Hires & Promotions: Swiggy, Twitter, Mediabrands, Honasa Consumer

Saurabh Nath joins Swiggy as head of brand marketing

Swiggy has appointed Saurabh Nath as the head of brand marketing. In this role, Nath will lead brand marketing across Swiggy master brand and delivery business.

Nath comes with over a decade of experience in marketing. During the initial days of his career, Nath was working with Kimberly-Clark Lever as assistant manager-consumer and marketing insights.

In February 2021, Nath joined Ola as the director of brand marketing, where he heading suppy marketing for India and international business and led key projects for consumer marketing and experience. 

He later joined OZiva in August 2021 as the head of marketing. He led the marketing function and P&L with responsibilities across brand marketing, performance marketing, category management and ecommerce.

Twitter Elevates Preetha Athrey As Director Global Business Marketing APAC

Preetha Athrey, erstwhile Head of Marketing at Twitter India, has been appointed as Director Global Business Marketing APAC. Athrey took to her social account and confirmed the news.

Disha Goenka, who was previously heading the APAC role, is now taking on a Global role leading Regional Business Marketing teams overseeing marketing strategies across Asia, Latin America, Europe, and North America.

Aditi Mishra replaces Nandini Dias as CEO, Lodestar UM

Aditi Mishra is the new CEO of Lodestar UM, India. She has been with Lodestar UM for over two decades. She started as a Management Trainee and has worn many a hat over the years, driving large client relationships in a business role to leading Strategy and Product as the Chief Strategy Officer of Lodestar UM for the last 10 years. She is one of the finest strategic minds in the country with a deep understanding and experience of building brands and digital transformation. A valued voice in the IPG network and just the right leader to partner clients into the future.

On her appointment, Aditi said “I am excited and honored to be taking on the role of CEO of Lodestar UM. As I think about what is next for us in the challenging environment of today, I am energized by the vision of building an agency resilient and agile to partner with clients and the community for the future. A team that will not just ride the waves of digital transformation but fosters media as a growth driver for business. I recognize that I have big shoes to fill and with the support of the incredible teams across Mediabrands India, I look forward to stewarding this journey for Lodestar UM.”

Hema Malik is elevated to the new position of Chief Investment Officer, Mediabrands India. Hema too began her journey with Lodestar UM and has been a strong pillar, leading the operations, clients, and people with aplomb as its COO in Delhi for the last 6 years. Her calm demeanor, strong relationships, and innate ability to extract the best for clients and business through investment planning, partnerships, and negotiation, make her a natural choice for this super critical role at Mediabrands India. As the first CIO of Mediabrands India, Hema will lead the charge on this front for Mediabrands India and foster greater collaboration to bring glory and success for clients and businesses.

Hema said, “We at Mediabrands India have always ensured that all our clients get full advantage of the opportunities in the marketplace. With the setting up of Mediabrands Investments, we are not only strengthening our obsession for performance and accountability but are equally energised to explore transformative partnerships and set new trading norms beyond the obvious. I am honored and excited to be the first CIO of Mediabrands India. So much to look forward to as we build the new.”

Both Aditi and Hema will continue to be based out of Delhi/Gurgaon. Shashi Sinha, CEO, Mediabrands India added “I am a firm believer of leadership from inside; success with and around people for winning together. Both Aditi and Hema have been with the organisation for over two decades and have done us proud in their multiple roles over the years. Nothing makes me prouder than to see our own people grow. I am thrilled and view these appointments as a giant leap forward. I am confident that both Aditi and Hema will embrace their new roles successfully and champion good growth.”

Both Aditi Mishra and Hema Malik will now be part of the Mediabrands India Leadership Team.

Interactive Avenues appoints Pranali Sarkar as Associate Vice President, Media Planning

Pranali Sarkar has joined Interactive Avenues. Pranali will be tasked to scale up and add greater value to the current capabilities under the agency’s robust media planning function. 

 With over 15 years in the industry, integrated media planning and strategy is core to Pranali’s area of expertise. She has seasoned expertise in FMCG, and Telecom categories, and her diverse rich portfolio features top advertisers in the country including Unilever, Mondelez, ITC, Godrej, and Reliance, to name a few.

Talking about Pranali’s appointment, Amardeep Singh, CEO, Interactive Avenues – A Reprise Network Company said, “As more brands are committing to the digital transformation journey, we strive to fuel meaningful business outcomes with precise targets and that’s where Pranali comes in. Her experience and portfolio are a perfect fit for our integrated business and complement our data-driven philosophy. We are excited to have her onboard and wish her all the success.”

About her new role, Pranali said, “Interactive Avenues’ reputation precedes itself. The company is in a highly competitive industry and leading from the front in all-round media capabilities. All this backed by a dynamic leadership team that I am thrilled to be a part of. I am looking forward to using this opportunity to further elevate and enhance the existing media function by crafting new-age solutions for client and agency business outcomes alike.”

Pranali was last working with Fulcrum, heading the Unilever Personal care category where she spearheaded multiple campaigns for iconic brands like Dove, Closeup to name a few. She has also worked with Madison where she helped set up and lead their integrated media planning teams.

Honasa Consumer appoints Anuja Mishra as CMO

Honasa Consumer has named Anuja Mishra as Chief Marketing Officer. In her new capacity, Mishra will oversee the marketing strategy for Honasa Consumer group brands – Mamaearth, The Derma Co., and Bblunt.

Anuja has been recognised amongst the Top 100 Marketers (20-21) and awarded the “Pitch Best CMO'20-21 and brings with herself over 17 years of experience across Marketing and Sales. She has led Brand Management, Innovation Strategy and Sales across 3 of the largest blue-chip FMCG organisations and some of the world's most loved brands. As the CMO of Honasa Consumer, she will be responsible for accelerating the brands' awareness and growth across the D2C ecosystem.

Speaking on her role, Anuja Mishra said, “I am absolutely thrilled and honored to join Honasa Consumer in its exciting journey of becoming a powerful house of brands. Honasa has proven to be a trailblazer across the D2C landscape, and I have tremendous respect for the organisation’s ability to innovate disruptively and meaningfully. I look forward to joining this talented team and contributing to the growth mission.”

Varun Alagh, Co-Founder and CEO, Honasa Consumer said, “Honasa has emerged as the fastest-growing D2C brand and being a digital-first brand, it is critical to constantly innovate and stay ahead of others in this excessively dynamic digital ecosystem. Anuja comes with extensive experience in managing millennial brands and she joins us at a time when the group has attained a great milestone and with her expertise, she will elevate and support the strategy to the next one. We are excited to have a seasoned professional like heron board and look forward to growing the organisation with her.”

Along with being a seasoned marketing professional, Anuja is an avid sportsperson who enjoys marathons, adventure sports, kickboxing and indulges in reading in her leisure time.

Anuja Mishra will be taking the baton from Sambit Dash, who has been elevated to head Brand Factory Team where he will be responsible for crafting, launching, and building new brands business for Honasa. She will be based out of the Honasa Consumer head office in Gurgaon.