MAM
Adidas consolidates global media mandate with MediaCom
MUMBAI: For the first time in their history, adidas has consolidated its global media business.
As part of the brand’s drive behind their 2020 ‘Creating the New’ strategy, adidas will align all areas and territories and have appointed WPP’s MediaCom to execute the holistic approach from September 2018.
After a competitive and multi layered pitch process MediaCom were selected as the agency to help adidas and Reebok continue the momentum behind both brands and deliver a winning media approach. The combined brief will be executed across all platforms with a focus on innovation aligned to the brand’s strategic business plan; ‘Creating the New’.
The strategy for adidas has been concentrated on three strategic choices; Speed, Cities, and Open Source. These have all been channeled through a core belief – “Through sport, we have the power to change lives”. This new brief will align to these areas of focus with faster media implementation than ever before, a laser focus on the capital cities of culture and commerce as well as a world class digital ecosystem, and then a continued drive behind an open source approach to fuel innovation.
The areas of responsibility for the agency teams across the world will include full funnel media planning, integrated media consultancy and buying, consumer insight and measurement. The two hubs for the global business will be London for adidas and New York City for Reebok with MediaCom staff also positioned around key focus locations for the brands across the world.
adidas senior vice president for marketing Jocelyn Robiot says, “Through our partnership, we look forward to innovating ways of reaching and connecting to our consumers across the trend-leading cities whose influence on global culture is the key to unlocking desirability and demand.”
Reebok VP of marketing Melanie Boulden adds, “After a vigorous pitch process, MediaCom stood out as an excellent strategic media partner for our brand. We feel that they are the right partner to help us achieve our goals and mission for 2020 and beyond. We are pleased to be working with them and look forward to kicking off our partnership.”
MediaCom Worldwide COO Toby Jenner mentions, “We are delighted to have been selected by one of the world’s most ambitious and iconic brands as their partner. Our teams around the world can’t wait to get cracking. adidas is a business of great people and brands with enormous e-commerce opportunities moving forward. We’re looking forward to developing brilliantly creative and highly effective campaigns, which combine their brand heat and e-commerce, alongside their other agency partners.”
Brands
Pre-seed funding fuels nailinit, India’s new-age nail care brand
Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund backs Gen Z-focused beauty startup
MUMBAI: nailinit, a community-first nail care startup targeting Gen Z and millennials, has raised Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 crore in a pre-seed round led by Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund and Marsshot VC, alongside a clutch of consumer, technology and operator angels.
Backed by entrepreneur and investor Nikhil Kamath, Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund is betting on nailinit’s attempt to give India’s nail care aisle a long overdue makeover. The fresh capital will be used to deepen distribution across quick commerce and D2C channels, build its community engine, and accelerate product innovation in a category that is high frequency but still light on strong brands.
Founded by Tanishq Ambegaokar and Shubham Singhal, nailinit is positioning itself at the crossroads of beauty, self-expression and culture. The brand wants nails to be more than a finishing touch. It sees them as a canvas for identity, content and commerce.
“At nailinit, we are building for a generation that sees beauty as self-expression, not just routine,” said Ambegaokar. “The nail category in India has largely been underserved by strong brands. This capital allows us to invest in product depth, community and distribution in a thoughtful and long-term way.”
Singhal added that while the brand’s tone may be playful, its operating focus is sharp. “This round strengthens our supply chain, expands our digital footprint and enables disciplined execution as we scale.”
The funding round drew notable angels including Shashank Kumar of Razorpay, Arjit Johri of Marsshot VC, Yash Jain, formerly of NimbusPost, Karan Jindal of Meta, Jivraj Singh Sachar of ISV Capital, Nishank Jain of Accel, Yashvardhan Kanoi, Ashwarya Garg of HYPD, Venus Dhuria of Phot.AI and Amishi Parasrampuria of The Whole Truth.
Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund fund manager Gauri Kuchhal, believes the opportunity lies in shifting habits. “Nail care remains underpenetrated in India, with consumers relying on time-intensive salon visits. As convenience and self-expression gain ground, press-on nails can unlock more frequent and experimental usage. Nailinit is well-placed to expand beyond press-ons into adjacent categories.”
The brand is currently the only nail care player in India blending product-led retail with a dedicated kiosk at Jio World Drive in Bandra, where customers can walk in for services while discovering the range. It has also built early traction across quick commerce platforms such as Zepto and Blinkit, with a launch on Instamart in the pipeline, and is available on Amazon, strengthening its omnichannel presence.
In a space long dominated by salon chairs and scattered labels, nailinit is attempting to file, shape and polish the category into something sharper. With fresh funding in hand, the startup is setting out to prove that in beauty, small details can make a bold statement.
