Latest news with #GaneshRam
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
How Cothas got Gen Z to smell the coffee
In an era dominated by global coffee chains and trendy cafes, Cothas Coffee Co , a legacy coffee brand celebrating its 75th anniversary faced a delicate challenge. While the brand had to modernise its identity at one end, it had to do so without alienating the loyal customers who swear by their morning brew. The brand with a deep heritage in South India, embarked on a journey of evolution, not revolution, to appeal to a new generation of coffee drinkers, says Ganesh Ram, founder, Freeflow Ideas, the agency behind the campaign. While the brand's 75-year history was a significant milestone, it also presented a problem. The company's portfolio of products, including their popular filter coffee, was packaged in a way that was not resonating with younger audiences. The iconic yellow pack, while instantly recognisable to a loyal customer base, seemed outdated. The brand's products, in fact, didn't even look like they belonged to the same family, creating a fractured identity. The stakes were high. "You have to do it very delicately and make sure that you don't lose customers... you mess with that and you lose a lot of customers," agreed Ram, while addressing a gathering of marketing and advertising professionals at the inaugural edition of Neuron Nights by The Advertising Club, Bangalore. The Evolution of a Brand The decision to rebrand was a direct response to a changing market. The younger generation, increasingly exposed to brands like Starbucks and Cafe Coffee Day, was developing a more sophisticated palate for coffee. They were also looking for convenience, with the brand seeing growth in new products like decoction packs and cold coffee. The company's vision extended beyond filter coffee, its traditional strength. They aimed to expand into specialty coffees and a wider retail chain, with stores already in locations like T2 at the Delhi airport. But that meant it had to account for the fact that the North of India consumed coffee way differently than South India. For example, South India is a filter coffee market, while the North prefers Instant Coffee. The central question was: how could the brand's identity keep pace with its ambitious expansion? The rebrand began with a focus on unifying the entire product portfolio. The design team chose an evolutionary approach, keeping some elements while updating others. They drew inspiration from traditional South Indian coffee-making apparatus, incorporating a graphic of the "waft" of steam as a core visual element. The goal was to connect the brand's authentic past with its future. A key part of the new design was a move away from generic labels like "80:20" or "70:30," which are essentially a description of the coffee:chicory mix but "was not really communicating coffee". The new packaging introduced a "roast meter" to help consumers understand the intensity and profile of the coffee inside. This educational element was a nod to the growing sophistication of the Indian coffee consumer. Coffee, trophy The rebrand was not without its risks. The most significant change was to the yellow pack, a "delicate" part of the business that had to be handled with extreme care. The company took a cautious approach, testing the new packaging in select stores. The transition was initially met with some confusion, with one customer noting a change in the color palette and the taste. However, the change has been largely well-received. Retail store owners, who once relegated less popular products to the back, now proudly display the brand's entire range, a testament to the new packaging's visual appeal, say agency representatives. Laeeq Ali, president, The Ad Club Bangalore, which organised Neuron Nights said, "When brands like Cothas continue to make cultural waves after decades, it shows the enduring power of ideas." The experience taught valuable lessons about managing legacy rebranding. The key, it seems, is not to lose what has been built, to work collaboratively with the brand's owners, and to have a forward-looking vision. "You have to change," Ganesh said. "If you don't change, you're sitting around and saying, okay, I've done a lot of work." The rebrand, while a significant undertaking, is seen as a success. It is a reflection of a growing coffee culture in India, where consumers are becoming more discerning about their coffee, its origins, and its characteristics. For this 75-year-old, the future is now just as vibrant as its past. (This is a report of the proceedings at The Ad Club Bangalore's inaugural Neuron Nights which offered a peek behind the curtains of campaigns, narrated by the minds who crafted them.)
NDTV
27-06-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Waiting For A Promotion? In Chhattisgarh Department, 11 Dead People Got One
Some people spend years waiting for a promotion, doing everything they can to be eligible for one: from working long hours to being extra nice to the boss. But here, the dead have been promoted, with - obviously - no effort on their part. A recruitment scam has surfaced in Chhattisgarh's Tribal Welfare Department, where not only were more candidates appointed than advertised, but 11 dead employees also got promotions, 10 years after the initial recruitment process. In 2013, the Tribal Welfare Department advertised 559 vacancies for Class IV positions, but ended up appointing 605 candidates. According to the terms, newly hired employees were to be paid a collector-grade salary only after three years of employment. However, from the very first day, they began receiving a sum of Rs 10,890 per month instead of the Rs 4,943 they were entitled to. It took 16 months before officials noticed the irregularities, and the state had already suffered a loss of over Rs 5.7 crore by then. A decade later, when the department moved to regularise the employees, 11 of those listed had already died, but their names appeared in the promotion list. These included: Phulkumari - Died: May 22, 2021; Ganesh Ram - Died: November 18, 2016; Parakhit Kumar - Died: September 11, 2017; Champa Chauhan - Died: December 2, 2018; Rakesh Sidar - Died: May 2019; Gulab Banjare - Died: April 19, 2021; Ajit Toppo - Died: July 5, 2017; Sitaram Rathia - Died: February 17, 2020; Rekha Sidar - Died: February 7, 2021; Jitendra Sidar - Died: October 7, 2020; Dayaram - Died: July 7, 2018. Following a complaint, the department launched an internal investigation that confirmed several discrepancies. As a result, Raigarh's then Assistant Commissioner, Avinash Shrivas, was suspended. However, no further action was taken, and the case was put in cold storage until it was raised in the state Assembly. This prompted a second investigation order on April 9 this year. The Congress has accused the BJP of institutionalised corruption. "The recruitment process took place under the BJP government. Complaints at the time have now been proven. The BJP's main business is give-and-take deals," said Congress Spokesperson Dhananjay Thakur. The BJP, however, dismissed the incident as a clerical mistake. "This is not corruption, just a human error. The government has acted as soon as it came to light," said BJP Spokesperson Rajiv Chakraborty.
Mint
16-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
Sebi's new fee platform aims to protect investors. But not many have taken to it
Mumbai: The capital market regulator's centralized fee collection mechanism, aimed at ensuring that investors pay only registered investment advisers and research analysts, is seeing slow adoption since its launch nearly nine months ago due to its optional status and limited awareness, according to industry participants. Since it was introduced by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), the platform has seen collections worth ₹ 5 crore, according to a statement released by the regulator on 12 June. Managed by BSE Ltd. and MF Utilities India Pvt. Ltd. (MFU), the mechanism went live on 1 October 2024, offering a closed and auditable ecosystem to help investors avoid unregistered operators. India has approximately 1,300 registered investment advisors (RIAs) and 1,371 research analysts (RAs) for the 11.4 crore investors, according to data by the National Stock Exchange (NSE). The usage of the mechanism has been steady, particularly among digitally enabled research advisers and analysts, according to Ganesh Ram, managing director & chief executive officer of MFU. 'However, since the facility is optional as per Sebi, adoption has been gradual,' said Ram. 'We are yet to do major promotions or marketing as we wanted to first ensure the system's stability.' Ram noted that larger firms are increasingly using the platform. 'It's a fully web-based portal and full stack API, that supports all payment modes—e-mandates, ad-hoc payments, and recurring mandates including UPI. Advisors can track payments from all investors in one place,' he said. 'Since MFU also facilitates mutual fund transactions, it becomes an added advantage for users.' The platform charges an annual subscription fee of around ₹ 7499, Ram said, which covers related charges and platform features, maintenance, etc. While the central fee collection mechanism (CeFCoM) offers clear advantages for compliance and traceability, some experts caution against any move to make it mandatory. CeFCoM is 'undoubtedly a valuable enabler for individual registered investment advisers (RIAs),' especially solo practitioners who typically lack access to traditional payment gateways, according to Harsh Roongta, member of Sebi's Alternative Investment Policy Advisory Committee (AIPAC) and founder of Fee Only Investment Advisers LLP . However, 'making CeFCoM mandatory would be counterproductive for several reasons', he said. 'As Sebi-registered intermediaries, RIAs are also required to register with platforms like ValidPay, which support UPI-based fee collection—an option that is more cost-effective, real-time, and client-friendly,' he said. 'Mandating CeFCoM would restrict access to such alternatives and raise unnecessary questions from clients.' He also pointed to structural issues. 'CeFCoM was originally conceived as a surveillance mechanism to monitor that fees remain within Sebi's prescribed limits…and requires each client to be registered with BASL (BSE Administration and Supervision Ltd). This process is still largely manual and often delayed, making CeFCoM unsuitable for digital-first or time-sensitive advisory models.' Roongta cautioned about financial implications as well. 'It comes at a cost— ₹ 11,800 annually, with an added delay of one working day in crediting fees. If made mandatory, the associated costs are likely to rise further, imposing a financial burden on already resource-constrained RIAs.' Several advisers who have adopted CeFCoM praised its utility, but acknowledged challenges. 'We adopted CeFCoM as soon as it was activated. It took a month or two to onboard most of our clients, but now a large part of our collections go through the system,' said Vivek Rege, founder and CEO of V R Wealth Advisors Pvt. Ltd. 'CeFCoM is ultimately about investor protection… It gives clients confidence that they're dealing with a registered adviser.' Renu Maheshwari, vice chairperson of Association of Registered Investment Advisers (ARIA) and CEO of Finscholarz Wealth Managers LLP, said her firm has transitioned from MFU's earlier e-collect system to CeFCoM seamlessly. 'It's working smoothly now, though NRI payments are still a grey area,' Maheshwari. 'Anything that becomes mandatory should not be disruptive. At this stage, keeping CeFCoM optional gives RIAs the freedom to adopt at their own pace.' Other advisers say the bigger challenge lies in the system's low visibility. 'Ask any investor—do they even know what CeFCoM is? Or that it exists as a safer alternative? Sebi hasn't publicized it,' said Kavitha Menon, founder of Probitus Wealth and an ARIA board member. She argued that 'India doesn't know about registered investment advisers, let alone CeFCoM.' Menon also flagged the cumbersome onboarding and associated costs. 'The registration process is still cumbersome—for both adviser and client… ₹ 11,800 a year may not sound like much, but for many individual advisers with modest earnings, it's a burden.' In response to Mint's queries, Sebi said it had floated a discussion paper in August 2023 to assess whether CeFCoM should be mandatory. 'Based on the responses received, it was decided to make it optional. Change can be considered inter alia, based on the industry demand for it,' a spokesperson said. While the regulator maintained that CeFCoM was not primarily intended as a surveillance tool, it emphasized that the mechanism helps investors distinguish between registered and unregistered entities. 'Clients being able to move towards registered entities in this regulated bubble is the aim of the CeFCoM,' the spokesperson added. Sebi acknowledged limited awareness as a challenge, but pointed to growing traction. 'Despite being optional, more than ₹ 5 crore of fees has been collected through this mechanism; [that] demonstrates some traction,' it said.
