brand-building

For those of us from the era of advertorials and sponsored ads, terms like Content Marketing and Native Advertising sound like old wine in new bottle. So when I started…

Santoor recently became No1 soap brand in India, overtaking the long term war horse of Hindustan Unilever, Lifebuoy. My association with Santoor started in1994. If you had then asked me…

Reports say that India has only 11% women legislators, while the global average is 27%. The good news is that Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 has been…

It is not easy to get consumers to change something that they have been doing. For generations. The food they eat. The temples they visit. And the jewelers they trust.…

‘Menstrual health integral part of right to life and dignity – SC’ said the news headline (Bus Std 31 Jan 2026). The Court has ordered a pan-India implementation of the…

Gig workers are supposed to be free to work anywhere. But what if all the directions they turn to are equally exploitative? The editorial of this paper called out (2…

‘As bilateral ties deepen, more Indian students could head to Russia’ said the headline (Business Standard 6 December 2025). The story got me thinking about how the concept of international…

I remember as a young school student I was often entrusted with the task of checking on my grandfather’s urine samples for sugar levels. The prevailing method then was the…

‘McDonald’s, Bollywood, Cricket fuel wellness craze in India’ said the story (Business Standard 27 August 2025), the story also said ‘Country witnessing huge demand for protein loaded products’. Some years…

‘Apple plans smart glasses for 2026 as part of AI Push’ said the headlines of the story in this paper (26 May 2025). With Meta having stolen the lead with…

‘South emerges the new hero in India’s cinema landscape’ screamed the headline of a story that traced the box office collection trends of movies post-Covid (Business Standard 19 April 2025).…

If you are a little overweight you would have definitely not missed the advertising and media coverage around the new obesity medications. Efforts by the global pharma majors are on…

This print ad released by a leading soap brand caught my attention. The ad had very little or no copy. And featured just one girl or young woman’s face. But…

‘Recalibrating Quality Regime’ said the editorial of Business Standard of 10 November 2025. The editorial went on to say that a high-level committee has reportedly suggested scrapping or deferring more…

Do consumers love ecommerce platforms or do they approach them with suspicion? Is there a need to protect consumers from ecommerce players? The editorial of this paper pointed out to…

There was a time, twenty years ago, when you had a tough time getting a white or cream coloured refrigerator. The growing middle class wanted to display their refrigerator, mostly…

‘Australia banning social media for people under 16’ said the headline . It got me thinking about how children consume media and my own learning in this domain. It was…

Gaza Cola is a new cola brand, launched in the UK, with a promise of sending all its profits to the rebuilding of hospitals in Palestine. The brand is trying…

I was taking a class on media planning at SPJIMR and we were going through data tables after data tables. My students were struggling to keep pace with my changing…

For all marketing professionals working in large companies, Census of India is a treasure trove of information. It gives us a listing of all the cities / towns, villages, population,…

Weddings have always been very important in our country. But they are getting bigger and glitzier. The growth in weddings has thrown open numerous opportunities for marketers. At one time…

Barcode celebrates its 50th birthday this year. I was first exposed to barcode my agency got a client in Hyderbad who was trying to launch barcode machines in India. Way…

The Great Indian Family, a movie touted as a celebration of the spirit of Indian joint families, was a bomb at the box office. Released a year ago, in September…

The Business Standard editorial emphatically stated that ‘E-Commerce policy should aim to enhance competition’. As I got speaking with experts with deep experience in the E-Com domain, I realized that…

Changing consumer behaviour towards one’s brand offering is the holy grail of marketing. In a country like India it is indeed very difficult to get consumers to change their food…

Festival season in upon us. Food brands go on overdrive with specially created festival advertising. Cadbury will unleash its gift collections. Amul will tempt us to indulge in its specially…

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India approved an amendment to the Food Safety Standards Regulation 2020 . Accordingly, packaged foods will now have to display information regarding salt, sugar…

The film Manthan based on the origin story of Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation was in the news recently . A wonderfully restored version of the film got rave reviews…

‘Rural FMCG growth overtakes urban after 5 Quarters’ said the headline . It is well known that branded FMCG product’s per capita consumption is significantly higher in urban India as…

‘Bournvita, other brands to lose ‘Health Drink’ status’ screamed the headline of Economic Times . The trigger for this new announcement may be traced back to an influencer’s post about…

Sachets are not new to India. But MAC is now offering nail enamels in tiny packs here, and wee lipsticks aimed at first-time users of the brand. Complan and Pediasure,…

Indian passenger vehicle industry has had a stellar year. In FY 2023-24 the PV sales has grown up by an impressive 9%. Car makers are now trying to see where…

The Economic Times reported ‘Maharashtra FDA cracks down on McDonald's, catches fast food major using cheap vegetable oil in place of cheese’ . The products under the gun were offerings…

Neuromarketing was making news more than a decade and a half ago. But what is neuromarketing? It is the science of studying the brain waves to figure out how we…

‘Not cutting down on hiring, but want to end WFH’ said the headline of a story quoting the MD of TCS . It left me wondering, what is going on?…

A friend who was National Sales Director at a large FMCG / Consumer Goods MNC narrated this story to me almost a decade and a half ago. Their Global CEO…

Diwali has always had a special place in the hearts of Indian consumers and marketers. It is possibly the only festival that is celebrated across our vast country; yes I…

‘Savers are slowly understanding mutual funds’ said K V Kamath at the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit last month. I was reminded of an incident that happened almost 30 years…

‘Tax demand on e-gaming cos may top Rs 1.5 Trn’ said a news report . Another warned of ‘Gamers watch board moves with GST roll of dice’ . When did…

‘Ad mkt to GDP ratio in India among the lowest in the world’ screamed the headline featuring the interview of Sanjay Gupta of Google India . In his interview Sanjay…

Movie goers had been reluctant to return to movie halls and so the story ‘PVR – INOX Makes Big BO Return With Blockbuster’ was a welcome change. The big success…

The concept of ‘Summer Holidays’ were probably brought to India by the British who could not tolerate the Indian summer. Going on a summer holiday is probably also a part…

The news of WHO listing the sugar substitute aspartame as a ‘possible carcinogen hazard to humans’ brought back memories for me about trying to market a sugar substitute to a…

Tupperware is facing an existential challenge and reports say that the company may cease to exist. This was a topic that was discussed at a session we had at the…

Religion is everywhere. It drives our purchases. It drives our holidays. It even realigns our home décor. But this is not something new for India. When I was doing my…