Brands
Puma Urban Stampede across 8 cities; ropes in partners; media plans on the anvil
BENGALURU: Sports lifestyle brand Puma India is targeting about 10000 participants in this year’s edition of Urban Stampede from eight cities in the country. Last year’s edition of the event saw 3000 participants.
With the philosophy of introducing running to people who were fitness-focused but leading busy lifestyles, the idea of a corporate relay race ‘Puma Urban Stampede’ was born. Started in Bengaluru in 2008, Puma Urban Stampede has enjoyed unprecedented growth – prompting Runners for Life and Puma to take it to other cities says the company.
Flipkart has come on board as an associate sponsor, thereby increasing the scale and reach of the event. This year the event will travel to Pune, Chandigarh, Kolkata and Chennai in addition to the existing races in Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Hyderabad.
Puma India MD Raji Mehta says, “Starting June 2014, the first Sunday of almost every month will see a Puma Urban Stampede taking place in one part of the country. This is the only national running event in India, and we’ve opened up the categories to allow more runners to participate – with the 4x5k Corporate Relay still taking pride of place in the overall event. This year, Puma will also fly down the national corporate relay winners to South Africa to participate in the renowned Safari Half-Marathon”.
Further, The Puma Urban Stampede will now feature a 2x10k Open Challenge as well as an individual 5k competition in addition to the 4X5k Corporate Relay.
Also, this year, Puma India has roped in Fortis as Medical Partners; Ginger as Hospitality Partners; Red FM as Radio Partners and Give India as Charity Partners.
“Our media plans for promotion of the event include online, social media as well radio through our radio partners Red FM. We will be doing outdoor and are planning to work out a media plan with a print partner across the 8 cities in which the event will be held. Creative work as well as media buying will be in-house,” revealed Mehta to www.indiantelevision.com.
Brands
Jubilant FoodWorks faces Rs 47.5 crore GST demand, plans appeal
Tax authorities flag alleged misclassification of restaurant services
MUMBAI: Jubilant FoodWorks Limited has landed in a tax tussle after receiving a GST demand of Rs 47.5 crore from the office of the additional commissioner of CGST and central excise in Thane, Maharashtra.
The order, issued under the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, relates to an alleged incorrect classification of certain services under the category of restaurant services. According to the tax authorities, this classification resulted in a short payment of goods and services tax for the period between the financial years 2019-20 and 2021-22.
The demand includes Rs 47.5 crore in GST along with an equal amount as penalty, in addition to applicable interest. The order was received by the company on March 13, 2026.
In a regulatory filing to the BSE Limited and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited, the company said it disagrees with the order and believes its arguments were not adequately considered.
The company is preparing to challenge the decision and plans to file an appeal. It added that once the redressal process is complete, the demand is likely to be dropped.
Despite the sizeable figure attached to the notice, the company said it does not expect any material impact on its financials, operations or other activities.
The disclosure was signed by Suman Hegde, EVP and chief financial officer, who confirmed that the company received the order at 19:06 IST on March 13 and has already initiated steps to contest it.
The development places the quick service restaurant major in the middle of a tax debate that could hinge on how certain restaurant-linked services are classified under GST rules. For now, the company appears ready to take the matter from the tax office to the appeals desk.
