Brands
ITC Mangaldeep lights up Ayodhya with AR magic
MUMBAI: ITC Mangaldeep is taking Diwali devotion to the digital domain as it launches Digital Deepotsav, an Augmented Reality (AR) experience that lets devotees across India virtually light a diya and be part of Ayodhya’s iconic Deepotsav.
Through the immersive microsite at ayodhyamangaldeepotsav.com, participants can offer prayers to Lord Ram, contribute their virtual diya, and watch as their light joins a collective glow illuminating the holy city on 19 October. Each virtual diya corresponds to a real diya lit in Ayodhya, making the celebration truly participatory.
The brand aims to light a spectacular 1 lakh diyas arranged in a special design to convey faith, positivity, and unity. Visitors will also experience the mangaldeep khushboo path, with 25 five-foot agarbatti sticks and 25 maha havan cups filling the air with a divine fragrance, adding a sensory layer to the spiritual spectacle.
ITC divisional CEO of matches and agarbatti Rohit Dogra said, “Devotion is timeless, but the way we experience it can evolve. Digital Deepotsav blends the sacredness of tradition with the possibilities of technology. Through AR, millions of devotees can light their diyas virtually and feel connected to Ayodhya’s spiritual energy.”
With this initiative, ITC Mangaldeep reinforces its pioneering role in making devotion immersive, inclusive, and experiential, showing that faith and technology can shine together to create memorable celebrations.
Brands
Lululemon picks former Nike executive to be its next chief
Heidi O’Neill, who helped grow Nike into a $45 billion giant, will take the top job in September
CANADA: Lululemon has found its next chief executive, and she comes with serious credentials. The athleisure giant named Heidi O’Neill as its new CEO on Wednesday, ending a search that has left the company running on interim leadership since earlier this year. O’Neill will take charge on September 8, 2026, based out of Vancouver, and will join the board on the same day.
O’Neill brings more than three decades of experience across performance apparel, footwear and sport. The bulk of that time was spent at Nike, where she was a central figure in one of corporate sport’s great growth stories, helping take the company from a $9 billion business to a $45 billion global powerhouse. She oversaw product pipelines, brand strategy and consumer connections, and played a significant role in shaping how Nike spoke to athletes around the world. Earlier in her career, she worked in marketing for the Dockers brand at Levi Strauss. She also brings boardroom experience from Spotify Technology, Hyatt Hotels and Lithia and Driveway.
The board was unequivocal in its enthusiasm. “We selected Heidi because of the breadth of her experience, her demonstrated success delivering breakthrough ideas and initiatives at scale, and her ability to be a knowledgeable change and growth agent,” said Marti Morfitt, executive chair of Lululemon’s board.
O’Neill, for her part, was bullish. “Lululemon is an iconic brand with something rare: genuine guest love, a product ethos rooted in innovation, and a global platform still in the early stages of its potential,” she said. “My job will be to accelerate product breakthroughs, deepen the brand’s cultural relevance, and unlock growth in markets around the world.”
Until she arrives, Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue as interim co-CEOs, before returning to their previous senior leadership roles once O’Neill steps in.
Lululemon is betting that a Nike veteran who helped build one of the world’s most powerful sports brands can do something similar for an athleisure label that has genuine love from its customers but is still chasing its full global potential. O’Neill has done it before at scale. The question now is whether she can do it again.
