ITV

Category: Media and Advertising

  • Mindshare expands Emerging Markets Group under Ashutosh Srivastava

    Mindshare expands Emerging Markets Group under Ashutosh Srivastava

    MUMBAI: Mindshare chairman Asia and CEO Emerging Markets Group Ashutosh Srivastava has now been given the added responsibility of the Middle East and Africa.

     

    The change comes as Helen McRae is appointed Mindshare UK CEO, a role she will combine with her responsibility as chair of Mindshare Western Europe, representing Europe on the GroupM Europe board. McRae’s Africa responsibilities will now pass to Srivastava, whose extended remit will cover APAC, Russia, the Middle East and Africa.

     

    Mindshare global CEO Nick Emery said, “Ashutosh continues to broaden his scope and influence as all our best people do. I’m delighted that his influence will now have a direct effect on Asia, Africa and the Middle East. We will be all the richer for it.”

     

    Srivastava added, “The intent of this is to more strongly connect the growth markets together in the same way that many of our clients have organised themselves and so helping them unlock that growth through a strong, joined up network of resources.”

     

    At the same time, Christof Baron will take on the role CEO of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) to drive Mindshare growth in the region and oversee the international development of German based clients. Baron will also continue his role as non-executive chairman of Mindshare Germany.

  • Askme Bazaar ropes in Farhan Akhtar as brand ambassador

    Askme Bazaar ropes in Farhan Akhtar as brand ambassador

    MUMBAI: India’s consumer internet company Askme has roped in Bollywood star Farhan Akhtar as brand ambassador for its online marketplace Askmebazaar.com.

    As per the terms of the contract, Akhtar will endorse the company’s products and services through advertising campaigns.

    As the brand ambassador, Akhtar will be featured in a new integrated 360-degree campaign for Askmebazaar.com, which will run across TV, print and online channels from August 2015.

    Askme Group CMO Manav Sethi said, “We are delighted to have multi-talented Farhan Akhtar on board as this association will help build a strong connect between the brand and consumers. Farhan Akhtar who wears different caps of a singer, lyricist, actor and director, truly exemplifies our brand philosophy which is defined by simplicity, great design and ease of use with contemporary Indian features.”

    Akhtar added, “It’s a great feeling to be associated with Askme as the brand resonates fashion, style, and attitude and guarantees every purchase with its unique trust seal.”

  • Rediffusion Y&R appoints Pramod Sharma as executive creative director

    Rediffusion Y&R appoints Pramod Sharma as executive creative director

    MUMBAI: Rediffusion Y&R has appointed Pramod Sharma as executive creative director, which is also his second stint with the company. He joins the agency from Soho Square (Ogilvy).

     

    Sharma said, “I had a great stint working with Jauhari and Wadia in Everest. And given the change that is underway in Rediffusion Y&R, the opportunity was one I didn’t want to miss. Jauhari has been like a mentor to me and this feels like coming home for a second innings.”

     

    Rediffusion Y&R president Dhunji S.Wadia added, “We welcome Sharma’s return to our agency. He understands our clients, brands and our work style. We appreciate his work ethic and calibre. And everyone can expect sparkling creative work.”

     

    Rediffusion Y & R CCO Rahul Jauhari said, “It’s great to have him back in the team. His passion for creativity is very well balanced with his understanding of business issues. Sharma comes as a shot in the arm for the creative team in Rediffusion Y&R Mumbai.”

     

    Sharma comes with over 15 years of work experience across agencies like Ogilvy, Dentsu, Percept-Hakuhodo, Everest and DDB Mudra.

  • Sports365.in launches U Mumba’s official merchandise

    Sports365.in launches U Mumba’s official merchandise

    MUMBAI: Sports365.in has launched the official merchandise of the Mumbai-based Kabaddi team, U Mumba, exclusively on its website. It has associated as the online channel partner for the team and its merchandising partner ‘Sports & Beyond’ in a bid to exclusively market their products online.

     

    Sports365.in founder and CEO G Chandra Sekhar Reddy, “U Mumba has won the hearts of many Indians, especially with its recent win over Puneri Paltan. It is one of the most popular and well-loved Kabaddi teams of the country and we are pleased to offer its official merchandise exclusively on our platform. The availability of the new product line will attract more Kabaddi fans to our online store and also further bolster the love for the sport in India.”

     

    As of now, U Mumba’s and its sports partner’s range of products is solely available on Sports365.in. The portal plans to facilitate the sale of the merchandise on other online marketplaces like Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal, Paytm and Shopclues in the coming days.

  • O&M makes senior hires; names Alok Sinha as president planning

    O&M makes senior hires; names Alok Sinha as president planning

    MUMBAI: With an aim to strengthen its top brass of management, the Gurgaon office of Ogilvy and Mather has made a number of additions to its senior management team – the prime one being the appointment of Alok Sinha as the president – planning.

     

    “As our business gets more dynamic and interconnected every day, we are constantly looking for leaders who can join the dots effectively and enable a better, more integrated creative product,” said Ogilvy North executive creative director Ajay Gahlaut.

     

    Sinha, who comes with over 20 years of experience across fields like research, advertising, media and digital, finds his new position at Ogilvy’s Gurgaon office as a “homecoming.”

     

    “I’m quite excited at the prospect of bringing a ‘no boundaries’ approach to account planning for clients – having traversed the entire spectrum myself. The communication business is at the confluence of two tectonic forces – content and data. Ogilvy Delhi has some of the most prestigious clients and talent in the country and my job is to try help both our clients and our talent effectively navigate this confluence for business success,” adds Sinha.

     

    Priot to this, Sinha led the strategic digital mandate for Mindshare in South Asia, where his focus was on strengthening Mindshare’s planning product and the strong integration of digital thinking on businesses including futuristic projects like the Loop Room. He has also had extensive experience across South East Asia, in a regional communications planning role at Aegis and subsequently as lead on the P&G businesses at Carat, Philippines.

     

    This move was the first amongst a series of new appointments that Ogilgy and Mather’s Gugaon office has undergone. The other key addition to the team is Chandana Agarwal, who has taken up the role of managing partner of the advertising function. 

     

    Agarwal has been with Soho Square and Ogilvy Gurgaon for over four years now. In her role as managing partner, she will work with Ogilvy Gurgaon branch head Kapil Arora to steward the advertising business of Ogilvy.

     

    This was followed by bringing Namrata Balwani on board as senior vice president and head of OgilvyOne, Gurgaon. Balwani moves in from Media2win, a digital agency she co-founded, where she was CEO.

     

    “I am excited to lead an amazing OgilvyOne team in Gurgaon. Digital platforms and connectivity, especially mobile, are transforming India at a speed never seen before. This is the best time to not only be a part of the transformation but also lead the charge and OgilvyOne is well poised to do that for all its brand partners,” Balwani said.

     

    Speaking on the new appointments, Arora said, “Over the last three years, the office has grown significantly across disciplines and we felt the need to bring in the right talent to help navigate our clients’ businesses through a rapidly changing environment. Between Alok, Chandana and Namrata, we have some of the best talent at hand, to fuel the creative product and to partner our clients in building their businesses.”

  • DDB Mudra and Thailand’s Chuo Senko end joint venture in India

    DDB Mudra and Thailand’s Chuo Senko end joint venture in India

    MUMBAI: Thailand based communications group Chuo Senko Group and India’s DDB Mudra have ended their joint venture (JV) in India.

     

    The JV company Chuo Senko Advertising India began operations in the country in the first half of 2013 as a full-service advertising agency, partnering with the DDB Mudra Group.

     

    From mid-year 2014, the agency began hiring for its team and saw some big wins including work for Daikin Airconditioning India, Panasonic India, Triumph Motorbikes, Woolmark and the Korean Cultural Centre India (part of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea) in the last quarter of 2014.

     

    The Chuo Senko Group and the DDB Mudra Group mutually decided to part ways in the joint venture they setup in 2013. However, in recognition of the growth opportunities and potential the India market offers, Chuo Senko is now investing aggressively in expanding capabilities and additional capacity in Chuo Senko Advertising India.

     

    The company said that it expects 2015 to be its best year yet and 2016 to be many times better. “It takes time to find the right mix of people, product and place, and it is a very exciting time for us as we get closer to that sweet spot each day,” the company said in an official statement.

     

  • DDB Mudra Group elevates Sameer Mehta as TracyLocke president

    DDB Mudra Group elevates Sameer Mehta as TracyLocke president

    MUMBAI: DDB Mudra Group has elevated Sameer Mehta to the post of TracyLocke India president. In his new role, Mehta will report to DDB Mudra Group CEO and MD Madhukar Kamath.

     

    TracyLocke is DDB Mudra Group’s shopper marketing, field marketing and retail solutions agency. 

     

    Mehta has been a part of the DDB Mudra Group since 2005 and has been instrumental in setting up and growing the field marketing, retail solutions and shopper marketing services for the group. With 17 years of experience in this field, Mehta is helping businesses grow through interventions at the point of purchase and this has been utilized extensively for many brands.

     

    Post the Mudra Groups acquisition by Omnicom, Mehta has been a part of the team that has been entrusted to build the TracyLocke brand in India. 

     

    Mehta said, “I look forward to this opportunity as we imbibe the TracyLocke philosophy of ‘Buy Design’ in our day to day work. We believe in putting intent and purpose behind every activity that leads a customer to buy a brand. This principle helps us design experiences that turn shoppers into believers. We are seeing this being practiced by TracyLocke in the US with Pepsico, where they deliver cutting edged brand experiences. The global win of the SC Johnson business will also give us an opportunity in India to collaborate with other markets. Truly a lot to look forward to for us in TracyLocke India.”

     

    Kamath added, “This has reaffirmed the belief that I always had in TracyLocke India’s capabilities to become one of the flagship businesses of the DDB Mudra Group. I am excited about the potential that we have to deliver technology led solutions in this space with Sameer at the forefront. He has a core team that has helped him grow this business and I am sure will continue to do so. I congratulate him on this well-deserved elevation within the group and look forward to working closely with him.”

  • GroupM acquires majority stake in Turkey’s directComm

    GroupM acquires majority stake in Turkey’s directComm

    MUMBAI: WPP’s GroupM has acquired a majority stake in directComm Marketing Group, a leading provider of integrated direct marketing services in Turkey.

     

    directComm specialises in digital marketing, customer relationship management, events and social media. Clients include Turk Telekom, Siemens and Sony Mobile. Founded in 2000 and based in Istanbul, directComm employs around 70 people. 

     

    Unaudited revenues for the year ended 31 December, 2014 were approximately $6.5 million, with gross assets at the same date of approximately $3.2 million.

     

    This acquisition continues WPP’s strategy of investing in fast growing and important markets and sectors and strengthening its digital capabilities. WPP’s digital revenues were $6.9 billion in 2014, representing 36 per cent of the Group’s total revenues of $ 19 billion. WPP has set a target of 40-45 per cent of revenue to be derived from digital in the next five years. 

     

    Turkey is one of the Next 11 growth economies where WPP companies (including associates) generate revenues of over $1 billion and employ over 10,000 people. In Turkey itself, WPP companies (including associates) generate revenues of around $120 million and employ approximately 1,300 people.

  • Jaideep Mahajan rejoins to Rediffusion Y&R as national creative head

    Jaideep Mahajan rejoins to Rediffusion Y&R as national creative head

    MUMBAI: Jaideep Mahajan is back at Rediffusion Y&R and has been named as the agency’s national creative head.

     

    Mahajan will work closely with Rediffusion Y&R chief creative officer Rahul Jauhari and will be based out of the agency’s Delhi office. As a group resource, Mahajan will also oversee the creative product of Everest Delhi.

     

    “Given the change that is underway in the group, this seemed like a perfect time to return home,” said Mahajan. “Rediffusion has been special to me. I have known Rahul for a long time. Our thoughts on creative work, creative culture and business focus matched perfectly,” he added.

     

    With over 17 years of industry experience, Mahajan comes with a 100 plus International & National Awards and big brand work to his credit. He has worked with agencies such as JWT, Contract, Linen Lintas, McCann Erickson (Kuala Lumpur), Leo Burnett/Arc Worldwide (Kuala Lumpur) and Rediffusion Y&R.

     

    Rediffusion Y&R president Dhunji S.Wadia said, “In a way, I started the return to the group movement when I re-joined in 2010. Rahul Jauhari followed next. And now it is many happy returns for JD. JD has a proven reputation as a creative leader and is held with great regard both internally and his clients.”

     

    Jauhari added, “JD’s return is a strong signal of the caliber and intent of creative work one can expect from Rediffusion Y&R. His immediate focus will be to rebuild our Delhi office into a creative powerhouse. He will also work with me on raising the craft bar within the agency across our offices.”