India Inc storms global brandscape

MUMBAI: The rapid economic rise of India, by now almost a cliche, is evidently rubbing off on all aspects of the country — not the least on its various popular brands that are increasingly becoming the talking point worldover.
On her first ever visit to the country, Lisa Kettman-Kervinen , director of Worldwide Partners, a global network of 92 advertising agencies, is looking to leverage this curiosity to forge strong ties with the offerings India Inc has to make.
“Indian brands have huge potential abroad. As compared to other countries, India has grown in popularity. There are a lot of questions about India, its people and its brands, and we are fielding a lot more requests about the growing Indian market,” says Lisa Kettman-Kervinen.
“The Tata brand,” continues Kervinen, “is a talking point in corporate circles abroad. It is a really fascinating brand and we would love to help brands like that and several others get their shot in the sun. Given the fact that we have requests from many midsized companies in the US, Europe and the Middle East about Indian corporates, it is time India can stake its claim for the global spotlight.”
In the country on her first visit, Kervinen says she is not overawed by the silhouettes of high-rises punctuating the modern skyline, cheek to cheek with gleaming urban malls, both ready to serve Mumbai’s growing, consumer-oriented middle class.
There are clear, visible signs that India’s newfound status as a rapidly developing economic powerhouse is being noticed in the global marketplace . Not only can the Tata group enjoy strong market share across Asia, many other Indian brands can make a global statement.
There are also several global brands which would love to signal a distinctive link with India,” she adds. Citing a few examples like Novartis’ Ciba Vision, already present in the country, or Avon fragrances, which is to roll out a new campaign across 20 countries, Kervinen says the market is ripe.
A hard fought for account , the joint campaign for Ciba Vision was rolled out in London and New York, as also in Europe and Latin America. Next on the agenda — India.
Research by Worldwide Partner’s for Ciba Vision showed that people in Europe did not want to change their eye colour on a daily basis, so the message there had to be much more subdued, but research also threw up insights into the US market, where consumers were eager to change their eye colour on a daily basis, almost like changing hair colour.
Worldwide Partners has $3.3 billion in capitalised billings making it the ninth largest marketing organisation. Adds Kervinen, “Due to our vast network of 92 independent agencies , we can tap into the local resources of partners and get their local vision. We are a bottom-up organisation, not a top-down organisation.”