Brands
Warburg and Bharti Enterprises to acquire 49 per cent of Haier India
NOIDA: Warburg Pincus and Bharti Enterprises are buying their way into India’s booming white-goods market, snapping up a combined 49 per cent stake in Haier India and loosening China’s grip on one of the country’s fastest-growing appliance brands.
The stake will be acquired from China’s Haier Group, which will retain 49 per cent ownership, while employees will hold the remaining 2 per cent. The move hands the US private equity firm and the Indian conglomerate a strategic foothold in a sector dominated by South Korea’s Samsung and LG, and increasingly central to India’s consumer growth story.
The companies declined to disclose the deal value, but the Economic Times, citing industry executives, pegged Haier India’s valuation at around Rs 150 billion ($1.67 billion). Warburg and Bharti did not comment on the figure.
The transaction comes against a delicate geopolitical backdrop. While New Delhi and Beijing have shown tentative signs of thawing relations, Chinese investments in India remain under intense regulatory scrutiny, making local partnerships not just prudent but necessary.
Haier India manufactures air conditioners, refrigerators, televisions, washing machines and kitchen appliances from two plants in Pune and Greater Noida, serving a market that is heating up fast as incomes rise and urban demand surges.
For Warburg and Bharti, the bet is clear: fewer cables and calls, more compressors and coolers. And in a market where consumption is king, this is a power play with the plug firmly pulled out of geopolitics and pushed straight into growth.
Brands
EcoMedia Solutions launches EcoMeter to track carbon impact in media
New tool aims to bring real data and accountability to ads and events
GURUGRAM: EcoMedia Solutions has rolled out EcoMeter, a new solution designed to bring sharper carbon accountability to advertising, media, marketing and events.
Built on its proprietary EMS platform, EcoMeter aims to help brands and agencies measure the environmental impact of campaigns and on-ground activations using real-world data rather than broad estimates.
The move comes as sustainability gains traction across boardrooms, even as measurement within the advertising ecosystem remains patchy and often reliant on spend-based assumptions. EcoMeter attempts to change that by using localised emission factors and activity-based inputs, offering a more grounded view of carbon output.
“Today, most carbon calculations in our industry are derived from spends or broad averages. That does not reflect what is actually happening on the ground,” said EcoMedia Solutions founder & CEO Rumjhum Gupta. She added that the tool factors in variables such as location, execution and materials to deliver a more accurate picture.
The platform allows users to compare media choices based on environmental impact, plan lower-carbon campaigns and generate data-backed ESG and BRSR reports. It spans formats including OOH, DOOH, print, digital and live events, bringing sustainability into the same decision-making framework as cost and performance.
EcoMedia Solutions says the larger goal is to move the industry beyond surface-level sustainability claims towards measurable action. As scrutiny from consumers, investors and regulators intensifies, tools like EcoMeter could play a key role in helping brands back intent with credible data.
With this launch, the company is betting that the next big metric in advertising will not just be reach or ROI, but impact that can be counted in carbon.
