Brands
Harshad Mehta’s tip invest in CenturyPly club prime for peace of mind
Mumbai: India’s most trusted plywood brand, CenturyPly, embarks on an innovative collaborative marketing campaign. Partnering with the Scam 1992 OTT team, CenturyPly launches a brand-new ad film which urges end users to ‘invest’ in its flagship product – the decades-old industry leader Club Prime.
No one knows investments better than the Big Bull himself – Harshad Mehta. Pratik Gandhi, who brought Harshad Mehta to life for today’s generation in the OTT series Scam 1992, was roped in to resurrect his role. Getting Pratik on board was just half the story. CenturyPly & its advertising agency, Wunderman Thompson, decided to go all the way, onboarding the extremely talented director of Scam 1992, Hansal Mehta, and acquiring the rights to the iconic Scam 1992 title track.
Produced by Small Fry, the film ‘The Best Investment’ is about an investment tip the protagonist, played by Pratik Gandhi, gives away for free. He uses investment speak to talk about the various attributes of Club Prime before signing off with a rhetorical question, “Ab isse better investment hai toh batao!!” [“If there’s a better investment, let me know!!”]
Consumers are easily confused by the wide range of plywood options available in the market. They are at a loss and do not know which ply to purchase. Packed with a variety of features – boiling waterproof, borer & termite proof, fire retardant, duplicate proof, calibrated, E0 emission compliant, customer service in 48 hrs & 30-year warranty – Club Prime is indeed the best plywood to invest in. In the film, Pratik Gandhi urges consumers to put their faith in Club Prime from CenturyPly and enjoy complete peace of mind.
A 360-degree integrated marketing campaign is being planned to drive the message of ‘investment’. TV will be the lead medium, supported by print, OOH, POS and digital. The campaign has the potential to resonate with well-heeled end users who form the target audience for Club Prime. With post-pandemic India having opened up to trading, ‘investment’ as a word will strike a chord with affluent classes who are investing in the stock market in large numbers.
CenturyPly executive director Keshav Bhajanka said, “It’s very easy to get conned when buying plywood. A customer has a hard time, having to weigh the pros & cons of various brands of plywood in order to arrive at the right choice. CenturyPly has always kept the customer front & centre in everything that it does. In line with its corporate philosophy, this new advertisement for Club Prime is intended to give peace of mind to customers, helping them make the best ‘investment’”.
CenturyPly executive director Nikita Bansal said, “We have tried to ride on the new age practice of symbiotic collaborative marketing. Both CenturyPly and Scam 1992 are household names and will benefit from each other’s equity. By helping consumers recall the hit OTT series, the ad will immediately connect with them, driving home the point that Club Prime, with its host of unrivalled features, is the smartest ‘investment’ they could possibly make”.
Wunderman Thompson Kolkata VP & senior ECD Arjun Mukherjee said, ‘Who better to speak about investment in India than the Big Bull himself? Who better to recreate the imagery of Harshad Mehta than Hansal Mehta? Who better to enact that role than Pratik Gandhi? When one brings together all in a commercial, along with the iconic music, one can hope it’s going to be a memorable watch”.
Brands
Samsung India elevates Aditya Babbar to lead mobile business
Exec takes charge of MX sales and marketing after Raju Pullan’s exit
NEW DELHI: Samsung India has elevated Aditya Babbar to lead its mobile phone business, following the exit of Raju Antony Pullan.
Babbar, who previously served as vice president within the mobile division, has been appointed head of sales and marketing for the MX (mobile experience) business, effective May 1. In his new role, he will oversee the company’s sales and marketing operations for smartphones and related categories in India, reporting to the executive vice president of the MX business.
A long-time Samsung executive, Babbar brings over a decade of experience within the organisation, having held multiple leadership roles across product, marketing and category management. Most recently, he led product marketing and e-commerce for the mobile division, following earlier stints as head of product and marketing and senior director roles.
His career within Samsung Electronics and its India operations has also included responsibilities for flagship devices, tablets and wearables, giving him a broad view of the company’s premium and mass-market portfolio.
Babbar succeeds Pullan, who stepped down from the role, marking a leadership transition at a time when India remains a key battleground for global smartphone makers.
The appointment signals continuity within Samsung’s leadership bench, with an internal candidate stepping up to steer one of its most critical business units in a highly competitive market.
