MAM
Unilever to shift thinking to New Delhi, says CEO
MUMBAI: FMCG behemoth Unilever is shifting its organisational focus to emerging markets to better anticipate the needs of a growing but “ever more demanding” class of consumers, said CEO Paul Polman at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity.
Polman charted the company‘s strategic move to the Far East and the Bric countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China) to benefit from their mushrooming populations.
“We have to shift our thinking to New Delhi, not New York”, Polman affirmed.
Unilever‘s brands are traded in 180 countries and 56 per cent of its revenues come from non-European countries. The company expects this to rise to 70-75 per cent by 2020.
Polman underlined that Bric countries will be home to the world‘s [fastest growing] populations and their consumers will get increasingly more demanding.
Polman amplified the “superconnectivity” of the internet that provides companies like Unilever with huge commercial opportunity to reach the next one billion consumers. He also highlighted the importance of Facebook.
Polman was talking after Unilever announced a major restructure broadening its category organisation to four divisions and the promotion of Harish Manwani to chief operating officer.
On Friday, the company announced that president for Asia, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, Harish Manwani will don the role of COO from 1 September.
Also, the FMCG is moving from the current HPC (Home and Personal Care) and Foods categorisation to create four new categories reporting to the global CEO.
These would be Personal Care (to be headed by Dave Lewis, currently president,Americas), Refreshment – Ice Cream and Beverages (Ice Cream EVP Kevin Havelock), Food (Skin EVP Antoine de Saint Affrique), and Home Care (Laundry EVP Randy Quinn and Household Care senior VP Sean Gogarty).
The new structure will be put in place in the quarter of July to September, and can get fully operational before December 2011.
Brands
Nodwin Gaming appoints Sonal Varma as global director of live events
Former Comic Con India VP to scale global gaming and pop culture experiences
MUMBAI: Nodwin Gaming has appointed Sonal Varma as global director of live events, bringing on board a seasoned architect of fan communities as the company accelerates its global push in gaming, esports and youth culture.
Varma steps into the role with more than 15 years of experience creating large-scale fan experiences and cultural platforms. She is best known for her long stint at Comic Con India, where she most recently served as vice president and helped transform the convention into one of the country’s most recognisable pop culture gatherings.
At Nodwin Gaming, Varma will lead the strategy, design and execution of the company’s global live event initiatives. Her mandate includes expanding flagship intellectual properties and developing new formats that bring gaming communities together across emerging markets.
Over the years, Varma has been closely associated with building and scaling community-led events such as Comic Con India, Geekly and the Indian Cosplay Championship. Her work has focused on turning niche fandoms into thriving cultural ecosystems by blending entertainment, creator culture and brand partnerships.
Her appointment comes at a time when Nodwin Gaming is expanding its international events footprint through properties such as DreamHack India, NH7 Weekender, Comic Con India and the Battlegrounds Mobile India Series. The company has also been growing its presence across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa through esports tournaments, gaming festivals and fan conventions.
Nodwin Gaming co-founder and managing director Akshat Rathee, said Varma’s experience in building fan-centric platforms would play a key role in the company’s next phase of growth.
“Sonal brings a deep understanding of how live experiences can bring communities together around gaming and pop culture. As we expand our global live events footprint, her experience will help us create experiences that feel authentic and meaningful for audiences across markets,” he said.
Varma said the scale of opportunity at Nodwin Gaming made the move particularly exciting.
“Joining Nodwin Gaming at this moment feels incredibly exciting because the canvas is so large. There are new audiences, new markets and new formats waiting to be explored. I’m looking forward to working with teams across the network to create live experiences that celebrate gaming culture while staying rooted in the communities that power it,” she said.
Over the past few years, Nodwin Gaming has built an ecosystem that stretches across competitive gaming, creator communities, music festivals and youth culture platforms. With Varma now leading global live events, the company is looking to further expand its flagship properties while experimenting with new formats that blend gaming, entertainment and fandom for audiences around the world.
