Tag: Rakesh Hinduja

Ajeeta Bharadwaj joins Wondrlab as chief strategy officer

NEW DELHI: Platform-first startup Wondrlab has appointed Ajeeta Bharadwaj as chief strategy officer. Bharadwaj will be based out of Mumbai and will oversee the entire strategic planning function at the agency. She will report to Wondrlab co-founder and managing partner – content platform Rakesh Hinduja.

Bharadwaj’s mandate at Wondrlab involves taking a deep dive into human journeys via a platform-first lens. She will leverage her cross-category experience of brand insights and human behaviour to create world-class go-to-market strategies for clients’ businesses.

Rakesh Hinduja said, “I can think of no one better to lead Wondrlab’s strategy piece than Ajeeta. We have worked together extensively and I know the excellent thinking that she can bring to the table. Ajeeta isn’t just a strategist, but someone who deep dives into a client’s business to create contemporary solutions. I am confident that she will harness all her knowledge and experience at Wondrlab to help clients win strategically.”

In a career spanning 20 years, Bharadwaj has worked with the Publicis network for 18 years and led the strategic planning function for Leo Burnett Mumbai before moving on. She was also the national planning director at Wunderman Thompson.

“There is an infectious energy about Wondrlab and I look forward to adding to it. I have worked with Saurabh, Rakesh and Vandana and have seen the transformational solutions that came out of this collaboration. I also find the focus on platform-first thinking, extremely relevant. As consumers, we use different platforms differently and adding this understanding to strategy can get the brand entrenched better in the purchase process. It is an exciting vision and the attempt will be to consistently look for data-backed, dynamic solutions that deliver on this,” she said.

Apart from creating an agile planning team that brought home metals from Effies, Cannes, Spikes, and WARC Strategy Awards, Bharadwaj was also a global champion of the Leo Burnett branding system ‘Humankind’ and is expected to drive tools and data-based planning culture in the agency.

November 12, 2020
Rakesh Hinduja to step down as Leo Burnett West COO

MUMBAI: Leo Burnett Group India, has announced that Leo Burnett west COO Rakesh Hinduja will be moving on from the agency in order to pursue other opportunities.

Rakesh has been with the group for more than 14 years and in his current role was COO west for Leo Burnett India.

In his five-year stint at Leo Burnett, Rakesh played a crucial role in building Leo Burnett’s ‘new-age’ solution ecosystem, which included creating highly motivated and talented teams. He has helped double the agency’s Mumbai office which won multiple accounts and created memorable work over the last few years by building the business with genuine partnership with clients and brands. He has created wave 3 ‘new age’ solutions consistently across brands. His disproportionate focus on improving the product helped win at various international and local awards including The Cannes Lions, The One Show, D&AD, Spikes Asia, Effies and more.

Leo Burnett South Asia MD India & chief strategy officer Dheeraj Sinha said, “Rakesh had a great run with us. He’s been a great business partner and a dear friend. We wish him all the very best. We are fortunate that we have a stellar team of business, creative and strategy leaders in our Mumbai office, who continue to run our businesses. We have a great momentum at Leo Burnett in terms of new business wins and our creative work. We continue to be relentlessly focused on creating great work and great growth.”

Leo Burnett South Asia MD India & chief creative officer Rajdeepak Das said, “Rakesh is a great friend and a brother to me. In his stint at Leo Burnett, he’s also been one of the core people behind creating some legendary work and big business wins. He partnered the agency to lead the third wave. We have some crazy memories which I will cherish. And I wish him nothing but the best for his future.”

Rakesh Hinduja said, "I’ve enjoyed every day of my stint at Leo Burnett. Creating world class work which makes real business impact has been truly fulfilling. We have had incredible success at the agency in the last few years with a magical group of people that worked together. In this journey, I have made some fabulous friends at the agency and clients. I’m very excited about the future. The next chapter will be glorious."

January 13, 2020
Skechers chooses Leo Burnett India as its creative partner

Mumbai : Skechers, an American lifestyle and performance footwear brand, has signed up Leo Burnett India as its creative agency. The business win comes after a multi-agency pitch, and Leo Burnett India’s Mumbai office will look after the account. The brand stands for a formidable combination of innovation, style and technology, giving people the comfort and the chance to stay trendy.

Speaking about bringing Leo Burnett India on board, Soumen Das, Sr. Marketing Manager, Skechers South Asia said, “Skechers is one of the strongest brands in the active lifestyle space. The brand has a very strong product line-up. As a country, we are witnessing a huge upswing in lifestyle and well-being space. Our job is to make sure that we build a strong brand on the back of our products and a very supportive consumer-culture context. We are super excited to partner Leo Burnett as they have displayed fabulous strategic and creative thinking. Skechers is growing rapidly and we needed a partner who could fuel this expansion with equal passion and capabilities. We look forward to some great work in the future.”

Skechers is looking to strengthen its brand positioning in India, in addition to familiarising customers with its array of footwear. Recently, the brand has also launched a wide range of apparel and accessories. Leo Burnett India presented a really strong plan to leverage its strategic thinking and creative power to bring Skechers’ brand promise to life across all products.

Dheeraj Sinha, MD – India & Chief Strategy Officer, South Asia, Leo Burnett said, “It’s exciting to partner an innovative brand like Skechers. The lifestyle footwear and apparel category is exploding with untapped potential, and we want to explore the creative landscape to create some effective work. We are confident about building a powerful brand narrative that will help Skechers grab a larger market share in the months to come.”

Added Rakesh Hinduja, Chief Operating Officer – West, Leo Burnett India said, “We are proud to partner brand Skechers. Very quickly, Skechers has achieved a strong presence in the clutter of highly competitive branded and grey market goods. Today, this brand needs a strong Humankind purpose to be consistent and solid for Indian consumers. Its range of products is top quality on performance and lifestyle, and our job with the strength of Power of One is to make this come alive through various touch points across the nation. Leo Burnett India’s Wave 3 approach and success with new-age, young brands give us the confidence to effectively contribute to Skechers’ business and brand success.”

January 28, 2019
Leo Burnett India wins creative mandate for Cholayil’s flagship brands

MUMBAI: Leo Burnett India has won the creative mandate for Cholayil’s flagship brands Medimix, Cuticura, and Krishna Thulasi for its entire existing product portfolio and future launches. The new business was won after a multi-agency pitch. Leo Burnett India’s Mumbai office will look after the brands.

Speaking about partnering Leo Burnett India, Cholayil Private Ltd CMD Pradeep Cholayil said, “Medimix is a heritage Ayurvedic brand which is turning 50 next year. The brand stands for its Ayurvedic goodness and efficacy and has a good connect with its users. We are very strong in the Western region with good footprints in a few north markets. The consumer today has realised the significance of Ayurveda and is slowly shifting from cosmetic products to natural products. We believe that it is the right time for us to expand our presence in the Northern and Eastern markets by leveraging this trend. Today, Medimix has become a global brand with a presence in close to 30 countries. We intend to increase our market share in our core markets and expand into new territories. Apart from expansion, we have plans of bringing in new products under the Medimix portfolio in both domestic and international markets.”

He further added, “Given this objective and our aggressive plans for the future, we had called for a pitch and ultimately chose to go with Leo Burnett India. We liked their creative approach, the quick understanding of the category and of the brand’s objective. Leo Burnett India not just brings its rich expertise of understanding various markets but also provides a young, fresh perspective to the brand. We believe they can partner us very well in our efforts to take Medimix to a new pedestal at a global level in the most effective and integrated way."

Cholayil Private Ltd marketing head Ashish Ohlyan said, “The personal care category in India is gradually moving towards Ayurvedic and natural products. We have a heritage brand with strong equity in Ayurveda and trust of 50 years. The growing penchant for natural and Ayurvedic products gives us an opportunity to expand our presence across markets. To connect well with consumers in new markets, we have a task of making our Ayurvedic offering relevant for all age groups. We also intend to enter new categories. I am confident that our association with Leo Burnett India is a key step towards taking the brand to new pinnacles with the right positioning and communication.”

Leo Burnett MD – India and chief strategy officer, South Asia Dheeraj Sinha said, “Medimix has very strong equity in personal care. India is witnessing a big revival of interest in Ayurveda and its solutions. With the equity of Medimix and the current megatrend in favour of our indigenous solutions, I am sure Medimix will gain further mind and market share. As the partner agency, we will be thinking of the brand narrative in a way that it keeps the brand contemporary and talks to its audience through various media choices available today.”

Added Leo Burnett India chief operating officer – west Rakesh Hinduja said, “We are keenly looking forward to partner the journey of this precious legacy brand. Medimix has strong equity in various pockets of India and our ambition is to create an unparalleled connect across India. With Leo Burnett’s innovation-oriented and culture context approach, backed by the Power of One, we aim to achieve leadership with newer category benchmarks and work for brand Medimix across the communications ecosystem.”

January 23, 2019
Welspun Group hires Leo Burnett India as creative agency for flooring biz

MUMBAI: Leo Burnett India has won the creative mandate of flooring vertical of Welspun Group, following a multi-agency pitch. The agency’s Mumbai office will look after the business.

Leo Burnett MD – India and chief strategy officer – South Asia Dheeraj Sinha said, “We have a big opportunity here with the Welspun Group in building a power brand that delivers discontinuous business impact for the flooring solutions business. We are excited about the innovations that the group has across its offerings. We need to work on behaviour change and our Humankind philosophy is helping us navigate this. We are extremely excited about this relationship and we look forward to creating long-term business success for Welspun.”

Leo Burnett India executive director and branch head – Mumbai Rakesh Hinduja said, “We are looking forward to increasing Welspun’s visibility in the flooring market with our strong strategy and creative-led approach. The brand exists in a complex and competitive ecosystem, and that makes our journey ahead an exciting challenge. There is much to explore in the category and we look forward to partnering with Welspun in creating meaningful and engaging work.”

Welspun Flooring chief marketing officer Meraj Hasan said, “To use a clichéd phrase, the idea at Welspun Flooring is to catalyse a 'paradigm shift' when it comes to do or change your flooring. We are looking at a behavioural change from the Indian consumer. Flooring can be easy, exciting, colourful and modular. We called for the top agencies to present their ideas. The strategic, as well as the creative solutions that team Leo Burnett presented, are solid and holistically crafted to achieve category leadership in line with our product and service offering. They are based on the proven humankind approach and are integrated in their essence. And here we are together in this partnership.”

January 9, 2019
Leo Burnett promotes Rakesh Hinduja as COO, West

MUMBAI: Leo Burnett has promoted Rakesh Hinduja to chief operating officer, West.

He will continue reporting to Dheeraj Sinha MD India and chief strategy officer, South Asia and RajDeepak Das MD India and CCO, South Asia.

Rakesh has been leading Leo Burnett’s head office Mumbai’s operations as the executive director and branch head.

Speaking about the elevation, Dheeraj Sinha says, “Rakesh is the perfect role model for the new-age agency we are building. His leadership on all the three parameters of people, product and profit has been stellar. Under his watch, we have consistently seen spectacular work that has won our brands market-share, and glory at platforms such as Cannes Lions, Spikes and Effies. He has delivered high-quality growth for the Mumbai office, leading the teams to win a new business almost every two weeks. The momentum and buzz at Leo Burnett Mumbai are palpable. Rakesh has been an amazing team player, helping push the Publicis Groupe’s Power of One agenda.”

In his new role, Hinduja will drive the Power of One agenda for Leo Burnett in the West. He will help build cross-platform solutions for our clients using our services in Entertainment (Publicis Entertainment), Content (Content Factory), Experiential (Arc Worldwide), Production (Prodigious), Digital (Indigo Consulting and Digitas) and Media (Zenith Optimedia, Ecosys and Beehive). He will lead all the functions of Leo Burnett Mumbai to create world-class work, build a high growth business and create a culture where people come to do the best work of their lifetime.

Commenting on Rakesh’s promotion, Rajdeepak Das adds, “Rakesh is always there, backing great creative work and making integrated thinking happen for our clients. He has been an essential part of the journey to get where we are today. This elevation is much-deserved and will take all of us to greater heights.”

Talking about his promotion, Rakesh Hinduja mentions, “I am happy with my journey at Leo Burnett – a new-age, solution-providing ‘Wave 3’ agency. I’m proud of the brave work we have done and I am hungry for more. Hereon, there are a lot of exciting things to do and in quick time. I want to take a critical pause here to thank all our clients and the Burnetters for their belief in me.”

November 1, 2018
Leo Burnett appoints Rakesh Hinduja as EVP

MUMBAI: Leo Burnett India has appointed Rakesh Hinduja as executive vice president.

He will be based at the agency’s Mumbai head office and in his new role he will have overall responsibility for one of the biggest units in the Mumbai office.

Speaking on the appointment, Leo Burnett India CEO Suarabh Varma said, “Rakesh is a result-oriented leader. Our endeavour is to create sustainable growth for our clients and Rakesh’s appointment is aligned with that objective. His experience spans from local to regional clients, from conventional communication to integrated solutions and from brands to business management, thereby making him a vital addition to Leo Burnett and to our clients.”

Hinduja’s experience spans over 14 passionate years in the business of telling stories that cuts across categories like consumer products, retail, financial services, consumer durables, IT and service sector, which has given him the multi-dimensional knowledge and perspective required to grow brands and businesses.

Hinduja said, “I’m truly excited to join Leo Burnett and be back to play on home pitch, India. Leo Burnett’s vision and integrated approach to business solutions absolutely resonates with the kind of agency and passion I want to be part of. Current evolution in India presents enormous opportunity across mediums and audiences, which I would like to leverage using my experience of working across categories and channels. I look forward to working with the talented team at Leo Burnett and its prestigious portfolio of brands to do some great work for our clients.”

He joins Leo Burnett from Publicis Singapore, where in his role as regional business director – ASIA, he partnered clients like P&G, L’Oreal and Citibank to name a few. He was instrumental in strengthening their regional footprint in markets like Australia, India, ASEAN, Japan and Korea. Prior to this, he has worked at Publicis Ambience, McCann Worldgroup, Ezeego1.com (digital interface for Cox & Kings) amongst others and partnered various clients – Marico, P&G, JK Helen Curtis, Unilever, Western Union, Balsara, UPS, Paypal, Tata, Emami, Godrej , Videocon and more.

December 17, 2014