Brands
A perfect fit New Balance laces up Janhvi Kapoor as India ambassador
MUMBAI: New Balance has found its stride in India. The global sportswear brand New Balance has officially welcomed Janhvi Kapoor as its first-ever Indian brand ambassador, marking a significant step in its expansion across one of the world’s fastest-growing style and sportswear markets.
Known for balancing mainstream appeal with a distinctly personal sense of style, Kapoor’s journey in cinema and fashion mirrors the brand’s long-standing emphasis on individuality and self-belief. Her growing influence among young consumers, combined with her advocacy for authenticity and confidence, positions her as a natural fit for New Balance’s philosophy of empowering people to own their path, on and off the field.
Speaking about the association, Kapoor said she has long admired the brand’s commitment to innovation and celebrating individuality, adding that fashion and fitness, for her, are rooted in staying true to oneself. She noted that New Balance allows her to express that confidence authentically, making the partnership feel instinctive rather than ornamental.
From the brand’s perspective, the collaboration is designed as a shared creative journey rather than a conventional endorsement. Radeshwer Davar, country manager, India at New Balance, said Kapoor brings not just reach but genuine inspiration, aligning with the brand’s ethos of evolution, passion and personal expression. He added that the partnership opens new possibilities at the intersection of sport, culture and style for Indian audiences.
India continues to be a key growth market for New Balance across the Middle East, Africa and India (MEAI) region. Stuart Henwood, senior director for MEAI at New Balance, highlighted Kapoor’s individuality and entrepreneurial spirit as qualities that resonate strongly with the brand’s vision for the country, positioning her as a catalyst for deeper consumer connection.
Together, New Balance and Janhvi Kapoor are set to shape a more confident, inclusive and creative conversation around sport and fashion, one that reflects the energy and ambition of modern India rather than simply following global templates.
Brands
Rakesh Menon joins Paytm as avp – lending
Fintech product leader takes on new role after building digital lending, payments and credit products across fintech ecosystem
MUMBAI: Rakesh Menon has joined Paytm as assistant vice president – lending, taking on a new role focused on strengthening the company’s lending and credit products.
Prior to this, Menon worked at Profectus Capital Pvt Ltd as chief manager – payments based financing and digital lending.
At Profectus, he designed and launched digital credit products for merchants with variable cash flows, including overdraft-linked and revenue-share lending models. He led end-to-end LOS–LMS API integrations with payment partners and aggregators, enabling real-time underwriting, disbursal and repayment workflows.
He also worked on funnel optimisation initiatives using journey analytics, improving onboarding, KYC and disbursal conversion by 35 per cent. He developed ecosystem partnerships for transaction-data-based credit assessment and automated settlement systems, and collaborated with credit and data science teams to strengthen risk models and early delinquency detection.
Menon standardised partner onboarding and API frameworks, reducing go-live timelines by 40 per cent and improving digital scalability.
Before Profectus Capital, he worked at PayU as senior manager – presales lead – enterprise business from August 2022 to August 2023. He set up a national presales function for fintech and digital commerce clients, aligning solutions such as EMI, BNPL, BBPS and offer engines to merchant requirements.
He also helped improve conversion rates by around 15 per cent through merchant persona mapping, demo frameworks and structured sales playbooks, working closely with product and go-to-market teams.
From April 2019 to July 2022, Menon served as business unit head – SMB – direct acquisitions at Worldline, where he built the SMB online payments vertical from scratch. The business scaled to Rs 2,500 crore in annual transaction volume, growing at 45 per cent year-on-year.
During this period, he introduced paperless onboarding processes including eKYC and eSign, developed partner dashboards and CRM automation systems, and integrated platforms such as Shopify, WooCommerce and Tally to expand merchant adoption.
Across roles, Menon has worked across digital lending, payments and merchant financing, with experience in product development, ecosystem partnerships, API integrations and fintech-led growth strategies.
At Paytm, he will focus on scaling lending products and strengthening digital credit infrastructure within the company’s financial services ecosystem.
His appointment comes as fintech firms continue to expand their lending and embedded finance offerings in a competitive market.
