Jewish Life Digital Edition October 2013 | Page 30

BUSINESS BRAINS

PORTRAITS IN SUCCESS

GIL OVED

COWBOY OF THE WILD WEST OF TRENDS

BY DAN CHAITOWITZ
HE LITTLE SILVER BALL FELL IN THE RIGHT GROOVE
on the right colour for them the day they
won the Danone account, changing their
business from a month-to-month nail-biter
into a formidable, sustainable employer and
a R500 million-turnover-kind-of company.
Non-entrepreneur’s ask, “How did you
have the guts?” Entrepreneurs growl, “There
is no other option.”
The Creative Counsel, a company on the
frontier of non-traditional ways of advertising, is the fruit bearer of two young guns, Gil
Oved and Ran Neu-ner. Having scrambled
for degrees and having been tossed about by
the dot com bust of the early 2000s, they
have risen to form the biggest brand activations company of its kind in the country.
The Creative Counsel is a group of companies involved in the full value chain of sales
and marketing solutions covering strategy,
creative, activation, social media and field
marketing. As I met Gil in his billboard-type
building, he embraced me. We sat down to a
Joe Joffee, I sharpened my pencil and his
tale began.
Gil grew up in Israel, in Haifa, and at the age
of six he came with his family to South Africa.
Doing stints at Yeshiva College and King David
Linksfield, he matriculated at Crawford College. His interest in the arts, in performing, led
him – at age 15 – to audition and play a role in
a kids educational TV show called ‘What if?’
Soon after, the position of anchor presenter for
the teenage magazine show, ZapMag, opened
him up further to the silver screen, new experiences and a broader world view.
Out of school, Gil tried his head at actuarial science, a BA and the creation of a production company, Jewazi, together with a fellow
TV actor, Vusi Twala. After three years, his
studies and the production house fizzled out.
Seeking, seeking, Gil kept seeking. Business
opportunities, ventures, potential.
Ran, a schoolboy buddy, was a fatigued

28 JEWISH LIFE

ISSUE 67

HE HAD A VISION. HE
UNDERSTOOD THE NEED TO BE
FLUID IN BUSINESS, TO ALLOW
ONE’S JOURNEY TO TAKE ONE
ON AN ADVENTURE AND TO BE
ALRIGHT WITH IT. THE VISION
IS THE ANCHOR, THOUGH THE
GOALS TOWARDS THAT VISION
NEED TO BE MALLEABLE.
stock broker, and Gil had yet to pin down his
career path. Together, they conceptualised
an Internet financial portal, a location in cyber space where people could keep up to date
with the peaks and falls of the stock market.
They managed to raise a few million to develop and launch the site, but as the dot com
boom went bust, so the funder’s money
trickled dry, and after three years of time
spent and money blown, the two were left
bobbing, looking for answers in the wind.
Assisting Ran’s girlfriend was a law student earning pocket money and moonlighting as a brand promoter, doing placements.
Their goal was to make enough money “for
petrol to get to the office to decide their futures”. Paralleling this venture, Gil studied a
BCom marketing to fulfil his passion for the
field, graduating Cum Laude, and he bulked
that up with a CFA, aiding him with financial
confidence. Studying later on in life saw a direct and practical relationship to his career
development. “The real life experience made
studying relevant.
“We are often pressured into studying
straight after school when we have very little
exposure to the world and to the things that
tickle us. Spend a little time finding your passion, then study, and you’ll reap enjoyment.”

The Creative Counsel was spawned.
Gil knew he wanted to be the master of his
own destiny. He knew he wanted big things.
He had a vision. He understood the need to be
fluid in business, to allow one’s journey to
take one on an adventure and to be alright
with it. The vision is the anchor, though the
goals towards that vision need to be malleable. Goals get reprioritised based on opportunity and risk and according to circumstance.
“Visions are long-term, goals short-term.”
With an appreciation for fine dining, its artistic expression in presentation, and the brainexpanding experiences of travelling, Gil’s world
view has trained his eye on the swir [