Brands
Tata Mumbai Marathon gets Oakley, Nature Valley, GoDaddy as sponsors
MUMBAI: The countdown to the 2019 edition of the IAAF Gold Label Tata Mumbai Marathon has begun with the organisers launching it on 9 January. With a unique theme of ‘#BeBetter’ the marathon will take place on 20 January in Mumbai. The organisers announced that over 46,000 runners will be taking the roads of Mumbai for the marathon. The marathon is going to be a zero-waste event.
The marathon has also found three new sponsors for this year’s event including GoDaddy as domains and online presence partner and Nature Valley as recharge partner along with Oakley as performance eyewear partner.
From Nature Valley, General Mills managing director India and South East Asia Salil Murthy shared his thoughts on the partnership saying, “It makes a lot of sense for us to partner with Tata Mumbai Marathon because what the marathon stands for and what our brand Nature Valley stands for is basically the same. We want people to be more active. We (Nature Valley) are doing it in the US, where we are promoting hiking amongst the people, in the UK there is tennis, and in India, we are hoping to make people run more.”
He went on to add, “Nature Valley has products like granola bars that are ‘delicious real recharge’. When you run a marathon you need that pick me up after a certain point of time as the distance is much longer. We hope to provide that recharge to the runners so they can reach the finish line.”
Oakley head-sports marketing (India) Ashwin Krishnan, who is also prepping for some big launches in India in the coming months, reflected the same sentiments, “We need to go back to what Oakley stand for. We started with making grips for bicycles handles that specialised in tightening the grip as the hands sweated then we made sunglasses based on the inputs we took from several international athletes that are capable of colour differentiation and improving depth perception, etc. So basically, we aim to improve the performance of the athletes on the ground, be it while playing cricket or golf, or while running the marathon. Partnering with Tata Mumbai Marathon is in tandem with that goal of ours.”
Speaking about the marathon Tata Sons group chief communications officer Pradipta Bagchi said, “The Tata Mumbai Marathon is the city’s way of celebrating achievement, perseverance, and commitment. The increasing participation from not just Mumbaikars in the Tata Mumbai Marathon, but from runners across the country and globe is a testament to the success of this IAAF Gold event in bringing together over 46,000 runners on one common platform every year in this city.”
He further added, “Tata Mumbai Marathon inspires everybody to #BeBetter and is a great opportunity to engage with the community, connect with youngsters and create awareness about the importance of good health.”
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) vice president and country head – India business Ujjwal Mathur said, “This year has been momentous for Tata Sons, who celebrated at 150 years. And we at TCS celebrate 50 years of excellence. Like in the previous years, this year too we will have a large contingent of TCSers from across various geographies taking part in the Tata Mumbai Marathon. We will continue to raise funds for charity and create social awareness for health and fitness in the city. In the true sense, we will root for the spirit of Mumbai!”
Brands
Uber launches hotel bookings feature in partnership with Expedia
From hotel bookings to room service at your door, the ride-hailing giant is making its boldest push yet into everyday life
CALIFORNIA: Uber is done being just a taxi app. At its annual GO-GET product event, the world’s leading mobility and delivery platform unveiled a sweeping set of new features designed to plant itself at the centre of how people travel, eat and shop, hotel bookings included.
The headline move is a partnership with Expedia Group that lets Uber users in the United States book hotels directly within the Uber app, with access to a catalogue that will eventually grow to more than 700,000 properties worldwide. Uber One members get 10 per cent back in Uber One credits on all hotel bookings and savings of at least 20 per cent on a rolling list of more than 10,000 hotels globally. Vacation rentals from Vrbo, Expedia Group’s home-rental brand, will be added later this year. The partnership is expected to expand beyond the United States. From June, Uber rides will also be integrated directly into the Expedia app, with push notifications sent to travellers ahead of hotel check-in to book discounted Uber rides for the duration of their stay.
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Uber, framed the expansion in terms of the modern condition. “Uber is becoming an app for everything, helping people go, get, and now travel all in one place,” he said. “We’re all living through a moment of real cognitive overload: too many apps, too many decisions, too much noise. At the end of the day, our job is to help people reclaim their time, spending less of it managing the logistics of life and more of it actually living.”
Ariane Gorin, chief executive of Expedia Group, struck a similarly ambitious note. “Travel should feel effortless, and this partnership gets us one step closer to offering a seamless traveller experience,” she said. “By connecting our two-sided marketplace with Uber, we’re bringing Uber rides directly into the Expedia app and Expedia Group’s lodging inventory into the Uber app through our Rapid API technology. Together, we’re helping travellers spend less time planning and more time enjoying the journey.”
Beyond hotels, the product announcements come thick and fast. Travel Mode, available within both the Uber and Uber Eats apps, offers curated recommendations on local favourites, tourist destinations, OpenTable restaurant reservations and on-demand delivery to hotel rooms. Uber One International means the membership programme now works globally, allowing members to earn credits on rides abroad that can be redeemed once back home. A new Shop for Me feature lets users request items from any store, even those not listed on the app. Eats for the Way allows riders in select cities booking an Uber Black or Uber Black SUV to have a drink or snack waiting for them in the car. Voice Bookings, powered by artificial intelligence, lets users book a ride conversationally, without touching their phone. And a redesigned One Search bar consolidates results for places, food and items across the entire Uber platform in a single query.
Uber has now logged more than 72 billion trips since it launched in 2010. The question it is now answering is what comes after the ride. The answer, apparently, is everything else. Whether users want a hotel in Paris, a coffee in the back of a car or a snake plant from the local garden centre, Uber would very much like to be the one to provide it. The app economy’s land grab has a new front-runner.
NOTE: The image used is AI generated and only for representational purposes.
