MAM
HBO lines up Bond festival, launches biggest marketing campaign
MUMBAI: HBO, which has lost market share in the English movie channel space, has packed 21 Bond films and has kicked off its biggest marketing campaign for the festive season.
The movies, dubbed under the “HBOO7” initiative, will air Monday-Friday ‘after the 9 pm movie‘ slot.
As Star Movies had shown the Bond festival earlier in the year, HBO is trying to connect the property to the viewers‘ through a differentiated promotional strategy. The channel‘s identity has been fused to the property.
Said HBO South Asia country manager Shruti Bajpai, “This is the biggest marketing campaign in the channel‘s history. The levels of innovation are higher compared to our previous campaigns. We are using our own Bond women for the campaign that covers on-air, OOH, digital, print etc. We have created a site HBOO7.com that offers fans everything they want to know about Bond. There is also a desktop widget that fans can download. We are offering games where, among other things, people can dress up Bond women.”
A contest is being run on-air where fans can win Omega watches, ipads etc. The ads have been created using three themes – Bond and women, Bond and gadgets and Bond and villains. “This creates more focus and is different from just airing TVCs,” Bajpai said.
On the OOH front, the channel has taken billboards. In some of them, the cutout of a Bond woman is used to give a 3D impression.
Apart from the Bond festival the channel is also doing a ‘Diwali Platinum‘ initiative at 9 pm where blockbusters are shown. The ‘Diwali Gold‘ initiative at noon offers fun and family-oriented films.
On Sundays, there is a “Heroes versus Villains” initiative where films are shown back to back at 9 pm and 11 pm. The theme is that of good triumphing over evil.
On the ad front, Bajpai said that in keeping with the Bond festival poker sets have been sent to agencies.
Tata Manza and Sony Bravia are the main sponsors for the HBOO7 initiative. Other sponsors include Phillips and Micromax.
Brands
Safex Group appoints Richa Malhotra as group chief financial officer
Former Standard Chartered executive to steer finance
NEW DELHI: Safex Chemicals has appointed Richa Malhotra as group chief financial officer, strengthening its leadership team as the company prepares for the next phase of expansion in specialty chemicals and global agrochemicals.
In her new role, Malhotra will lead the group’s financial strategy, capital architecture and governance framework as Safex scales operations across multiple verticals including branded formulations, specialty chemicals and contract manufacturing.
A chartered accountant and graduate of Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi, Malhotra brings more than two decades of experience in business finance, strategic planning, corporate banking and client management.
Before joining Safex, she served as executive director, financial markets at Standard Chartered, where she led teams across India and Sri Lanka and worked closely with large corporates, global subsidiaries and commercial banking clients. Her expertise includes capital structuring, treasury operations, risk management and financial markets led financing solutions.
Safex Group promoter director and joint managing director Piyush Jindal, said the appointment comes at a pivotal time for the company. “Safex stands at an inflection point as we build an integrated platform across branded formulations, specialty chemicals and contract manufacturing. Richa’s experience across global financial institutions will strengthen our financial discipline and help unlock value across the group,” he said.
Malhotra said she was looking forward to contributing to the company’s next chapter of growth. “Safex has built a strong reputation over 35 years with its focus on integrity, innovation and agricultural insight. I am excited to be part of the organisation as it expands its footprint in India and global markets,” she said.
The appointment comes as Safex continues to strengthen its financial foundations and scale operations internationally, positioning itself for future growth milestones.
