MAM
Initiative Media becomes media AOR for Urban Company
Mumbai: Online home service platform Urban Company has named Initiative Media, the full-service media arm of Mediabrands India as its media agency on record. The account was won following a closely contested multi-agency pitch and will be managed out of the agency’s Gurugram office.
According to a statement, the business mandate includes both online and offline media duties and will focus on providing comprehensive media solutions to augment business outcomes.
“We are extremely delighted by this association and prepared to position Urban Company as the country’s go-to platform for all of their listed services. Our approach is designed to deliver client-centric results and will ensure elevating the growth momentum for the brand,” said Initiative CEO Vaishali Verma.
Urban Company aims to rapidly expand its national footprint while also launching new products and services pan India, said the brand in a statement. “Initiative’s strategic and audience-first approach and understanding of their unique business model, aligns perfectly with Urban Company’s expectations for their future endeavours, making this a fitting partnership,” it added.
“We are stepping into the next phase of our evolution and expansion now and confident that Initiative will prove to be our trusted partner in this growth story,” stated Urban Company SVP Abhinav Tyagi. “The seamless combination of their superior strategic planning, the robust experience of managing new-age clients, backed by a passionate young team made the mark for us. We are looking forward to a great run together.”
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.
