MAM
ASCI secretary-general Manisha Kapoor named VP, ICAS executive committee
Mumbai: Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) general secretary Manisha Kapoor has been appointed to the executive committee of the International Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (ICAS). She will be one of the four vice-presidents on the executive committee. Set up by the European Advertising Standards Alliance in 2008, ICAS is a global platform of self-regulatory organisations (SROs).
Until April this year, ASCI served on the executive committee as a member for a two-year term. Now, Kapoor will play a leadership role on the committee till 2023.
In her role as part of the ICAS leadership team, she will take forward the agenda of self-regulation globally. Some priority areas of ICAS for the next couple of years are:
● To promote advertising self-regulation as an optimal mechanism for consumer protection
● To strengthen ICAS as a global alliance
● To facilitate knowledge sharing among SROs to establish best practices
● To support emerging SROs across the globe
● To monitor global trends in the advertising ecosystem that impact self-regulation
● Work closely with established and emerging digital platforms to make the online space more transparent and fairer for consumers
Kapoor said, “This appointment is a recognition of ASCI’s growing global standing and influence in the narrative of responsible advertising, as well as the importance of Indian advertising industry itself at a global level. This offers us a chance to exchange learnings and best practices. With the Indian advertising industry evolving fast and digitalisation boosting growth, ASCI’s leadership of the ICAS executive committee will add new perspectives to the agenda of responsible advertising.”
ICAS is a globally established organisation with members comprising national and regional SROs, associations and international industry associations representing advertisers, the media and creative agencies, all working to ensure that advertising and marketing communication is legal, honest and decent.
The three other vice-presidents are one each from Canada, the USA and the World Federation of Advertisers. The ICAS president is from the United Kingdom.
Brands
Reliance Retail acquires Priyanka Chopra Jonas’s haircare brand Anomaly
India’s biggest retailer bets on clean, vegan haircare as it muscles into the country’s fast-growing beauty market
MUMBAI: Reliance Retail has acquired Anomaly, the global haircare brand founded by actor and entrepreneur Priyanka Chopra Jonas, in a move that hands India’s largest retailer full ownership of one of the more internationally recognised homegrown beauty labels. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The deal covers Anomaly’s trademarks, brand assets and digital properties, giving Reliance Retail complete ownership of the brand’s intellectual property and digital ecosystem. Chopra Jonas, who launched Anomaly in 2021, will stay on as creative director, overseeing innovation, product development and brand vision.
Built on a clean, vegan and high-performance positioning at accessible price points, Anomaly has established an international presence across multiple global markets since its launch. Reliance Retail now plans to scale the brand aggressively through its expansive offline retail network and omnichannel platforms, including Tira, its beauty retail arm. India will be a priority market, with a focus on developing products tailored to Indian hair and scalp needs. The company also has its eye on North America, the United Kingdom and the Middle East.
Isha Ambani, who oversees Reliance Retail’s consumer businesses, was forthright about the strategic logic. “Bringing Anomaly into our portfolio marks a strategic step in expanding our basket of new-age, high-growth beauty brands,” she said. “Anomaly’s strong global positioning, clean formulation philosophy, and accessible pricing make it a compelling addition to our ecosystem.” She added that Reliance saw “immense potential in collaborating with Priyanka to scale the brand in India by leveraging our omnichannel capabilities and deep consumer insights, while continuing to grow its international presence.”
Chopra Jonas framed the acquisition as a milestone rather than an exit. “This is a defining moment for Anomaly,” she said. “What began as a deeply personal journey has grown into a brand with real purpose and global ambition, and Reliance Retail’s acquisition marks an exciting new chapter.” She added that Reliance’s “scale, retail expertise, and commitment to innovation will allow us to bring Anomaly to far more consumers in India and around the world.”
The acquisition slots neatly into Reliance Retail’s broader push into premium and digital-first consumer brands across fashion, beauty and personal care. In a beauty market growing at pace and increasingly receptive to clean, ingredient-conscious formulations, Anomaly gives Reliance a brand with genuine international credibility and a founder whose global profile does the marketing almost by itself. For Chopra Jonas, it means her haircare label gets the retail muscle of India’s most powerful consumer conglomerate behind it. Not a bad chapter two.
