Spatial Access launches new logo, SBUs; brings aboard new investor

The company's three new SBUs are the media and analytics vertical, headed by Nikhil Rangnekar; the marketing services vertical, headed by Geetanjali Bhattacharji; and the media and international vertical, headed by Harsha Joshi.

On the occasion of its eighth birthday, Spatial Access, the first Indian transnational in the audit and advisory space, made three important announcements. Firstly, the company has brought on board a new investor; secondly, it has rolled out a new corporate identity and logo; and thirdly, it has structured its services into three well-defined SBUs.

The new investor, who has recently picked up a significant stake in the company, is Pavan Sukhdev, former investment banker, Deutsch Bank. So far, the two primary investors in the business have been majority shareholder Meenakshi Madhvani, founder and chairperson, Spatial Access; and her technology partner, Prof. Claudio Conti, who owned almost 25 per cent of the company. Additionally, key senior members of the management staff also own stakes in the company.

Since Conti chose to disinvest and cash out, he sold part of his equity to Sukhdev. So, while Madhvani continues to be the largest shareholder in the company, Conti's 25 per cent is now split between Conti and Sukhdev such that each has a sizable stake.

Addressing this development, Madhvani tells afaqs! that Sukhdev has come on board as a 'strategic investor'. "Being a highly regarded former investment banker, Sukhdev will now help us unlock the value that we have created. It is very easy for people like us to build a business and very difficult to actually manage money markets and finances, and unlock value," she says.

It may be noted that as part of the next phase of operations, Spatial Access has launched its services in Indonesia and Thailand, and plans to expand to other markets soon.

Spatial Access' three new SBUs

The company has now organised its services into three distinct business verticals, each managed by a separate chief executive officer. These three new SBUs are the media and analytics vertical (aka SA1), headed by Nikhil Rangnekar; the marketing services vertical (aka SA2), headed by Geetanjali Bhattacharji; and the media and international vertical (aka SA3), headed by Harsha Joshi.

Each of these verticals is represented by a separate colour - the media and analytics division has a dash of blue in its logo as this stands for 'the ocean of knowledge', from where life began. It reflects the company's origins in the media audit space.

The marketing services SBU is represented by a dollop of green as it symbolises the fertile ground of marketing services, an expanding landscape of consumer engagement and freshly-harvested ideas for business growth.

The media and international vertical has a splash of orange that stands for the rising sun and represents the company's ability to migrate concepts across geographies.

New Corporate Identity

The third announcement was regarding Spatial Access' new corporate identity and company logo. Miles away from its previous logo - two arrows, one black and one maroon - the new logo hinges on a more circular form. A combination of black and grey, the fluid logo gives the impression of a ripple effect. It has a spot of bright red right at the centre, sort of like the eye of the storm. The philosophy behind this logo is that the energy that originates from its heart (the red spot) and expands outwards (the grey-black circles around the red dot) captures the company's new energy and ever-widening sphere of influence.

"The seed may grow into a tree, but the DNA does not change," Madhvani explains, "The knowledge that we've gathered over the years forms the dynamic layers of this new logo."

The layers in the logo build the domain halo effect, thus establishing the multi-dimensional perspectives of the company in shades of grey that are meant to depict the company's neutrality. The words 'Audit. Advisory. Analytics' are poised under this new logo. In combination, the image and text comprise the company's new corporate identity.