Tag: Dentsu

India — Carat, the media agency from dentsu India, has bagged the media mandate for Croma, an Indian retail chain of consumer electronics and durables from the house of Infiniti Retail. The account was won following a multi-agency pitch and will be serviced from the agency’s Mumbai office.

As per the mandate, Carat India will oversee the brand’s media planning and buying rights – including traditional and digital. The agency will also partner with the larger teams at dentsu India to drive the full-funnel marketing needs of the client, further driving outcome-based solutions for the next phase of their exponential growth, keeping customers at the core of its planning and execution.

Commenting on the win, Anita Kotwani, CEO of Carat India, said, “We are backed by a consumer understanding proprietary framework, Designing for People, which is strong and always relevant. It is inspired by design thinking which enables us to help brands with an in-depth understanding of their consumers.”

She adds, “Our single-source consumer-connected system is the key differentiator in the Indian market. It has the ability to drive full-funnel client outcomes. Our ability to stay ahead of the curve in the tools and tech space by showcasing a unified holistic view of the consumers has been a key tenet that helped us clinch the business.”

Meanwhile, Shibashish Roy, chief business officer of ecommerce and marketing for Croma – Infiniti Retail, commented that they are expanding their presence in India by strengthening their omnichannel proposition with digital initiatives and aggressive store expansion plans. Roy adds that they’re looking forward to working with Carat India as their media planning partner to build on the Croma brand further.

Mumbai, India – Dentsu in India has announced that its chief client officer (CCO) Narayan Devanathan steps down from his role after 11 years of leadership. According to the company, Devanathan is seeking new interests outside the advertising industry.

As Devanathan steers his career path into a new journey to pursue his interests outside the advertising industry, the existing teams at dentsu India will continue to drive and oversee client-centric solutions led by the market’s key leadership.

Speaking on his departure, Devanathan said, “My association with dentsu goes way beyond the varied roles that I have held within the network. Dentsu has been a life-shaping experience for me and the decision to take this big leap to pursue my interests outside the advertising industry was a tough one but something I am keenly looking forward to.” 

He added, “The network is a rich powerhouse of expertise; the enormity of exposure it offers is way beyond many milestones. As I look back, I am filled with gratitude to have been closely working with many of the best talents and industry leaders within the network.”

Meanwhile, Peter Huijboom, interim CEO at dentsu India, commented, “Narayan’s leadership has played an instrumental role in successfully aligning dentsu India with the company’s global ambitions of becoming the most integrated advertising network in the world. His relentless commitment towards providing the finest solutions to our clients is commendable and I wish him all the best on his new endeavour.”

He added, “There is a solid winning leadership in place that continues to serve our clients with excellence, perfection, and passion. Our ambitions for India are on an upward trajectory and we are moving ahead full throttle.”

More recently, dentsuMB India’s Sidharth Rao stepped down from his role of chief executive officer, which was then replaced by Heeru Dingra.

India – The hyperlocal space has seen a rise in the number of niche brands across categories like home décor, home services, groceries, essentials, and pharmaceutical sectors. Since India has witnessed growth, traditional brands have shifted their focus towards hyperlocal and direct-to-consumer business models. This transition has been accelerated further due to increased internet usage and evolved consumer behaviour.

The hyperlocal approach enables the brands to reach out to their target customers directly, removing the middlemen and retail stores as part of the traditional business model. This provides customers with a better shopping experience as it offers convenience and quick delivery, especially in the areas of logistics, food, pharmaceutical, and groceries. Some examples of hyperlocal commerce include Dunzo, 1mg, UrbanCompany, BigBasket, to name a few.

New report by WATConsult unveils insights on the demand for hyperlocal delivery, the effects of the pandemic on the hyperlocal usage and captures the benefits, and challenges of the model.

According to the report, this format of e-commerce has seen a huge surge of customers in both metros and beyond. Currently, there are around 141 million hyperlocal commerce shoppers in India, which is 48% of all e-commerce users. This number of hyperlocal commerce shoppers will increase by 52% to reach 214 million by the end of 2022.

The report further reveals that while Zomato tops the list of the most used hyperlocal apps, SwiggyGo, Amazon Fresh and BigBasket are some of the popular choices among consumers. This is followed by 1mg, Grofers and UberConnect.

Moreover, while most females have used services from Zomato, BigBasket and Grofers, some males have used services like Zomato, SwiggyGo, BigBasket and 1mg. On the other hand, the majority of young customers belonging to the age groups of under 18 years, 18 years to 24 years and 25 years to 34 years, have been seen using Zomato, SwiggyGo, and Amazon Fresh.

India — Dentsu India announces the appointment of Saagar Sethi as the president of Amplifi, its supply side management platform. He stepped into the role in April 2022, as part of the increased media leadership roster across dentsu India. He will report to Divya Karani, media CEO of dentsu South Asia, and work with the global Amplifi leadership to focus on creating truly sustainable values for dentsu and its partners in India and across the globe.

Sethi holds 15 years of experience in transition management. His appointment echoes dentsu’s commitment to continually elevate its growth trajectory across markets. The network’s rapid transformation ensures it offers long-term sustainable growth to clients via distinctive, integrated capabilities in an environment which is forever changing.

In his new role, Sethi will lead the network’s investment management, media trading in terms media owner services and principal buying, and content in terms of original partnerships and entertainment businesses in India. He will also have responsibility for helping drive the continued growth of The Story Lab and Posterscope, two specialist agency units within dentsu which focus on entertainment production and Out of Home (OOH) capabilities, respectively.

Previously, he was the head of indirect procurement in LG Electronics India. He has also participated in organizational design, transitioning and change management journeys for leading brands like LG Electronics and Ernst & Young.

Commenting on the appointment, Karani said, “We are excited to have Sethi join our management team as we consolidate and prepare for the next stage of growth. In today’s increasingly complex media market, the experience he brings to the table will help us increase our client delivery skills in India.”

Meanwhile, Sethi shared, “I have always been passionate about media. The timing of this opportunity could not have been better. This role complements my transformation experience and passion. I am committed to creating synergies and incremental value for all our clients, stakeholders, and partners, underpinned by the need of driving compliance and transparency. Truly, it is an exciting time to be at dentsu India.”

India – Further strengthening its leadership team, Carat India, the media agency from the house of dentsu India, has appointed Vasim Rakhangi as associate vice president for strategy for North And East. With this appointment, Carat said it aims to continue to accelerate its transformation of the agency across India as it looks to bring new focus on its designing for people proposition.

In his new role, Rakhangi’s core focus will be to spearhead and deliver integrated media strategy to the agency’s existing clients across the regions. He will be reporting to Anita Kotwani, CEO of Carat India.

Rakhangi has over 11 years of experience in media and research. He has led multiple brands on integrated media strategies that focus on both traditional as well as digital media. Prior to this, Rakhangi has worked for conglomerates in the FMCG sector like Mondelez, GCPL, and Marico as well as broadcasting brands including Star Plus and Star Sports. 

Commenting on the appointment, Kotwani said that with his extensive experience and passion, Rakhangi will be helping clients stay ahead of the curve, especially as he helps them demystify the complex digital media landscape. 

“One of his focus areas will be to translate the disruption of video and the future of measurement to the consumers’ dynamically changing needs and, how the role of data, privacy, and technology impact their business. Vasim’s remit in our North market will encompass Phillips Domestic Appliances, Microsoft, Mastercard, Havells, and the DS Group amongst others, as he also works with our local teams to drive growth for both North and East markets,” Kotwani said. 

Rakhangi himself commented, “With the kind of transformation taking place within the media landscape in India, Carat’s framework seamlessly blends in with the rapidly changing environment. It has always focused on building deeper relationships between people and brands in order to design campaigns which truly resonate with people and drive impactful results for clients. It is indeed a privilege to work with Anita and lead regions with so many great opportunities to bring this to life in partnership with such powerful brands. I am really excited and look forward to contributing towards the growth of the clients.”

Rakhangi’s appointment is the fourth key strategic leadership hire for the agency in recent months, including Megha Jain as vice president of planning for South and Sayami Podder being appointed as associate VP for strategy at the agency. 

New Zealand – As Kiwis celebrate the return of international travel with borders reopened, Air New Zealand‘s loyalty programme Airpoints has launched a new creative campaign that is designed to show New Zealanders how they can transform their everyday spending to unlock the power and joy of travel. 

The campaign, which was developed in partnership with creative agency Bastion Shine and dentsu, includes a 60” AV and a social campaign directed by Adam Stevens and produced by Good Oil. 

Titled ‘Don’t Live Pointlessly’, the campaign shows why travel should be prescribed as a therapy to relieve stress, grow relationships, and aid mental health, and how Airpoints want all New Zealanders to experience those benefits.

Andy McLeish, Bastion Shine’s chief strategy officer, shared, “The Airpoints programme has been around a long time and there is a huge opportunity to connect with a large part of the member base. We wanted to re-ignite emotional connection with the Airpoints programme through its largest benefit – that it enables anyone, no matter who they are, to get closer to their travel dream every single day.”

Meanwhile, Rich Maddocks, Bastion Shine’s chief creative officer, said, “Reminding Kiwis how they can live a life less ordinary through the power of travel was a fertile creative territory, rich with insight. The challenge for us was to bring that narrative to life in a way that was as interesting as it was true. Hopefully, we’ve done that.”

The campaign is already available across broadcast, digital, social, and OOH. Further activity is also set to launch over the coming months aimed at enhancing engagement with the programme and showcasing the multiple ways to earn and spend Airpoints.

Singapore — Merkle, dentsu’s technology-enabled, data-driven customer experience management company, has named John Riccio as the new president of Merkle Asia Pacific (APAC). He replaces Zhengda “Z” Shen, who has announced his retirement, effective July 1, 2022.

In addition to the appointment, Riccio will continue in his existing role as CEO of Merkle’s ANZ region while now being tasked to lead the growth of Merkle in APAC. Riccio has an extensive understanding of leadership and holds more than 25 years of experience heading major digital businesses and strategic programs. He is recognized as a specialist in helping clients transform the way they respond to market change and engage consumers.

Prior to joining Merkle, Riccio was in the customer experience consulting industry, holding the position of consulting partner of EY for APAC. He also held partner positions including PwC in Australia and Asia, and at IBM in the United Kingdom.

Riccio said, “Since joining Merkle, I have been impressed by the technical expertise and forward-thinking, agile approach the company takes in the experiences delivered to its clients and employees. I am excited to expand my ANZ role across the broader APAC region, supporting our clients who have entrusted us to create distinctly better experiences and relationships with their customers across all key technology platforms.”

On Riccio’s appointment, Michael Komasinski, global CEO of Merkle, said he is delighted to confirm Riccio as president of Merkle APAC, as further proof of dentsu’s commitment to accelerating the growth and performance of their customer experience consulting, data, digital transformation, and B2B services across the region. Komasinski said Riccio’s extensive regional and global leadership experience will further enable and drive growth and success in this critical region for the business.

Singapore – dentsu Asia Pacific has appointed Farrokh Madon, former chief creative officer at creative and CRM agency Wunderman Thompson, to be its new chief creative officer for APAC at B2B-dedicated CXM agency Merkle B2B.

Aside from his previous role at Wunderman Thompson, Madon has a career spanning Singapore, Amsterdam and India, where he has previously led various creative departments in Singapore at BBDO, McCann Erickson, and Y&R, which has been renamed VMLY&R following a merger with VML. He has also worked with major brands including BMW, Lazada, Johnson & Johnson, MasterCard, Gillette, and Caltex, as well as Suntory, and Diageo. 

In his new role, Madon, who will be based in Singapore, will be overseeing Merkle B2B’s creative directions and strategies to impart creative technology solutions and innovative customer experience. He will also be reporting directly to Kiaran Geen, the president of Asia Pacific at Merkle B2B, and Rhys Taylor, the managing director of strategy and creative for APAC at Merkle B2B.

Commenting on his appointment, Madon said, “When storytelling and technology hold hands, magic happens. I am looking forward to creating engaging brand stories and experiences with the talented team at Merkle B2B.”

Meanwhile, Geen shared that Madon will be bringing his wealth of experience and expertise in creativity and design to Merkle B2B with out-of-the-box ideas and digital solutions to their ever-evolving customer journey.

“We look forward to having him on board to share his insights in creating a unique brand experience and bringing it to the next level at Merkle B2B,” said Geen.

India – Dentsu has appointed Sunil Lulla, former CEO at television measurement science industry body BARC India, to be its new consultant advisor for India. 

In his new role, Lulla will be working closely with, and reporting to, Peter Huijboom, dentsu India’s interim CEO, to focus on driving business growth and activation in the market while the agency continues its search for the right candidate to lead the dentsu India business. 

Moreover, Lulla will be partnering with key members of the India Leadership team to capitalise on the opportunities delivered through dentsu India’s rapid transformation to realise dentsu’s global vision of being the world’s most integrated network by 2024. He will also work on ensuring the competitiveness of dentsu India’s distinctive, integrated capabilities in a fast-paced, evolving marketplace.

Commenting on his appointment, Lulla said that he could not refuse an opportunity to work with a business that is relentlessly focused on shaping its own business to help clients navigate the changing market context and pioneer a new way forward. 

“I am excited to partner with Peter and build on the progress made with the leadership team, being a part of the team that works together to transform into the agency of tomorrow,” he added.

Meanwhile, Huijboom shared that Lulla is joining them at a critical time as they realise the benefits of their transformation through their integrated offering. 

“We see significant opportunity in the India market and I am pleased with the momentum we are seeing. Sunil will continue to accelerate our growth trajectory while working with our teams to define, activate, and ignite dentsu’s winning culture in the market. It’s an exciting time to be at dentsu India,” said Huijboom.

The appointment will be effective on 4 April and Lulla will be working with the business until dentsu India hires a permanent CEO.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Dentsu Malaysia’s digital-first end-to-end media agency iProspect has won the regional media mandate of hotel and flight booking platform Traveloka.

The remit, which will take effect in April 2022, will see iProspect as a key partner in Traveloka’s plan in becoming a lifestyle superapp. iProspect will also be responsible for all above the line media planning and buying across the platform’s key markets, which are Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. 

Moreover, iProspect will be setting up a regional media strategy hub based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, ensuring that the brand delivers a unified strategy with local nuances across the said SEA markets. 

Dheeraj Raina, the CEO of dentsu Media for Malaysia, shared that the travel industry has gone through very challenging times, to say the least, and so have the consumers. 

“As the world begins to open up, we want yearning travellers to pick Traveloka as their first choice, for fulfilling experiences and we believe the media has a strong role to play in building that trust and optimism,” said Raina.

Meanwhile, Shirley Lesmana, Traveloka’s CMO, noted that they have marked their presence in six countries across SEA, helping millions of people enrich their lives on a daily basis, as they are on an accelerated mission to fulfil the end-to-end lifestyle needs of consumers in the region. 

“In addition, we found synergy in the strategy crafted by iProspect in these markets, to deliver our brand promise,” said Lesmana.