Brands
Veefin hires Saurabh Kawar as CMO; Gitesh Karnik as CHRO
MUMBAI: Mumbai-based supply chain financing and working capital software specialist Veefin group has made two senior hires – one in talent and the other in marketing and branding.
Gitesh Karnik comes in as chief human resources officer (CHRO) and Saurabh Kanwar has got roped in as chief brand & marketing officer (CBMO). Karnik’s main focus will be on optimising HR strategies to enhance employee engagement and performance.
Kanwar as his designation says will have the responsibility of nurturing and growing the brand Veefin and building effective marketing plans.
Karnik has close to 25 years of experience working with companies such as Cyquator Technologies at the start of his career Integron,GE Money, Deutsche Bank, eNxt Financials, Hicare services, Magma Fincorp, and Nearby Technologies. All along he has been either been involved in staffing or human resources.
Kanwar has mainly worked in advertising or marketing in mostly media companies. These include: Wirpo infotech, JWT,, MTV Networks, Walt Disney Television, Radio City, Channel V, Nex-Sales Solutions, Flarepath Digital (he founded this), Kommune India, ATKT.in, Kleinetics Datasports, Discontent Designs (he co-founded this), and now Veefin.
Throughout his career, he has been an educator as well, being on the visiting faculty of St Xaiver’s College Mumbai and Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management were two of the colleges where found the time to teach
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.
