Throwback: When Captain Cook challenged the undisputed leadership of Tata Salt

Lenskart’s Peyush Bansal: I'm not a celebrity entrepreneur and I don't have aspirations to be one

Did you know that Malayalam film Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam is inspired by a Greenply ad?

Is it sensible for Tata’s to discontinue brand Vistara?

Diageo India CEO Hina Nagarajan: Consumers are not necessarily drinking more, but they are drinking better

In Conversation With Raja Rajamannar, Mastercard

Shahid Kapoor And Varun Ganjoo Speaks On PokerBaazi's Campaign

In conversation with IHCL’s Puneet Chhatwal & GroupM’s Kate Scott-Dawkins

Why are brands including e-sports in their sports marketing itinerary?

Storyboard18 x The English Nut: How to pronounce these 10 brand names

Experts' Take On Reinvention Of Ad Campaigns Through Technology

Experts Speak On Key Emerging Trends In Cannes Lions Entries

Leaders of the future have to be outstanding human beings: Nestle MD

In conversation with VMLY&R’s Hari Ramanathan

Dinosaur in the room: New-gen ad leaders say ad clubs caught in a time warp, demand credibility, agility and relevance

Marketing Mocktail: Brand as rubber band- brand extensions explained!

Small-towners, women drive digital viewership: BCG-Meta Report

#ShareTheSpotlight: Ghazal Alagh puts the spotlight on three women entrepreneurs

Why are Indian brands advertising in NYC's Times Square?

What Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick teaches us about leadership

Advertising is in the position where tobacco was: IPG's Arun Kumar 

Biz Moves: Interactive Avenues, Verve Media, Foxymoron and Grapes

There is an opportunity for building a better agency, not just a different one: Manja's Prajato Guha

State elections will boost news channels revenues this year: Madison Media’s Amol Dighe

Titan’s ‘The Wedding Film,’ the commercial that tugged at the heartstrings through the ‘joy of gifting’

Hair gummies, protein powders get influencer push as brands eye India’s nutraceutical market

#ShareTheSpotlight: ‘I’ve never let the lack of role models or support deter me,’ says Swati Bhargava, CashKaro

What does it take to be a modern marketer?  Get a sharp and fast insight into the minds of marketers behind some of India’s buzziest brands in Marketing Recoded.

In this episode, we have Rahul Gandhi, chief marketing officer, iD Fresh Food. He talks at length about the traits every modern marketer should possess; overrated things in marketing today; and how Siri saves his day. 

Talking about his job as a marketer, Gandhi says, “The first thing that we do is we understand what the consumer wants. We also understand the offerings of our competitors. Then we find out what is unique about our offering or our position in the category. Then, we communicate our positioning to the consumers.”

He adds, “Post that, we understand the media habits of the consumers. Then, we get on to developing new products which the consumers might latch on to in the future.”

He also shares important skills every modern marketer must possess. As per Gandhi, the first skill is to be assembling a lot of information, which includes internal as well as external, and then arrive at a decision. The second skill is to deal with ambiguity. He explains, “Once you assimilate a lot of information, you realize that a lot of information is incomplete or inaccurate which gives rise to ambiguity. Dealing with ambiguity and still making decisions is one skill or trait.”

The third skill according to him is to prioritise. "Because, there is so much happening in the field of marketing, and everything done involves time, effort, and money. If things are not properly prioritised, time, effort and money would be spent on something that would not work."

Gandhi was previously head of marketing for the snacks, noodles, and pasta businesses at ITC Foods.  

Watch the full video here.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HcCxW-HzH9U" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft.  iD Fresh Food's  Rahul Gandhi

It has been a continuous upward graph for Leo Burnett for the past one year. A series of big wins for all the pathbreaking campaigns that they conceptualised. From winning the ‘Agency Of The Year’ title at the GoaFest ABBYs, winning the Grand Prix at Cannes Lions to bagging the ‘Grand Effie’ at the recently concluded Effie Awards. Furthermore, the agency added clients such as PepsiCo and Meta to its roster as well. Watch the conversation Storyboard18’s Shibani Gharat had with Rajdeepak Das, CEO & CCO at Leo Burnett, South Asia and Chairman, Creative Council, Publicis Groupe - South Asia along with Dheeraj Sinha, CEO Leo Burnett - South Asia & Chairman, BBH India. 

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="8KXYR8Xgtt8" data-youtube-title="Decoding Leo Burnett's 2023 Expectations, Tata Salt's New Campaign | Storyboard18 | CNBC-TV18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8KXYR8Xgtt8" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

Leo Burnett's Rajdeepak Das and Dheeraj Sinha on the agency's vision for the future

Sharing his predictions for the year 2023, Sir Martin Sorrell, currently Executive Chairman of S4 Capital and former CEO of WPP, said that the world is fragmenting and India may benefit from that. “India is increasingly being seen, along with Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, as an alternative to investment in China,” he told Storyboard18 in an exclusive interview. 

In a market destabilized by a war in Ukraine, big tech troubles, rising interest rates, cost of living crisis and a new COVID variant, what is the outlook for 2023? We asked the legendary advertising executive who built the world's largest ad holding company WPP before he left to set up S4 Capital which owns Media Monks, a few years ago. “The world has changed," Sorrell told us, adding, "I don’t know whether it is an era of de-globalisation. The last four years have been free trade. Reduction at trade barriers has stimulated growth in gross domestic product (GDP). And the challenges that we have around inflation, around higher interest rates, potential recession, stagflation, the Ukrainian war, the issues around US-China relationships and long-term issues around Russia-Iran, all these things are confusing to many people." 

Watch the full interview on Storyboard18. 


<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/I7DnpJJ2gFk" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

S4 Capital's Sir Martin Sorrell: India is increasingly seen as an alternative to investment in China

What does it take to be a modern marketer?  

Get a sharp and fast insight into the minds of marketers behind some of India’s buzziest brands in Marketing Recoded.

In this episode, we have Saumya Rathor, category lead, Pepsi Cola, PepsiCo India, talk at length about traits that every modern marketer should possess. She also shares her views on some of the most overrated things in the marketing industry today. According to Rathor, "marketers are growth architects and catalysts of change." Rathor is with PepsiCo India since 2019. She has also worked with legacy brands like Marico, ITC, and Amazon. 

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N_JRMmUiNXI" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. PepsiCo India's Saumya Rathor

From the first kickoff to the final whistle, the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar was the most exciting event of the year. Audiences around the world saw 32 countries fight for the coveted crown from November 20. But the race finally came down to two teams. Argentina which played defending champions France at the finals at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar on Sunday, December 18 and took home the shiny World Cup after a gap of 36 years. Messi acquired a demigod status globally and fans around the world couldn’t contain their happiness to see the ‘Goat’ finally lift the World Cup!

The FIFA World Cup is a great example of how passion and a sports event can capture the imagination of the planet. That’s why brands love the world cup. You get to meet consumers where their passion points are and tapping into this passion makes your campaigns social and engaging, rather than static and one-way. Plus, the FIFA World Cup is arguably the biggest global event in sports. Traditionally billions of viewers watch the World Cup, and as they concentrate on what is happening on the pitch, the names of some of the world’s biggest companies flash behind the players on a rolling, technicolored loop – Budweiser, Visa, Coca-Cola, Qatar Airways, Adidas, McDonalds, Wanda, Vivo, Hyundai Kia, BYJU’s and Vivo.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino recently shared at a news conference that the organization has earned a record $7.5 billion in revenue through commercial deals tied to the 2022 World Cup, $1 billion more than what it earned from the 2018 World Cup. And during the next cycle building up to the 2026 World Cup held in the United States, Mexico and Canada, Infantino forecasts a revenue of $11 billion.

We were on ground covering the World Cup and catching up with all the fans who had travelled from all over the world to watch their favourite players live in action. We also spent some time understanding the brand action and excitement around the event and many brands indeed made a splash on ground.

But in spite of a high octane tournament and a riveting final match, Qatar 2022 for sponsors was different in many ways. Many of these brands, were caught in the geopolitical crosshairs of this tournament, balancing their sponsorship with criticisms levelled at FIFA, soccer’s governing body, and Qatar, the host, notably around human rights issues. With several bans in place, including sale and consumption of alcohol, PDA, display of sexual orientation and adherence to a strict dress code made many fans wonder if at all it was a good idea to host the World Cup in Qatar. But as someone who was on ground, the arrangements, the infrastructure and the overall management of huge fan crowd on location left us impressed. Plus a couple of brands that we spoke to were not very concerned about the restrictions at all. Of course, Ab InBev was not ready to speak about being left out of stadiums when it came to serving their beers!

The bottom line is, in spite of all the scrutiny and controversies, the FIFA World 2022 in Qatar was a no-brainer to invest in with billions of eyeballs on a logo or marketing slogan during a troubled time for the global economy. The boost from the tournament would possibly offset the advertising market’s broader weakness.

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="rqROxlZYSk4" data-youtube-title="Know All About The Brand Action From 2022 FIFA World Cup In Qatar | Storyboard18 | CNBC-TV18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rqROxlZYSk4" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

FIFA World Cup 2022: All the brand action from the ground

What does it take to be a modern marketer? 

Get a sharp and fast insight into the minds of marketers behind some of India’s buzziest brands in Marketing Recoded.

In this episode, watch Santosh Iyer, vice president – marketing & sales, and MD designate, Mercedes-Benz India talk about why crisis is the best time to change and how marketers should leverage opportunities during tough times. The German luxury carmaker promoted Iyer as the managing director & CEO of the Indian operations in August 2022. His new role is effective from January 1, 2023. He has been heading the marketing and customer service efforts of the brand in India for close to seven consecutive years. 

With two decades of diverse experience in the Indian automobile domain, Iyer has worked across functions including sales, marketing, retail, customer service, and corporate affairs.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BNjLYrutVuA" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. Mercedes-Benz India's Santosh Iyer

The pandemic had a huge impact on the liquor industry when out of home consumption came to a hard stop. It's been well over a year now since the world opened up and consumption levels got back up again. So how has the year fared for Diageo India, one of the biggest alco-bev companies in the world and in India? We found out from the managing director and CEO, Hina Nagarajan. In an exclusive interview with Storyboard18's editor Delshad Irani, Nagarajan talked about Diageo’s premiumisation strategy, driving sustainability, key consumer trends and more. 

Watch. 

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="QI_39s-j0U0" data-youtube-title="Diageo India's Hina Nagarajan Exclusive On The Firm's Premiumisation Strategy & Consumer Trends" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QI_39s-j0U0" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

Diageo India's CEO Hina Nagarajan on liquor premiumisation strategies, consumer trends and more

What does it take to be a modern marketer?
 
Get a sharp and fast insight into the minds of marketers behind some of India’s buzziest brands in Marketing Recoded.
 
Watch Anil Viswanathan, MD, Vietnam, & Southeast Asia, Mondelez International, sharing what it takes to be a modern marketer; why listening to your gut is not sound advice at work & more. Prior to this, Viswanathan was the vice president – marketing of Mondelez International. He managed the end-to-end delivery of the entire Indian brand portfolio including equity, innovation, and activation. Viswanathan also closely looked at consumer insights and analytics practices for the company.

Watch the full interview here: 

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vvdLcqW5MCg" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. Mondelez International's Anil Viswanathan

The past few years have been disruptive for the beauty industry with the pandemic and the lockdowns bringing sales drastically down and the recovery bringing hope for companies. So how is the world's largest beauty company dealing with the changes in how consumers buy, use and experience products, services and brands? In an exclusive conversation with Storyboard18's Delshad Irani, Asmita Dubey, global chief digital and marketing officer at L'Oreal, spoke about the key shifts in consumer trends, how L'Oreal is creating online and offline experiences and future-proofing its brands.

Watch here.

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="OaG-b80y8Jc" data-youtube-title="L'Oréal's Asmita Dubey On India's Beauty Industry, Key Shifts In Consumer Trends & More | CNBC-TV18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OaG-b80y8Jc" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

L'Oreal's global marketing chief Asmita Dubey on beauty tech, "radical inclusivity", big consumer trends

Gaurav Khatri, co-founder and CEO of Noise shared the brand's journey so far, and how Noise became one of the fastest growing wearable brands in India. In an interview with Storyboard18's Shibani Gharat, he spoke about the brand roping in a new 'noisemaker' - Virat Kohli, as the brand ambassador for Noise smartwatches.  

Watch here. 

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OmrvXFQUq_I" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>


Noise's founder Gaurav Khatri on taking an Indian brand global

Benetton's come a long way from being a pioneer and provocative brand. After 30 years in India, the iconic global fashion brand is on a mission to bring back its cool quotient and chart a new growth trajectory. During a visit to India, <strong>Massimo Renon</strong>, chief executive officer of Benetton Group, got into an exclusive conversation with Storyboard18's editor <strong>Delshad Irani</strong> to explain the new vision and creative direction for Benetton and the transformation of the legendary brand. Watch to find out how Benetton is planning to become bold and cool again. 

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="VL-knvGlOWA" data-youtube-title="Benetton Group's Massimo Renon On Revamping The Iconic Brand & Plans And Potential For India" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VL-knvGlOWA" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

<strong><em>The interview first aired on CNBC-TV18.</em></strong>

Benetton CEO Massimo Renon: Indian consumers will be profiled as future consumers for Benetton

Women's cricket has come a long way in the past 2 years. There is more and more interest from audiences to watch the sport with interest. Fans of men's cricket are keen on watching women's cricket as well. On the other hand, a new audience too is developing solely devoted to women's cricket. Naturally, with the increase in demand and viewership, brands too are eager to hop on board and bask in the spotlight. The future of women's cricket is bright and the audience is only going to grow. 

Storyboard18's <strong>Shibani Gharat</strong> recently had the chance to catch up with Indian Women's Cricket team captain, <strong>Harmanpreet Kaur</strong> to discuss the future of the sport, brand interest and more. 

Listen in.

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="IutslW1jbgo" data-youtube-title="Harmanpreet Kaur Talks About Future Of Women Cricket, Increased Viewership & More | CNBC-TV18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IutslW1jbgo" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

Indian Women's Cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur on increased viewership and brand interest in women's cricket

Mastercard has been focusing a lot on sports marketing recently. People from India, more than any other country, are incredibly passionate about cricket. Mastercard’s brand positioning is about “connecting everyone through priceless possibilities”. It’s not for the rich and famous or the well-to-do, it's for everybody even those who do not have access to the financial system today. Therefore, cricket provides the company with deep penetration across all the segments. Mastercard signed a sponsorship deal with the BCCI recently. 

Other than cricket, the company is also associated with the Australian and French Open tennis tournaments. In India, Mastercard signed the former Indian cricket captain MS Dhoni as its endorser four years ago.

Mastercard has launched an initiative called the ‘Priceless Planet Coalition.’ Through this initiative, the company plans to plant 100 million trees worldwide within the next 4 years. They have partnered with various organisations and signed sponsorship deals with many franchises to create awareness regarding this initiative. <strong>Manasi Narasimhan</strong>, VP and head, marketing and communications, Mastercard talks about the company's Priceless Planet Coalition (PPC) and sports marketing with Storyboard18’s <strong>Shibani Gharat</strong>. 

Listen in.

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="qDu49rNkGHU" data-youtube-title="Manasi Narasimhan Talks About Mastercard's Priceless Planet Coalition | Storyboard18 | CNBC-TV18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qDu49rNkGHU" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

Mastercard's Manasi Narasimhan on how the payments major is leveraging sports sponsorships in India

FMCG major ITC’s brand Savlon has a new ambassador. But the new face of the brand is actually a hand. Yes, you read that right. Savlon’s new hand ambassador is none other than Sachin Tendulkar. In a conversation with Storyboard18’s editor Delshad Irani, Sameer Satpathy who is ITC’s personal care division CEO, tells us more about the new hand ambassador and campaign and ITC's focus on the triple bottom line, business, brand and societal impact of higher-order purpose driven initiatives and how the measure of their success has evolved. Satpathy says, “For a believer no proof is necessary and for a non-believer no proof is enough,”

<em>The interview first aired on CNBC-TV18. Watch it here.</em>

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="sRR_n4YrQQ4" data-youtube-title="ITC's Sameer Satpathy Exclusive On Appointing Sachin Tendulkar As World's First 'Hand Ambassador'" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sRR_n4YrQQ4" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

ITC's Sameer Satpathy on Savlon's 'hand ambassador' Sachin Tendulkar, and Purpose & proof

Tata Motors is shattering all category codes of marketing in commercial vehicles segment.

But how do you make marketing commercial vehicles exciting and transformational?

How do you bring a B2C approach to B2B marketing and disrupt codes?

Storyboard18's <strong>Delshad Irani</strong> spoke to <strong>Shubhranshu Singh</strong>, vice president - marketing - domestic & IB, Tata Motors, about the key points in Tata Motors' strategy to overhaul and transform how Commercial Vehicles are marketed in India.

Singh also spotlighted how the auto major is driving change, digital transformation and creativity in the category.

Tata Motors launched a much appreciated ‘Desh ke Trucks’ campaign which created an overarching brand positioning for India’s best-selling truck platforms – Prima, Signa and Ultra. The campaign was intended to showcase its state-of-the-art trucks, innovations, enhanced facets and features, digitalisation, profitability, fuel efficiency, safety, superior technology, connectivity, driver productivity and cabin comfort via entertaining, slice of life commercials.

Watch here. 

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="A2Du00UEcOE" data-youtube-title="Tata Motors Shubhranshu Singh Talks About Marketing CV In India | Storyboard18 | CNBC-TV18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/A2Du00UEcOE" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

Tata Motors' Shubhranshu Singh on innovation, digital and marketing commercial vehicles in India

Nokia, back in the day was a brand synonymous with the mobile phone. Once a market leader, Nokia won the hearts of all its consumers and enjoyed a sort of monopoly in the market. Nokia rode the wave of success for many decades. However, once the smartphone was introduced, Nokia as a brand struggled to find itself a suitable position in the market. Innovation became the name of the game and consumers wanted the best smartphone available. Unfortunately for Nokia, many players had entered the smartphone market by then that posed to be more than competition. However, Nokia wasn't ready to give up. They launched the Nokia Lumia series. They're own version of the smartphone. Despite their efforts, the Lumia series failed to make the desired mark. Slowly Nokia faded from the Indian market. 

Recently however, Nokia has rebranded. They've changed their logo and have an all new strategy to disrupt the smartphone market in India. This news came as a surprise to all who remember and cherish in the nostalgia of having owned a pre-smartphone era Nokia mobile phone. The brand has big plans for the country and a refreshing take to appeal to consumers of all ages.

In an exclusive conversation with Storyboard18's Shibani Gharat, Nokia mobile phone's parent company HMD GLobal's Sanmeet Singh Kochhar, vice president - India & MENA and Adam Ferguson global head of proposition, partner and product marketing talk about the brands revival in India.

Watch here.

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="0K5PmfFKp6k" data-youtube-title="Sanmeet Singh Kochhar & Adam Ferguson Exclusive On Reviving Nokia For The Consumer Of Today" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0K5PmfFKp6k" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

HMD Global's Sanmeet Singh Kochhar and Adam Ferguson on reviving Nokia for the consumer of today

You can’t have a discussion about smartphones without mentioning Carl Pei. The Chinese-Swedish entrepreneur, who is the founder of OnePlus, started Nothing, a technology company in 2020. 


Storyboard18’s Shibani Gharat had a chance to catch up with Pei at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. She posed a question on what it takes to launch two smartphone brands in a span of a decade in a rapidly evolving tech space. Pei answered, “Naivety!” 


He adds, “Nothing is a lot harder because we are not a part of the bigger company. We have to think about everything, right from supply chain to human resources etc. ‘Don’t do it!’ is my advice to other people—who want to start a tech brand–because it is very complicated. In our business, you have to do supply chain, and engineering on the hardware as well as the software side.”


Nothing’s founder also mentioned that apart from supply chain and engineering, this also included looking into marketing, design, customer service, and sales etc.


“What it actually takes is not a great idea. Rather, all the functions I just talked about need to work together. It is their integration which takes to make a great idea work,” explains Pei. 


India is the largest smartphone market in the world. Speaking on his assessment of it, Pei is quick to add that he is very bullish on India and its economy. He says, “This year, it is going to grow by six percent. Large parts of the world are going to fall into recession. India’s population is very young. So, they can contribute to building the country and the economy.”


During his recent trip to India, Pei had an opportunity to meet the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi. “In that meeting, we were the only startup company amongst a group of established companies. India is going to be an important market for us. A lot of our manufacturing is done in India.” Pei said.


Watch here.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vFsEMLd6pS4" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Nothing’s Carl Pei: India is an important market for Nothing

Lenskart’s co-founder <strong>Peyush Bansal</strong> is among the few new-generation business founders and CEOs who have appeared in their own brands' commercials as themselves. In a short series of ad films, Bansal, who is also chief executive and people officer at Lenskart, features with Bollywood producer and fashion icon Karan Johar. Casting Johar, who has an enviable collection of eye-wear and is known to even travel with a bag full of glasses, was a strategic decision, Bansal says in a conversation with Storyboard18’s editor <strong>Delshad Irani</strong>. In the exclusive interaction, the founder and Shark Tank India judge tells us more about the campaign's genesis, how and why he ended up featuring in it with Johar and why he doesn't consider himself a celebrity founder.

<a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/storyboard18/brand-makers/lenskarts-peyush-bansal-im-not-a-celebrity-entrepreneur-and-i-dont-have-aspirations-to-be-one-6032.htm">Read here: Lenskart’s Peyush Bansal: I'm not a celebrity entrepreneur and I don't have aspirations to be one</a>

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="iDjfR7qCSg0" data-youtube-title="Genesis Of Lenskart Ads, Shark Tank 2 & Opportunities During Uncertainties: Peyush Bansal Exclusive" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iDjfR7qCSg0" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

Lenskart's Peyush Bansal on the campaign featuring Karan Johar & celebrity entrepreneurship

MAC Cosmetics, originally a Canadian company was founded in 1984 in Toronto. It was later bought by the iconic Estee Lauder Companies in 1988. MAC Cosmetics has been a market leader in global pockets for many years. However, in a country like India where many homegrown brands have really upped their game to capture the rising demand, the competition is tough for legacy brands. To break the clutter, brands are constantly innovating. Many brands are launching new and improved products, catering to specific needs rather than going with a mass strategy. MAC Cosmetics is one such brand.

 

Karen Thompson, brand general manager, MAC Cosmetics, recently spoke to Storyboard18’s Shibani Gharat about the company’s plans for India and about their new skincare brand Hyper Real. She also talked about MAC Cosmetics’ journey in India, building brand MAC and the new launches they have in store, along with the key trends in the beauty industry.  

 

MAC Cosmetics is also adopting technology to offer its consumers unique buying experiences. The service called ‘Skin Artistry’ will be provided in stores where people will be able to experience the products and physically see how their skin would look when the product is applied. 

 

Listen in. 


<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iSiOnIeRlkQ" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

MAC Cosmetics' Karen Thompson on the brand’s India plans

The wearables market in India has picked up significantly in the last few years with homegrown brands and international companies making smart entries. Indian smartwatch brand, Fire-Boltt has gone on to become a leading player in the smartwatch category. 

In an interview with Storyboard’s editor Delshad Irani, Arnav Kishore, co-founder and CEO, Fire-Boltt shares how the company plans to tap new segments and its international expansion game plan. Fire-Boltt started selling 100 watch units on Amazon. Today, they have a run rate of more than 30,000 units a day. 

The company started its operations in 2015 when Arnav and his elder sister Aayushi Kishore co-founded the brand. It was of the first wearable tech brands in India. In the first few years of operation, the brand gained a lot of experience in hardware and software development. They learnt the art of how to make the right wearables for the Indian audience. 

In 2019, the brand was rechristened as Fire-Boltt. Speaking on the turning point of the brand, Kishore shares,  “We were lucky to enter the market at the right time.  During the pandemic, the awareness and consciousness of people really went to another level. They started taking their health much more seriously. We were the first smartwatch to launch with built-in SPO2.” 

He further adds, “While the underline usage of a smartwatch will continue to have the health and fitness, and other tracking capabilities, Fire-Boltt is coming up with a dedicated line of smartwatches targeted at women."

Highlighting the company’s plan to launch a luxury offering, Kishore says, “Fire-Boltt aims to cater to the premium watch lovers and the company is set to launch watches with stainless steel straps and leather straps. Similarly, we are working on a special range of watches with parental tracking capabilities for school-going kids, and young teens.” 

Fire-Boltt feels there is a big gap in the market globally in the budget segment and therefore the brand is looking to expand in UAE. The company has recently started operations in Vietnam and Singapore. In the next two quarters, there are plans of adding 10-12 countries including parts of Europe and the USA. 

Watch the full interview here:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jaxotY4wfc8" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

In conversation with Fire-Boltt’s CEO Arnav Kishore

Italian motor vehicle manufacturer Piaggio Vehicles entered the Indian market in 1998. Today, the brand has a presence in both two-wheeler and three-wheeler segments in the country. Diego Graffi, CMD, Piaggio Vehicles, tells Storyboard18's Shibani Gharat that by now the company has understood the pulse of the Indian consumers. He also highlights that the two-wheeler segment will see new disruptions.  Davide Zanolini, executive vice president, marketing and communications at the Piaggio Group (also the chief marketing officer at Piaggio Fast Forward), discusses the company's outlook with Gharat. The duo also share at length about the company's new products in the pipeline, on the luxury scooter segment and more.

 

Piaggio also completed 10 years of having introduced Vespa (an Italian luxury brand scooter). Speaking on the key milestones the brand achieved in India, Graffi says, “When we entered 25 years ago in the 3-W segment in India, it was deemed unconventional, because this was the domain of the Indian automotive brands. We have been achieving and maintaining our leadership in the 3-W cargo space and in the 3-W diesel space. Further, we have been successful in introducing 3-W in the EV space in 2019. We are happy to have created a new market in the segment, where we were not existing.” 

 

He further highlights, “At the beginning, there was an intention to reintroduce the brand in India. Today, Vespa is a part of the global strategy in India, and is one of the brands, which we can say is iconic.”

 

According to Zanolini, the big challenge for the segment not only in India but also in other markets is not to look at Vespa as a heritage or a vintage brand, but as the brand of the present times which can add relevance to the needs of the present generation.

 

He concludes, “I want Vespa to be identified as a premium player, and expect people to identify themselves with it."

 

Watch the full interview here: 


<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TMWvqxVXW3M" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Piaggio Group speeds up its India growth plan

What does it take to be a modern marketer? Get a sharp and fast insight into the minds of marketers behind some of India’s buzziest brands in Marketing Recoded. In this episode, we have Mohua Das Gupta head – marketing, Tata CLiQ Luxury. She talks at length about how modern marketers are now empathetic, thoughtful, and mindful more than ever before. Gupta also talks about the power of the metaverse and the importance of adapting to changes.

Gupta is a marketing leader with over 15 years of experience in building solid brands across industries. She has extensive experience in leading strategic marketing including brand strategy, research, mining, consumer insights, working on new product launches, media planning, designing brand positioning and campaign development with RoI driven approach to deliver business impact. Gupta has led marketing for brands across luxury, premium and mass portfolios across varied industries namely, e-commerce and retail. Prior to Tata CLiQ Luxury, Gupta has worked with brands like Myntra, Arrow, and Amante. She also has worked with ad agencies like Ogilvy and McCann. 

Watch the full episode here. 

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/E2y4Wtmypuo" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>


Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. Tata CLiQ Luxury’s Mohua Das Gupta

Revenge travel was one of the key trends of the past year. This was good news for OTAs like the Flipkart group-owned Cleartrip. In an exclusive conversation with Delshad Irani, Cleartrip CEO Ayyappan R gives us a quick recap of the company's growth in 2022 and the growth strategy for 2023. He also sheds light on the key consumer trends and expectations in the travel industry, and what end users can look forward to this year. 

Ayyappan also shed light on the genesis of a new campaign - 'Invest in travel'. Targeted at different kinds of customer cohorts, the three ad films address different generations and what they seek when they travel. It is a quirky take on conventional investment campaigns and ends with the line ‘investing in travel is not subject to market risks’.

Watch the interview here. 

<div data-youtube="true" data-youtube-id="waBYIpzyvjI" data-youtube-title="Cleartrip's Ayyappan R Exclusive On The Firm's Growth In 2022 & Strategy For 2023 | Storyboard 18" class="youTubeVideoPlayer" data-youtube-category="News & Politics"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/waBYIpzyvjI" width="100%" height="360"></iframe></div>

WATCH . LISTEN

STORYBOARD18 TV

Benetton CEO Massimo Renon: Indian consumers will be profiled as future consumers for Benetton

STORYBOARD18 TV

Indian Women's Cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur on increased viewership and brand interest in women's cricket

STORYBOARD18 TV

Mastercard's Manasi Narasimhan on how the payments major is leveraging sports sponsorships in India

STORYBOARD18 TV

ITC's Sameer Satpathy on Savlon's 'hand ambassador' Sachin Tendulkar, and Purpose & proof

STORYBOARD18 TV

Tata Motors' Shubhranshu Singh on innovation, digital and marketing commercial vehicles in India

STORYBOARD18 VIDEOS

Piaggio Group speeds up its India growth plan

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. Tata CLiQ Luxury’s Mohua Das Gupta

Cleartrip CEO Ayyappan R: No one expected this kind of resurgence in travel demand

More from Storyboard18

Watch Listen

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. iD Fresh Food's Rahul Gandhi

Watch Listen

Leo Burnett's Rajdeepak Das and Dheeraj Sinha on the agency's vision for the future

Watch Listen

S4 Capital's Sir Martin Sorrell: India is increasingly seen as an alternative to investment in China

Watch Listen

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. PepsiCo India's Saumya Rathor

Watch Listen

FIFA World Cup 2022: All the brand action from the ground

Watch Listen

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. Mercedes-Benz India's Santosh Iyer

Watch Listen

Diageo India's CEO Hina Nagarajan on liquor premiumisation strategies, consumer trends and more

Watch Listen

Marketing Recoded – Season 2 ft. Mondelez International's Anil Viswanathan

Watch Listen

L'Oreal's global marketing chief Asmita Dubey on beauty tech, "radical inclusivity", big consumer trends

Watch Listen

Noise's founder Gaurav Khatri on taking an Indian brand global