MAM
ITC and Britannia resolve packaging feud
Mumbai: FMCG majors Britannia and ITC have reached a resolution over the nine-month long case in which the former had dragged ITC to the Delhi high court alleging infringement of product packaging.
The judgement, dated 4 August, considered the matter resolved after ITC changed the packaging (pillow and box) scheme for its ‘Sunfeast Farmlite 5-Seed Digestive’ and ‘Sunfeast Farmlite Veda Digestive’ biscuits which was challenged by Britannia Industries in December, last year as being “deceptively similar” to that of its NutriChoice Digestive biscuit brand.
“The respondents have modified the packaging of their products ‘Sunfeast Farmlite 5-Seed Digestive’ and ‘Sunfeast Farmlite Veda Digestive’ which are already in the market. The Appellant has no objection to the use of the modified packaging of the Respondents as depicted hereinabove,” the judgement read.
In view of the above settlement, Britannia Industries has withdrawn all claims for rendition of accounts, damages, and costs.
Hearing the matter in April, a single judge bench of the Delhi high court had ruled that the impugned packaging cannot be called “deceptively similar” because in both the cases the name of the product is abundantly clear. Britannia appealed against the judgement on the grounds that ITC’s promotion of April order is causing harm to its goodwill. “It is averred that the impugned judgment is being publicised heavily and is therefore causing immense harm and injury leading to loss of goodwill and reputation of the appellant,” it said.
Responding to Britannia’s appeal in an order dated 8 July, the Delhi high court had asked the two parties to reach a consensus on the matter within four weeks.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
