Singapore has four national languages, one of which is English. For a pan-Asian campaign, that count bumps up to hundreds of languages. Aside from using a highly visual style, how do you transcend these language differences?

We tend to think of ideas that speak in a basic human level that everyone can relate to, be it humor, sadness or happiness there's always something common that ties us together no matter which part of the world you're from. Vernacular tends lose out when you have to translate it in another language.

According to Ian Batey, "Self-deprecation is not an Asian trait. Asians want to save face, not lose it. If you surround your brand with negative irony, they will walk away in droves." Has that been your experience? Are there other Western styles that alienate an Asian audience? What are taboos you encounter, and how do you contend with them?

It's true to a certain extent, most clients would be apprehensive to be shone in a negative light unless they can be 100% sure that the take-out is positive. It'll be hard to convince a client with a strategy that says "we're no. 2, that's why we try harder." As Asians we tend to hide our flaws and not laugh or joke about them. Other taboos would include superstitions so things like colors and cultural nuances are every important when you are designing for a specific market. Research is important when you're not sure of a certain culture. We don't take things for granted because we need to be sensitive to different beliefs.

As a former British colony, Singapore is a natural entry point for Western culture. Are you torn between infusing your work with a sense of local Asian culture and history on the one hand and western culture, imported from the US, on the other?

I tend to be very international in my approach to work. Singapore has a very short history so a unique Singaporean culture is very lacking in our generation. The fact that we have four races here means that our heritage is even more diluted. If there's any influence it's more British than anything else because we were a former colony and because of bands like Duran Duran, The Cure, etc. Of course we need a Singaporean brand to be able to project our Asian heritage; there's not much leverage to Asia if we're working on brands like Levi's or Timberland.

What trends are emerging from Asian advertising and design?

Asian advertising and design is a little more challenging because we have to educate our clients to see that great and effective work will be rewarded with better economic results. You get some clients that are willing to take more risk and champion great work but the majority of the clients just want it done the cheapest, fastest way. In terms of design, we are a lot more visual-based because that speaks to a wider audience without losing the nuances through translation.

In terms of your own approach to doing the work, what is your process like; how do you begin?

Each time we start a new project it's always the same, we try to get as much information we can by interviewing the right person. Not just on the project brief, but also on how they arrive at the final brief. A lot of clients assume that they need something just because everyone else is doing it, not because they've thought through their needs. We then take the brief back to the agency to work on a strategy before briefing it to designers.

I usually do my thinking alone; we have brainstorming sessions after we have all gone to do our individual thinking. It's important to have that personal time to do the searching. I feel that ideas come in the wee hours of the morning or when I'm pushing that extra bit harder. Sometimes things happen when you least expect, like in a taxi going to work. I go traveling to get inspired?I love cities like Tokyo, New York, Paris and London, because the energy charges me up.

What role does strategic planning play in your work?

Being strategic is constantly in our system when we approach our work, every piece of communication we do has to be strategic to be effective. It also keeps us focus on channeling our creativity in the right direction. Being a small setup we don't have a dedicated planner, but our process is deeply rooted from our background at BBH. We'll be sharing our planning resources with Fallon in the future so that will give us an added edge.