Within Atypic, we shake up the codes. This one-of-a-kind advertising agency is set up in an Establishment or work assistance service (Esat) in Hauts-de-Seine. Here, independent advertisers and employees with autism disorders work hand in hand. On the occasion of World Autism Awareness Day this April 2, interview with Frédéric Frambot, director of this singular agency.
RFI: Atypical, what is it? And in what way is this initiative, precisely, atypical?
Frederic Frabot: Atypic is a structure linked to an Esat, a medico-social establishment which employs and remunerates disabled people who are able to have a job, but not sufficiently able to be employed in the ordinary environment. And the association White Butterflies of the Hill, which works with the disabled, administers the Esat. Our communication agency was launched at the beginning of 2022, and it is made up of “neuro-atypical creatives”, that is to say people with mental disabilities, the majority with high-level autism. At Atypic, there are seven in this case, all between 25 and 33 years old, with quite different statuses: two have the status of disabled worker, four are on work-study contracts, then one is self-employed. They all work in pairs with independent advertisers from the communication sector. In terms of operation, there is not really a typical day. But they need ritualized and regular things, so we make Mondays sanctuary: we try to all meet at the headquarters of the Papillons Blancs in Saint-Cloud to take stock of the communication projects in progress and distribute the works. The main thing for them is to be in shape, to have the conviction to be useful and to contribute to society.
Concretely, how do you adapt to the specificities of your employees with autism?
We manage to determine the skills of each, and we adapt accordingly. For example, Guillaume, 32, has trouble commuting, he only comes to headquarters on Mondays and the rest of the time prefers to work at home. I know that he is very good at graphic design and that he needs written instructions. So when I have a job to give him, I take the time to write the brief, to rephrase certain information. I also know that Justine, one of our work-study students, needs a real lunch break and likes to go to a restaurant. It’s the same for Pierre, he has to walk for an hour at noon, he’s not too early in the morning but is much better in the evening. These are small adjustments to assimilate so that they can evolve serenely. Afterwards, of course, there are days that are more complicated than others. You have to know how to always listen and arm yourself with patience… But there is a whole panel of professionals from the association who are there to help us.
For you, the social integration of autistic people goes through work? Is this your workhorse?
Yes. Only a tiny minority of people with autism have a job, because we don’t take the time to understand their abilities and how to adapt to them to make corporate work accessible. Our mission is to change the way the rest of the world looks at them. We know them. It’s an absolute pleasure to work with them, because they have this unfiltered side, we laugh. It’s pure human. Now we want to tell their story. We want to prove that they are creative, like the others, and that they can fit into the ordinary world. On top of that, they have the ability to invent, to come up with concepts, to take us to places we hadn’t even imagined. They know how to follow instructions, they master digital tools, computer coding… So one of my absolute pleasures is to go to advertising agencies, to talk about what we accomplish within Atypic, and above all to do the demonstration that it is possible: you can be disabled and work in advertising. And it’s not creation on the cheap, on the contrary, we are even extremely proud of the work we do!
When we think of a communication agency, we tend to think of a mile-per-hour rhythm, but at Atypic, it seems to be quite the opposite. Why did you decide to launch an agency focused on advertising and not on something else?
This is the story of a meeting. I was an advertiser for 30 years, then I decided to retrain. During my training, I met the general manager of the White Butterflies. He told me about the need to modernize the ESATs, as their audience is increasingly young and they are tending towards jobs in digital and creation. So we oriented ourselves towards communication in a fairly natural way. But we agree that an abyss separates the world of advertising and medico-social. This is why this step aside is interesting. With this initiative, not only do we want to give work to young adults with autism, but we also show that the relationship to stress and professional demands can be completely benevolent and attentive. When you work with talents like these people with autistic disorders, you accept to take a little more time, without being less competent. It gives a rather incredible dimension to the very particular profession of advertising.
And do you manage to convince external customers?
We are still a very young structure, we are just starting out. Since the beginning of this year, projects have been arriving, mainly from the medico-social sector. It remains for the moment in this microcosm, but we try to develop elsewhere, always without imperative, without stress. One of our latest projects concerns the House of Autism, which will open in Aubervilliers in a few days. We had participated in a call for projects to make the logo and the graphic charter, and we won. We were in competition with renowned consulting and design firms, so it was a huge source of pride for all our disabled creatives. It was also proof that you shouldn’t be afraid of the world of disability. There are still plenty of things to be done in terms of autism in France. There is a lack of spaces everywhere, of money, of resources, of awareness of what autism really is… But with little ideas like that, we are helping to build the edifice. It is enough to accept the difference of others a little more, to get rid of our prejudices, and to understand that they are just as capable, in their own way.
► To read also: Ingrid Dordain, the struggles of a mother to raise awareness of autism
► To listen also: Report Africa – In Tunisia, NGOs are trying to change mentalities around autism
► To read also: Autism: why is access to employment still difficult?
► To listen also: Priority Health – World Autism Awareness Day