MAM
MEC & FreeCharge explore new ‘Smart’ messaging platform
MUMBAI: MEC, a part of GroupM, along with FreeCharge have harnessed a new ‘Smart Messaging Platform’ to reach out to consumer’s mobile phones with branded high quality, rich media such as videos, images, audio clips and more, directly, rather than having to push links.
Smart Messaging Platform works across all platforms – iOS, Android and Windows and more and does not require users to download any application to support it. Commonly known in the Tech world as ‘MMS+ technology’, it merely requires the consumer to have a data-enabled mobile phone (both smartphones and feature phones).
For the very first time 1,00,000 consumers across, Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune will receive a message, which will play the FreeCharge video directly without requiring the consumer to click on a link.
MEC national director activation Sidhraj Shah said, “The MMS+ technology offers hyper-personalisation opportunities including tracking consumer reaction to the call for action, which is not possible with the current SMS platform. At MEC we are constantly scouting to offer new experiences & technologies for our clients, to engage with their customers. With ‘Smart Messaging platform’ we have only scratched the surface.”
Mobizon Media COO and co-founder Swapnil Rap said, “‘Messaging’ is an app that every phone in the world has by default! We have reimagined the traditional 160 characters by transforming it into a rich media communication channel. Every consumer in India can now experience high quality content from their favourite Brands, irrespective of whether they have Smart or Feature phones.”
Brands
Dabur buys minority stake in Ras Beauty for Rs 60 crore
Dabur Ventures deal backs fast-growing luxury skincare brand
MUMBAI: Dabur India Limited has dipped into the world of luxury skincare, signing a definitive agreement to acquire a minority stake in Ras Beauty Private Limited for Rs 60 crore. The investment marks the first bet from Dabur Ventures, the FMCG major’s Rs 500 crore platform set up in October 2025 to back high-potential, new-age direct-to-consumer brands.
Founded in Raipur by Shubhika Jain, her sister Suramya Jain and their mother Sangeeta Jain, Ras Beauty has grown from a family-led passion project into a fast-scaling “Farm-to-Face” skincare label. Its range of face elixirs, serums and moisturisers blends essential oils with nature-derived actives, striking a balance between botanical purity and laboratory precision.
The numbers tell their own story. Ras has clocked a three-year Cagr of around 75 per cent and an annual run rate of approximately Rs 100 crore, all while maintaining strong gross margins. That growth has been fuelled by a digital-first approach, in-house R&D and manufacturing, and a sharp focus on clean, sustainable sourcing.
Dabur India executive director and group head corporate strategy Abhinav Dhall, said the company was drawn to Ras’s distinct positioning at the intersection of nature, science and luxury. He added that the premium beauty segment is poised for robust expansion over the coming decade, and that Ras is well placed to capture that opportunity.
For Ras, the partnership is as much about scale as it is about shared philosophy. Co-founder and CEO Shubhika Jain said Dabur’s 141-year legacy of building trusted, purpose-led brands makes it a natural ally. The capital infusion, she noted, will help accelerate the brand’s omnichannel footprint, deepen research capabilities and invest in team and brand building, with an eye on establishing Ras as a leading Indian luxury skincare name both domestically and overseas.
With this move, Dabur is not just investing in a skincare label. It is placing an early wager on India’s growing appetite for premium, conscious beauty, and signalling that heritage FMCG players are ready to play in the new-age D2C arena.
