Rabih Sebaaly and Cristelle Basmaji with their two-year old daughter Chloë.
Being in business with family is nothing new for Basmaji. Her family owned former Quebec-based clothing brand Jacob, where she also worked before joining Youville.
“You can get highly involved on campus at Concordia,” says Sebaaly. “There’s a lot of great value beyond the classroom.”
Although Basmaji majored in marketing, she says the extracurricular activities she participated in at Concordia are what led her to her passion: PR.
Through CASA, she often represented the school, giving speeches and meeting with other universities. Basmaji was also a student representative on Concordia’s Board of Governors, and the university often asked her to represent the student body for media interviews.
Basmaji chose JMSB over other schools — including Ivy League Cornell University in Ithaca, New York — for the applied education she knew she’d get. She says she benefitted from professors who worked in the field and — importantly — lots of opportunities to do business cases.
“For me, it was the best training in terms of what I could apply to my job after graduating. It really gave me the confidence to present, think quickly on my feet and work in teams, which is very much the reality of the day-to-day workplace,” says Basmaji.
What’s it like working with her husband?
“It’s fantastic,” she says. “I’ve worked with family before. My father was my boss at Jacob. I establish parameters, and it’s always gone really well.”
Before launching Youville in 2009, Sebaaly worked for L’Oréal for seven years, where he felt he learned what larger corporations need from an agency.
He describes Youville as an experiential marketing agency that specializes in sponsorship and activation campaigns. They aim to create memorable experiences between brands and their target customers.
Sebaaly and his team of about 30 help large corporations get the best return on investment (ROI) out of sponsorship. Whether it’s through visibility, social media, newsletters or another vehicle, they create a link between the sponsoring company and people who like the brand being sponsored, say a sports team.
“First and foremost companies need to really enjoy working with their agency,” Sebaaly says.
Having studied finance at JMSB, numbers have also always been important to him. “There are a lot of agencies out there that zero in on the most spectacular ideas and designs, with little focus on results. But results have always been at the core of what we’re about,” he says.
Sebaaly’s vision is to work with a small number of clients, but to have longstanding relationships. Youville adds only a few clients a year, but most of them have been with the agency since its launch.
“What’s interesting is to compare the evolution of a campaign, whether on an annual basis or whether at different times of the year,” he says. “It helps us be more predictive when it comes to results and ROI.”
This spring, Sebaaly launched iammoving.ca to help Quebecers move house. The only website of its kind in the country, the free web platform enables users to efficiently manage the move of their belongings, setup of services in their new home, as well as address changes. A geolocation search tool provides personalized quotes from suppliers in their region.
What’s it like working with his wife?
“She’s an expert in her field. And having her join us in a role where she can spread her wings is amazing,” says Sebaaly. “And she has the best office in the building. I make sure she’s happy.”
Owning a business together also makes their day-to-day lives a lot easier. “It’s different when you have your own business: you have flexibility,” says Basmaji.
“I can spend more time with my daughter; I can work later when she’s asleep. It’s really a wonderful advantage to being an entrepreneur.”