Q&A with Jade Manning and Vince Osmond, founding partners of Today the Brave

A creative duo since 2009, Jade Manning (left) and Vince Osmond (right) are founding partners at Today the Brave. The full service creative agency, which launched last month, has been focused on delivering brave work that grows and defines brands since its inception earlier this year, anchored in the belief that truly brave work can only be achieved through tangible action.

Most recently with Special Group Sydney, the creative partners also spent time at DDB Sydney and TBWA\ Hunt\ Lascaris in South Africa, working with some of the most lauded brands including Volkswagen, McDonald’s, Uber Eats, Carlton Dry, Disney+, Kayo and Virgin Australia.

CB: Today the Brave launched in November via a full-page ad in The Australian, but I understand this has been in the works for some time. What attracted you the most about the agency?

VO: It’s been a career-long dream come true to build an agency where both creativity and people can thrive. Obviously, we’re in the business of creating great creative work, but we’ve always been firm believers that the true joy of this industry lies in doing great work with people you love, not just tolerate.

JM: An opportunity to be part of something like Today the Brave doesn’t come around often – where great people cross paths and all see enormous value in each other – which is crucial when you are looking to build something awesome from the ground up. Then, having bravery as a North star is such an incredible motivator, not just for us, but for the brands we work on.

CB: You guys seem to have a collective passion for people. What is it you are looking to achieve at TTB in the next year and how are you hoping to achieve that?

VO: Growth. I can’t think of anything more satisfying than seeing the agency grow as we grow our client’s businesses. I don’t mean greedy growth – I mean the type of growth that will allow us to work with the brands that are the right fit for us, and in turn bring in the right people and partners that will help us deliver exceptional work, and find new ways for our clients to win.

JM: I think sometimes we forget about how fortunate we are to work in this industry. I feel a responsibility to build an agency that the industry we love can be proud of. We’re surrounded by such  a wealth of talent – but also some of the best human beings you could ever meet.  We really want Today the Brave to be a place and culture that people want to be a part of.

CB: We’re talking a lot about bravery here – what does creativity mean to you in relation to this, and how do you define it?

VO: This won’t surprise you, but we talk about bravery a fair bit in the agency and how we can unleash bravery in the right way, at the right time to solve a problem. I think the biggest misconception is that bravery is bravado, but it’s far more measured than that. Bravery will always require a leap – but it should never be a blind leap of faith. And when you get it right, that’s when magic happens.

JM: Maybe it’s a bit of a cliche, but bravery is so powerful because it’s so hard to do. If it was easy everyone would do it. Our responsibility is to free bravery from the confines of decks and meetings and make it a reality for clients. That’s when an idea becomes brave. Our name is a deliberate benchmark that we hold ourselves and our clients accountable to.

CB: Where do you see the most potential for innovative, brave work in the next 5 years?

VO: Of course there will be loads of innovation in the way brands show up in a growing plethora of social and digital platforms, but I’d love to see brands innovate in a way that sees more honesty in advertising. In the Metaverse or on a poster, I think people will appreciate brands just levelling with them.

JM: I don’t think brave work necessarily lies in a new trend, platform or category shift. The opportunity for innovative work has always laid in the hands of people that actually want to create it in the first place. A brand can encourage it. An agency can create it. But someone has to have the desire to make it a reality. Our opportunity lies in empowering those that want to do brave work but just don’t know how, yet.