MAM

Hygiene, health & wellness remain key consumer concerns: Kantar report

Published

4 years ago

February 28, 2022

Mumbai: Emerging from the pandemic, the Indian FMCD (Fast Moving Consumer Durables) market presents significant opportunities. While the pandemic caused much anxiety amongst consumers in general, there was a high demand in the FMCD health and wellness space, according to the latest Sustainability Report from Kantar. New-market segments such as air purifiers, ACs with purification filters, smaller sub-categories such as UVC disinfection categories, UVC Desk lamps, and growth of personal care health tech products such as smartwatches and fitness monitors saw amped-up sales, says the report. Consumption patterns have changed significantly – towards safety, premiumness and technologically advanced products.

The data-driven analytics and brand consulting company unveiled the FMCD Sustainability Report – “Walking the Talk on Sustainability with Consumers – a roadmap for India’s FMCD Sector.” The Kantar report reveals that the Indian consumers are also becoming more conscious about the impact of human activity on climate change and other environmental factors. The report highlights how the intersection of the FMCD sector and sustainability will further enable growth. It aims to provide key sustainability roadmaps for FMCD brands to help them navigate the ecosystem with sustainable solutions.

The India Story: Post-pandemic Consumer Attitudes and Behaviour

According to the Kantar report, consumer reactions in the wake of Covid-19 continue to evolve and the Indian market presents several opportunities for the FMCD brands. The report further states that cautious consumption is the norm – hygiene, health and wellness are key consumer concerns, where 91 per cent Indian households are washing hands more often now, 47 per cent Indian households claim increased toilet cleaning, more so in rural (49 per cent) vs urban (43 per cent).

Data also suggests that consumers are changing education and work codes, with work ecosystems being reshaped by digital transformation. With accelerated digital adoption, there is 125 per cent growth in usages of smart devices among internet users, paving the way for the emergence of a smart home. Some of them are – smart lights, smart speakers, smart air purifiers, smart display, smart home entertainment and smart cleaning.

There is also evidence to suggest that ‘value’ is a key factor for consumers since post-pandemic financial concerns have cropped up, where 73 per cent attribute Covid-19 to have impacted household income, while 67 per cent pay greater attention to prices while shopping. This has led to an overall joint accountability of both businesses and consumers towards adopting a stronger sense of collective corporate responsibility, according to the report.

“The FMCD sector is witnessing rapid growth even in post pandemic phase while we’ve also seen a great consumer shift towards sustainability and the environment urging brands to rethink their strategies,” said Kantar Insights Division Qualitative & Lead- Sustainability Practice South Asia managing director Paru Minocha. “Consumers have greater expectation from companies than from themselves; this is likely to be amplified in FMCD, where personal behaviors post purchase is led primarily by the policies/features of the product and company they use. With this report, we are putting forward recommendations to brands which help in solving customer tensions with sustainable solutions, addressing barriers such as packaging, service models, repairability, and return and recycling policies.”

Commenting on the focus and relevance of FMCD, Kantar Shopper and CX Domain lead Sushmita Balasubramaniam said, “Consumers today are more aware and concerned about sustainability and other issues like pollution, carbon emissions, etc. For example, in the mobile phones category, consumers expect brands to address macro environment issues of carbon emissions and plastic pollution whereas in the computing category – carbon emissions, packaging and tax evasion are palpable concerns. In appliances, concerns exist on pollution (air and plastic) and emissions besides packaging. While we see consumers consciously making smarter choices, the responsibility resides with brands andmarketeers to provide sustainable solutions to resonate and build credibility with their audiences moving forward.”

Launched at the recent CII’s FMCD Summit, the Kantar report also provided key recommendations for the FMCD brands such as embedding Green Lifecycle across portfolio and processes, connecting the environment and the everyday, addressing Consumer Knowledge Barriers and meeting accountability expectations. With the suggested roadmap, the report also highlights noticeable consumer trends that lead to a collective accountability of both businesses and audiences, seeking the path to a more sustainable world.

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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

3 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

3 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

3 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.