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Tag: Diageo

  • Signature Start Up TVC shows journey of celeb chef Nikhil Chib

    Signature Start Up TVC shows journey of celeb chef Nikhil Chib

    MUMBAI: The pursuit of their passions drives the pulse of today’s youth and they strongly believe that this element makes the biggest difference in their lives. 

    Signaturestartup.in – My Mark, My Signature is an online platform launched by Diageo to inspire talented individuals to convert their passion to a paycheck. It houses a series of ‘Signature Start Up’ stories of real life individuals who, driven by their dreams, passion and commitment have made their mark in various fields.

    Through an amalgamation of such real life success stories, the platform also extends on-ground and online through masterclasses – a series of workshops which are conducted across the country with the passionate successful individuals who share their inspirational stories amidst people with similar dreams and aspirations.

    The Signature Start Up platform has now launched its second TVC featuring the celebrity chef Nikhil Chib, who started off as an investment banker at Wall Street and later went on to find his passion in cooking, thus starting his first restaurant Busaba in 2001. With the launch, he gave Mumbai’s culinary curious lot a taste of the most authentic Southeast Asian cuisine. Kaukswe – Burmese curry noodles served with a plethora of toppings — became a household name among the city’s swish set. 

    The TVC narrates the story of what inspired Chib to quit a stable job in New York and follow his passion for food which led to him winning the hearts of many Mumbaikars.

    Diageo India executive vice president and portfolio head, marketing Amarpreet Anand says, “Today we have a generation who is very keen on following their passion and turning it into a successful career but they just need that one extra push or encouragement and a right platform. As a brand, Signature Start Up is trying to achieve what no other platform has done before. The brand wants to empower and inspire the millennials to follow their passion and make their mark in their chosen areas of interest or professions through these inspiring stories. Nikhil’s is one such real story and we hope it will strongly resonate with everyone who wants to make a mark.”

    Diageo India is the country’s leading beverage alcohol company and a subsidiary of global leader Diageo plc. The company manufactures, sells and distributes an outstanding portfolio of premium brands such as Johnnie Walker, Black Dog, Black and White, VAT 69, Antiquity, Signature, Royal Challenge, McDowell’s No.1, Smirnoff, Captain Morgan and Four Seasons.

  • Digital is as important as traditional: Diageo

    Digital is as important as traditional: Diageo

    MUMBAI: Imagine any musical evening, whether it is soulful, hard core EDM (Electronic Dance Music) or just jam sessions. What goes well with music to get the party started, one may ask? The answer, liquor! Most liquor brands have cashed in on music by associating themselves with various concerts, sponsoring music festivals or even coming up with their own CDs.

    Though alcohol is their main forte, India’s ban on direct advertising of the product forced them to position and market themselves through other products/services such as soda and music CDs that add negligible value to their sales.

    Traditionally, alcohol beverage brands marketed themselves largely via print and television where they communicated a lifestyle and an attitude. But consumers today have multiple personalities and are more evolved resulting in brand using digital and social media platforms in a big way to communicate and be in tune with the audience. Diageo’s Amrit Thomas notes that digital is equally important for them as it is for any other brand in any given category.

    When asked about how Diageo’s marketing and advertising budget has increased over the years, Thomas mentioned, “We are investing in our brand to build demand and manage a portfolio of brands and spends basis brand stage and requirements.”

    Thomas does believe the impact of highway ban on liquor and GST has steered to subside now. “We are now looking at springing back from these events and project 2018 to be a good year for us.” The company is also strongly focused on its premium products and will be increasing its investment to boost the distribution and sale.

    It is usually the media agency that creates a campaign for brands but in this case, the client decided to hand over the responsibility to Qyuki, which is a cross-platform media network across digital, live, TV and film. The company uses proprietary technology and analytics to discover and promote digital superstars and manages the end to end value chain for them across traditional and new media platforms. The tracks have been produced by Qyuki Media and creatively supported by DDB Mudra. Qyuki Media founder Samir Bangara mentions, “When you work with large brands they have a certain set approach on how much they want be involved in the project.There is a fine line between controlling the project and giving creative freedom and McDowell’s allowed us to get as creative as we wanted to, which is a rare brief to find nowadays.”

    Today, India is the 3rd largest liquor market in the world, with an overall retail market size of $35 billion per annum. The annual consumption rate has increased steadily over the last six years and stands at 8.9 per cent as of 2017 and is growing at a CAGR of 8.8 per cent. The consumption is expected to reach 16.8 billion litres by the year 2022. The largest consumers come from the state of Haryana, Kerala, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. Although liquor brands advertise and promote their products in supermarkets and clubs, it is only limited to tier I and tier II cities The real challenge for them lies in advertising and pushing the brand in rural markets where the only platform they can use to create brand awareness is TV.

    McDowell’s, a product from British alcoholic beverage company Diageo, launched its first ‘No.1 Yaari’ ad back in 2014 for its soda category and that was an instant hit. Keeping in tune with its philosophy of strengthening the bonds of brotherhood, McDowell’s has introduced its new sonic asset through ‘No.1 Yaari Jam’, a music platform with the release of five enchanting sound tracks. Shaped by ace music directors Salim & Sulaiman Merchant along with distinguished and renowned music artists from across India, these exhibit the spirit of Yaari that McDowell’s seeks to evoke amongst its customers across India.

    Music is the largest genre that is consumed online with Youtube growing at the rate of 150 per cent year-on-year and drawing over 40 billion views per month. Hence, it was only fitting that McDowell’s decide to leverage digital superstars to perform in Yaari music videos. Bangara said, “Video content is exploding in India and with so much information thrown at us everyday on digital platforms, the only way a brand can break though the clutter is by creating content and not just advertising.”

    The musical opus unfolds in five languages with Swarathma leading the jam in Karnataka, Mame Khan and band replicating their spellbinding symphonies in Rajasthan, Ishq Bector fashioning a foot tapping number from Punjab and Siddharth Mahadevan and Soumil Shringarpure weaving their magic in Maharashtra. The nationwide musical caravan concludes with Salim- Sulaiman and one of their oldest yaar Shaan. It took a dedicated eight months to come up with the masterpiece.

    The music videos will be promoted on television, radio, OTT platforms, digital and all leading audio platforms including Saavn, iTunes, Gaana, etc

  • Geometry Global Encompass Network ropes in Aaraadhee Mehta as VP

    Geometry Global Encompass Network ropes in Aaraadhee Mehta as VP

    MUMBAI: Geometry Global India has appointed Aaradhee Mehta as Geometry Global Encompass Network vice president – shopper marketing. She will report into Group COO Rahul Saigal.

     

    With over nine years of shopper marketing experience, Mehta has worked with clients such as Colgate, Mondelez, Reckitt Benckiser, Unilever, ITC Foods and Personal Care, HP, Diageo, Diesel, Steve Madden and Brooks Brothers. 

     

    Prior to specialising in shopper marketing, Mehta worked in agencies such as Lowe, JWT and Bates. 

     

    Mehta said, “I’m excited to lead the shopper marketing practice for the country’s largest experiential marketing agency. I am looking forward to working with clients such as Mondelez and Hindustan Unilever and growing our shopper practice in India.”

     

    Mehta’s appointment comes just weeks after the Geometry Global and Encompass Network launch was announced.

  • Digital L&K Saatchi & Saatchi ropes in Vinay Venkatesh as chief creative officer

    Digital L&K Saatchi & Saatchi ropes in Vinay Venkatesh as chief creative officer

    MUMBAI: Digital L&K Saatchi & Saatchi has got on-board Vinay Venkatesh as chief creative officer. He comes with 14 years of experience in creating and building brands.

     

    Digital L&K Saatchi & Saatchi CEO and managing partner Anil Nair said, “VinayVenkatesh understands the digital engagement idiom, having worked on large engagement centric brands like Vodafone and Diageo. He is an extremely motivating leader and I can see him bringing out that spurt of genius in any and everybody he works with. His passion to bring ideas to life and his exhilarating vision towards different situations will help not just our agency in scaling new heights but will also benefit our clients a great deal. I am extremely pleased to have him on board and hope for an extremely rewarding journey with him.”

     

    Venkatesh opined, “In order to create something, you must first destroy something else. At Digital L&K Saatchi & Saatchi, the mandate is to destroy mediocrity and create greatness. I’m very excited to be leading a fantastic team that truly believes in this mandate. They’re young, driven and extremely passionate. Great work is driven by great people and I look forward to being an integral part of that journey at the agency.”

     

    Over the years Venkatesh has worked with agency networks like Alok Nanda & Company, zeroninefivefour, OgilvyOne Worldwide and Indigo Consulting.

  • Diageo and NDTV partner to launch ‘Road to Safety’

    Diageo and NDTV partner to launch ‘Road to Safety’

    MUMBAI: Diageo and NDTV have joined hands to launch ‘Diageo-NDTV Road to Safety’ – a campaign aimed at addressing one of the biggest concerns for the Indian government and society today -the appalling state of road safety in our country. The campaign aims to make our roads safer and reduce the number of preventable accidents by encouraging citizens, specially the youth of India, to be more responsible behind the wheel.

     

     

    Bollywood actor Karisma Kapoor,, veteran cricketer Anil Kumble and Karnataka Transport Minister Shri Ramalinga Reddy all came together to lend their support to the ‘Diageo-NDTV Road to Safety’ campaign and inspire people to take a pledge to Never Drink and Drive. Also present were Dr. Rohit Baluja, President, Institute of Road Traffic Education and Praveen Sood, IPS, Additional Director General of Police and Principal Secretary, Home, Karnataka.

     

     

    Karisma Kapoor expressed her concerns on the state of road safety in the country and said, “I am proud to support the Road to Safety cause. So many lives are lost every year in India due to a casual approach and lack of knowledge about road safety. Initiatives like this will go a long way in educating people about road safety measures and in turn will help save lives.”

     

     

    Anand Kripalu, Managing Director of United Spirits (a Diageo group company) said “Diageo and USL are taking the lead to persuade consumers to take responsibility for their actions and put safety first.  Diageo’s Road to Safety initiative is a yearlong program of partnership with government, NGOs and educational institutes to cause a paradigm shift in people’s approach to Road Safety in India.”

     

     

    Union Minster for Road Transport & Highways, Nitin Gadkari, said that the Central government committed to improving national and state highways along with changing the law and bringing these in line with international standards. A new Motor Vehicle Act will be introduced in the next session of Parliament. He added that drivers and pedestrians have to take more responsibility for their actions and be aware of the rules of the road; and that suggestions from the public and the use of hi-tech equipment will also help in implementing a safer and healthier driving environment.

     

     

    Last year, over 1,37,000 people lost their lives on Indian roads, a number that is shockingly more than the fatalities reported in all our wars put together. Averaging an accident every minute, and a fatality once every 4, Indian roads are some of the most dangerous in the world.

     

    Launching the initiative Vikram Chandra, CEO, NDTV Group said, “The number of fatalities due to road mishaps is shocking and is a huge issue that we urgently need to address. NDTV has always been concerned about such issues and has tried to find practical solutions for these. We hope that with this campaign we are able to sensitize and educate citizens and create awareness about road safety.”

     

     

    The campaign aims to educate and inspire citizens to action by drawing attention to critical issues including lack of safety awareness, public apathy towards accident victims and a widening gap between legislation and enforcement. This campaign will be launched across the country and will address city specific road safety issues.

  • WPP’s XM Asia to buy majority stake in Sofresh

    WPP’s XM Asia to buy majority stake in Sofresh

    MUMBAI: WPP’s wholly owned operating company, XM Asia, a JWT company, has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Sofresh, a digital creative agency in Vietnam.

     

    Sofresh, co-founded in 2007 by Ly Viet Vu and Justin Cohen, develops digital strategy, digital creative ideas and marketing campaigns across multiple digital channels, including social media, mobile and the web. The company also designs and builds e-commerce platforms, customer relationship management (CRM) systems and in-store digital installations.

     

    Sofresh works with a range of local and global clients, including Diageo, GSK, Kinh Do, Techcombank and Unilever. Sofresh had revenues of VND 35.7 billion for the year ending 31 December 2013, with gross assets of VND 30.1 billion, as at the same date. The company employs 85 people.

     

    The acquisition marks a further step towards WPP’s declared goal of developing its networks in fast-growth markets and sectors and continues WPP’s strategy of strengthening the Group’s capabilities in digital media. This was an announcement was made in a statement published on the company’s official website.

     

    Sofresh marks WPP’s third acquisition in Vietnam in seven months. In Vietnam, WPP companies (including associates) generate revenues of about $80 million and employ approximately 1,000 people.

    In Asia Pacific, the Group (including associates) generates revenues of $ 5 billion and employ over 48,000 people. Globally, WPP’s digital revenues were over $ 6.0 billion in 2013, representing almost 35 per cent of total Group revenues of $ 17.3 billion. WPP is targeting at least 40-45 per cent of revenues to come from each of fast-growth markets and new media over the next five years.

  • Diageo hunts for media agency

    Diageo hunts for media agency

    MUMBAI: Diageo is looking for a media partner to handle all its brands in India. Industry sources have confirmed that the multi agency pitch is underway in Mumbai.

     

    The size of the account could not be understood at the time of filing the report. As part of the process, few leading media agencies have already got a brief from the company. The first round of presentations is expected to happen early next month.

     

    It can be noted that brands from the house of Diageo are betting high on digital. What will be interesting to see is how the company further invests on social media, where other brands in the category are already creating a splash.  

  • Razorfish appoints Anne Davis as senior VP head of multi-national clients

    Razorfish appoints Anne Davis as senior VP head of multi-national clients

    MUMBAI:  Publicis Group’s full-service digital agency, Razorfish, has appointed Anne Davis as the senior vice president head of multi-national clients.

    A member of the Razorfish team since 2009, Davis has over 20 years experience working in client and integrated communication agencies with the last 15 focused on digital. The role is based out of Hong Kong.

    Her new role is to build an operation and culture that is hospitable to multi-national client relationships. “Many client companies are establishing global operations in APAC. We are the only global agency network equipped to support this regional business focus. The creation of my new role supports the ongoing evolvement of Razorfish’s relationships with clients; partnering to navigate the unknown, drive change and enable business transformation.”

     

    She will be reporting directly into global CEO, Pete Stein, and  will work both with the global leadership team and with the organisation as a whole to facilitate multi-national client opportunities.

    Razorfish global CEO Pete Stein commented: “Anne has been working globally for more than 20 years. She’s managed regional and global accounts for brands as diverse as IBM, Cisco, P&G, Unilever, Diageo, Reckitt-Benckiser, Blackberry and Gucci. These experiences, combined with her continued presence in Asia Pacific, position her to deliver unparalleled opportunities for our multi-national clients.”

     

    Via organic growth and acquisition Razorfish operations have grown 25% in the last two years. Of the 3000 global Razorfish employees, 1000 employees are located in APAC regions.
     

  • BBH to design creative communications and digital solutions for CRY

    MUMBAI: Child rights organisation CRY – Child Rights and You – has appointed BBH to develop their creative communications and digital media solutions.

    The agency has been brought on-board at a time when CRY is embarking on its own mission to engage with a younger audience, especially through the digital space. The mandate spans the spectrum of communication solutions – from overall communications strategy to digital initiatives and engagement strategy for CRY’s operations in India as well as overseas.

    CRY Director – Resource Mobilisation and Volunteer Action Yogita Verma said, “Creating brand awareness and mobilising people for the cause of child rights is a challenge, particularly when limited resources need maximum impact. The digital space is one such area where CRY can engage with its target audience, and BBH’s specialisation in digital media and creative tools in the digital space will help CRY reach out to a wider audience.”

    She added that CRY’s communication mandate is to raise awareness and thereby action for children in India for whom a happy, healthy childhood is not a natural consequence and the NGO felt that BBH is not only extremely skilled at what it does, but is also truly passionate about children and committed to ensuring the children a future filled with hope.

    BBH India Managing Partner Subhash Kamath said, “It is not often in advertising that one gets a chance to use one‘s skills and talent for a real cause; something that directly impacts society, especially children. We are proud to partner CRY on their journey and we have tremendous respect for what they do. All of us at BBH are looking forward to working on some groundbreaking strategies for them.”

    BBH Communications, part of the Publicis Groupe, was launched in India in 2009 and has grown to be a 65-people strong organisation with a portfolio of clients like Unilever, Marico, Diageo, Skoda, Red Bull, Google, World Gold Council, Times Group and Acer.

    Established in 1979 in Mumbai, CRY was among the first indigenous Indian NGOs working for the rights of children in India. Since then, the organisation has grown to a national institution, present in over 23 states and reaching out to almost a million children every year. For over three decades, CRY has been committed to making a lasting change in the lives of Indian children by ensuring their right to live, learn, grow and play – in short, every child’s right to a happy childhood.