MAM
GroupM elevates top HR executives
MUMBAI: GroupM has appointed Sonali Vaidya as HR head for India, while Gaurav Hirey, who held the post earlier, is being moved to Singapore to be a part of the GroupM Regional Talent Team.
Hirey has also been named HR business partner for Maxus (Asia Pacific).
Vaidya will be based in Mumbai and will report to GroupM CEO South Asia Vikram Sakhuja.
Vaidya said, “Talent Management is new to this industry and is in its formative stages. There are huge opportunities for our businesses to realise the benefits of managing talent and hence I am looking forward
to being a part of this journey and delivering delight to our employees and customers.”
Hirey said, “Our success in Talent Management is clearly reflected in the level of satisfaction we are delivering to our clients and our employees who have made us the employer brand of choice. My new assignment gives me an opportunity to learn and share best practices from across the region and it is my belief that the talent function in this industry can make a significant impact on our business and hence our clients!”
Sakhuja added, “Sonali brings a wealth of commercial people management experience to the role. Gaurav has done a fabulous job in the past three years to bring scale, structure and credibility to the GroupM talent agenda that has gone from setting HR systems, to stepping up employee engagement and communication, to scaling up recruitment and performance management. His efforts to make GroupM one of the best places to work in has been validated by the Employer Branding Awards.”
Vaidya has over 14 years of experience in the human resources field across companies such as ABN AMRO Bank, GE consumer finance and ESPN Star Sports. Prior to this, she was with Alchemy Group, a financial services group, where she was group HR head. Her focus is on building an extremely intensive talent management programme to engage and grow GroupM’s talent internally.
In his new role, Hirey will lead the HR activities for the APAC region including recruitment, talent management and development, corporate social responsibility and employee relations. He will also support GroupM talent projects in addition to this. He will report to GroupM Global talent head Angela Ryan and Maxus APAC CEO Neil Stewart.
Brands
Big Bowl appoints Lyxel & Flamingo as social and media partner
QSR brand eyes next growth phase after crossing Rs 100 crore ARR milestone
MUMBAI: Big Bowl, one of India’s largest bowl-format quick service restaurant brands from Lenexis Foodworks, has appointed Lyxel & Flamingo (L&F) as its social and media partner as it prepares for its next phase of growth.
The partnership comes after the brand crossed the Rs 100 crore annual recurring revenue milestone in 2025 and aims to help accelerate its journey towards Rs 150 crore ARR in its fifth year since launch.
Big Bowl currently operates more than 250 kitchens across 50 cities and has emerged as a major player in India’s organised bowl-format food segment. Built around hearty portions and delivery-first convenience, the brand offers a wide mix of Indian, Chinese and fusion bowls designed for quick, affordable and portable consumption.
As urban consumers increasingly gravitate towards easy-to-carry and value-driven meal formats, the company sees the bowl category as a scalable format aligned with modern eating habits.
With the appointment of Lyxel & Flamingo, Big Bowl plans to consolidate its social media and digital media operations under a single partner. The move is intended to sharpen its digital reach, strengthen youth-focused storytelling and improve performance marketing outcomes.
Lyxel & Flamingo, one of India’s largest independent digital-first agencies, manages more than 350 brands and oversees advertising spends exceeding $100 million across its network.
Under the mandate, the agency will handle Big Bowl’s social media strategy, content development, digital performance marketing, media planning and buying, as well as campaign amplification across platforms.
Commenting on the partnership, Lenexis Foodworks founder and director Aayush Madhusudan Agrawal said, “Big Bowl has scaled rapidly to cross Rs 100 crore ARR and established itself as one of the largest bowl-format brands in the country. As a delivery-first, digitally native brand, our next phase of growth will be driven by sharper performance systems and stronger brand storytelling. Consolidating social and media with Lyxel & Flamingo allows us to integrate data, creativity and media precision as we scale towards our next revenue milestone.”
Lenexis Foodworks marketing head Vikas Iyer, added that the delivery-led category requires content, media and performance marketing to work closely together.
“With Lyxel & Flamingo, we aim to build a sharper social voice, stronger acquisition systems and measurable impact, ensuring the brand scales not just in presence but also in precision,” he said.
Lyxel & Flamingo chief executive officer Dev Batra, said the agency will combine data-driven marketing with creative storytelling to support Big Bowl’s growth. “Big Bowl brings the flavour, and L&F brings the fire. Our strategy combines data-led performance with engaging storytelling to help build a strong digital brand presence while delivering measurable business results,” he said.
With this partnership, Big Bowl is looking to strengthen its position as a digitally driven QSR brand, blending brand-building with performance marketing as it scales within India’s rapidly growing organised food delivery market.
