Brands
ITC Maratha completes 25 years in Mumbai’s luxury hospitality market
MUMBAI: ITC Maratha has turned its 25th anniversary into a statement of intent, positioning longevity as brand power in a hospitality market obsessed with novelty. Opened in 2001, the Mumbai hotel has used the milestone to underline its standing as a flagship of ITC Hotels’ luxury portfolio, built on scale, cuisine and a tightly held philosophy of responsible luxury.
Designed as a tribute to Indo-Saracenic grandeur, ITC Maratha has become a familiar address for business leaders, diplomats and international travellers, aided by its proximity to Mumbai International Airport and the city’s key commercial districts. The campaign framing the anniversary stresses continuity over reinvention, pitching the hotel as both constant and contemporary.
Food remains central to its identity. The hotel’s restaurants: Avartana, Peshwa Pavilion, Dum Pukht, Peshawri and Yi Jing are positioned not merely as dining options but as cultural assets, each rooted in regional technique while calibrated for a global audience. Bombay High, its lounge and bar, continues to anchor the hotel’s social and business life.
ITC Maratha general manager Bhagwan Balani, said the anniversary reflected guest trust and institutional values rather than a single moment of celebration. He emphasised the hotel’s focus on refined luxury grounded in Indian hospitality, alongside a steady evolution in service and experience.
Sustainability forms a parallel narrative. ITC Maratha holds Leed Zero Carbon and Leed Zero Water certifications from the U.S. Green Building Council, aligning the anniversary with ITC Hotels’ broader responsible luxury strategy, which foregrounds energy efficiency, water stewardship and resource discipline.
Over two and a half decades, the property has hosted high-profile conferences, landmark weddings and cultural events, embedding itself into Mumbai’s social calendar. The silver jubilee, framed as a campaign rather than a commemoration, signals ITC Maratha’s ambition to convert heritage into continued relevance.
Brands
Lululemon picks former Nike executive to be its next chief
Heidi O’Neill, who helped grow Nike into a $45 billion giant, will take the top job in September
CANADA: Lululemon has found its next chief executive, and she comes with serious credentials. The athleisure giant named Heidi O’Neill as its new CEO on Wednesday, ending a search that has left the company running on interim leadership since earlier this year. O’Neill will take charge on September 8, 2026, based out of Vancouver, and will join the board on the same day.
O’Neill brings more than three decades of experience across performance apparel, footwear and sport. The bulk of that time was spent at Nike, where she was a central figure in one of corporate sport’s great growth stories, helping take the company from a $9 billion business to a $45 billion global powerhouse. She oversaw product pipelines, brand strategy and consumer connections, and played a significant role in shaping how Nike spoke to athletes around the world. Earlier in her career, she worked in marketing for the Dockers brand at Levi Strauss. She also brings boardroom experience from Spotify Technology, Hyatt Hotels and Lithia and Driveway.
The board was unequivocal in its enthusiasm. “We selected Heidi because of the breadth of her experience, her demonstrated success delivering breakthrough ideas and initiatives at scale, and her ability to be a knowledgeable change and growth agent,” said Marti Morfitt, executive chair of Lululemon’s board.
O’Neill, for her part, was bullish. “Lululemon is an iconic brand with something rare: genuine guest love, a product ethos rooted in innovation, and a global platform still in the early stages of its potential,” she said. “My job will be to accelerate product breakthroughs, deepen the brand’s cultural relevance, and unlock growth in markets around the world.”
Until she arrives, Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue as interim co-CEOs, before returning to their previous senior leadership roles once O’Neill steps in.
Lululemon is betting that a Nike veteran who helped build one of the world’s most powerful sports brands can do something similar for an athleisure label that has genuine love from its customers but is still chasing its full global potential. O’Neill has done it before at scale. The question now is whether she can do it again.
