DIAMONDS

Regional Planning Director

India remit was that generic category creation for diamonds, be driven at key purchase occasions like weddings. Select the primary and secondary target audience, understand  market and culture, brand vision, brand strategy and execution, channel planning, influencer strategy, inputs for media alliances, direct marketing communication, concept, editorial, content.

Focus on creating preference for diamond jewellery at Indian weddings.

Workstreams included:

Brand: Introduced the notion of distinct associations and creative territories around  brides who wear diamonds. “Diamond Bride” implied a certain kind of wedding, a certain kind of bride. Partnered with multi-functional teams to bring “Diamond Bride” to life. Introducing a new system, colour palette, sensibility.

Design: Responsible for taking forward the concept into a look that brides could shop to. Top designers provided their interpretation of “Diamond Bride”, the common thread being diamonds.

Creative: Defined how modern brides are distinctive, as vision for creative and artistic storytelling. This was carried forward collaboratively through festive season marketing rollout, channel planning, content, PR.

Organization: Introduced and aligned the creative brand strategy with a diverse national and international team, representing marketing, sales, distribution partners, research teams via hosting a Day One Wedding Workshop to build alignment and momentum.

Research: Pre campaign conducted bespoke research with parents and brides to unearth markers, meanings of weddings. Oversaw post campaign research to reveal impact, appeal and likeability amongst consumers as well as market segment growth.

Work was awarded Jay Chiat Grand Prix, APG gold, IPA bronze, David Ogilvy Advertising Research Foundation Gold.

INVESTMENTS

National Planning Director

Drive the original, and sustained, strategic aspects of one of the largest individual investor awareness programmes by an industry body. In charge of supporting category growth through 4 strategic communication areas.

Role: Define the role of communication by an industry body vis a vis individual brands, in a way that complements each other. 

Product: Demystify investment products via bridge insights that common people could relate to.

Creative: Careful curation spelt out at initiation, and on a sustained basis. What it is and what it is not. Credibility and availability of communication as vital to inclusive growth. Provided strategic support to the creative vision for the campaign so it remains undiluted and uncomplicated.  

Marketing support: Introduced strategic communication framework for long term, medium term and topical horizons. Distilled via behaviour change lens, multiple customer personas, their diverse motivations and engagement contexts for storytelling.

Work was awarded a Gold Effie for Sustained Success (Services) that honours efforts for three years or more.

PREMIUM MINERAL WATER

National Planning Director

Defined provenance based brand strategy for the organisation leadership and helped to pave the way for expansion.

Defined the landscape of provenance brands inside and outside the category.

Conducted bespoke consumer research using category archaeology to unearth meanings and associations related to provenance.

Updated the brand vision and brand architecture for a future portfolio.

Provided guidance on how the provenance aspects can flex across brand ecosystems in different ways.

Collaborated with design and communication agencies to strategically support a refresh of brand identity and communication.

Work was approved at the leadership, board level; design and creative were executed, reflecting the new vision.

LUXURY HOSPITALITY

National Planning Director

Transformed the brand essence of Indian luxury hospitality and introduced a distinctive space for the brand to own in the face of entrenched competition.

Collaborated with brand leadership and design teams from Paris on visual brand driver and pillars of the new brand space.

Immersive observations across properties to provide an experiential audit of the brand’s luxury offering, sense of place, customer service, aesthetics and design elements. 

Analysis of key stake holder vision and domestic and international customer feedback.

Alignment of wider team around the new brand strategy and strategic support for creative expression, both thematic and tactical.

Brand won Best Hotel In the World Award by Travel & Leisure.