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Tag: Mars Wrigley India

  • Boomer brings back the pop with new lollipops and a swagger-filled Bumrah twist

    Boomer brings back the pop with new lollipops and a swagger-filled Bumrah twist

    MUMBAI: For over three decades, Boomer has ruled India’s chewing gum turf with its iconic elasticity and fruitiness. Now, the bubble bursts into a stick. On 19 May 2025, Mars Wrigley India launched Boomer Lollipop, a bold foray into the Rs 800 crore lollipop market, aiming to inject a fresh dose of fun, relevance and confidence into a category often dismissed as childish.

    The new Boomer Lollipop comes in three punchy flavours — Strawberry, Orange, and Watermelon — crafted to appeal to Gen Z’s expressive spirit. The brand is repositioning the segment as not just a kiddie indulgence but a confident snack that oozes individuality. Tapping into this ethos is cricket star Jasprit Bumrah, whose calm swagger and unflappable poise front the brand’s campaign.

    The high-octane TV commercial, now live, opens on a cricket field. A young player stands alone, pressured by a hostile gang. Enter Boomer Lollipop. With a pop and a bite, his confidence flips the script, changing the game. Narrated by Bumrah in his trademark cool, the ad delivers a clear message: your swag speaks when you hold a Boomer.

    “Boomer has stood for everything fun and strawberry at its core, for several generations. We are expanding this equity to the fast-growing segment of lollipops. Accompanying a strong launch in trade, we have Jasprit Bumrah lending his brand of fun and swag to Boomer Lollipop. The creative campaign crafted with DDB and Essence Mediacom projects the swag and attitude associated with Lollipops but perhaps lost over the last decade. From the factory to trade and in the media, our associates have added special touches to make this new launch truly unique and carve a space for Boomer at front of store and in people’s minds”, said Mars Wrigley India CMO Nikhil Rao.

    DDB Mudra Group CCO Rahul Mathew added, “It’s always great when you get to work on a brand with such a strong memory structure and a brand ambassador whose name also has an effortless connect to the brand. What we now had to do is bring it all together to give a new attitude to Boomer’s newest format – Lollipop.”

    The lollipops are being manufactured locally at Mars Wrigley’s Baddi facility, reinforcing the company’s commitment to innovation from within India. With a national rollout underway, Boomer Lollipop marks a flavourful, cheeky new chapter in the brand’s long-standing legacy.

  • Snickers Peanut Brownie debuts in India as the ultimate hunger fix

    Snickers Peanut Brownie debuts in India as the ultimate hunger fix

    MUMBAI: Mars Wrigley India has introduced the all-new Snickers Peanut Brownie, an indulgent twist on its classic hunger-satisfying bar. Combining the rich, fudgy taste of a brownie with the signature Snickers blend of gooey caramel, crunchy peanuts, and smooth chocolate, this latest offering promises to elevate the hunger-fix experience for chocolate lovers across India.

    To mark the launch, Mars Wrigley India has unveiled a humorous new TVC, conceptualised by DDB Mudra, capturing the chaos that unfolds when hunger strikes. Known for its iconic advertising, Snickers India has previously featured celebrities like Rekha, Sonam Kapoor, MS Dhoni, and Rohit Shetty. This time, the brand takes a fresh approach, playfully illustrating how the Snickers Peanut Brownie steps in as the ultimate rescue snack.

    Set in a lively office environment, the TVC highlights the absurd lengths people go to when desperate for food, reinforcing the tagline Bhook mein kuch bhi mat kha. Kuch tasty kha. (Don’t eat just anything when you’re hungry. Eat something tasty.). The campaign takes the brand’s signature ‘You’re not you when you’re hungry’ messaging a step further by humorously depicting a hungry person transforming into an inanimate object a vacuum cleaner.

    Mars Wrigley India strategic demand manager Himanshu Gupta shared his excitement about the launch, stating, “Snickers has always been the og hunger satisfier, and with the Peanut Brownie, we’re elevating that experience to a whole new level. This launch is not just about delighting our loyal consumers but also inviting more chocolate lovers to join the Snickers family. By bringing a taste from our global pantry to India, we’re staying true to our promise of delivering the tastiest hunger fix. After all, ‘You’re not you when you’re hungry,’ and the Snickers Peanut Brownie ensures you stay yourself in the most delicious way possible.”

    DDB Tribal creative head Iraj Fraz commented on the unique storytelling approach, saying, “All through this project, making a vacuum cleaner play the main role has been both a challenge and a joy for us all.”

    With this exciting launch, Snickers continues to cement its position as the ultimate solution for hunger cravings, ensuring that no one has to resort to desperate snacking again.

  • Mars Wrigley India appoints Nikhil Rao as chief marketing officer

    Mars Wrigley India appoints Nikhil Rao as chief marketing officer

    Mumbai: Mars Wrigley India, the chocolate and confectionary segment of Mars Incorporated in India, announced the appointment of Nikhil Rao as its new chief marketing officer (CMO).

    In this key leadership position, Nikhil will steer the marketing vision, spearhead strategic initiatives, and direct the end-to-end execution of Mars Wrigley’s portfolio strategy in India. He will be based in the Gurgaon corporate office and will report to Mars Wrigley India country general manager Tamer Kadry.

    Announcing the appointment, Mars Wrigley India country general manager Tamer Kadry said, “I am delighted to welcome Nikhil as our Chief Marketing Officer and key member of the India Leadership Team. The India business is on a growth trajectory, and our constant endeavor has been to drive relevance, be consumer-focused and agile. Nikhil will play a pivotal role in ensuring that Mars Wrigley India continues innovating in the face of new and dynamic competition and ever-evolving consumer trends. His wealth of knowledge and experience will be instrumental in shaping and executing our long-term growth plans for India. He will contribute significantly to enhancing experiences with our iconic brands, much loved by our customers and consumers.”

    Incoming Mars Wrigley India CMO Nikhil Rao commented, “I am excited to join Mars, a global leader in snacking, food, and petcare products and services, strongly driven by a powerful purpose – ‘The world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today’ and founded on the Five Principles of Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom. Mars Wrigley India is one of the fastest-growing business units for Mars, presenting an immense opportunity to shape the strategy further and drive the iconic brands and their execution to best-in-class levels. Mars has a unique, cohesive, and vibrant culture. I look forward to embarking on this journey with an incredible team of passionate Associates at a time when both Mars and India are poised for the next phase of growth.”

    Nikhil joins Mars Wrigley India from Mondelez where he was the vice president – marketing for Mondelez Southeast Asia (SEA). With a career spanning nearly 25 years, Nikhil has successfully traversed Global, Regional, and Local BU roles in Sales and Marketing during his tenure across Cadbury/Kraft/Mondelez.

    Nikhil is an alumnus of IIT, Madras, and IIM, Calcutta.

  • Mars Wrigley India exemplifies inclusion and diversity with five key appointments

    Mars Wrigley India exemplifies inclusion and diversity with five key appointments

    Mumbai: In a significant move demonstrating its ambitious focus on inclusion and diversity and continued investment in the talent pool in India, Mars Wrigley on Thursday announced the appointment of three new women executives in its India Leadership Team and chose two executives from India to take up global roles critical to the company’s growth strategy.  

    Richa Singh, Sunita Patnaik, and Shahine Ardeshir have joined Mars Wrigley India Leadership Team as chief financial officer (CFO), director – corporate affairs, and director – people and organization (P&O) India, respectively, while Chirag Shah has been elevated as CFO of Nature’s Bakery, a Mars business in the US, and Hegeler Solomon promoted to director of people and organisation, Mars Wrigley Asia.

    “Fostering talent and building capability remain a cornerstone of Mars Wrigley and we are highly intentional in finding the best talent, building the right capabilities and creating an environment of inclusion and diversity,” said Mars Wrigley India, general manager, Kalpesh R Parmar. “This is instrumental to our ability to deliver our growth legacy and navigate the challenges as well as capitalize on the opportunities that lay ahead as we remain steadfast on our long-term commitment to India. Aligned with this, I am pleased to welcome  Richa, Sunita and Shahine to Mars Wrigley India’s leadership team. These appointments advance our commitment to bringing on board strong women leaders to position us well in our journey of purpose-led growth.”

    “Equally, I am very excited that Chirag Shah and Hegeler Solomon have been elevated to lead global positions within Mars. Both of them have been strong architects in India’s growth story for Mars Wrigley and have made a significant contribution to the business. I am very proud of this move as it is a strong testament of our ability to nurture and export world-class talent from India for the company globally. Their unique experiences in a diverse and fastest-growing market like India will help shape and contribute to the transformative growth strategy of the company across the markets. I wish all of them the very best as they begin their new assignments,” Parmar added.

    Richa Singh comes with a global experience of over two decades across consumer durables and FMCG companies, leading business accelerations and transformations, process optimisations, among others. She joins from Niine Pvt Ltd, a start up in feminine hygiene that she led for three years. Prior to Niine, she worked in Philips Healthcare@Home, Philips Consumer, J&J Medical ASEAN, Coca-Cola, and P&G across India, ASEAN, Australia, and Japan. Richa replaces Chirag Shah.

    Sunita Patnaik comes with nearly two decades of experience in journalism, corporate affairs, communications, CSR, and Sustainability. Sunita joins from Facebook India where she led content and programs policy communications. Prior to Facebook, Sunita was associated with Walmart India and Cargill India. In her current role, Sunita will be responsible for leading government relations, corporate communications, PR, and advocacy efforts across all Mars Wrigley India brands and verticals.  

    Shahine Ardeshir comes with a wealth of experience, a large part of it from within the company, having joined Mars in 2012. She has held a number of key roles within the leadership team, including most recently as Associate Relations (AR) Lead for the segment across India, Middle East and South Africa. She played an integral part in launching and stabilising AR operations of the new People and Organization operating model, across a diverse region, supporting all segments including Mars Wrigley, Pet Nutrition, and Royal Canin. Shahine replaces Hegeler Solomon.

    Richa, Sunita, and Shahine will be based in Gurugram.  

    Chirag Shah joined the company in 2016 as CFO for the erstwhile Mars Chocolate segment in India. He was later appointed as Finance Director for the Mars Wrigley integrated business in 2017 in India. Shah will be relocating to the US shortly.

    Hegeler  Solomon joined Mars in May 2014 as People and Organization Business Partner for the erstwhile Wrigley segment and subsequently moved as director – people and organization for Wrigley South Asia. Later he was appointed as director – people and organisation for the combined Mars Wrigley unit in India. During this stint, Solomon played the lead role in integrating the structure of the two different organisations and created an enabling culture that helped the company secure a ‘Great Place to Work’ status in India. Solomon will transition to his new role in September.