Cheil Worldwide SW Asia makes key appointments

Appoints team heads for activations, interactive and retail.

Cheil Worldwide SW Asia has roped in Vikas Khanna as head, activations; Rajesh Bhatia as head, interactive; and Manish Shukla as head of retail.

While Khanna comes from G2Rams, a WPP group company aligned with Grey Worldwide, where he was vice-president and branch head, Bhatia joins from Euro RSCG 4D, where he was president. Shukla was managing director at Retailscape.

Confirming the appointments, Alok Agrawal, COO, Cheil Worldwide SW Asia, says, "The story of our growth trajectory is already known. Nima's joining has tripled our creative strength. Now with Vikas, Rajesh and Manish on board, our leadership team has become even stronger. This enables us to further capitalise on the demands of the marketplace and take brand Cheil to even greater heights."

With over 17 years of experience, Bhatia has driven innovative digital and integrated marketing strategies for global brands such as Nokia, IBM, Max Life Insurance, Airtel, Reckitt Benckiser (Dettol, Harpic, Vanish, Veet, Mortein) and Unilever, among others.

Before Euro RSCG 4D, Bhatia has held senior level positions with Solutions Digitas, IDC and Onida across various digital and consumer marketing domains.

Khanna, meanwhile, comes with over 13 years of experience. Over the years, he has managed brands such as BlackBerry (RIM), Cisco, Audi, BMW, M3M, Genpact, Hyundai, GE, Canara HSBC, ITDC and HTC, among others.

Khanna has worked with George P Johnson, 360 Degrees, Magnum Nexus Private Limited and Showtime Events India in various capacities.

Shukla, on the other hand, brings with him a wide range of business expertise and experience in the area of retail marketing and management. Over the years, he has consulted to clients such as HUL Wall's ice cream, Danone International, Evian, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Bacardi Martini, Bharat Shell, Braun, Parker, Airtel, Shaw Wallace, Samsung, LG CDMA Phones and Barista Coffee Bars.

He moves in from Retailscape, which he set up in 1996. Earlier, he has worked with Lintas, JWT, Gillette and Coca-Cola India.