‘Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas to be Asia’s first law firm to employ AI for legal work’

Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas will become the first law firm in Asia to use artificial intelligence in its operations, said Managing Partner CYRIL SHROFF in an interview with SHAJI VIKRAMAN and KHUSHBOO NARAYAN, as he reflects on the 100 years of the storied law firm which has rapidly expanded its practice across several segments and has a roster of blue chip and other companies in the country across sectors. Edited excerpts.

Your firm is celebrating 100 years of its existence. How has the transition been especially post liberalisation for the firm and the significant changes which have taken place during this period?

It is a truly remarkable legacy of 100 years and not many organizations survive that period of time and remain relevant. But the core of service proposition of serving the clients with integrity and competence is still there today. We have been nimble and adapted to the time. With every changing era we have been able to spot the opportunities, reorganized ourselves and led the change. The idea of modern law firms was invented and led by the Amarchand Mangaldas legacy and we drew a lot of inspiration from the global scene.

In the last two decades a lot has changed, first the entire approach to talent has changed and second the idea of creating a scaled up scaleable organisation. We in the early 1990’s were some 25-30 lawyers as a combined firm and now even after the split Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas is 625 lawyers. The use of technology is another area where we are constantly upgrading. We are soon going to be the first law firm in Asia to use of artificial intelligence for legal work. A lot of our mergers and acquisition diligence will be done through this. Obviously it will have to be supplemented with human effort as well.

How has the split of Amarchand Mangaldas impacted the firm?

We are prospering. See our league tables. The split was a short blip and now it is an ancient memory. The firms brand and market cache has not been affected at all. We opened a large new office in Delhi and it is also settled down. In Mumbai and South there is no impact. Everything happens for the best.

What are the changes you have seen in the Indian legal system since modern law firms came into existence in the last 25 years?

Since then the nature of legal work itself has changed from traditional disputes and conveyancing it has moved to a completely different environment with global standards whether it is how capital is raised through initial public offers, how cross border mergers and acquisitions are done or how large projects are financed. So the nature of lawyering has had to also significantly adapt to all the new offerings that has been made possible because of the economy opening up to the world. The nature of disputes have become far more complicated.

One of the disquieting things which has been voiced by many investors is contract resolution and which after the Vodafone ruling took a knock. And after that now people are again talking about demonetisation. How much of it is a worry because you engage with so many companies and clients?

Legal uncertainties continues to be a worry and it is sort of linked also to enforcement. But Vodafone and demonetisation are two very different issues. In Vodafone the issue was retrospective taxation and not respecting the judgement of the Supreme Court , despite the fact that you sort of went through the whole system and succeeded. The international community sees it almost as in bad faith. In demonetisation there is no such anxiety. From a contract enforcement point of view the international and domestic clients do not see it from the same (Vodafone case) lens. Actually they are seeing it as a positive move towards formal economy.

How much of a challenge even now is in policy implementation or execution and enforcement of contracts?

First, I would say conflict resolution and contract enforcement. Second in terms of clarity of law making and regulations. A lot of problems actually arise from ambiguous grey areas. If we do make progress in creating a better environment for doing business for both domestic and foreign, the quality of law making will have to go up. We need to pay far more attention to law making. Actually we have been quite shoddy.

This government had promised a more stable tax regime but there has been flip flops on the tax front. What do you think is the problem?

There seems to be a disconnect between the revenue administration and the political class. So the senior political leadership is gearing in a particular direction which is trying to create a more stable environment but there is a philosophical disconnect. The revenue administration and the politicians are not aligned otherwise this can never happen.

Now that a date has been set for the GST roll out, as a law firm advising many firms how do you view the new taxation regime and the level of preparedness among companies?

It is a big advisory opportunity for us especially because it is evolving on a regular basis. And there will be a lack of clarity for sometime till a new normal is found. There will be a lot of mistakes along the way so by trial and error we will get there. But GST is the game changer which will change the investment cycle.

Given the current slowdown, how is the M&A scenario?

It is quite robust. On the sell side it is stressed asset pressure and for buy side or foreign investors India continues to be a bright spot and an opportunity. And on the domestic front on the buy side some industries are particularly seeing this as an opportunity to consolidate.

The recent corporate boardroom battles have again fuelled concerns about corporate governance in Indian firms and the role of independent directors. Being an advisor to many firms, how do you view this development?

I see a lot of changes in the corporate governance atmosphere in the country. Events of last few months have forced the conversation to move to another level. For instance, independent directors now are more conscious of their roles. The role of the promoter itself is also being examined. So I think we are moving to corporate governance version 2.0 and it is a good thing. Actually now we are seeing the practical application of things like the Companies Act 2013. There is also a renewed emphasis on family governance alongside corporate governance.

Resource: http://indianexpress.com/

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

How the Docomo Affair Widened the Bitter Rift Between Ratan Tata and Cyrus Mistry

New Delhi: Tussles within the Tata Group on how it should react to Japanese telecom giant NTT Docomo’s legal challenges helped widen a bitter rift between Cyrus Mistry and the Ratan Tata-headed Tata Trusts.

However, these differences of opinion stemmed not from Mistry acting alone or in a manner that reportedly clashed with the Tata Group’s high ethical standards. In fact, Ratan Tata and several other members of the Tata Trusts not only sat in on a handful of key meetings that decided the group’s legal strategy, but also allegedly pushed for decisions that were, ironically, even less in keeping with the Tata Group’s ‘ethos and culture’ than the line of action Mistry mooted.

According to documents attached to a new affidavit filed by the former Tata Group chairman, on crucial decisions – such as whether the Tata Group should unconditionally deposit the $1.17 billion with the Delhi High Court – Tata Trust members showed “extreme anxiety”.

On other issues associated with the Docomo imbroglio, such as whether the finance ministry could be persuaded into giving a FEMA exemption, Ratan Tata and colleagues may have taken “direct charge”.

After the London arbitration court ruled against the Tata Group in June 2016, documents show that Ratan Tata was also keen on “suing Docomo for defamation”.

The quick deterioration of the Tata Group and NTT Docomo’s business relationship over the last two years in general, and over the last year in particular, has gone onto become a highly contentious issue since Mistry’s sacking.

Several business newspapers – and indeed to a lesser extent, the Tata Group – have indicated through anonymous sources and cryptically worded press releases that the manner in which Mistry handled the Tata Docomo affair was one of the reasons why he was fired, behaving as he did in a manner that conflicted with the “culture and ethos” of the Tata Group.

These new documents, accessed by The Wire and detailed below, present another side to this picture.

Docomo fallout

What have Docomo and Tata Teleservices been fighting over the last two years? In 2009, the Japanese telecom giant invested roughly $2.6 billion in order to buy a 26.5% stake in Tata Teleservices (TTSL).

When the investment was made, the agreement had a “put option” — which meant that when NTT wanted to sell its stake, it had the right to sell it at either “fair value” or half the “acquisition price” (in this case, half of $2.6 billion). By 2014, five years after it made the investment, NTT had enough and said it wanted to exit TTSL, thus exercising its put option.

However, By 2014, the Reserve Bank of India had come out with a new set of rules that detailed that foreign companies (like NTT Docomo) could only exit investments “at valuations based on return on equity”. What did this mean? Put simply, it meant that Docomo would have to settle for far less than the $1.3 billion it believed it was owed.

The last year has seen both sides (mainly Docomo though) accuse the other of behaving less than honourably, with Docomo engaging in international arbitration. A month after the London court’s order came through, the Japanese side also headed to the Delhi high court, to have it declare that Tata must be forced to pay despite contravening RBI regulations.

While the last two months have seen some attempt at peace talks, developments will likely start moving quickly on Feburary 2, which is when the next hearing at the Delhi high court will take place.

The new documents filed by Mistry back up (to a certain extent) his initial assertions in November 2016, a week after he was sacked, that Ratan Tata and trustee N.A. Soonawala were kept in the loop with regard to how the Tata Group handled the Docomo affair. “At all times, Ratan Tata and Soonawala concurred and approved the course of action adopted by the Tatas and as advised by legal counsel,” Mistry’s office said in November.

How much of this is true, given that the Docomo dispute has dragged out over the last four years? The Wire breaks it down.

Were Ratan Tata and Soonawala kept informed of how Mistry was handling the Docomo dispute?

The oldest instance of the Tata Trust trustees being kept in the loop, that Mistry’s documents show, is on February 1, 2015. This is two months after a final round of conciliatory talks between the Tata Group and NTT failed and at least a year after the Tata Group pointed out that offshore Tata companies could not buy Docomo’s shares.

A harried email from Tata Group chief legal counsel Bharat Vasani sent on Sunday, February 1 (2015), talks about how the Tata Sons board still “doesn’t have full clarity on what should be the scope of  prior consultation process with the Trustees and what their expectations from us are”.

“Despite having two trust representatives on our Board,” Vasani’s email reads, “we had to withdraw two resolutions from the last EGM of Tata Sons”.

Vasani’s frustration is clear and to drive home his point, he reminds Mistry that the Tata Trustees have been informed of all major decisions taken by the Tata Sons board with regard to potentially touchy issues.

“As far as I know, we have been pre-consulting/informing them on all important issues like application for bank license, Docomo, Piaggio divestment, Telecom restructuring, major capital raising etc,” the email said (emphasis added).

While the Docomo affair came into mainstream attention in 2016, it was 2014 (the year before Vasani’s e-mail) that set into motion the eventual chain of events. In 2014, the RBI made its changes to FEMA regulations and in 2014 it was Docomo that staunchly rejected the need for central bank approval.

Jump forward one year. The next email that Mistry’s documents show us is on July 26, 2016, roughly a month after the London court of arbitration ruled against the Tata Group.

In an e-mail sent to Mistry and Tata veteran Ishaat Hussain, Vasani notes that as legal counsel while he was “carefully thinking” about the Tata Group’s legal strategy with regard to Docomo, much of the issue had been taken out of his hands.

“Unfortunately, with the Trustees directly taking charge of the matter and giving direct instructions to Darius and showing extreme anxiety to unconditionally deposit the money, my view became irrelevant,” Vasani’s email reads.

Darius Khambata’s frustration

Darius here refers to Darius Khambata, a trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and a lawyer who represented the Tatas in the Docomo litigation. Darius reportedly resigned shortly before Mistry sent in his resignation letter, saying that he “resigned due to increasing professional commitments”.

Darius’ resignation becomes important, as the rest of Vasani’s email shows. According to Vasani, Darius had “become increasingly fed up with multiple instructions” coming his way in the Docomo matter. Multiple instructions here likely refers to the orders given to him by Ratan Tata (and the Tata trustees) and Mistry (and the Tata Sons board).

“Darius told me last night over dinner that he is completely fed up with the multiple instructions to him in this matter and would like to have a joint meeting with all of us plus RNT [Ratan Tata] and NAS [N.A Soonawala] for the next steps after today’s hearing. He asked me how do I work in this kind of environment!!,” Vasani’s email reads.

Today’s hearing (July 26, 2016) refers to the exparte order that Docomo succeeded in getting from a London court, which sought to enforce the arbitration award granted in June 2016.

Ratan Tata wanted to sue

Most importantly, Mistry’s document include a summary brief prepared by AZB & Partners, a top corporate law firm, on July 30, 2016. This meeting, the brief shows, centred mainly around Tata Docomo legal strategy.

It was attended by Ratan Tata and Soonawala as well as top Tata Sons brass including Mistry, Vasani, chief operating officer Farokh Subedar, Mukund Rajan and Samir Oak. Counsel Darius Khambata also attended.

Much of this AZB brief has been redacted, including a crucial section entitled “Settlement Discussions”. Mistry’s team does leave unredacted one sentence in between as well as the final, concluding section.

The one sentence reads: “Mr Ratan Tata felt that since Docomo was clearly looking to tarnish the reputation of the group, we should explore the possibilities of suing Docomo for defamation”. This would suggest the argument that Mistry’s handling of the Docomo affair as not being “in the spirit of the Tata Group”, as one leading business daily put it, may be mistaken.

The final concluding section however states that two decisions were taken with regard to how the Tatas should approach the Docomo dispute. Firstly, Tata Sons would “file an application in London and Mr Khambata would review it”. And secondly, Tata Sons would file “for resisting the award in India”.

Both these developments ended up happening over the next few months.

To what extent were Ratan Tata and the Tata Trusts involved in TTSL’s operations?

The documents show two instances of the Tata Trust intervening in Tata Teleservices’ operations. The first was in June/July 2016, when Tata Sons needed to approve an investment proposal that would help the company bid for spectrum in the September auctions. The second, was with regard to the “acct closure” of Tata Teleservices Maharashtra (TTML) – in 2016, it was reported it may shut down CDMA operations in the 850 Mhz band.

An email from Subedar to Mistry on June 7, 2016 noted that Ratan Tata had disapproved of any investment proposal to be taken up at the Tata Sons board meeting.

“NAS had called this morning and alerted me that RNT had objected to any investment proposal for TTSL proposed to be taken at the bd [board] meeting. He asked me for the Note, which he offered to take to RNT and refresh the decisions at our last Fri [Friday] meeting, especially considering the acct closure of TTML,” Subedar’s email reads.

“In the evening, he [NAS] called back,” the email continues, “and mentioned that Mr RNT felt the note was not correctly captured and he redid the Note.”

“It does not mention re 800 spectrum as a fallback, which I again checked with him but he felt RNT did not mention. Incorporating the NAS note I have prepared the BD agenda note. If you agree, will send to the directors,” Subedar wrote.

A buyer for Docomo?

One of the initial allegations levelled by Japanese partner NTT was that the Tatas simply failed and perhaps didn’t try hard enough to find a buyer, both for Docomo’s stake as well as for the whole company.

The documents show that this is not the case. Two things perhaps held Mistry and Tata Sons back from doing so. In a letter to Soonawala in January 2016, Mistry gives him an analysis of all Tata Group companies.

In the section under TTSL, Mistry notes that while EBITA  has improved from 700 crores in 2014 to 2,400 crores in 2016, “the sustainability of this performance is questionable”. However, when Mistry did try to sell the telecom business in the past, the figure “was close to a negative equity value of 14,000 crores or more”.

“This would mean a write-down of at least 26,000 crores, besides the potential liability of 7,200 crores to Docomo,” Mistry wrote. To put this write-down in perspective, the current market cap of Tata Sons is around 1,74,000 crore ­– which means that the Docomo writedown would be a little over 10% of the overall’s market cap.

Despite this, in January 2016, Mistry confirms that Vodafone was an interested and active potential buyer. However, Vodafone felt that “the transaction is too complicated”. Other “less palatable” options would include a writedown of about Rs 35,000 crores.

Why did Vodafone think the acquisition would be too complex? Mistry lists a few reasons in a separate affidavit: “In TTSL, the ongoing litigation regarding 2G dual technology, delisting of TTML contingent liability of several thousand crores with respect to contracts entered into with Viom and outstanding litigation with Docomo would stand in the way of closing a deal with Docomo”.

Was the original deal between the Tatas and Docomo legitimate?

One of the more interesting details to come out of the documents that Mistry presented to the National Company Law Tribunal is that is that the controversial “put-option” was never disclosed to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board at the time of the deal in 2009.

This may have worked against both Tata Sons and Docmo. As Mistry notes, “the non-disclosure of the put option in the Docomo transaction has been interpreted by the Government of India as default on behalf of Docomo and Tata Sons”.

It is unclear whether in 2011, when Docomo subscribed to a rights issue worth Rs 800 crore, and insisted that these shares also come under the earlier protection clause, the put-option was disclosed to Indian authorities. Nevertheless, at the time, the RBI rules hadn’t been changed.

Resource: https://thewire.in

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

Eros Group to explore acquisition of distressed assets pan-India

Leading real estate group of Delhi NCR, Eros Group, which boasts of seven decades of legacy in real estate development, including hospitality developments in the region, will explore acquisition of distressed hotel assets pan-India in the next couple of years.  The Group owns five upscale hotel assets in the national capital region, including the newly opened Radisson Blu Faridabad.

Speaking to Hospitality Biz on the sidelines of the official opening of the Faridabad property, Akshay Sood, Director, Eros Group said that the group expects “interesting” times in the hospitality development in the next couple of years, and might explore picking up existing hotels or semi-built hotel assets or even Greenfield properties across India.  “We might pick up couple of such properties if we get them at the right price,” he said.  When asked about the probable destinations, Sood said that they are open to investment opportunities pan-India.

Eros Group opened the first five-star deluxe hotel in Faridabad, an industrial town adjoining Delhi, recently. Radisson Blu Faridabad has 124 rooms with spacious banqueting and conference facilities to cater to both corporate and social events.  

As far as brand partnerships are concerned, Sood said that they tie up with hotel management companies with “synergies” as well as experience and expertise in the market.  Eros Group owns Shangri-la Eros Hotel New Delhi, Eros Hotel Nehru Place New Delhi, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn, a twin hotel, in Mayur Vihar Delhi.

Resource: http://www.hospitalitybizindia.com/

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

Demonetisation impact: Note ban plays party pooper

Prime Minister's demonetisation drive has not only hit the opposition parties but also the star-studded party circuit in the Capital, with many hotels forced to cancel their New Year Eve events and celebrities jetting abroad for more moolah.

The hotels that have not cancelled their events will only feature in-house DJs instead of the usual entourage of Bollywood celebrities, leading dance troops and stand-up comedians, as most of the business is strictly cash-driven.

According to sources, no actor or international artist has been booked to perform in Delhi and NCR so far. The only big names confirmed so far is Punjabi singer and actor Diljit Dosanjh, who was recently seen in Udta Punjab. He will perform at a five star hotel in Gurugram.

Artists and event organisers said that all the leading stars are either performing abroad or they have chosen not to attend any party as most venues do not have the money to pay their rates. A source told MAILTODAY that an international rapper who will perform at a nightclub here had to cut his fee from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 6 lakh. Subir Malik, pianist with the band Parikrama, said, "Demonetisation has hit a lot of industries across the country, and business for musicians is down. It's impossible to make a new debit or credit card for everyone in such a short time." Malik said that 95% gigs have gone to DJs, not bands, because it's more expensive to hire a band.

He said that bands are also reducing their fee this year. "I'm telling everyone that they should go for whatever they get. For example if a band which usually charges 3.5 lakh per gig gets  Rs 2.5 lakh gig right now, I'd tell them to take it," he said.

A host of shows scheduled for New Year have also been cancelled at the eleventh hour after organisers failed to arrange the cash needed to pay vendors. "It is recession for party venues as they don't have money to pay to their vendors and to artists," said Yogesh Dixit of YS event. Sources said that nearly 80-90 per cent of the bookings were done in cash. 

"Table booking at nightclubs used to cost over a lakh for New Year parties, but they are down this year as most bookings were done by industrialists and builders in cash. Now they are avoiding such bookings," said a manager of a popular night club. Even the restaurants and bars at popular party places like Connaught place and Hauz Khass are feeling the heat of demonetization.

"Restaurants are trying to keep the package easy on the pocket this year," said hospitality sector veteran Umang Tewari. Some industry experts claim that demonetisation had very little impact on corporate and young tech savvy crowd. "Delhi is a different market as compared to Bangalore, which is mostly cash driven. This will set the right tone for the future forcing both organizers and party goers use digital money and bring more transparency," said leading hospitality consultant Pravesh Pandey.

Resource: http://www.businesstoday.in/

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

Britannia to reinvigorate Tiger brand, eyes breakfast and premium segments

New Delhi: Biscuit maker Britannia Industries Ltd’s research and development (R&D) team is looking at creating new categories in the premium segment while reinvigorating its mainstay Tiger brand of biscuits in the value segment.

The Bengaluru-based company, apart from exploring expansion in categories such as salty snacks and value-added dairy, is looking at entering the breakfast segment in its drive to evolve into a total foods company.

“The whole idea is going to be that how do we basically not substitute the housewife with a packaged breakfast but help her in delivering the kind of healthy, tasty, nutritious breakfast which is wholesome and also safe for the family,” said Britannia’s R&D and quality vice-president Sudhir Nema.

“You have to become the third hand for the housewife so that you are helping and supporting her in terms of getting the breakfast ready,” Nema added.

In the premium segment, evolved cakes and rusks with inclusions are in the launch pipeline. Britannia also plans to add products in the dairy segment under which it currently sells cheese, ghee, butter, milk and yogurt among other products.

Nema’s team is trying to balance the premium and value segments, while also competing with ITC Ltd, maker of Sunfeast biscuits, and Oreo cookie maker Mondelez International Inc. in the higher end, and Parle Products Pvt. Ltd in the lower end.

Premium products account for about 40-45% of Britannia’s product portfolio. Tiger contributes around 12% to the revenue.

“Value as a business we have ignored or haven’t done enough in many years actually. We want to really reinvigorate the Tiger portfolio in terms of the kind of product we have, the kind of experience which we deliver and how we can do each and every variant of Tiger (and yet keep the cost intact). So it’s about focusing on the core portfolio (Tiger) and then really innovating on the premium segment,” said Nema.

“Basic biscuits are available almost in all villages. An important carrier brand of growth in these markets is Tiger. Tiger Glucose and Tiger Creams are doing very well compared to the value brand market (which is stagnant or declining but Tiger cookies are not doing as well),” Motilal Oswal Securities Ltd said in a November report.

Britannia set up a 55,000-sq. ft R&D facility at Bidadi, on the outskirts of Bengaluru, at an investment of Rs200 crore in November. The facility is expected to boost innovation and become more cost-efficient at a time when the company faces tough competition from others.

Britannia’s second-quarter profit rose 5.84% to Rs234.03 crore from a year earlier and revenue increased 11.2% to Rs2,430.28 crore in the three months ended 30 September. It launched two new products in the second quarter—50-50 Mathri Masti and Good Day Chocochips.

“If you think about the consumers today, they are more aspirational. They want to experiment a lot more on premium, indulgent products. It’s not only in food, it’s (in) everything. And hence you’ll see a lot of activity happening in that segment, even from Britannia’s side,” said Nema.

“Premiumization caters to a profitable niche. The niche area is small and there is only that much that you can grow. If everyone starts to focus on premiumization, then there comes a point in time that the finite space becomes severely restricted and all the players are fighting in that opportunity pie,” said Ankur Bisen, senior vice-president at retail consulting firm Technopak Advisors.

The premium space does not account for more than 10% of the market no matter how the pie is sliced. Close to 70% of retail consumption in India is food and food-related but the branded penetration of food into this category is in single digits. The value segment is severely under penetrated and has got maximum opportunity but it is the least served by brands, Bisen added.

Resource: http://www.livemint.com/

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

Oppo grew 1578% on year to grab third spot with 9% smartphone market share in India: Canalys

NEW DELHI: Chinese handset maker Oppo grew 1578% on year in the fourth quarter of 2016 to reach third spot, grabbing 9% of the India’s overall smartphone market, according to data shared by Singapore-based research firm Canalys.

“Oppo was the best-performing vendor in the top five, shipping 2.6 million units, up from 150,000 a year ago, and a 150% increase from the previous quarter,” the agency said.

“Oppo’s intensive brand-building has paid off. In the past year, it has sponsored popular TV shows, T20 cricket and signed up local celebrities Hrithik Roshan and Sonam Kapoor to build popularity,” said Research Analyst Lucio Chen.

Beyond sponsorships, Oppo has also driven strong channel expansion activities, investing in channel marketing initiatives and securing vital shelf space with local mobile retailers. While this is a capital-intensive approach, the significance of building a brand in India cannot be underestimated, Chen added.

Second-placed Xiaomi’s focus on Indian expansion continued to pay off as it reached the 3.0-million-unit mark, growing by more than 230% year on year.

Lenovo shipped 2.6 million smartphones, a 14% on year decline in the quarter, as compared to 3 million smartphone shipments last year. Lenovo finished fourth, followed by Vivo, which shipped just over 2 million smart phones.

Samsung’s smartphone shipments declined to 6.2 million in the quarter from 7 million shipments in an year earlier period. The Korean major still leads the market with a 22% share.

In the quarter, Indian smart phone vendors were pushed out of the top five as Chinese vendors continued to grab market share with extremely price-competitive devices. Local vendors have also been hit hard by the Indian government’s decision to demonetize the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 (US$7.30 and US$14.65) banknotes.

“Local brands’ target customers typically buy in cash and from independent retailers. With the short-term liquidity crunch caused by demonetization, these retailers are suffering a slowdown in consumer spending. Local vendors are losing out as retailers look to shift their stock to fast-moving, current devices,” said Canalys Analyst Rushabh Doshi.

“In Q4 2015, Micromax, Intex and Lava took second, third and fifth place, accounting for almost 30% of the market. One year on and all three vendors have dropped out of the top five, with their collective share falling to around 11%,” Doshi added.

Resource: http://telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com/

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

Food court operator KWALS Group partners Delhi based investor Now Capital Group

One of the largest food court operators in India and operator of major food brands such as the upcoming American restaurant chain IHOP, the Kwals Group, has partnered with leading investment and advisory firm, Now Capital Group.

The idea is to increase the portfolio and scale of both companies.

In addition to the current capital infused by KWALS and Now Capital, the firms plan to infuse over Rs. 200 crores to execute their national expansion strategy through organic growth and acquisitions of key businesses. Now Capital has infused an undisclosed amount and will help KWals infuse that much amount  across all their businesses.

Kwals has most recently signed a multi-unit franchise deal with Dine Equity to launch IHOP restaurants in India, with the first store to be opened in Cyberhub Gurgaon in the coming months.

India is the 19th country for IHOP and furthers the plans of Kwals to expand their mark across formats and brands. IHOP –  International House of Pancakes – plans to win the market through its USP: eggless pancakes, bottomless tea/coffee and an indulgent all day dining menu. Late night menus and options are in the works as well.

Sahil Baweja and Ankit Gupta of Now Capital will join the advisory board of Kwals and help formulate investment strategy and expansion plans of the Kwals Group.  This will further solidify the team, which already boasts of prominent industry veterans including Sanjay Sachdeva (previously with the Devyani group) and Gaurav Bawa (previously with Nandos and Yum!).

Elaborating on the plans, Director, Now Capital, Sahil Baweja, commented, “As we continue to grow our F&B footprint, we are entering into strategic partnerships and investing across the spectrum from QSR to fine dining. We are immensely confident that ‘new segments’ such as American breakfast and all day dining will be the elusive growth drivers for the restaurant industry. Both the companies have a unified vision which is being powered through this strategic investment and on-going advisory.”

Director, Kwals Group, Sameer Lamba, sharing his vision commented, “We are excited about the partnership with Now Capital.The Now team brings immense domain expertise that complements our current team. Through this new commitment, we are looking forward to facilitate new ventures and expanding our footprint across the country through various new brands and formats, starting first with IHOP.”

Director, Now Capital, Ankit Gupta, further added, “In addition to infusing funds, we are working closely with the Kwals team to provide real estate advisory, financial structuring and developing the go to market strategy to ensure that each of Kwals’ ventures remains cash flow positive and meets expansion goals.”

In addition to Kwals, Now Foods – the F&B division of Now Capital – has equity positions in Carls Jr. India, Boombox Café India, Chai Thela, and franchises of Keventers. Upcoming projects include Blacktail, a luxury Polo Bar on Golf Course Road Gurgaon, a restaurant brand with Punjabi icon Gurdas Maan and a celebrity chef driven Indian restaurant.

Resource: http://www.indiaretailing.com/

Resource: http://grandiose.org.in/

Digital Agency Essence Strengthens Singapore Leadership with Senior Appointments

SINGAPORE, Jan. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Essence, a global digital agency, today announced the promotion of Singapore-based Kunal Guha and Vincent Niou to boost the agency's APAC growth plans.

Guha has been promoted to the newly-created position of Managing Director, Singapore. He was previously Client Partner and Head of Strategy for APAC at Essence. Guha joined the agency in 2014 as Strategy Director, and has since risen through the ranks, contributing towards Essence's overall growth story in APAC by establishing Essence Singapore as a hub to service its regional footprint, along with rapid expansions into Tokyo, Sydney and Delhi. In addition to leading the agency's Singapore presence, Guha will also manage Essence's Delhi operations, which launched in July 2016. He will continue to report to Kyoko Matsushita, CEO of Essence APAC.

Niou has taken on the role of Senior Programmatic and Partnerships Director, APAC and will be charged with leading and strengthening the programmatic and partnership practices in the region. He was previously Senior Planning Director. Niou joined Essence in 2011 and has worked across disciplines including media planning, investment and programmatic in New York, San Francisco and Shanghai, and has a unique understanding of client business requirements across these markets. Niou will report directly to Guha.

"Essence APAC continues to be on a tremendous growth trajectory. This has and continues to be an incredible journey for us and I am privileged to work with such a talented team. I am looking forward to helping shape the future direction of Essence's proposition in APAC, with our commitment to objectivity and data-driven solutions to solve our clients' toughest business challenges," says Guha.

"The APAC region is very dynamic and holds enormous potential. We have strong global principles that we can effectively tailor and apply to suit our varied market dynamics in the region. Equally, the uniqueness of APAC markets is paving new ways of forging deep partnerships to build the next wave of advanced programmatic solutions for our clients," says Niou.

"Essence is expanding rapidly in APAC and Singapore is a key part of our growth story. Kunal and Vincent have the aptitude and experience to enhance the strategic direction, growth and opportunity for Essence in the region," says Matsushita.

About Essence

Essence is a global digital agency that blends data science, objective media and captivating experiences to build valuable connections between brands and consumers. Clients include Google, Viber, method, Tesco Mobile and the Financial Times. The agency is more than 560 people strong, manages over $850MM in media spend and deploys campaigns in 71 markets via offices in Chicago, London, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Delhi and Tokyo.  Part of GroupM, Essence is majority owned by WPP, the world's leading communications services group.

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DIPP to fund, promote homegrown leather brands

NEW DELHI: Indian government is all set to give home grown leather brands like Woodland, Red Tape, Hidesign a marketing and promotional fillip to compete with Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Salvatore Ferragamo of the world through a new scheme. 

“We will provide funds and facilitate through other possible means to take these brands across the globe. There is no reason why India cannot produce the next big luxury leather brand and grow from simply being a contract manufacturer,” a senior government official said. 

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) is interacting with the private players in the sector to finalise the scheme. Brands would be able to access overseas markets through global exhibitions, trade fairs without having to set up their own individual offices abroad. 

“India should become an exporter of brands and not just of material in the leather sector… countries like China are pushing their brands. It is a collective effort of the government and private labels,” said Harkirat Singh, managing director, Woodland India. 

DIPP is also in talks with the global luxury brands to encourage them to set up manufacturing units in India. With one of the world’s largest stock of cattle, India gets access to abundant raw material for the industry. Leather is one of the focus sectors under the Make in India initiative with exports in the sector projected to grow at 25% per annum over the next five years. 

Resource: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/

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Fireside's Kanwaljit Singh, Mumbai Angels back Vahdam Teas

Vahdam Teas Pvt Ltd, a Delhi-based tea e-tailer, said on Wednesday it has raised funding from a clutch of angel investors to implement its expansion plans.

The firm has raised Rs 4.4 crore ($650,000) from early-stage investment firm Fireside Ventures' Kanwaljit Singh, Mumbai Angels and Singapore Angel Network.

The company will use the money for marketing, branding and product development. Part of the money will also be used to open a warehouse in the US.

“Even though we grow the finest teas here in India, the absence of a homegrown brand led to a massive dependence of the entire industry on foreign brands, who quickly move to teas from other regions as soon as local farmers increase their price,” said founder Bala Sarda, explaining the reason behind the launch of his venture.

Founded in 2015 by Bala Sarda, Vahdam Teas provides an online platform through which it ships Indian tea to customers globally. 

Sarda is an alumnus of Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies and had worked with organisations such as Youth 360 and b10Media in the past.

The company procures its teas from about 100 plantations across India and Nepal. It claims it vacuum-packs the tea within 24-48 hours of production and ships it within the next 24 hours to keep the products fresh. It exports to 76 countries.

Vahdam stocks over 100 varieties of tea based on the season and harvest region. Users can sign up for tea subscription and receive a pack of five different teas every month.

"Vahdam is showcasing the best of Indian teas to the world. This is a great business opportunity," said Kanwaljit Singh, who has previously led marketing for 10 years at Unilever’s tea brand Lipton.

Vahdam Teas competes with the likes of Bangalore- and Singapore-based tea exporter Teabox, which has received funding from Tata Group's Ratan Tata and Accel Partners among others.

A number of other tea startups in India have also raised funding over the past couple of years.  Delhi-based tea café operator Chaayos and Bangalore's Chai Point have previously attracted investors such as Fidelity’s proprietary investment arm, Eight Roads Ventures, and Tiger Global.

These new-age tea retail startups are aiming to change the way the popular beverage is consumed in India, the world's second-largest grower and biggest consumer of tea.

Chai Point, operated by Mountain Trail Foods Pvt Ltd, had raised $10 million led by Eight Roads Ventures in September 2015.

Chaayos, run by Sunshine Tea House Pvt. Ltd, had secured $5 million in its Series A round of investment led by Tiger Global in 2015.

In November last year, tea retail startup Chai Thela raised Rs 1.5 crore in seed funding from early-stage investment firm Quarizon.

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Deals Buzz: Daiichi Sankyo moves Delhi HC to prevent bid to divest stake in Fortis

Italy’s Luxottica and France’s Essilor have entered into a €46-billion merger deal to create a global powerhouse in the eyewear industry with revenues of more than €15 billion, they said in a statement on Monday.

The deal, one of Europe’s largest cross-border tie-ups, brings together Luxottica, the world’s top spectacles maker with brands such as Oakley and Ray Ban, with Essilor, the world’s leading manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses.

Under the terms of the merger, Luxottica’s 81-year old founder, Leonardo Del Vecchio, will take a stake of between 31 and 38% in the merged group through his family holding Delfin, becoming the biggest shareholder in the company. 

Italy’s Luxottica and France’s Essilor, two of the world’s largest firms in the eyewear market which on Monday agreed to a €46 billion merger, have a presence in India where the market was worth Rs22,674 crore in 2016, according to market researcher Euromonitor International. It is expected to grow to Rs34,131 crore by 2021.

At present, Essilor and Luxottica are the top two in terms of value market share in India. According to a September 2016 study by Euromonitor, Essilor had a 10.5% market share (value) in 2015, up from 8.2% in 2010. Luxottica had a 5.5% market share (value) in 2015 up from 4.6% in 2010, added the Euromonitor study.

After the merger, Essilor-Luxottica’s combined market share will be 16% with Carl Zeiss a distant second. The firm had a 4.6% share of the eyewear market in India in 2015. 

PE firms ChrysCapital, TA Associates eye to invest in Subway franchise platform

Private equity investor ChrysCapital and the US-based PE Fund TA Associates Management Lp are in separate discussions to invest in a proposed franchise platform of Subway restaurant chain in India, two people close to the development said. The discussions are at an advanced stage and the deal is likely to be closed by mid-February, said one of the people cited above.

About five operators of Subway’s Indian franchise - Subway Systems India Pvt. Ltd—plan to combine their businesses under a new platform and dilute about 30-35% stake in the new entity.

The proposed fund infusion will be used for further expansion, said the first person on condition of anonymity, adding 30-35% equity could change hands for Rs200-250 crore. Boutique investment bank Lodha Capital Markets Ltd Ramesh Pathania/Mint

Mumbai: Mint brings to you your daily dose of top deals reported by newsrooms across the country.

Luxottica and Essilor ink €46 billion merger deal to create eyewear giant

Italy’s Luxottica and France’s Essilor have entered into a €46-billion merger deal to create a global powerhouse in the eyewear industry with revenues of more than €15 billion, they said in a statement on Monday.

The deal, one of Europe’s largest cross-border tie-ups, brings together Luxottica, the world’s top spectacles maker with brands such as Oakley and Ray Ban, with Essilor, the world’s leading manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses.

Under the terms of the merger, Luxottica’s 81-year old founder, Leonardo Del Vecchio, will take a stake of between 31 and 38% in the merged group through his family holding Delfin, becoming the biggest shareholder in the company. Read more

Combined share of Essilor, Luxottica in India’s eyewear market may touch 16%

Italy’s Luxottica and France’s Essilor, two of the world’s largest firms in the eyewear market which on Monday agreed to a €46 billion merger, have a presence in India where the market was worth Rs22,674 crore in 2016, according to market researcher Euromonitor International. It is expected to grow to Rs34,131 crore by 2021.

At present, Essilor and Luxottica are the top two in terms of value market share in India. According to a September 2016 study by Euromonitor, Essilor had a 10.5% market share (value) in 2015, up from 8.2% in 2010. Luxottica had a 5.5% market share (value) in 2015 up from 4.6% in 2010, added the Euromonitor study.

After the merger, Essilor-Luxottica’s combined market share will be 16% with Carl Zeiss a distant second. The firm had a 4.6% share of the eyewear market in India in 2015. Read more

PE firms ChrysCapital, TA Associates eye to invest in Subway franchise platform

Private equity investor ChrysCapital and the US-based PE Fund TA Associates Management Lp are in separate discussions to invest in a proposed franchise platform of Subway restaurant chain in India, two people close to the development said. The discussions are at an advanced stage and the deal is likely to be closed by mid-February, said one of the people cited above.

About five operators of Subway’s Indian franchise - Subway Systems India Pvt. Ltd—plan to combine their businesses under a new platform and dilute about 30-35% stake in the new entity.

The proposed fund infusion will be used for further expansion, said the first person on condition of anonymity, adding 30-35% equity could change hands for Rs200-250 crore. Boutique investment bank Lodha Capital Markets Ltd is advising the operators on PE fundraising.

Fosun, VC fund Iron Pillar join hands for tech investments in India

Chinese conglomerate Fosun International Ltd has entered into a strategic partnership with Iron Pillar Capital Management Ltd, a venture capital fund focused on mid-stage technology investments, to target opportunities in India, two people aware of the matter said.

Iron Pillar, with a focus on mid-to-late stage technology investments, has already secured about $150 million to invest in the Indian start-up ecosystem, with significant commitments coming from China, while another $50 million is to come from the US over the next 3-4 months, said the person mentioned above.

Both Fosun and Iron Pillar have their own funds and separate limited partners. “It’s a win-win for both the parties,” said the second person close to the development, speaking on condition of anonymity. 

Vedanta Resources in talks to garner $1 billion to refinance debt

London-based metals and oil holding firm Vedanta Resources Plc on Monday approached investors to raise as much as $1 billion to refinance its debt, two people aware of the development said.

“They started the book running process on Monday. The company has around $1 billion worth of debt which is maturing in the next fiscal (FY18) and they are raising the bonds to refinance these repayment obligations,” one of the two people cited above said, requesting anonymity.

Vedanta has hired investment banks JP Morgan, Standard Chartered and other banks to manage the sale, he added. 

DFC Ergo raises Rs350 crore via NCDs to fund expansion plans

HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company , the non-life insurance joint venture between HDFC Ltd and ERGO International of Germany, has garnered Rs350 crore through Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs), to fund expansion plans, according to a report by Times of India.

This was done by way of the private placement of unsecured, subordinated, redeemable, NCDs of face value Rs10 lakh each.

The company has issued 10-year subordinated debt which carry a coupon rate of 7.6% p.a. the bonds which have been rated triple A, have been listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange with a call option at the end of 5 years.

In June, HDFC ERGO General Insurance announced to acquire L&T General Insurance Co. Ltd in an all-cash deal worth Rs.551 crore. Post-merger, HDFC ERGO has become the third largest private non-life company with a market share of 4.3%.

Byju’s acquires Bengaluru-based career guide Vidyartha

Education technology start-up Byju’s, owned by Think and Learn Pvt. Ltd, has agreed to acquire Bengaluru-based career guidance and academic profile builder Vidyartha for close to Rs50 crore, according to a report by The Times of India.

Vidyartha, founded in 2011 by Priya Mohan, an alumnus of Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad, and Navin Balan, a technology professional, started as a career guidance platform for students and later started academic profiling of students by partnering with schools.

Last month, Byju raised an undisclosed amount from World Bank arm International Finance Corp. (IFC), The latest round came close on the heels of Byju’s raising $50 million from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a personal fund set up by Facebook Inc. founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan, and existing investors Sequoia Capital, Belgian investment firm Sofina SA, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Times Internet Ltd.

Azim Premji picks a stake in ID Fresh Foods for $25 million

Premji Invest, the investment arm of Wipro billionaire Azim Premji, has invested $25 million (Rs170 crore) into Bengaluru-based food company ID Fresh Foods in lieu of a 25% stake, The Times of India reported.

ID Fresh Foods has popularised ready-to-cook products, including idly and dosa batter, chapatis and Malabar parotas. The deal has valued the company it at over $100 million.

School dropout Mustafa PC started selling dosa batter from a shop run by his cousins in 2006, that morphed into ID Fresh Foods in 2008.Two years ago, venture capital firm Helion Ventures had picked up a similar stake in the company for Rs 35 crore.

Muthoot Finance to mop up to Rs 1,400 crore through NCDs

Kochi-based Muthoot Finance is looking to raise up to Rs1,400 crore through a public issue of non-convertible debentures (NCDs). The NCDs will have face value of Rs1,000 each, aggregating to Rs 1,300 crore, and unsecured NCDs of Rs1,000 each aggregating to Rs100 crore, totalling up to Rs1,400 crore, it said in a release.

“The tranche issue is with a base issue size of Rs200 crore with an option to retain over-subscription up to shelf limit of Rs1,400 crore,” the company said. It will utilise the funds raised through this issue to lending activities of the company.

The company will offer 10 investment options for secured NCDs with monthly or annual interest payment or on maturity with effective yield ranging from 8.25 to 9.25 per cent for retail investors.

Milk Mantra gets funding from Neev Fund, existing investors

Milk Mantra Dairy Pvt. Ltd, an east India-focused dairy company, has an undisclosed amount in series-D funding led by Neev Fund, along with co-investment from existing investors Eight Roads Ventures and Aavishkaar.

Neev Fund is backed by country’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI).

Odisha-based Milk Mantra, whose products include milk, buttermilk, curd and milk shakes under the Milky Moo brand, is backed by Eight Roads Ventures (formerly Fidelity Growth Partners India).

In 2014, Milk Mantra raised series-C funding of Rs80 crore, led by Fidelity Growth Partners India and Aavishkaar India II Co. Ltd. The transaction provided an exit to angel investors and Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund. 

Daiichi Sankyo approaches Delhi HC to restrain Singh brother’s bid to sell stake in Fortis

Daiichi Sankyo has moved an application in Delhi High Court to block billionaire brothers Malvinder and Shivinder Singh from selling their holding in Fortis Healthcare Ltd, according to a report by The Economic Times.

Daiichi’s move comes as the Singh brothers are looking to rope in an investor in Fortis Healthcare and the Japanese firm claims the sale would dilute assets and hamper recovery of damages from the Singh brothers for the 2008 sale of Ranbaxy.

Last year, a Singapore tribunal had ordered the Singh brothers to pay the Japanese firm Rs 2,562-crore damages for concealing information regarding wrongdoing at Ranbaxy while selling it for $4.6 billion in 2008. The Singh brothers are contesting this arbitration award in Delhi HC.

Rishad Premji invests in pharmatech startup MUrgency

Wipro’s scion Rishad Premji has invested in US-based medical emergency response start-up MUrgency Inc in his personal capacity, according to a report by The Economic Times. While the financial details of the deal were not disclosed, sources quoted in the report estimate the investment to be under $100,000.

Earlier, Ratan Tata and Infosys cofounders Kris Gopalakrishnan and SD Shibulal through their investment venture Axilor had also invested in the startup.

The Silicon Valley-based startup currently operates in two regions and is planning a large scale expansion. In its current phase it is rolling out in NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata. It also plans to launch service in Mexico within this financial year.

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Chinese smartphone brands ride on Bollywood, cricket to grow market share

New Delhi: Chinese mobile phone brands have latched on to Bollywood and cricket to corner more than 50% share of the Indian handset market. While product launches and retail expansion contribute to these companies’ success, their aggressive advertising and tactful sponsorships of youth oriented properties have further fuelled their popularity.

Brands such as Oppo, Vivo and Gionee are spending heavily on above-the-line (ATL) marketing activities. Media buyers estimate their individual annual marketing budgets to be around Rs200 – 300 crore each. However, Gionee is expected to splurge Rs500 crore on marketing in 2017. Earlier this week it appointed Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador after bringing Alia Bhatt

The Chinese handsets makers have been pumping advertising money across television, print, outdoor and digital, targeting young consumers. “All these brands collectively spent close to Rs800-900 crore last year. I believe Vivo and Oppo will be increasing their budgets by at least 50% taking the overall spends to Rs1,300 - Rs1,400 crore this year. Apart from cricket and Bollywood, I foresee a number of brand associations with English entertainment shows as well as a chunk of their budget going into digital advertising,” said Basabdatta Chowdhury, national chief operating officer (COO), Starcom India, a Publicis Groupe-owned media buying firm.

Surely, the advertising blitzkrieg has been rewarding.

“This is the first time Chinese brands have together crossed 50% market share in smartphone segment resulting in Indian brands combined share to drop below 20%. This is from the peak of over 40% market share for Indian brands earlier this year. Indian brands failed to refresh their portfolios in mid segment and missed the market trend of growing ASP (average selling price) during festive sales. There will also be significant pressure on Samsung to protect its market share (which stands at 21%) from the onslaught of Chinese brands in 2017,” said Pavel Naiya, an analyst at Counterpoint Technology Market Research.

The Indian smartphone market crossed Rs80,000 crore mark by value in 2016, according to Counterpoint.

Besides celebrity ambassadors, a tactful combination of sponsorships of cricket and entertainment (music, movies and reality shows) properties has also enhanced the recall and visibility among the target consumers. Vivo, which targets consumers between 18 and 35 years, bagged Indian Premier League (IPL)’s sponsorship for two seasons—2016 and 2017. It has also tied up with music talent shows on Hindi general entertainment channels (GEC)s such as Zee and Sony.

“Vivo was one of the most recalled brands during IPL 2016. Our association helped us garner more customer engagement through various activities such as multiple city tours, setting up fan parks in 34 cities that do not host IPL matches, and gaming platform Vivo PowerPlay which allowed users to do real-time prediction were other such initiatives undertaken by us,” said Vivek Zhang, chief marketing officer, Vivo India.

Currently, the brand is present in more than 400 cities in 22 states with over 33,000 outlets across the country.

Meanwhile, Oppo has been associated with Colors’ reality show Bigg Boss Season 10 and Star World’s celebrity chat show Koffee with Karan. “All these have given us a great platform and an opportunity to connect with our audiences in the Indian market,” said Will Yang, brand director, Oppo India.

Gionee, which has clocked consolidated revenue Rs9,710 crore between 2013 and 2016, is a sponsor of IPL’s cricket team Kolkata Knight Riders and Pro Kabaddi League. Last year, it also sponsored Bollywood movies such as Dear Zindagi as well as the popular music festival Sunburn.

“Gionee will be establishing 500 brand stores in India along with doubling the strength of its retail representatives to 20, 000,” said Arvind Vohra, country chief executive and managing director, Gionee India.

Analysts believe that Chinese brands will continue to grow as they set new manufacturing units and expand retail presence. In 2017, it will be an uphill task for the Indian brands to compete with the Chinese brands, said Naiya. “If Indian brands have to grow at the expense of Chinese brands, then they will have to compete with an effective portfolio in the important Rs8,000—30,000 price segment where they are mostly absent,” he added.

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Woodlands-Based Franchise Foundry To Showcase 4 Brands at Industry Expo; CEO To Serve As Keynote Speaker

The Woodlands, TX (January 11, 2017) – Franchise Foundry, a multi-faceted, full service franchise development company based in The Woodlands, TX, has announced that it will be kicking off the New Year by showcasing four of its fastest growing brands at this month’s Franchise Expo South.

This highly anticipated event, which will be held from January 12-14 at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, TX, is one of the premier events of the year, covering the franchise industry for the southern United States and Central and South America and serves as the industry’s destination for prospective franchisees. Only the most exclusive franchises attend to showcase their brands to serious candidates.

Marking his third consecutive year at the conference, Franchise Foundry CEO Paul Segreto will be introducing its top Texas-based franchise companies that he says “represent the hottest retail and children’s segments in the fastest growth areas of the state.” These brands include: Over The Top Cake Supplies, Smart Drinks & Nutrition, American Robotics Academy, and Little Beakers Science Lab for Kids.

Over The Top Cake Supplies, which launched in 2016, has provided San Antonio residents with standard, professional cake supplies as well as decorating classes, birthday parties and the expertise of its talented staff. Always trying to keep its business innovative and in trend with what the customers want, the company has also expanded into children’s parties and camps, “girls’ night out” parties, bachelorette parties, birthday gatherings and more. Over The Top Cake Supplies started franchising in mid-2015 and already has four franchise locations.

Smart Drinks & Nutrition is a one-stop-shop that meets the nutritional needs of today’s busy on-the-go consumers. Available in smoothie or juice form, customers can stop into two convenient Houston area locations and order from a menu of delicious, nutritious options and know that they will always receive top quality meal replacement shakes or smoothies that are guaranteed fresh every time. A full line of nutrition products and supplements are also available.

American Robotics Academy is the only franchise to offer robotics based entirely in education and adheres to a strict curriculum. Each class taught through the American Robotics Academy has one goal: to teach students to understand "how things work" through hands on activities. It is currently one of the most popular after school programs in the region and the classes have become so well-received that they are the only ones of their kind to be taught in conjunction with The University of Houston, with the academy and its staff having conducted summer camps year after year for more than seven years.

Little Beakers Science Lab for Kids is also an education based franchise that is focused on offering science learning to children of all ages. With two convenient locations in the Greater Houston Area, Little Beakers is a unique concept that combines the fun of learning with hands-on experience inside a real science lab. This is the first time that Little Beakers Science Lab for Kids will be attending the Franchise Expo South.

“Each of these concepts has built a sustainable brand incubation and has experienced acceleration for quite some time,” said Segreto. “I look forward to introducing them to potential entrepreneurs.”

Segreto, who has 34 years of franchise experience and was recently named as the president of the Franchise Brokers Association, is not only presenting four of his most successful and innovative franchise concepts but he will also be serving as a keynote speaker on Friday, January 13during the “Web 2.0 & Social Media Symposium”.

Franchise Foundry is successful because it focuses exclusively on emerging franchise brands and its team has a unique set of capabilities that range from strategic planning and operations to franchise marketing and development. Franchise Foundry also oversees complete funnel management, lead generation, qualification, maturation, and sales compliance programs, making their business unique to the marketplace.

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International Franchise Association Names the Annual Convention Award Winners

Washington, DC  (RestaurantNews.com)  The International Franchise Association — the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising globally – has announced its 2016 Award Winners. The IFA’s 57th Annual Convention will take place Jan. 29 – Feb. 1, 2017 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. The Hall of Fame Award Winner Russ Frith, the Bonny LeVine Award Winner Rhoda Olsen, the Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner Gordon Logan and the Ronald E. Harrison Diversity Award Winner Ferenz Feher will all be presented with their awards during the General Sessions.

Attendees will be given the opportunity to meet the award winners in person at The Winner’s Circle during the Opening Reception, The Buzz, held on Sunday, January 29, 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. This event kicks off the Convention with food, drinks and live music and will be the first networking opportunity with all attendees at the convention. It’s a fun way to begin #IFA2017 and a time for participants to meet not only the award winners, but also colleagues and peers with whom they will be spending the duration of the convention.

“This year, we’ve assembled an exciting convention program and we are proud to be honoring all of these outstanding individuals who have contributed so much to the franchising community,” said IFA Chairman Aziz Hashim, managing partner of NRD Capital. “We are thrilled to be recognizing each of these award winners not only for the contributions they make to the IFA, but for the impact that they have made on their companies and customers which has driven the franchising model and established it for what it is today.”

The Hall of Fame Award Winner – Russ Frith

Russ Frith, CFE, former CEO of Lawn Doctor will be named to the IFA Hall of Fame, the Association’s highest honor. The Hall of Fame Award is the oldest and most prestigious award conferred by the IFA and is presented to an IFA member who exemplifies the best of franchising and has made significant contributions to the advancement of franchising and the franchising community. A formal presentation of this award will occur Monday, January 30.

Frith was hired by Lawn Doctor originally as a sales manager and was promoted in rapid succession to vice president and chief operating officer, elected to the board of directors and appointed CEO in 1983. His outstanding leadership is credited for the company’s ten-fold growth to nearly 500 units, making the company the largest lawn care franchisor in the country. During his tenure at Lawn Doctor, Frith has positioned the company as one of the most successful franchise companies in the United States. Frith’s long-term involvement in the IFA has made a tremendous impact on the role of the association and public perception of franchising. He has held multiple leadership positions and faithfully served on committees within the IFA.

The Bonny LeVine Award Winner – Rhoda Olsen

Rhoda Olsen, CEO of Great Clips, has been named the recipient of the 2016 Bonny LeVine Award. The Bonny LeVine award is given to a female franchisor or franchisee who is a role model and mentor for women through her business and professional accomplishments within franchising and beyond. The formal presentation will occur on Tuesday, January 31.

Olsen has been associated with Great Clips since 1984, initially as a consultant. In 1987, she became a full-time member of the Great Clips executive team as vice president of human resources and training. In February 2011, Olsen was promoted to chief executive officer of Great Clips. As president and CEO, Olsen has grown Great Clips from just over 1,000 salons in 1998 to over 4,000 salons in 2016.

Great Clips has always been a great supporter of the IFA and Olsen has consistently been involved with IFA events and programs. Olsen continues to exemplify the success of franchising and promote the industry in her professional and personal life.

The Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner – Gordon Logan

The International Franchise Association has named Gordon Logan, founder and CEO of Sport Clips as the 2016 IFA Entrepreneur or the Year. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award is given annually to a visionary who is willing to take risks and who possesses the management skills necessary to create a successful franchising business enterprise. A formal presentation of this award will occur Tuesday, January 31.

Before founding Sport Clips in 1993 and beginning to franchise the concept in 1995, Logan owned and operated salons throughout Texas as a franchisee of Command Performance. Logan realized early on that men and boys usually don’t relish getting a haircut, so he decided to place an emphasis on the experience. Logan was able to design a blueprint that would help Sport Clips experience rapid, yet controlled growth. Today, the brand operates more than 1,500 locations, and the number will exceed 1,600 by 2017. Sports Clips is the only hair care concept operating in all 50 states, plus five provinces in Canada. Logan gained many of his leadership skills during his time as an Aircraft Commander in the U.S. Air Force Leadership. Logan currently serves on the IFA Board; he is the immediate past Chairman and continues to serve on the IFA VetFran Committee, helping veterans to be employed by franchisors or to become a franchisee.

The Ronald E. Harrison Diversity Award Winner – Ferenz Feher

The International Franchise Association will present the IFA Ronald E. Harrison Diversity Award to Ferenz Feher on Wednesday, February 1. Feher is the founder and CEO of Feher & Feher, a consulting firm offering a range of specialized services to entrepreneurs, businesses and franchise networks. The Ronald Harrison award recognizes businesses and individuals who have made significant contributions to minorities in franchising either within their own franchise organization or within the franchise community.

Feher began his franchising journey over 25 years ago and after learning and understanding the unique business model, he became committed to making the model available to Mexico’s entire business community. In 2002, Feher decided to launch his consulting firm and remains committed to helping people of all backgrounds become successful in business growth and development. Through his firm, Feher is responsible for the development of over 850 franchise networks in Mexico. Feher has been a member of the IFA for nearly a decade and is a member of the Franchising in the Social Sector Task Force. He has served as the President of the Mexican Franchise Association. He has also served as Vice Secretary of the World Franchise Council, General Secretariat for the Iberoamerican Franchise Federation (FIAF) and as Chairman of the International Franchise Consultants Network (IFCN).

During #IFA2017, attendees will not only have access to these impactful award presentations but franchise educational sessions and several main stage keynote speakers who will focus on the foundation-building aspects of any franchise business – people, profit and performance. New York Times best-selling author of “The 4-Hour Workweek” and noted entrepreneur, Tim Ferriss, will speak at the Opening Session. Co-founders of Anytime Fitness, Dave Mortensen and Chuck Runyon, will share how they developed 3,500 franchised units and 36 company-owned locations in 50 states and 30 countries in 15 years. And, Marcus Buckingham, a respected New York Times best-selling author, will teach attendees how to harness excellence in their organization by empowering people to discover their personal strengths and find their edge at work.

Registration for IFA 2017 is currently open.  Please visit http://ifa2017-generalconvention.com for more information and to register for the convention.  To learn more, you also can follow us on Facebook.

About the International Franchise Association

Celebrating 56 years of excellence, education and advocacy, the International Franchise Association is the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. IFA works through its government relations and public policy, media relations and educational programs to protect, enhance and promote franchising and the more than 733,000 franchise establishments that support nearly 7.6 million direct jobs, $674.3 billion of economic output for the U.S. economy and 2.5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). IFA members include franchise companies in over 300 different business format categories, individual franchisees and companies that support the industry in marketing, law, technology and business development.

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