Excellent Publicity: How Vishal Dalal Scaled a 100-Crore Ad Agency by Betting on Gen Z and Breaking the “Premium” Media Myth
In the high-stakes world of Indian advertising, where legacy firms guard their accounts with multi-decade relationships and "premium" media is often synonymous with astronomical budgets, a young firm from Ahmedabad is rewriting the playbook. While most agencies hire for pedigree and experience, Excellent Publicity has built a 100-crore empire by hiring almost exclusively for "fire"—betting on Gen Z freshers with an average age of 24. It is a story of radical disruption where a 21-year-old Chartered Accountant walked away from a lucrative corporate offer to prove that the most effective marketing isn't found in expensive boardrooms, but in the "Idea Pollination" of the streets.
Led by Vishal Dalal and his co-founder Manan Joshi, Excellent Publicity has grown 5x in just four years, transforming from a "miserably failed" magazine venture into a 360-degree powerhouse with a portfolio of 3 lakh+ advertising mediums. From their headquarters in Ahmedabad to offices in Dubai and Mumbai, the team is proving that in the age of cutthroat competition, the ultimate moat is a decentralized leadership model where the "Founder" is no longer the bottleneck, but the guide.
Excellent Publicity Impact Metrics
- ₹100 Crore: Current turnover, representing a 5x growth in the last four years.
- 3 Lakh+: Unique advertising media in their global portfolio.
- 24 Years: The average age of the 150+ strong team, consisting mostly of freshers.
- 12 Years "Young": The duration of the agency's journey since its post-failure rebirth.
The Genesis: A 21-Year-Old CA’s "Failed" Masterclass
Vishal Dalal’s entrepreneurial journey is a testament to the fact that passion is the most reliable hedge against risk. In 2011, having cleared his CA at just 21 in his first attempt, Vishal was offered a job with a ₹12 lakh salary—a fortune for a fresher at the time. But the allure of the advertising industry, sparked by a school-time pact with his friend Manan, was too strong to ignore.
"My father was clear: he didn't agree with my choice, but he gave me ₹2 lakhs and two years to try," Vishal recalls. Their first attempt, **"On Wheels,"** was a magazine designed for autos and buses. Within a month, they realized the magazine was a failure. However, they noticed a recurring request: clients didn't want the magazine; they wanted the real estate on the vehicles. This pivot birthed Excellent Publicity.
The "Auto-Rickshaw" Paradox
Excellent Publicity’s first major success came from a luxury real estate project. While legacy agencies proposed expensive hoarding and TV spots, Vishal suggested Auto-Rickshaw branding. "The marketing team resisted, but the owner took the chance. With just a ₹1 lakh investment, we sold 12 bungalows worth ₹80 lakhs each. It proved that if the creative is right, people in a Mercedes will still look at an auto-rickshaw."
The Strategy: Betting on the "Small Baby" Freshers
One of the most unique aspects of Excellent Publicity is its recruitment philosophy. 90% of their 150-strong team were hired as freshers. Vishal argues that experienced hands often bring rigid mindsets that aren't accommodative to the agency’s disruptive culture.
"We hire for the 'Fire Within'," Vishal explains. "A fresher is like a small baby; you can nurture them and mold them to your DNA. Gen Z is digital-native, knowledgeable, and proactive. If they have the honesty and the drive, they can achieve in two years what our generation did in five. We don't even look at their family background or language; we look at their soul."
The Excellent Scale Model
- Idea Pollination: Taking concepts from one market (like US Uber) and pollinating them in another (India).
- Wholesale Media: Building a massive 3-lakh-strong media inventory to offer "wholesaler" pricing to retail brands.
- Horizontal Expansion: Operating four distinct businesses (Offline, Digital, Sports, Gifting) under one tree.
- Decentralization: Giving freshers full authority to approve negotiations and close deals without founder intervention.
The "Compounding Effect" of Team Empowerment
For most service-based agencies, the founder is the primary salesman and the ultimate bottleneck. Vishal took a different route. For the last six years, he has not attended a single fresh client pitch. Instead, he has empowered his team with "Full Authority"—including the power to negotiate and reject payments if needed.
"Promoters in traditional companies want to call all the shots. But as a founder, I will not be able to reach 100 people alone," Vishal notes. "By letting 10 people reach 100 people, we achieved a compounding effect. Collectively, they achieve more than I ever could individually. You must let them drive the car; you just be the guide when they get stuck."
The Modern Ad Agency: Then vs. Now
- Traditional: Promoter-led, relationship-based, focus on standard "premium" mediums, rigid hierarchies.
- Excellent Publicity: Team-led, data-driven, focus on "Idea Pollination" across 30+ services, Gen Z empowerment.
- Outcome: 5x growth from ₹20 crores to ₹100 crores turnover in just 48 months.
Future Frontiers: Sports Marketing and Global Expansion
As the agency looks toward its next phase of growth, Vishal sees Sports Marketing as the next massive frontier. Beyond cricket, the rise of Hockey, Kabaddi, and Football in India is creating a whole new showroom for brands. With a new office in Dubai, Excellent Publicity is also taking the "Ahmedabad Model" global, proving that Indian-born advertising strategies have a universal appeal.
"Entrepreneurship is touching the lives of many families. Every morning I wake up and smile that 150 people and their livelihoods depend on the goals we achieve together. That is the emotion that drives me."
— Vishal DalalVishal’s Advice: Humility and Discerning Decisions
Reflecting on his journey from a 21-year-old CA to a 100-crore agency leader, Vishal emphasizes Humility. He warns entrepreneurs against being "emotionally married" to a product. "If you become an impediment to the natural course of your business, you must move out and let better people take it there. Entrepreneurship is a feeling that what you are creating is bigger than who you are."
The Founder's Success Playbook
- Build for Perpetuity: Don't just look for an exit; look to build a sustainable institution.
- Transparency is Trust: Clear financial systems bring faster talent and better partners on board.
- Don't Be the Smartest: Your team must be smarter than you. Your role is to serve them wholeheartedly.
- Embrace Idea Pollination: Innovation is often just taking a solution from one industry and applying it to another.
Conclusion: The "Excellent" Standard
The story of Excellent Publicity is a blueprint for how a service business can scale without losing its soul. By betting on the untainted energy of youth and prioritizing the client's pain points over vanity metrics, Vishal Dalal has built a legacy that transcends the traditional borders of advertising. In a market defined by Cutthroat competition, Excellent Publicity stands as a testament to the power of trust, transparency, and the relentless pursuit of "Excellent" results.