Brands
Pogo and Kellogg’s Chocos to join hands to launch branded mini-series
MUMBAI: Pogo and Kellogg’s Chocos have collaborated to deliver the first of its kind branded mini-series. Featuring India’s favourite superhero Chhota Bheem and Chocos mascot Coco, the four- episode series titled Coco aur Chhota Bheem ka Dhamaal will air every Sunday in October at 9:30 am only on Pogo.
In a highly competitive and cluttered TV advertising environment, this endeavor seamlessly integrates a brand into the storyline of the content. Within the kids’ genre, this is an unconventional route to engaging children with entertaining content that also subtly reinforces the brand’s attributes.
Kellogg’s marketing director, India and South Asia Harpreet Singh Tibb said: “At Kellogg’s we believe in providing wholesome nutrition and tasty breakfast options to nourish families so they can flourish and thrive. Kids in our view are fearless and there is no anxiety among them as they are growing up. We need to ensure that we provide kids the right environment so they can enjoy childhood and are prepared to take on the challenges thrown at them. Our brand Chocos believes in celebrating “uninhibited childhood” and we are always looking at creating experiences that enable the kids to have fun while growing up.”
He further adds: “The brand has been creating unique experiences such as the chocos cereal factory at Kidzania and the online gaming platform Chocoland to engage and educate kids. We have now signed up a unique partnership between the brand Chocos and Chhota Bheem wherein Coco, the brands mascot gets an opportunity to become part of Chhota Bheem’s gang. This unique association brings together two brands loved by kids: Chocos and Chhota Bheem. Both coming together under one platform will surely delight kids. When Mindshare proposed the idea of associating with a show like Chhota Bheem we knew this would help grab innumerable eyeballs among the target group.”
Mindshare has been the catalyst in conceptualising and executing this project. Mindshare west Anita Kotwani said: “This is the first of its kind initiative in the kid’s space. From a brand perspective what works is that it is not an innovation for the sake of innovation, but a strategic initiative intrinsic to what the brand stands for and that is what we did by partnering with POGO at the scripting stage itself instead of looking at tactical opportunities in the show. We are proud of the outcome and hope to be well received.”
Turner International India South Asia managing director Siddharth Jain said: “This partnership brings together two very much loved brands in India and showcases the kind of creative and innovative solutions Turner can offer in engaging our viewers in an entertaining and compelling manner.”
In the four episodes of Coco aur Chhota Bheem ka Dhamaal, Bheem and his friends will leave Dholakpur to explore the new world of Chocoland with Coco and undertake exciting adventures with their new friend. Coco aur Chhota Bheem ka Dhamaal will air on 05, 12, 19 and 26 October 2014 at 9:30 am on Pogo.
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.
