MAM
Actor Aftaab on etc all of February
etc is bringing Aftaab Shivdasani in a frank and witty conversation with Suresh Menon on Star Giraftaar all of February.
Aftaab Shivdasani will appear on etc in Chit Chaat on 11 February at 7.30 pm with a repeat telecast on 12 February at 1.30 pm. He will talk about himself and his career. etc will also telecast special capsules called Its My Pasand where he will disclose interesting facets of his personality.
Star Giraftaar is a special slot on etc in which an established Bollywood star appears on the channel to allow the viewers a peek in their life in Bollywood. The star also unfolds some unknown aspects of their personal life. Besides telecasting special half an hour show with the star, etc also plays songs and scenes from their forthcoming film for the entire month.
A versatile artiste, Aftaab is playing the character of Super Fashion Designer in his forthcoming venture Muskaan. "Basic story of the film has so many twists, thrills and lots of love. But my role is not the stereo type. No one can say that this is a character that I have played earlier. I have consciously decided to take assignments that can offer me variety,” he explains while talking about this film, interesting experiences during the making of the film, his vibes with co stars and his role to Menon.
Talking about his development as an artiste and how he allows the director to take control of actor within him he says, "I never interfere or give suggestions. That is the job of my director. I prefer to act."
Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
