MxMIndia

Category: Ad Agencies

  • Himanshu Saxena appointed COO & MD

    Russell Barrett bids adieu to BBH India

    By Our Staff

     

    BBH India, a Publicis Groupe agency, bids adieu to Russell Barrett, CEO and CCO BBH India, who will be moving on from the agency to pursue other opportunities. Himanshu Saxena Chief Operating Officer (COO) & MD, BBH India will helm the agency’s leadership team.

     

    Barrett has been with BBH for 12 years and has been instrumental in making BBH India one of the most sought-after creative agencies, winning several accolades including Cannes Lions, One Show Pencils, Andy’s, Spikes, D&ADs and London Internationals.

     

    Speaking about the announcement Dheeraj Sinha, CEO Leo Burnett, South Asia & Chairman BBH India said: “We would like to thank Russell for his invaluable contribution towards making BBH India the powerhouse it is today. He has laid down a very strong creative foundation and has been a fantastic partner to me in the time we’ve worked together. I wish him all the very best. We are fortunate that we have a stellar team of business, creative and strategy leaders at BBH who continue to run our businesses, relentlessly chasing growth and living up to the black sheep creative reputation. We are in the process of finalizing the new creative leadership at BBH India and will be making our announcement soon.”

     

  • To promote nutrition brand Nutrilite

    L&K Saatchi & Saatchi partners with Amway

    By Our Staff

     

    Amway India, direct selling FMCG company, launches campaign featuring brand ambassador Olympian weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu. The campaign reiterates the brand’s continuous efforts towards focusing on fuelling one’s passion with adequate nutrition support to achieve excellence.

     

    Talking about the campaign, Ajay Khanna, CMO, Amway India said: “Amway has always held a distinctive and compelling approach to driving forward its vision to make India healthier. In line with this, we are thrilled to announce our new campaign- ‘Passion ko do Poshan’, that personifies the essence of our nutrition and wellness brand, Nutrilite, the world’s No.1 selling vitamins and dietary supplements[1], which brings together the best of nature and the best of science. As people focus on excelling in their passion areas, they often miss out on providing their bodies with the nutrition, which acts as fuel in their journey towards their goals. This campaign reflects how people’s passion is synonymous with their identity, and, along with a proper diet, Nutrilite provides them with the required nutrition support. Through our flagship brand, Nutrilite, which offers bestselling products such as Nutrilite All Plant Protein powder, Nutrilite Daily, Nutrilite Salmon Omega – 3 and Nutrilite Cal Mag D Plus, we inspire people to keep pushing their boundaries every day. We have extended our partnership with Mirabai Chanu, which I am sure will continue to help us champion our commitment towards the health-conscious Indians, driven by passion, to level up their nutrition to accomplish their dreams. We are elated to see the vivid response across India that our initiatives have received.”

     

    Added Rohit Malkani, Joint National Creative Director, Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi: “We partnered with Amway to start a powerful conversation, encouraging people to ‘feed their passion’ and promote the role of nutrition through Nutrilite, as a partner in their journey to achieve excellence in their area of passion.”

     

     

  • Will be responsible for the brand building

    Lowe Lintas wins mandate of brand Lifestyle

    By Our Staff

     

    Lifestyle, fashion retail company, appoints Lowe Lintas to manage its creative duties. As a part of the partnership, Lowe Lintas Bangalore will be responsible for the brand building mandate of the parent brand Lifestyle and its in-house brands (Ginger, Melange, Code, Forca, Fame Forever, IKSU, Kappa, Bossini, Smiley and Juniors).

     

    Speaking on the partnership, Rohini Haldea, AVP & Head, Marketing – Lifestyle said: “We are delighted to onboard Lowe Lintas as our new brand building and creative partner. Their sound strategic thinking and path-breaking creative capabilities, combined with fashion expertise make them the perfect partner to lead Lifestyle. With this partnership, we look forward to creating inspiring, and impactful work that lead the consumer and take Lifestyle to the next level of engagement and growth.”

     

    Commenting on the win, Sonali Khanna, President and Head of Office – South, Lowe Lintas added: “While online shopping ruled during the pandemic, people are keen to return to a more visceral in-shop experience. But the plethora of choices available today, both offline and online, has made it imperative for brands to go beyond the obvious. Merely providing on-trend products or a captivating shopping experience is just not enough; brands have to connect with customers through a deeper meaning by taking a powerful stand that is both inspirational and aspirational at the same time. Lifestyle has always enjoyed a special connect with its consumers, and we believe our new work will stir their souls and reignite their imagination. By focusing on the stand of the Lifestyle brand, we are confident of lifting the Lifestyle experience to even greater heights.”

     

  • To accelerate growth and solutions for the clients

    Dentsu appoints Sapna Arora as Chief Client Officer

    By Our Staff

     

    Dentsu India has announced the appointment of Sapna Arora as Chief Client Officer (CCO).

     

    In this role, Arora will continue to enhance integrated solutions for existing and prospective clients and drive growth for the network. She will report to Rob Gilby, CEO APAC, and work closely with the leadership as well as teams across Creative, Media and CX.

     

    Prior to this, Arora was with OLX India as CMO, PRO, Brand Head – Emerging Markets.

     

    Commenting on the appointment, Gilby said: “We are in a very exciting phase of our evolution with a clear vision and strategy and I am delighted we continue to attract the best industry talent to join us and share their expertise. This is what makes Sapna the ideal fit for today’s Indian dentsu! She brings incredible global expertise that will be invaluable in cultivating pride, employee advocacy, and a sense of collective purpose that will strengthen dentsu India’s reputation among key stakeholders. I would like to extend a warm welcome to Sapna and look forward to working with her.’

     

  • To help bolster creative leadership team

    Wunderman Thompson India appoints Rajeshwari Rao as Sr VP and ECD

    By Our Staff

     

    Rajeshwari Rao has been appointed as Senior Vice President and Executive Creative Director (ECD) at Wunderman Thompson India effective 9th January 2023. Based out of Mumbai, Rao will be the creative head on the agency’s Unilever’s business in addition to several other important businesses. Rao’s appointment comes at a time when the agency is strategically looking at bolstering its creative leadership team.

     

    Rajeshwari will report directly to Anurag Tandon, Managing Partner, Wunderman Thompson Mumbai.

     

    Commenting on Rajeshwari’s appointment, Anurag Tandon said: “Rajeshwari’s appointment comes at a time when we are looking at strengthening our creative output. We are glad to onboard her at this critical juncture when we are upping the ante on our work. With her vast and and varied experience, Rajeshwari will surely play a pivotal role in understanding the client’s business and translating it into great creative work.”

     

    On taking up her new role at Wunderman Thompson, India, Rajeshwari Rao, added: “I’m excited to be taking on this role and looking forward to create some good work with the incredibly talented and dynamic team at Wunderman Thompson India. Wunderman Thompson is a legacy agency that commands a formidable standing in the industry with an enviable client roster of long standing relationships. The agency is on an exciting growth trajectory and I am thrilled to be part of their journey.”

     

  • To visualise digital as an ecosystem for full funnel marketing solutions

    Binodan Sarma joins DDB Mudra Group as Head of Digital – North

    By Our Staff

     

    DDB Mudra Group appoints Binodan Sarma as Executive Vice President – North. In this role, Sarma will lead the digital business for both DDB Mudra and 22feet Tribal Worldwide for the Group’s Gurugram office. Sarma’s appointment will be instrumental in inspiring the teams and clients to visualise digital as an ecosystem to deliver full funnel marketing solutions.

     

    Speaking on Binodan’s appointment, Ashutosh Sawhney, Managing Partner – North, DDB Mudra Group said: “DDB Tribal – the amalgamation of DDB Mudra & 22Feet Tribal Worldwide in North is coming of age. The idea of blurring the lines between digital and mainstream is a reality today and I am proud to say that at DDB Tribal, we are at its leading edge with clients like Royal Enfield, One Plus, Mars Confectionery and many more. In Binodan, we found not only a digital transformer but also an advertising professional with an astute sense of business and most importantly, a thirst for creating big, creative ideas.”

     

  • He will report to Chief Creative Officer Anupama Ramaswamy

    Havas gets Debanjan Basak as Group Creative Director

    By Our Staff

     

    Debanjan Basak
    Debanjan Basak

    Havas Worldwide India, the creative arm of Havas Group India, has further strengthened its creative team with the appointment of Debanjan Basak as Group Creative Director.

     

    Havas Worldwide India has been on a creative transformation journey in recent years, with notable additions to the team’s creative steam. Basak’s appointment follows the appointment of Anupama Ramaswamy as Chief Creative Officer last year followed by Jaibeer Ahmad as Managing Partner – North. Basak will report to Ramaswamy and will oversee the expansion of the agency’s digital and social portfolio. He’ll be based in Gurugram.

     

    Bobby Pawar
    Bobby Pawar

    Speaking about the appointment, Bobby Pawar, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, Havas Group India said: “For the last four years, Rana [Barua] and I have gone about shaping Havas Worldwide India into a brand-led, digital-first creative solutions company. This has helped us grow the agency multi-fold. The creative output, too, has gotten steadily better. Anupama is here on a mission to raise it several notches and I believe, with the addition of Debanjan, the creative leadership team will accelerate that. He is a man of many talents – he’s non-territorial, a great team player, and he can write. As you can imagine, I am kinda partial to that.”

     

    Anupama Ramaswamy
    Anupama Ramaswamy

    Added Ramaswamy: “With a superb body of work, Debanjan brings with him a wealth of experience across formats. He will play a key role in driving our agenda of creativity beyond silos. Debanjan is not only a good creative leader, but he is also an extraordinarily warm and generous person. That’s exactly what Havas Group believes the new bunch of leaders should be. Debanjan will be responsible for driving creative excellence for clients and it really is such a pleasure to have him as a part of the Havas Worldwide India team.”

     

  • To strengthen digital offering

    Sideways ropes in Swati Balani as Creative Head of Digital

    By Our Staff

     

    Sideways agency has onboarded Swati Balani as Senior Creative Director in charge of its digital output.

     

    After over three years in traditional advertising working with agencies such as Ogilvy, DDB, and Draft FCB, Balani switched to Digital with AutumnGrey. In just seven and a half years, she helped build a robust team there and delivered on the biggest brands across industries including ITC, Burger King, USL Diageo, Microsoft, P&G, PepsiCo, Aditya Birla amongst others.

     

    On her appointment, Abhijit Avasthi, Founder, Sideways, said: “With digital being a mainstream lever in business now, we needed a solid experienced hand who understands the nuances of this domain and can impact visible outcomes . In Swati we found such a person – besides being an able team builder.”

     

    Welcoming Balani to the team, Sameer Sojwal and Nilay Moonje, ECDs and Creative Heads of Sideways, added: “Swati joins the Sideways team to further strengthen our digital offering. She brings with her deep understanding of the digital world and the experience of handling multiple brands and teams across digital and mainline agencies. We are super happy to have her and look forward to seeing more Sideways thinking in the months to come.”

     

  • To lead strategy and ideation for integrated solutions across media platforms

    Sarfaraz Ansari joins DDB Mudramax as Senior Vice President – Integrated Media

    By Our Staff

     

    Sarfaraz Ansari
    Sarfaraz Ansari

    DDB Mudramax boosts its media expertise with the appointment of Sarfaraz Ansari as Senior Vice President – Integrated Media. He will be responsible for leading strategy and ideation for integrated solutions across media platforms.

     

    With over 17 years of experience, Ansari has worked across industries like FMCG, financial services, telecom, and worked with brands such as Johnson & Johnson, Spotify, Mahindra, Hershey’s, Finolex Pipes, Marico among others. His previous stint was as the buying lead at Lodestar Media.

     

    Speaking on the new appointment, Rammohan Sundaram, Country Head and Managing Partner – Integrated Media, DDB Mudra Group said, “Sarfaraz’s calm and composed demeanour backed with solid conviction and science makes him one of the best in the business. Especially with some of our large clients, where we needed someone who can fit into our culture and at the same time solidify our leadership in strategic buying across all media. To that effect, he is perfect and has already impacted positively to our setup at Mudramax”

     

  • To help deliver disruptive brand experience solutions for its clients

    TBWA\India appointed Russell Barrett as CCEO

    By Our Staff

     

    Russell Barrett
    Russell Barrett

    TBWA\India has appointed Russell Barrett to the newly created position of chief creative experience officer, a further nod to the agency’s commitment to delivering disruptive brand experience solutions for its clients.

     

    Previously at BBH India, Barrett brings close to 27 years of experience creating some of the markets most impactful work for brands like Abbott, Google Chrome, Red Bull, Audi, Skoda, Uber, Mahindra Racing, Marico, UNIQLO and Johnny Walker to name a few.

     

    Barrett will be charged with setting the creative vision and delivering TBWA\India’s total brand experience approach to the agency’s portfolio of clients. Barrett will work closely with the key management team in India and the global creative leadership to drive the global ambition for TBWA’s creative product.

     

    Said Govind Pandey, chief executive officer: “There is a need to deliver modern brand experiences to our clients, and I’m confident Russell will elevate our disruptive creative thinking that our environment and our clients demand. His depth of experience and varied skill set will sharpen our creative thinking and deliver ongoing value across the entire brand experience for our clients.”

     

  • To strengthen creative team

    Wavemaker India appoints George Kovoor as CCO

    By Our Staff

     

    Wavemaker India, the agency from GroupM, today announced the appointment of George Kovoor as the Chief Creative Officer (CCO). Kovoor will report to Ajay Gupte, CEO – South Asia, Wavemaker and will be based out of Bengaluru. He joins Wavemaker after his eight year long stint with Ogilvy where he was Digital Lead – Mumbai and South operations.

     

    Speaking about the appointment, Ajay Gupte said: “We are witnessing an exciting phase of transformation in the media industry where traditional methods are challenged at every step. Data, Content and Technology have always been the three key pillars at Wavemaker and we have all experienced the magic when these three ingredients are used in the right proportion. In his previous roles, George has played an instrumental role in integrating mainline and digital creative teams. He enjoys an incredible reputation in the creative industry for his impressive work which has been recognised at local and global platforms. With George coming in as the Chief Creative Officer, I am quite confident about taking our creative offerings a notch higher.”

     

  • Encapsulates advertising in today's world

    Dentsu India presents Digital Report 2023

    By Our Staff

     

    Dentsu India presents Digital Report 2023. The 2023 edition of the Digital Report simply encapsulates advertising in today’s world, keeping in mind the many facets of today’s consumers. It offers a 360-degree view for brands to fruitfully plan their advertising budgets.

     

    Said Simi Sabhaney, Chief Growth Officer, Dentsu India: “The world witnessed a year of normalcy in 2022 after the Covid outbreak, however, the pandemic definitely accelerated digital growth in India. With brands going back to business as usual, the media budgets were seen to be flourishing across sectors. The Indian advertising industry grew at 18.1% over 2021 and is expected to witness a compounded growth of 15.07% by the end of 2024. Digital advertising in India continued to be at the tip of the iceberg with a substantial spike of 39.5% over 2021, putting TV advertising in a tight spot. The Indian government too helped pave a path towards digital success, through its initiatives and programs, business transformation drives, and focused efforts on propelling digital commerce. India is seeing a relentless push towards ‘Digital India’.”

     

    As the digital economy paces up, with a talent pool like ours that is fluent in English, and digitally literate, we are certainly up for growth in varied directions. This may indeed vary the stance that businesses have held for the many years. Indian consumers are poised to adopt the dynamically evolving technology.

     

    Key Highlights:

    Indian advertising industry currently has a market size of Rs 85,769 crore, having grown at 18.1% over 2021. It is expected to further grow at a compounded rate of 15.07% to reach Rs 1,13,575 crore by the end of 2024.

    Indian digital advertising industry stood at a market size of Rs 29,784 crore, growing at 39.5% over 2021, and is predicted to reach Rs 51,110 crore, with a compounded growth rate of 31%, by 2024.

    Television has the largest advertising spends share of 40%, followed by digital media and print media with a share of 35% and 21%, respectively. Digital media is expected to overtake the ad spends share of television in 2023.

    The FMCG sector contributes 30% of total advertising spends, followed by the e-commerce category at 18%.

    FMCG and e-commerce are the largest contributors to the digital media industry, accounting for 38% and 20%, respectively, followed by consumer durables, pharmaceuticals, and automotive.

    Digital media spends is driven by social media with a contribution of 30%, followed by 28% from online video and 23% from paid search. The spend on online video is expected to grow rapidly and be at par with social media spends by 2024.

    FMCG spends a large portion of its digital media budget on online video, whereas pharmaceutical and e-commerce spend the majority on paid search.

    Due to the rapid adoption of the next generation of Web3 technologies and the development of mass markets, Indian consumers’ expectations are set to evolve toward convenience, commerce, experiential media, and marketing in the new digital economy.

    The evolution of the new digital economy will lead to the emergence of new markets and pave the opportunity for creating value and increasing the worth of customers, ushering in a new dawn of marketing and creativity that will be more spatial, experiential, and immersive.