India's entrepreneurial landscape is as diverse as its terrains and its cultures. Like opportunities, it is also fraught with many challenges. It took the mind and might of a few brave industrialists to shape India's economy and change the course of its economic trajectory.

As a tribute to these visionary business leaders who have contributed immensely to India's success story, exchange4media has started a monthly column "Leading From The Front."

We begin our series with Punit Goenka, The MD & CEO of ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.

The Minimalist has been onboarded by Henkel Consumer Brands to lead the digital creative mandate for Schwarzkopf India. Following a competitive multi-agency pitch, The Minimalist has come on board as the digital partner with the mission of building Schwarzkopf’s social community and leading the creative communication mandate for the brand.

On the mandate win, Sahil Vaidya, Co-Founder, The Minimalist shared, “Schwarzkopf has established itself as a leading brand in the premium hair care and color category. With their latest offering in India of expert inspired at-home hair color formulations, they continue to bring beauty shoppers never-seen before technologies for superlative results and experience. We are thrilled to be associated with the brand as their creative partners and look forward to building inventive campaigns and engagement ideas. Together, we aim to create a powerful digital community that will add to the legacy of the brand.”

Shama Dalal, Head of Marketing - Henkel Consumer Brands India commented on the partnership, “Our mandate for the recently launched Schwarzkopf Consumer Business Line required a robust strategy that resonated with digitally forward audiences. We’re delighted to partner with The Minimalist and look forward to leveraging their creative delivery & digital prowess to bring alive our brand vision.”

The Union government has extended the tenure Vikram Sahay as joint secretary of the information and broadcasting ministry, according to media reports. The extension is for a period of two years. The current tenure will expire on May 23 until further orders, an official statement has reportedly said.

The tenure extension has been notified by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.

BW Businessworld in association with Sustain labs Paris is all set with the 3rd edition of Sustainable World Conclave. The two-day summit assembles experts, leaders, policymakers, and activists from different parts of the country to discuss the theme of India’s big leap with the G20 presidency. The concept behind the conclave highlights the critical role India plays in the global economy and its position as the fastest-growing major economy in the world.

We are honoured to announce Shri Bhupendra Yadav, Hon'ble Union Cabinet Minister of Labour & Employment, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Government of India, as our Chief Guest for the BW Sustainable World Conclave 2023.

The summit will include of thought-provoking sessions, panel discussions, and keynote speeches from eminent speakers, covering a wide range of matters in regard to the importance of India’s position in the global economy and its role as a significant player in international development initiatives, sustainable agriculture, digital transformation, global governance, renewable energy, responsible consumption, climate change, circular economy, and much more. Furthermore, the summit will also comprehend upon the prospects and challenges of India’s G20 presidency and the aspects of its position in contributing to sustainable development goals.

Navigating the path towards a sustainable tomorrow, BW Sustainable World Conclave 2023 is back with its 3rd edition and is on the look out for business leaders, investors, industry experts, policymakers, social entrepreneurs, NGOs, academics, and students who are passionate about creating a sustainable future for the planet.

Limited seats available: Reserve yours now at bit.ly/BWIMSC2023

The summit is to take place on 20th June 2023 in New Delhi.

Mindshare was awarded seven metals across different categories at e4m Golden Mikes Radio and Audio Awards 2023 on Wednesday, May 17 in Mumbai. This is the 11th edition of the awards, celebrating the best of radio & audio industry. The global media and marketing services agency walked away with 2 gold, 3 silver and 2 bronze metals for its radio & audio campaigns & the magnificent work done in the radio & audio industry.

Mindshare took home 2 gold metals for ‘The Start Stop Antakshari’ campaign- one in ‘Best Use of Radio in launch/relaunch’ category and ‘Best On Air Promotion for/by a Brand- Multiple Station’ categories. The agency bagged two silver metals for ‘The Start Stop Antakshari’ campaign for its client Castrol India Pvt Ltd. in ‘Most effective ad/campaign on radio’ and ‘Best Use of Branded Content or Sponsorship on Radio’ categories and also won a silver metal for ‘Big In India Moments’ campaign for its client Aditya Birla Group.

Adding to the metal tally, the agency bagged two bronze metals- One for ‘Big In India Moments’ campaign for its client Aditya Birla Group in the ‘Best Campaign’ category and ‘Unveil Your Big Year Through Music’ campaign for Aditya Birla Group.

Owing to digitalisation, radio and audio has been expanding its wings and strategically exploring broader avenues. e4m Golden Mikes Radio and Audio Awards 2023 honours the impressive and outstanding work by people who bring out their finest creativity through radio marketing.

Abhishek Ganguly, a noted sports business leader, along with co-founders Atul Bajaj and Amit Prabhu have announced their entrepreneurial venture – Agilitas Sports – an innovation-led sportswear and athleisure solutions platform that aims to invest in the core fabric of the Indian sports ecosystem. 

The funds advised by Convergent Finance LLP, an investment management and advisory partnership led by Harsha Raghavan, have invested Rs. 400 crores and Rs. 30 crores have come from individual investors.

The founding team of Agilitas Sports comprises of Abhishek Ganguly, the outgoing Managing Director of PUMA India and South East Asia, Atul Bajaj, the outgoing Executive Director – Sales and Operations of PUMA India, and Amit Prabhu, the outgoing Chief Financial Officer of PUMA India. 

Announcing the venture, Abhishek Ganguly, Founder of Agilitas Sports, said, “Agilitas Sports aims to disrupt and redefine the sportswear industry by seamlessly integrating innovation and technology across the product value chain from the factory floor to the retail shelf. With a hyper-focus on customer experience and customer-centricity, we endeavor to build meaningful communities in the Indian sports and sportswear space and be a catalyst towards a fit and athletic India.” 

Harsha Raghavan, Managing Partner at Convergent Finance LLP, said, “Abhishek, Atul, and Amit are exceptional professionals and have an outstanding track record of building a sports and athleisure-focused business from scratch to become India’s largest. Their strong leadership capabilities are complemented by their skill in identifying consumer trends early. They are exactly the kind of passionate entrepreneurs whose ideas we love to back with our capital. With the amazing new opportunities in India’s sportswear market given our nation’s focus on fitness as well as ‘Made in India’, we believe that Agilitas represents the next step in the evolution of India’s consumer story. Convergent will work with Agilitas in the areas of operations, capital allocation, and long-term business strategy.” 

Currently, sports footwear accounts for 16% of the overall footwear market and is the fastest-growing segment. Its share is trending towards the global averages of 30%+ in emerging markets and 50%+ in mature markets. At the same time, the current total footwear market of approximately Rs. 110 Billion is projected to grow at about 13% CAGR up to 2030.

Dentsu saw negative organic growth and weaker profits in the quarter ended March 31. Organic revenue for the group declined by 1.6%, compared to the corresponding quarter in the previous year. However, the network's recent acquisitions -- Shift7 and Tag -- have boosted the Q1 net revenue, which rose more than 4.5% year-on-year.
In the March quarter, the network's net revenue was close to $2 billion (JPY 269.6 billion).

The global advertising group is now forecasting an organic growth of 1% to 2% for the year, from 4% previously. "The Group continues to expect performance to be second-half weighted driven by a number of one-off events later in the year. Underlying basic EPS guidance of 461 yen is re-confirmed, supported by a reduction in financing costs," read the company's official statement.

Hiroshi Igarashi, President and CEO, Dentsu Group Inc., said: "The first quarter was impacted by a lengthening of the sales cycle for Customer Transformation & Technology contracts in the US, as highlighted in the fourth quarter. A growing pipeline and increase in new business wins in the first quarter provides greater visibility for an improvement in second-half growth.

Our strategy of growing revenues in the fast-growth market of Customer Transformation & Technology is progressing well, with 35% of net revenues generated by CT&T in the first quarter. Our services empower our clients to transform their data, technology, and organizational capabilities to deliver differentiated customer experiences that drive growth."