MAM
Bikano ropes in Chhota Bheem for launch of new snack range
Mumbai: Snacks major Bikano has taken the license for one of India’s most popular kids-show characters Chhota Bheem for the launch of its extruded products range under the sub-brand ‘Fatax’. The new offerings include Ringz (masala and tomato flavour), Puffeez, Cheese Balls, Pasta Crunch, and Jungle Safari.
The launch is aimed at augmenting Bikano’s presence in the rapidly growing ‘western snacks’ market (valued at RS 16000 crore) within which extrudes have witnessed significant growth and continue to expand at 23-25 per cent. In India, the extrude snacks market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 20 per cent by 2024, the company said in a statement.
Major factors driving increased consumption in this category are growing young population, rising per capita income, and competitive pricing as well as the introduction of smaller packs, it added.
In order to penetrate this growing market, Bikano has targeted its revamped extrude range at children aged three to ten years. The company will be running a digital campaign and TVC to promote the new offerings and its association with Chhota Bheem.
“With its unique and message-driven content, Chhota Bheem has been consistently capturing the hearts of kids in India and globally all these years,” said Bikano, director, Manish Aggarwal. “This collaboration will not only attract kids to our offerings but will also drive them towards more diversified snacking options. Western snacks as a category is currently led by chips, with extrude being a small part of it. We want to drive growth in this segment as the market is ever-expanding. With our new sub-brand ‘Fatax’, we aim to deliver the best products and further develop the category in our portfolio. Offering new products on a regular basis has been our prime focus. Apart from that, the new range is expected to give us a sales surge of up to Rs 15 crore in this fiscal.”
Speaking on looping Chhota Bheem for the launch, Bikano, head of marketing, Dawinder Pal, stated, “Puffed and extruded snacks are a major trend nowadays, as they provide numerous options with plenty of interesting combinations of flavours. However, along with taste and flavour, we also need a compelling product story and visual appeal to target kids and youngsters. Chhota Bheem has a high recall among our TG. This association will enable us to get an edge over our rivals and drive sales for the category.”
The new products are available across Bikano’s general and modern trade network.
MAM
WPP appoints Estée Lauder’s Anne-Isabelle Choueiri as chief transformation officer
Former Estée Lauder executive to lead operations, technology and culture overhaul under WPP’s three-year growth plan
LONDON: WPP has appointed Anne-Isabelle Choueiri as chief transformation officer in a newly created role tasked with delivering the group’s Elevate28 strategy.
Choueiri joins from The Estée Lauder Companies, where she led enterprise-wide strategic initiatives, including the “One ELC” operating model and major upgrades to enterprise marketing, data and analytics capabilities. She also led the redesign of enterprise technology teams and served on the company’s AI taskforce, driving AI strategy, adoption and value realisation across the business.
At WPP, she will be responsible for designing, implementing and embedding the operating model behind Elevate28, the company’s three-year growth plan unveiled in February 2026. She will lead efforts to improve innovation, efficiency and integration across WPP’s client offerings, with a focus on delivering agile, outcome-driven solutions and measurable growth.
Choueiri will oversee organisational transformation across the group, working closely with product and enterprise technology teams to deploy AI, data and technology to build new capabilities and improve operational performance. She will also work with the people function to embed cultural change, strengthen an agile performance mindset and support talent development across the organisation.
Before joining Estée Lauder, she held senior roles across consulting and digital agencies, including at Accenture, Masaï (a Bain & Company spin-off), and Kearney, with experience spanning strategy, data and digital marketing transformation.
Cindy Rose, chief executive officer of WPP, said Choueiri brings a strong track record of leading large-scale transformation across operations, technology and culture, adding that her appointment will help accelerate the group’s next phase of growth under Elevate28.
Choueiri said WPP’s strategy represents an ambitious opportunity to reshape how the company operates and delivers for clients, adding that she looks forward to building integrated solutions and fostering a culture of innovation and change.
She will be based in New York and will join WPP’s executive committee.
