MAM
GroupM & Dancestar to develop first global electronic music TV platform
MUMBAI: GroupM has inked a partnership with Dancestar Ventures to bring the Electronic Music Awards Show to Asia and other key television markets worldwide.
Dancestar Asia will be the first project of the partnership and will be developed for TV distribution in the region. It will celebrate the achievement of Asian and international DJs and artists. Scheduled to be held in Singapore in December 2015, Dancestar Asia is intended to be a two-hour award ceremony featuring 21 categories of achievement.
Winners for the 21 categories will be decided by public voting via several major social media channels across the region that will be announced shortly. Dancestar Asia will also feature 12 live performance collaborations from global artists in what is expected to be an epic night of music showcasing the best of the exploding electronic music scene in Asia.
Dancestar CEO and founder Andy Ruffell said, “Dancestar is back and we are delighted to be partnering with GroupM to bring this show to Singapore in 2015. EDM is now a $4 billion global industry with with DJs earning $20 to $40 million a year, Asia is primed for an electronic music explosion. We are developing the Dancestar Awards Show Platform as a series of market specific televised events in Las Vegas, London and Singapore. GroupM provide unrivaled expertise that will enable us to bring electronic music culture and global brands together on TV.”
GroupM Content APAC CEO Josh Black adds, “We are delighted to be working with Andy and his team at Dancestar Ventures. The EDM industry is exploding and we jumped at the opportunity to be part of the Dancestar Asia Awards Show and the other projects around the globe. Our team at GroupM Content will be helping Dancestar, drive a range of commercial opportunities from partnerships through to licensing, broadcast and content distribution.”
Brands
Pre-seed funding fuels nailinit, India’s new-age nail care brand
Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund backs Gen Z-focused beauty startup
MUMBAI: nailinit, a community-first nail care startup targeting Gen Z and millennials, has raised Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 crore in a pre-seed round led by Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund and Marsshot VC, alongside a clutch of consumer, technology and operator angels.
Backed by entrepreneur and investor Nikhil Kamath, Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund is betting on nailinit’s attempt to give India’s nail care aisle a long overdue makeover. The fresh capital will be used to deepen distribution across quick commerce and D2C channels, build its community engine, and accelerate product innovation in a category that is high frequency but still light on strong brands.
Founded by Tanishq Ambegaokar and Shubham Singhal, nailinit is positioning itself at the crossroads of beauty, self-expression and culture. The brand wants nails to be more than a finishing touch. It sees them as a canvas for identity, content and commerce.
“At nailinit, we are building for a generation that sees beauty as self-expression, not just routine,” said Ambegaokar. “The nail category in India has largely been underserved by strong brands. This capital allows us to invest in product depth, community and distribution in a thoughtful and long-term way.”
Singhal added that while the brand’s tone may be playful, its operating focus is sharp. “This round strengthens our supply chain, expands our digital footprint and enables disciplined execution as we scale.”
The funding round drew notable angels including Shashank Kumar of Razorpay, Arjit Johri of Marsshot VC, Yash Jain, formerly of NimbusPost, Karan Jindal of Meta, Jivraj Singh Sachar of ISV Capital, Nishank Jain of Accel, Yashvardhan Kanoi, Ashwarya Garg of HYPD, Venus Dhuria of Phot.AI and Amishi Parasrampuria of The Whole Truth.
Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund fund manager Gauri Kuchhal, believes the opportunity lies in shifting habits. “Nail care remains underpenetrated in India, with consumers relying on time-intensive salon visits. As convenience and self-expression gain ground, press-on nails can unlock more frequent and experimental usage. Nailinit is well-placed to expand beyond press-ons into adjacent categories.”
The brand is currently the only nail care player in India blending product-led retail with a dedicated kiosk at Jio World Drive in Bandra, where customers can walk in for services while discovering the range. It has also built early traction across quick commerce platforms such as Zepto and Blinkit, with a launch on Instamart in the pipeline, and is available on Amazon, strengthening its omnichannel presence.
In a space long dominated by salon chairs and scattered labels, nailinit is attempting to file, shape and polish the category into something sharper. With fresh funding in hand, the startup is setting out to prove that in beauty, small details can make a bold statement.
