Leo Burnett launches experiential division

The division, Leo Burnett Experience, will be headed by Vandana Verma as EVP.

Leo Burnett Group has launched a specialist experiential division named Leo Burnett Experience. It will focus on rural marketing, activation, events and exhibitions across metros and 5,000 small towns and cities.

Vandana Verma has been named the EVP of Leo Burnett Experience. She will oversee operations from the Mumbai office and report to Saurabh Varma, group CEO.

About the new division, Verma says, "ROI is the biggest black hole in India's experiential industry. None of the existing agencies seem to effectively manage crisis and identify likely risks that affect ROI. At Leo Burnett Experience, we give foremost importance to foreseeing risks and managing real-time crisis to maximise the output for clients. Our revenue growth has been significant in the last 18 months. Going forward, we will build on this momentum and surpass the industry average growth of 25 per cent. We define our objectives clearly and develop strategies based on Human Kind's philosophy of building brands and changing human behaviour using creativity. As for the most exciting opportunity, it is the rural markets - where brands are increasingly demanding strategy-based experiential services - a big gap in the industry which we will address. These are surely exciting times at Leo Burnett Experience."

The group will offer a unique solution for brands and operate under its global philosophy of 'play, buy, share'. Leo Burnett Experience has a pan-India presence with a team of 40 professionals working on some iconic brands in the country, such as Dabur, Vodafone, Uninor, McDonald's, ITC Foods, OnePlus, Amazon, P&G, Fiat, Axis Bank, Ruchi Group and Bajaj Discover.

Apart from Verma, the leadership team of Leo Burnett Experience includes Nishith Sharma (national creative director), Ankit Grower (head of North and East), Pratik Maitra (head of South), Sandesh Shetty (head of national operations) and Kiran Dodiya (head of West).

Commenting on the occasion, Saurabh Varma, CEO, The Leo Burnett Group India, says, "One of our key Human Kind pillars is participation. It is my belief that the future is in creating experiential platforms. Our unique methodology gives Leo Burnett Experience a truly differentiated offering. Already it is the fastest growing part of our business. And our ambition is to add technology to create immersive experiences for consumers."