Brands
Mango Turkish-origin billionaire founder Isak Andic dies following hiking accident
MUMBAI: The Mango high street fashion brand has lost its founder Isak Andic. The 71 year old Turkish-born entrepreneur, who was an avid mountaineer and hiker, passed on over the weekend (Saturday) doing what he loved dong the most exploring mountains.
According to reports in the Spanish media, he was on a family outing in the Montserrat mountains around 40 km northwest of Barcelona when he slipped in the Collbató saltpetre caves at midday and fell around 150 meters to his death.
Andic was born in Istanbul in 1953 and his family moved to Spain in 1969. His fascination with the denim fabric led him to create a brand Isak Jeans in the early eighties. He opened several stories in Barcelona and Madrid. They were then renamed as Mango in 1984 and grew the enterprise along with his brother Nahman.
Today, Mango has consolidated its position as one of the leading international fashion groups, with a major presence in more than 120 markets, close to 2,800 stores and 15,500 employees worldwide. The company aims to exceed 2,800 stores by the end of 2024 and to reach more than 3,000 stores worldwide by 2026. This growth will enable it to exceed one million square metres of retail space, highlighting markets such as Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Poland, India, Canada and the United States. Mango has just a single brand and it does not own any factory, outsourcing its production mainly to lower-cost Turkey and Asia.
It registered a turnover of 3.1 billion euros in 2023 growing more than 15 per cent over 2022. Almost 80 per cent of its sales are now generated outside of Spain. Forbes estimated Andic’s net worth to be $4.5 billion (£3.6 billion). He was the non-executive chairman of the group at the time of his passing.
Paying tribute to Andic, Mango group CEO Toni Ruiz said: “Isak has been an example for all of us. He dedicated his life to Mango, leaving an indelible mark thanks to his strategic vision, his inspiring leadership and his unwavering commitment to values that he himself imbued in our company. His legacy reflects the achievements of a business project marked by success, and also by his human quality, his proximity and the care and affection that he always had and at all times conveyed to the entire organization. His departure leaves a huge void but all of us are, in some way, his legacy and the testimony of his achievements.”
Brands
PeopleStrong appoints Adishri Charla SVP marketing to drive global growth
Former UiPath marketing head to scale brand, demand and expansion across regions
NEW DELHI: PeopleStrong has brought in marketing heavyweight Adishri Charla as senior vice president, marketing, tasking her with sharpening the company’s global brand and fuelling its next phase of growth.
Charla steps in with nearly two decades of B2B marketing experience across both fast-moving start-ups and global technology giants. She joins from UiPath, where she served most recently as director and head of marketing for India and Saarc, playing a key role in the automation firm’s rise to category leadership in the region. Her work there ranged from revenue-driven marketing strategies to building strong customer and community engagement programmes.
At PeopleStrong, Charla will oversee global brand strategy, demand generation and customer engagement as the HR tech firm expands across India, Asia, the Middle East and other emerging markets.
CEO Sandeep Chaudhary said the company was looking for a leader who could connect brand storytelling with measurable business outcomes. “Adishri brings global marketing experience and strong team leadership. We are confident she will help sharpen our positioning and support our next phase of expansion,” he said.
Charla previously held marketing roles at Oracle India and IBM India, working across cloud, systems and product marketing. An MBA graduate from Symbiosis Centre for Management and HR Development, she has also completed executive programmes at Columbia Business School and ISB.
Sharing her excitement about the move, Charla said PeopleStrong has the potential to reshape how organisations across the region think about HR technology. She added that her focus will be on building stronger brand connections while driving measurable business impact.
Backed by Goldman Sachs Alternatives, PeopleStrong today serves more than 500 enterprises and has won several industry recognitions, including honours at the ET Human Capital Awards and the People Matters Infini-T Awards. Charla’s appointment signals the company’s intent to strengthen leadership as it scales its global ambitions.
