Sub rosa. The latter is a Latin term that carries a sense of mystery and is known to denote confidentiality and secrecy. Sub rosa when it comes to a literal translation means— under the rose. The rose has varying connotations but most people would agree that maternal creativity is something that it symbolizes across various cultures throughout history.
Sub rosa was a term that cropped up quite a few times in my mind during my association with Caryll Van Dort. The fact that she has been a veritable mover and shaker in the PR industry is proof of her resilience and persistence in ensuring that she delivers the best for her clients.
But I digress; what I mean by utilizing a legal term is to state that Caryll practices a professional level of discretion that is enviable to say the least — a quality that is of paramount importance in both the PR world, and when managing clients. It’s no wonder that she has flourished to such an extent; in 2017 she became the first Sri Lankan to be named in Campaign Asia’s ‘Top 40 Women to Watch’ list, which celebrates women in the Asia-Pacific region who are disrupting the marketing communications industry and achieving success against all odds.
With Media Relations, Corporate Communications and Crisis Management being her forte, Caryll has managed to carve herself an enviable position in an industry that is rife with competition. Always at ease and with a winning and ready smile, I was fortunate to have associated her for a short span of time that has proved to be rewarding and enriching. More than anything, I feel honoured to call her a close friend and confidante.
At Lowe Lintas (now known as Mullen Lowe) she built brands such as Pizza Hut, Anchor, Unilever Sri Lanka, Caltex, Maliban, HSBC during her brief flirtation with Brand Management; at Leo Burnett, she invested a great deal of effort in building SLT, Mobitel, SLC, UNICEF, PABC to star class levels before changing careers and moving to Public Relations and Corporate Communications.
She reads like a book at times, each chapter of her life offering an exciting insight into a career and life that’s a rich and exuberant mosaic of élan and panache. In this particular chapter of her life where she has embarked on a new journey with her own startup named Fahrenheit, she answered the question of — How important is PR as a vertical in the industry?
She replies — I believe it’s an extremely important aspect. You can spend millions on advertising but if you forget to build a relationship with your stakeholders then your brand can simply wither and all that money is lost. This is showcased best in times of crisis for a brand. If you have good PR with your stakeholders then you can come out of a crisis with minimum brand damage.
At the heart of her belief system is a stringent adherence to a set of values that are somewhat rare today. She pointedly asked during one of our many food excursions — What is a person or any kind of relationship if you don’t have integrity or loyalty and discipline?
With an unexplainable fascination for owls and a more acceptable desire for fruits, Caryll truly embodies a level of professionalism in an industry that requires a mandatory application of hard work and smarts. Furthermore, it should be mentioned that PR is something that goes beyond a mere press release. With so much of clutter being present in all media platforms these days, the real requirement is to ensure that your brand stands out.
Being extremely family-oriented, the whole concept of sacrifice and delivering on stated promises is something that has been inculcated in her. In an evolving and progressive industry, which now has accepted the role of social media and digital media long with influencer marketing, that is as chaotic as it is deadline-oriented, one wonders how an individual of Caryll’s caliber keeps a level head. Yet just like her favorite chill out spots — think the hill country and beach — she stays calm as a cucumber delivering on her promise for exceptional PR solutions.
Text: Rohitha Perera | Photography: Sampath Munaweera | Location: 55TG Boutique Suites, Colombo