MUMBAI: Apparel group has hired Aditi Chakravarty from luxury giant LVMH to spearhead marketing for its sprawling Indian retail empire, signalling ambitious plans to deepen its penetration in the subcontinent’s booming consumer market.
Chakravarty, who joins as head of marketing, brings formidable credentials from her stint at Moët Hennessy, where she orchestrated the rise of India from sixth to third place globally for the luxury spirits portfolio between 2021 and 2024. Her precision-crafted campaigns for premium whisky brands Glenmorangie and Ardbeg achieved “outsized share of voice” in India’s heavily regulated alcohol market.
The appointment positions her to oversee marketing for 14 international brands including Aldo, Charles & Keith, Bath & Body Works, Victoria’s Secret and R&B across Apparel Group’s 250-plus Indian stores and digital platforms.
Her career trajectory reads like a masterclass in modern marketing warfare. At Unilever, she delivered €1.2m in cost savings whilst driving global growth for Lifebuoy, the world’s largest skin-cleansing brand. She then pioneered Hindustan Unilever’s first online-only premium skincare brand, Aviance, scaling it to Rs 50 crore in India’s nascent e-commerce landscape.
The marketing maven’s most impressive feat came at OmniActive Health Technologies, where she led nutritional supplements brand Setu from zero to a Rs 100 crore direct-to-consumer roadmap, delivering eight-fold growth in six months through what she describes as “earned-owned media mix, funnel optimisation, and lifecycle automation”.
Her 15-year career spans blue-chip corporations including PepsiCo, where she cut her teeth in innovation and procurement for brands like Kurkure and Baked Lays, and a spell at DCM Shriram managing key accounts across India’s rural retail chain Hariyali Kisan Bazar.
The hire reflects Apparel group’s determination to leverage India’s consumer boom, as international fashion and beauty brands increasingly view the market as essential to global growth strategies. With her track record of translating “market insights into integrated communication plans that grow brand love, share, and value,” Chakravarty appears well-equipped for the challenge.
Her personal motto—”Work hard. Speak the truth. Get your hands dirty”—suggests Apparel Group has found someone unafraid of the gritty realities of retail warfare in one of the world’s most competitive consumer markets.
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