MAM

How did FMCG fare in 2022?

Published

3 years ago

August 14, 2023

Mumbai: At the onset of 2022, with two years of covid rocking everyone’s boat like crazy, all were anticipating that 2022 would bring some relief. But life had other plans—the year kicked off with Omicron in January 2022, followed by the Ukraine war in February 2022. And the fact remains that war in any part of the world can spark off a series of events that can have significant consequences for the entire world.

That is exactly what transpired. Commodity prices began booming, and it resulted in inflation, which in turn led to lower demand for certain categories. Many overestimated demand for the year, but consumer packaged goods’ (CPG) volumes did not increase as per expectations last year.

Industries such as hotel (hospitality), travel, automobile and airlines, however, had their share of glory.

According to NielsenIQ’s FMCG Snapshot for Q2 2022, the FMCG industry had grown by 10.9 per cent in the quarter ending June 2022, versus six per cent in the previous quarter (Jan-March 2022).

As per the findings of the report, while volume decline continued for medium and large manufacturers, small manufacturers (less than Rs 100 crore in turnover) had recovered to a positive volume growth of 1.8 per cent in Q2 2022. This recovery was primarily driven by the food segment, with a growth of 5.6 per cent, compared to –5.5 per cent in the previous quarter. Despite an uptick from the previous quarter, non-food continued to show negative volume growth of -13.8 per cent in Q2 2022, compared to -20.4 per cent in the previous quarter.

The report also brought out that the food segment had seen a positive volume growth of 1.8 per cent in Q2 2022, especially with impulse categories such as chocolates and salty snacks growing by 15.1 per cent. Despite the non-foods segment remaining in the negative, there was a marginal uptick from –9.6 per cent in the previous quarter to -6.4 per cent in Q2 2022. Within the non-foods segment, non-essential personal care categories such as perfumed deodorants and cologne saw over 40 per cent volume growth, buoyed by the summer season and consumers heading out for both work and leisure activities as they got back to their normal routines.

Discussing some of the challenges and learnings for their brands that cropped up during the past year, BL Agro managing director Ashish Khandelwal said, “Our major challenge last year was the wide fluctuations in the market. We tried to manage those through the stock we kept as a reserve. If we talk about the food market, the graph has been upward, and to maintain that upward graph, we had to manage.”

He further added, “We saw a huge demand from the market and learned to cope with it. To cater to the growing demand, we set up a new manufacturing unit this year in Bareilly, which comes with its own challenges and learnings, starting from production to logistics.”

The media split between traditional and digital

Coming to the media side, because traditionally that’s where all the advertising moolah went – growth in the television industry in 2022, in terms of viewership, was negative. Last year, the consumption of television had gone down as compared to the previous two years, owing to more people returning to the work from home (WFH) format and other reasons for the quality of programming.

TV viewership, as a whole, shrunk – be it the Hindi-speaking market (HSM) news channels, FTA GEC, movies and even regional GECs. However, the FTA movie genre grew.

News viewership went for a toss. With FTA channels from leading networks logging out of DD Freedish, the GRPs from FTA GEC channels vanished due to a lack of adequate programming. IPL, which was essentially TV earlier, was split into digital and TV. Leading channels like Star Plus started airing their programs between Monday-Sunday (instead of Mon-Fri). Experts understand that while we witnessed a host of new channels pop up in the FTA movie space, their future will now depend on how the FTA GEC’s re-entry into DD FreeDish homes pans out.

In the past, though television was considered the most important medium for a brand to make it big, that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. With brands opting for digital advertising, it has expanded the medium and become a much sought-after means to put across their message to a targeted audience.

As Dabur India head for media Rajiv Dubey puts it, “Bad news for television meant that advertising on digital grew leaps and bounds and got almost 90 per cent growth over last year’s numbers. As more money moved into the performance side of the business, one is seeing a slowdown/rationalisation of spends in ‘app-based’ businesses, in e-commerce, edutech and the downfall of crypto economies. Digital business, however, is still likely to grow in low double digits next year.”

Amway India chief marketing officer Ajay Khanna observes that last year, one of the biggest trends that they witnessed was the shift in the mindset of the health-conscious consumer from the realisation to the adoption stage with a focus on preventive healthcare.

“Today, consumers are going beyond products and looking for holistic solutions which can address their overall health and wellness goals. Further, the no-compromise attitude of health-conscious, digitally savvy consumers has intrigued brands to innovate and offer well-researched wellness products and solutions, in newer formats along with seamless and superior digital experience,” he points out.

Khandelwal of BL Agro reveals that last year they had allocated Rs 150 crore as their media budget, keeping television and digital as the main mediums.

“We used close to Rs 80 crore of the allocated budget across all media for promoting our brands. A part of the budget was allocated for advertising and marketing, and the other part was allocated for merchandising at our various stores,” he states.

There had been deep cuts in ad spends by various FMCG players owing to the economic slowdown, but Khandelwal begs to differ, as he believes that FMCG is a segment where demand will never go down. And hence, apt and prudent advertising is always required.

He cites, “We, at BL Agro, spent heavily on advertising last year—more than ever before. We know our target audience for both brands—Bail Kolhu and Nourish—and the ad spends were allocated as per the need. We are not looking at any ad expenditure cuts in any of our marketing campaigns.”

Looking forward

From the futuristic trends point of view, Dubey of Dabur predicts, “Influencer marketing has seen massive growth in the last few years, and that’s likely to grow even bigger. While it’s difficult to predict what will work better in terms of ROI, I sincerely hope that sports starts to give a better ROI; however, from the looks of it and seeing the cost at which the sports rights are bid in this country, it’s going to be out of reach for most CPG clients.”

He adds, “We are hoping that as inflation eases and demand picks up, we will be ready with our ammunition and higher spending for the year 2023.”

From the brand and product offerings point of view, Khanna of Amway elucidates, “As we move forward, we will focus on the trends that will continue to dominate the industry, which include the rising demand for plant-based nutrition supplements, products with herbal and Ayurvedic ingredients, healthy beauty, personalised nutrition solutions, the rise of the gig economy, and accelerated and deeper digital adoption. With the growing wellness economy, people are looking for solutions beyond just products.”

Khandelwal foresees, “Due to the on-going Ukraine-Russia war, the year 2022, saw price fluctuations in the wheat and oil categories. We see a major shortage of wheat and other raw food materials in the year 2023 as the buffer which was there with the government and stockists are coming to an end. This will eventually see a price rise as well.”

BL Agro recently launched a new manufacturing unit to double the production of its existing portfolio of 75+ products. It would like to build on this and focus on the same for next year. In October 2023, the company plans to come up with new product categories.

It will be interesting to note how brands and companies will be putting themselves back together after the two-year slump, and how easy or difficult it’s going to be for them, only time will tell.

Brands

Netflix India names Rekha Rane director of films and series marketing

Streaming giant bets on a seasoned marketer who helped build Amazon and Netflix into household names

Published

4 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Netflix has put a proven brand builder at the helm of its films and series marketing in India, naming Rekha Rane as director in a move that signals sharper focus on audience growth and cultural cut-through in one of its most hotly contested markets.

Rane steps into the role after seven years at Netflix, where she has quietly shaped how the platform sells stories to India. Her latest promotion, effective February 2026, crowns a run that spans brand, slate and product marketing across originals, licensed content and new verticals such as games.

A strategic marketing and communications professional with roughly 15 years’ experience, Rane has spent much of her career building technology-led consumer businesses and new categories, notably e-commerce and subscription video on demand. She was part of the early push that introduced Amazon.in, Prime Video and Netflix to Indian homes, then helped turn them into everyday brands.

At Netflix, she most recently served as head of brand and slate marketing for India from March 2024 to February 2026, leading teams across media and marketing for global and local content portfolios. Before that, as manager for original films and series marketing, she led IP creation and go-to-market strategy for titles including Guns and Gulaabs, Kaala Paani, The Railway Men* and The Great Indian Kapil Show, spanning both binge and weekly-release formats.

Her earlier Netflix roles covered product discovery and promotion in India and integrated campaign strategy to drive conversations around the content slate, product awareness and brand-equity metrics.

Before Netflix, Rane logged more than three years at Amazon in brand marketing roles in Bengaluru. There she handled national and regional campaigns for Amazon.in, worked on customer assistance programmes in growth geographies and contributed to the go-to-market strategy for the launch of Prime Video India.

Her career began well away from streaming. At Reliance Brands in Mumbai, she worked on retail marketing for Diesel and Superdry. A stint at Leo Burnett saw her work on primary research for P&G Tide, mapping Indian shoppers’ paths to purchase. Earlier still, at Orange in the United Kingdom, she rose from sales assistant to store manager, running a team and owning monthly P&L for a retail outlet.

The arc is telling. As global streamers fight for attention in a crowded Indian market, executives who understand both mass retail behaviour and digital habit-building are prized. Rane’s career sits at that intersection.

For Netflix, the bet is simple: in a market spoilt for choice, sharp marketing can still tilt the screen. And with Rane now leading the charge, the streamer is signalling it wants not just viewers, but fandom.

Brands

Orient Beverages pops the fizz with steady Q3 gains and rising profits

Kolkata-based beverage maker reports stronger revenues and profits for December quarter.

Published

4 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: A fizzy quarter with a steady aftertaste that’s how Orient Beverages Limited, the company that manufactures and distributes packaged drinking water under the brand name Bisleri closed the December 2025 period, as the Kolkata-based drinks maker reported improved revenues and a healthy rise in profits, signalling operational stability in a competitive beverage market.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Orient Beverages posted standalone revenue from operations of Rs 39.98 crore, up from Rs 36.42 crore in the previous quarter and Rs 33.53 crore in the same quarter last year. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 42.24 crore, reflecting consistent demand and stable pricing across its beverage portfolio.

Profit before tax for the quarter came in at Rs 3.47 crore, a sharp improvement from Rs 1.31 crore in the September quarter and Rs 0.39 crore a year ago. After accounting for tax expenses of Rs 0.79 crore, the company reported a net profit of Rs 2.68 crore, nearly three times the Rs 0.99 crore recorded in the preceding quarter.

On a nine-month basis, the momentum remained intact. Revenue from operations for the period ended December 31, 2025 rose to Rs 117.66 crore, compared with Rs 106.95 crore in the corresponding period last year. Net profit for the nine months climbed to Rs 5.51 crore, more than double the Rs 2.18 crore reported in the same period of the previous financial year.

The consolidated numbers told a similar story. For the December quarter, consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 45.06 crore, while profit after tax came in at Rs 2.06 crore. For the nine-month period, consolidated revenue touched Rs 133.57 crore, with net profit of Rs 4.49 crore, underscoring the group’s improving profitability trajectory.

Operating expenses remained largely controlled, with cost of materials, employee benefits and other expenses broadly aligned with revenue growth. The company continued to operate within a single reportable segment beverages simplifying its cost structure and reporting framework.

The unaudited financial results were reviewed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting held on 7 February 2026. Statutory auditors carried out a limited review and reported no material misstatements in the results.

In a market where margins are often squeezed by input costs and competition, Orient Beverages’ latest numbers suggest the company has found a reliable rhythm not explosive, but steady enough to keep the fizz alive.

MAM

Washington Post CEO exits abruptly after newsroom cuts spark backlash

Leadership change follows layoffs, protests and a bruising battle over trust.

Published

4 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: When the presses are rolling but patience runs out, even the editor’s chair isn’t safe. The Washington Post announced on Saturday that its chief executive and publisher Will Lewis is stepping down with immediate effect, bringing a sudden end to a turbulent two-year tenure marked by financial strain, newsroom unrest and public backlash.

Lewis’s exit comes just days after the Bezos-owned newspaper announced sweeping job cuts that triggered protests outside its Washington headquarters and a wave of anger from readers and staff. While newspapers across the US are grappling with shrinking revenues and digital disruption, Lewis’s leadership had increasingly come under fire for how those pressures were handled.

The Post confirmed that Jeff D’Onofrio, a former Tumblr CEO who joined the organisation last year as chief financial officer, has taken over as CEO and publisher, effective immediately. In an email to staff, later shared by reporters on social media, Lewis said it was “the right time for me to step aside.”

The leadership change follows the announcement of large-scale redundancies earlier this week. While the Post did not officially confirm numbers, The New York Times reported that around 300 of the paper’s roughly 800 journalists were laid off. Entire teams were dismantled, including the Post’s Middle East bureau and its Kyiv-based correspondent covering the war in Ukraine.

Sports, graphics and local reporting were sharply reduced, and the paper’s daily podcast, Post Reports, was suspended. On Thursday, hundreds of journalists and supporters gathered outside the Post’s downtown office in protest, calling the cuts a blow to public-interest journalism.

Former executive editor Marty Baron described the moment as “among the darkest days in the history of one of the world’s greatest news organisations.”

Lewis defended his record in his farewell note, saying “difficult decisions” were taken to secure the paper’s long-term future and protect its ability to publish “high-quality nonpartisan news”. But his tenure coincided with growing scrutiny of editorial independence at the Post.

Owner Jeff Bezos faced criticism for reining in the paper’s traditionally liberal editorial page and blocking an endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 US election. The move was widely seen as breaking the long-standing firewall between ownership and editorial decision-making.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, around 250,000 digital subscribers cancelled their subscriptions after the paper declined to endorse Harris. The Post reportedly lost about $100 million in 2024 as advertising and subscription revenues slid.

While the wider newspaper industry continues to battle declining print advertising and the pull of social media, some national titles have stabilised. Rivals such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have managed to build sustainable digital businesses, a turnaround that has so far eluded the Post despite its billionaire backing.

As Jeff D’Onofrio steps into the role, the challenge is stark, restore confidence inside the newsroom, win back readers who walked away, and prove that one of America’s most storied newspapers can still find its footing in a brutally competitive media landscape.