Brands
Vakrangee makes Guinness World Record with 1107 simultaneous store launches
MUMBAI: Mumbai-based technology company Vakrangee, which connects India's rural citizens with its modern ecosystem through its retail network of Vakrangee Kendra, has entered the Guinness World Records by launching 1,107 stores at 11:07 am on 14 January 2019. It achieved this by beating the existing Guinness World Records title of ‘Most stores launched simultaneously’ of 505 stores held by Xiaomi Technology India Pvt Ltd, which it had made in 2018.
These 1,107 stores were part of the 3,300+ Nextgen Vakrangee Kendras which were launched on the same day. These Nextgen stores offer a comprehensive range of products and services across banking, insurance, ATM, assisted e-commerce, e-governance, financial services, and logistics. These Nextgen outlets are spread across 19 states, 350+ districts and 2,000+ postal codes of the country, out of which more than 70 per cent outlets are from tier 5 and tier 6 cities.
Commenting on the same, Vakrangee founder promoter and executive chairman Dinesh Nandwana said, “We are honoured and excited to receive this certification from Guiness World Records. This global recognition is a validation of our belief and commitment to the transformation agenda to the Nextgen Vakrangee Kendras. This record-breaking feat also showcases capability of our extended family of Vakrangee employees, franchise partners and vendor associates.”
Vakrangee’s planned target is to reach at least 25,000 operational Nextgen Vakrangee Kendras by FY 2019-20 and further enhance it to reach 45,000 Nextgen outlets by FY 2020-21 and 75,000 by FY2021-22.
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.
