Arc Worldwide, the experiential and brand activation arm within the Publicis Groupe India, wins Black Dragon Certificate for Best Event or Experiential Marketing Campaign in this year’s Dragons of Asia advertising awards for its outstanding work on ‘Audible: Live The Story’ Campaign.
Sejal Shah
Said Sejal Shah, Managing Director and Head – Publicis Media Exchange and Publicis In Motion: “We are thrilled to receive the Black Dragon Certificate in this year’s Dragons of Asia advertising awards for our work on Audible.in’s ‘Audible: Live The Story’ Campaign. Our goal was to make the magic of audio storytelling come alive visually, and we’re proud of the impact we’ve created at Comic Con. This recognition is a testament to the innovative ideas and dedication of our team.”
Shailesh Sawlani
Added Shailesh Sawlani, Country Manager, India, Audible:”The 2023 Dragons Asia award is an acknowledgement of our collaboration with Arc Worldwide India. With the campaign comprising of multiple immersive experiences, each highlighting different aspects of our service, we were thrilled with the outcome of the campaign. As Audible’ s service in India continues to experience exponential growth, the ‘Audible: Live the Story’ Campaign was an excellent way for Audible to directly engage with an audience who is equally passionate about the power of storytelling.”
Wondrlab, the Saurabh Varma-founded agency, has officially kicked off operations in North India with an office in NCR, which will also cater to the East. Teams comprising platform, strategy and creative experts are in place in both North and East, notes a communique.
Vandana VermaAnkit GroverBiswajit Das
The firm has made two senior appointments for the new office. It has brought in Ankit Grover as Lead Integration Director, and Biswajit Das as Lead Strategist, for the Experience Platform. Both will report to Vandana Verma, Co-Founder and Managing Partner – Experience Platform at Wondrlab.
Saurabh Varma
Said Verma, Co-Founder and Managing Partner – Experience Platform, Wondrlab: “Starting off our Delhi office means we now have excellence in the North and East. This move has come a little after Wondrlab’s launch and the momentum is unprecedented. Ankit and Biswajit are a great choice as leaders; both are new-age thinkers, excellent integration managers and tech enthusiasts with diverse cross-category brand experience. Our clients can expect hands-on leadership involvement in their business problems, great turnaround time and collaboration on the implementation of industry-first solutions at an enormous scale.”
Grover has over 14 years of experience in experiential and integrated marketing and has joined from Arc Worldwide – Publicis Groupe’s experiential marketing arm – and has been part of agencies such as Wizcraft, RK Swamy BBDO and ESP Active.
Das Biswajit has over 12 years of industry experience. His previous stint was also with Arc Worldwide. He has previously worked in companies such as Hansa Events, Network18 and ESP Active Marketing.
In a consolidation of its experiential marketing play, Publicis Communications has announced the merger of its in-house technology-enabled experiential arm, Solutions, with its brand activation and experiential shopper agency, Arc Worldwide. The merger is effective immediately.
The entire Solutions team and its roster of clients will now come under the Arc umbrella. The newly merged entity will be called Arc Worldwide, and will be headed by Vandana Verma, Executive Vice President and India Head at Arc.
The merged entity can now create deep impact in over 100 Indian towns and metros, further delivering on Arc’s ‘Irresistible Commerce’ philosophy, notes a communique.
Saurabh Varma
Speaking about the merger, Saurabh Varma, CEO, Publicis Communications India and Leo Burnett, South Asia said: “By merging the two entities, Arc can leverage their combined expertise in ways that are unprecedented for the industry. The merger of Solutions with Arc will create even more momentum for Arc’s trajectory in India. Arc has deep capabilities across the entire experience landscape. With Solutions, we will create meaningful value exchange straddling the entire shopping experience for greater impact on our clients’ businesses. The merger is in perfectly in line with our ‘Power of One’ strategy.â€
Vandana Verma
Speaking about her vision for Arc Worldwide, Vandana Verma, Executive Vice President and India Head, Arc Worldwide said: “Arc is focused on creating meaningful connected experiences. In India, Arc is a key platform within Publicis Communications. Solutions will add immense value to Arc through its expertise across technology-enabled solutions, paperless retail audits, merchandising and real time consumer feedback, among others. The merger will now help us lead experiential planning, data-driven shopper insights, and mobile-tracking and analytics-led initiatives designed to help our clients reach empowered consumers.â€
Virender Sharma
Added Virender Sharma, COO – Solutions: “Arc’s superb experiential and shopper marketing capabilities, combined with Solutions’ superior technology-led approach will prove valuable for clients in this market. The merger with Arc means unparalleled access to all clients in the Publicis Communications portfolio. I look forward to seamlessly integrating ideas and solutions that will grow our clients’ businesses. We are happy to see the coming together of Arc Worldwide and Solutions at our new Big Apple office in Gurugram.â€
Arc Worldwide is the shopper marketing agency within the Publicis Groupe and is headquartered in Chicago. It works with some of the brands including Procter & Gamble, MillerCoors, Intel, Bridgestone, Kraft-Heinz, Alcon, Coca-Cola and Walmart.
Ten years after it made its first appearance in India, Publicis Communications has announced the launch of Arc Worldwide, Publicis Groupe’s brand activation and experiential shopper agency in the country. Unlike the past where it was essentially a Leo Burnett arm, Arc will work closely with all Publicis Communications India agencies – The Leo Group, Publicis Worldwide (including Marcel), Publicis Beehive, L&K Saatchi & Saatchi, and MSLGroup.
Arc Worldwide specialises in creating shopper interactions with brands. It will provide clients with the same core expertise through acts and activations, events, exhibitions, shopper and rural marketing and retail design across metros and smaller towns and cities.Leo Burnett India’s below-the-line and experiential arm, Leo Burnett Experience, will now merge into Arc Worldwide. VandanaVerma, Executive Vice President at Leo Burnett Experience, will head the new entity.
Saurabh Varma
Speaking about the launch of Arc Worldwide, Saurabh Varma, Chief Executive Officer, Publicis Communications India, and Leo Burnett South Asia, said: “Arc Worldwide is a critical piece in our ambition for Publicis Communications in India. Arc will create more momentum for our ‘Power of One’ platform. With Arc Worldwide we hope to create meaningful ACTS for our clients using data and technology.â€
Added Bob Raidt, Global President, Arc Worldwide: “Arc’s rapid growth is a testament to the agency’s strengths and capabilities. Our expansion to India, and merging with Leo Burnett Experience, will benefit our clients even further. This expansion, coupled with the power of all Publicis Communications India agencies, ensures that Arc can continue to stay at the forefront of the industry.â€
Vandana Verma
Looking forward to leading the new division, Vandana Verma, Executive Vice President at Arc Worldwide said: “Arc Worldwide is one of the biggest brand activation and experiential agencies in the world, and I’m excited about the possibilities the India launch holds for us. People and their behaviour are the key pillars for Arc to create effective and meaningful brand activations. We create programmes that inspire consumers to connect with brands in new ways. Our proprietary tools uncover unique insights into consumer needs and help create measurable actions that have a dynamic effect on our clients’ business. I believe the solutions we can create for clients across Publicis Communications will remain unmatched.â€
Arc Worldwide currently employs over 2,000 employees in over 37 countries, working with 400 of the world’s biggest brands, and in India takes off with several brands in the kitty already. These include Nissan, Huawei, Bacardi, Vodafone, ITC Foods, P&G, FCA, Bajaj, Cipla, Amazon, Viacom18, Netflix, Haagen Dazs, Color Plus and State Bank of India.
When it launched in 2007, Arc Worldwide was headed by CVS ‘Venke’ Sharma. Later, around 2012, the focus faded away and also Leo Burnett acquired Indigo Consulting.
