MAM
Zepto appoints Rakesh Malloju as senior director – product
Mumbai: Zepto has appointed Rakesh Malloju as senior director – product. In this role, Malloju will lead Zepto’s product strategy and development efforts, leveraging over a decade of experience in building and scaling consumer internet products.
Malloju joins Zepto following his tenure as product lead at Apollo 24/7, where he optimised user experiences for the platform’s e-commerce app, focusing on key functionalities like search, browsing, and payments. His track record includes scaling products to millions of monthly active users, showcasing his expertise in driving user-centric innovation.
With prior roles including head of product at Infinity Learn and contributions to Toppr, Housing.com, and Mu Sigma Inc., Malloju brings a wealth of knowledge in product-market fit, user research, and scalable solutions. His appointment aligns with Zepto’s mission to revolutionise the online grocery delivery space through innovative and efficient product development.
The company anticipates that Malloju’s leadership will accelerate its growth trajectory, ensuring Zepto continues to deliver a seamless and customer-first experience in the fast-paced e-commerce market.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
