ITV

Category: People

  • BlueStone appoints Arvind Singhal as chief operating officer

    BlueStone appoints Arvind Singhal as chief operating officer

    MUMBAI: BlueStone has appointed Arvind Singhal as chief operating officer (COO). In his new role, Singhal will be responsible for charting out the growth plans and lead the market on all fronts of brand development, customer acquisition and growing sales and profits. 

     

    “We are quite excited to have Arvind on board. Arvind brings in an expertise, which is quite diverse and he has taken up various portfolios ranging from marketing to overall P&L. He has worked across various industries. His understanding of consumer behaviour and market is one of the best in the industry, which is going to be a great asset for us. As we desire to grow at an accelerated pace, especially for next couple of years, his thought process will surely give strategic direction to individual functions. We are sure that with Arvind coming in, our journey towards attaining our vision will be much smoother,” said BlueStone founder and CEO Gaurav Singh. 

     

    With over 16 years of experience in diverse industries in companies like Asian Paints, Marico Industries, Nokia, Reliance and McDonald’s India, Singhal last served TaxiForSure as CEO.

     

    Singhal added, “I am excited about the huge opportunity Bluestone has in the jewelry market in India, which is over $50 billion and poised to grow at a CAGR of 14 per cent plus. Bluestone brings to consumers a huge selection of contemporary design to choose from and delivered at their doorstep within 48-72 hours.”

  • Lowe Singapore names Ranjit Jathanna as CSO & global planning lead on Lifebuoy

    Lowe Singapore names Ranjit Jathanna as CSO & global planning lead on Lifebuoy

    MUMBAI: Lowe Singapore has welcomed back Ranjit Jathanna to the newly created position of chief strategy officer (CSO) at the agency. 

     

    Jathanna takes up this role in Singapore after two years as chief client officer on the Unilever business at Lowe China.

     

    In his new position, Jathanna will also take the global planning leadership role on the Unilever brand Lifebuoy. As CSO, he will be responsible for the development, capability building, and management of the planning function within the advancing Singapore agency. The role is effective immediately.

     

    Jathanna is no stranger to Lowe Singapore, where he previously held the role of associate global planning director on the Unilever laundry brand platform Dirt is Good. With a career spanning over 16 years and a MBA in marketing, Jathanna has held senior planning roles across the Lowe network – based in India, Dubai, Bangkok, Singapore – as well as the management role in China.

     

    Lowe Asia Pacific regional president Rupen Desai said, “We’re delighted to have Ranjit back in Singapore in a significant management role. He is a superb leader, a brilliant planner and most importantly a great human being; all of which were critical in the search for the agency’s CSO role.”

     

    Jathanna added, “Obviously this is a great opportunity for me professionally. Lifebuoy is an exceptionally powerful brand around the world, and taking up a key management position at a business headquarters like Singapore is both an honour and a challenge.”

  • Salt Brand Solutions promotes Siddhartha Singh as CEO, Arun Divakar as NCD

    Salt Brand Solutions promotes Siddhartha Singh as CEO, Arun Divakar as NCD

    MUMBAI: Salt Brand Solutions has rejigged its top management. The company has promoted Siddhartha Singh as CEO and Arun Divakar as national creative director (NCD).

     

    Singh is one of the founder members of Salt and till now was executive vice president (EVP). He has almost two decades of experience across agencies like Leo Burnett, Ambience Publicis and Rediffusion – Y&R.

     

    Singh said, “I plan to up the ante on product delivery, ensuring it is above industry standard and pushes the agenda of being best new-age business partners to our clients. This is something we have practiced for the last four years and today feel confident and capable of delivering. In addition, I want to instil brand thinking that cuts through the jargon, brings in simplicity and germinates from a client’s business problem rather than lofty brand ideologies.”

     

    On the other end of the spectrum is Divakar, who will now be responsible for the complete creative portfolio of Salt. “I want to create an environment where people contribute and come up with ideas fearlessly and frequently in a manner that is fun, for I believe that Happy People create Happy Work and that is something that we want to stand for,” he said.

     

    Divakar started his career as an account executive, but quickly realised he was a better art director than the ones he was listening to! He has worked with Flagship and Saatchi & Saatchi in Mumbai, and Classic Partnership, O&M, Y&R and TBWA in the U.A.E, before taking on the role of regional creative director, Pirana which he helped set up in the U.A.E. In 2014 he moved back to India and joined Salt Brand Solutions.

     

    Defining the road ahead, Salt Brand Solutions founder Mahesh Chauhan added, “Divakar has been the proverbial madman of Salt. His talent coupled with his joie de vivre has transformed our work and culture beautifully. Sid, on the other hand, has been a pillar over the past four years of Salt and has seamlessly transitioned into this role. He is widely respected and brings great gravitas to our offering as an organisation.”

     

    “With these elevations, I will now be spending my time driving ideas for our clients. This will involve working seamlessly with both the strategy and creative teams. The end objective being consistently superior work for all our partners as well as properties that we develop for ourselves,” he added.

  • Viiking appoints Omar Qureshi as CCO & biz head

    Viiking appoints Omar Qureshi as CCO & biz head

    MUMBAI: Viiking Media & Entertainment has appointed Bollywood & media expert Omar Qureshi as chief creative officer (CCO) and business head.

     

    With Qureshi’s appointment, the Group will now enter the digital media and creative content market.

     

    Viiking Ventures and Viiking Media & Entertainment chairman Sachiin Joshi said, “This is the most fabulous handshake to happen in the business of media and entertainment in a long time and will remains so for a long time. We, as a Group, are expanding in the areas of movies, movie content, short and long form content for digital. And who better than Omar – with his immense experience in all these zones – to spearhead these areas. He is a household name with Bollywood and a known face with TV, media and even the audiences. His experience and expertise shall only add greater value to Viiking as a company.”

     

    Joshi further added, “We intend not only to become the biggest players in the digital content space out of India, we will also have the in-house expertise to select and make the best possible content for movies and the music space, that seem to be suffering from dearth of enough creativity. Omar is a master of that territory and we are very excited.”

     

    Qureshi said, “When smart business meets smart content, the result is a spark that can set benchmarks and blaze new trails. With the kind of Group support and resources at the disposal of the Viiking Group, the ventures we are looking at shall be the place to visit, for sampling any kind of content across genres. With a focused eye on Bollywood and entertainment, we shall also foray into other genres.”

     

    “With niche TV viewing going through asphyxiation by the larger GECs, and with content suffering from scarcity of originality, we hope to create shark tanks of expert teams, the best of breed in their domains, who will create businesses that will become a landing page for most consumers. With the Group’s interest in Bollywood and Tollywood movies, also looking internationally, I see a beautiful synergy and an exciting new zone that shall be the mother of all digital content, hopefully, sooner than we think. With the kind of vision, 70mm foresight and drive that Sachiin Joshi has, this seems immensely doable,” Qureshi concluded.

  • Saatchi & Saatchi promotes Justin Billingsley as worldwide COO

    Saatchi & Saatchi promotes Justin Billingsley as worldwide COO

    MUMBAI: Justin Billingsley has been promoted to the role of worldwide chief operating officer (COO) for the network.

     

    Billingsley is presently CEO of Dynamic Markets at Saatchi & Saatchi, having joined the company in 2009. Based in London, he commences his role immediately.

     

    All of Saatchi & Saatchi’s offices across the world will report to Billingsley, who will focus on leading the network’s growth and performance across markets, and on transforming the capabilities of the business to meet the future needs of clients. He will continue to lead the agency’s worldwide M&A activity and continues on the executive board and global leadership team of Saatchi & Saatchi.

     

    Saatchi & Saatchi CEO worldwide Robert Senior said, “Justin is a proven transformational leader for us, first in China, then in EMEA and in his new role, will focus on improvement in our performance globally. Justin and I have a great working partnership. It is as simple as this: we both stand in the doorway of the Saatchi & Saatchi network. From there I tend to look outwards, and Justin tends to look inwards. We need to do both in order to lift our game and achieve our purpose.”

     

    Billingsley added, “This role represents an inspirational challenge to wake up to each day: If we are promising our clients and our people that ‘Nothing is Impossible’ then what kind of agency does it take to deliver this today and what will be needed tomorrow? We are defining what this means and transforming accordingly, combining new skills with a hunger for creative excellence and world-changing ideas. And it’s fun, making Saatchi & Saatchi more Saatchi & Saatchi.”

     

    His appointment follows a series of additions to the global leadership team at Saatchi & Saatchi, including David Hackworthy as chief strategy officer, and Jeff Geisler as chief marketing officer.

     

    Prior to being named CEO of Dynamic Markets in January 2015, Billingsley was the COO of the EMEA region for Saatchi & Saatchi. He joined the agency in 2009 as CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi Greater China, and before that held various senior marketing leadership roles at companies including Unilever, Nokia, Orange, and The Coca-Cola Company.

     

    Previous COO Chris Foster has moved to a new role in Publicis Groupe as SVP – global clients.

  • Soho Square Mumbai names Ishrath Nawaz as creative director

    Soho Square Mumbai names Ishrath Nawaz as creative director

    MUMBAI: Soho Square Mumbai has appointed Ishrath Nawaz as creative director with effect from 3 September.

     

    Soho Square executive creative directors Anuraag Khandelwal and Satish Desa said, “Our young and dynamic team is a constantly evolving one. Our focus is to continuously adapt to new age ideas and ideals, with growth that is not just exponential but organic as well. Ishrath brings with him a unique mix of talents and a crisp understanding of different brand segments. We believe he has what it takes to strengthen our vision.”

     

    Nawaz added, “There’s nothing like it. I’ve always wanted to be a part of the Ogilvy group and it’s like a dream come true for me. Soho Square has been breaking tremendous ground over the last few years. Anuraag and Satish are two highly competitive and creative individuals who are firmly entrenched in market realities while striving to achieve creative excellence. I think this is the perfect mix. It’s going to be great working and growing with them.”

     

    Having an experience of 14 years in advertising, Nawaz has worked across agencies like Saatchi & Saatchi, Rediffusion DYR, Network Advertising and Draft FCB+Ulka.

  • Lowe Singapore hires Vinay Vinayak as global business director on Lifebuoy

    Lowe Singapore hires Vinay Vinayak as global business director on Lifebuoy

    MUMBAI: Lowe Singapore, part of the Mullen Lowe Group, has appointed Vinay Vinayak as global business director for Unilever’s health and hygiene skin cleansing brand, Lifebuoy.

     

    Vinayak will assume the responsibilities of Lowe Singapore’s previous Lifebuoy lead, Virat Tandon, who was recently appointed CEO of the advertising network’s new agency Mullen Lintas, in India.

     

    Vinayak comes to Singapore after five years with Lowe’s Lifebuoy team in Mumbai. At Singapore headquarters, he will lead and develop the brand across markets in South East Asia, South Asia, Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

     

    He has over ten years across both agency and client-side in the advertising industry, directing brands such as HSBC, Cadbury (now Mondelez), Samsonite and BBC World. With Lowe in Mumbai, he was part of the core Lifebuoy team that among various brand initiatives also conceptualised and implemented the multi-award winning social mission programme – Help A Child Reach 5.

     

    Lowe Asia Pacific regional president Rupen Desai said, “Lifebuoy is an amazing brand where the purpose and profit both work in perfect sync. We’re delighted that Vinay agreed to take up this challenge leading the team here in Singapore. He has a great track record with the brand, and working with the client and agency teams globally. Lifebuoy is one of our most lauded partner brands, so it was crucial that we had exactly the right fit for this senior position.”

     

    Vinayak added, “The Lifebuoy brand is on an interesting trajectory, and is deeply committed to improving the hygiene habits of families and especially children, everywhere. Coming to Singapore means that I can not only be a strong part of the brand’s journey, but help shape it as well. Singapore also means being at the vortex of some of the newest opportunities for content – as it is a key centre for Asia, and also because it offers the ability to lead integrated work for the brand, alongside specialists like Lowe Open and Lowe Profero.”

  • CouponDunia ropes in Krishna Iyer as VP – revenue

    CouponDunia ropes in Krishna Iyer as VP – revenue

    MUMBAI: CouponDunia has appointed Krishna Iyer as its vice president – revenue. He will be responsible for accelerating sales, expanding the reach and ensuring brand’s overall growth.

     

    Iyer comes to CouponDunia with 12 years experience in sales, account management, strategy and leadership of which 10 years have been in the digital space. Prior to joining CouponDunia, he was AVP – media sales at Quikr.com and was responsible for evangelising, building web and mobile revenue properties. His mandate was to create a magnetisation stream that was media and brand centric.

     

    CouponDunia CEO Sameer Parwani said, “Krishna will be instrumental in driving CouponDunia’s next phase of growth with his robust expertise in sales and strategy. His prior experience working in key roles at two rapidly expanding start-ups makes him well suited to the challenges ahead at CouponDunia. We are excited to have him on board.”

     

    Iyer added, “Online coupons and its usage is growing extremely fast in India and CouponDunia is leading this change. This role will give me a chance to interact with brands across verticals and offer them online and offline reach that CouponDunia enjoys and showcase this platform as an effective marketing channel. I look forward to working with CouponDunia and helping build a sustainable and targetable customer outreach brand.”

  • Mullen Lowe Lintas Group hires Sriharsh Grandhe to head LinEngage

    Mullen Lowe Lintas Group hires Sriharsh Grandhe to head LinEngage

    MUMBAI: LinEngage, the experiential marketing and activation arm of Mullen Lowe Lintas Group, has appointed Sriharsh Grandhe as executive vice president based in Mumbai. 

    Grandhe will report to Mullen Lowe Lintas Group CMO and president – group marketing services Vikas Mehta.

     

    Prior to joining LinEngage, Grandhe was with the WPP firm, Possible Worldwide Singapore as the engagement director. At Possible, Grandhe was managing the global rollout of Standard Chartered’s Responsive Website, a first in the Banking domain across 55 countries in APAC, EMEA & Americas.

     

    Mehta said, “Our ambition for LinEngage is to make consumer engagement an essential part of a brand’s narrative. A lot more innovation is possible in the area of creating meaningful consumer experiences. Under Harsh’s leadership, we are keen to make strides in strengthening this practice in an industry that’s largely driven by tactical activations.”

     

    LinEngage offers specialist brand engagement expertise to a host of clients in India. Apart from its focus on the urban pockets, it boasts of a bespoke rural offering – LinTerland. The motive is to help clients capitalise on the consumer-engagement opportunities in heartland India. Both the urban and rural offerings of LinEngage have been growing steadily over the past few months with host of new business wins. Notable clients include Johnson & Johnson, Franke Faber, Bayer, UltraTech, Castrol, ICICI Prudential and Byju’s  to name a few. His remit will be to evangelise the experiential marketing practice for the group and further expand the portfolio.

     

    Grandhe added, “The strong lineage of Mullen Lowe Lintas Group is no secret. India is at an exciting phase of development and the agency is experiencing both momentum and growth. LinEngage is in a sweet spot right now with only one direction to go – upwards.”

  • Wunderman India names Manoj Mansukhani as managing director

    Wunderman India names Manoj Mansukhani as managing director

    MUMBAI: WPP’s digital and direct marketing agency Wunderman International India has named Manoj Mansukhani as managing director with immediate effect. 

     

    Succeeding Rahul Guha, Mansukhani is based in New Delhi and reports to Wunderman Asia Pacific president Martin Conneen.

     

    Mansukhani will lead Wunderman India’s operations, as well as consolidate the network’s current offerings and expand agency expertise and capabilities. He will work to further develop Wunderman’s e-commerce offering, leveraging the agency’s data, analytics and creative expertise to help clients deliver more impactful cross-channel consumer experiences.

    Bringing with him over 18 years of experience, Mansukhani is well-versed in moving brick and mortar companies into the digital space, developing omni-channel solutions and connecting online and offline sales. He was most recently senior vice president and head of e-commerce at Razorfish India, where he ran the Mumbai and Bangalore offices. 

     

    Prior to that, Mansukhani served as associate vice president of MRM (part of McCann Worldgroup), working in both B2B and B2C spaces.
     

    Conneen said, “Wunderman India has built award-winning teams and firm foundations for the future. We warmly welcome Manoj, and feel his extensive expertise will be instrumental in Wunderman’s strategy to expand agency capabilities and offerings in India. We thank Rahul for his significant contribution over the past five years.”

    Mansukhani added, “It’s exciting to be joining Wunderman International India as the network looks to build on existing strengths to incorporate new assets. I look forward to helping helm the agency to the next level of its development.”