MAM
Lowe Worldwide board to meet for the first time in India on 15 November
MUMBAI: Recognizing the increasing influence of India in the world of advertising, the second ever meeting of the Lowe Worldwide Board under the new global management is scheduled in Mumbai from 15 – 17 November, 2005. This is the first time that Lowe Worldwide board is meeting in India.
Lowe Worldwide president and CEO, Tony Wright, will chair the inaugural session of the meeting.
The theme of the meeting ‘Reach without Compromise’ is inspired by the longer-term vision for Lowe Worldwide, which is rapidly acquiring the stature of the ‘Next Generation Growth Network’.
According to the new vision, the agency’s strategy is based on four key pillars: global network, brilliant creativity, holistic marketing solutions and people and operational leadership.
Earlier this year, Lowe Worldwide restructured its network into a Core Global Team, where the entire world is clustered into 12 Lighthouse units. Each of these units will manage countries in their areas of influence. Core Account Teams will service global clients like Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, Nestle, Novartis, General Motors, Electrolux, Nokia and so on.
As part of this structure introduced earlier this year, Lintas India stands tall as one of the 12 lighthouses covering South Asian countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The new structure works to eliminate bureaucratic systems and regional management; pools resources, talent and processes to deliver a leaner, more effective and cost-efficient best-in-class service to clients.
Lowe Worldwide has identified India, China, Latin America and Eastern Europe as the core components of its growth strategy going forward.
Among these priority areas, Lowe’s presence in India through Lintas India has had a history of success over the years. Lintas India has also evolved as a ‘Centre of Excellence’ and a model agency in the Lowe global system. It is, in this context, that the Global Management Board Meeting has been scheduled in India for a mutual sharing of experience against the backdrop of Planning sessions for 2006 and beyond.
Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
