agency growing from an estimated $37.5 million in 2020 to an estimated $45 million in 2021. Head count climbed at a similar clip, rising from 133 at the start of the year to 160 at the end of it.
Village X further invested in its digital capabilities last year via the creation of a digital performance group, helmed by newcomer Carol Patel as SVP, director of digital. Patel wasn’t the only new addition to the leadership team, with Federico Chiesa coming on board as EVP, director of strategic planning.
Such personnel and structural moves will help Village X remain flexible in its client service, balancing its in-house offerings with the ability to lean on its parent network for enterprise-grade solutions. “We have big capabilities at the center and offshoot capabilities internally,” Fielding says.
Like 99 other organizations in this year’s MM+M Agency 100, Village X continues to struggle with recruitment and retention. “It was a weird year for talent,” Fielding says diplomatically.
Still, the agency’s rebranding became a boon for its recruiting efforts. Indeed, Fielding characterizes the wide-ranging displacement caused by the Great Resignation as “the perfect time for us to tell our story.”
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Work from outside pharma you admire…
Project Understood by FCB Toronto for Google AI and the Canadian Down Syndrome community did something truly inspiring. Members of the community took center stage and delivered the unmet need through their refreshingly innocent wit, charm and sheer honesty. What you take away from this effort is not simply a belief in Google and its science, but a renewed belief in humanity at large. That’s no small feat. — Fielding
From the June 01, 2022 Issue of MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media
