Concept acquires majority stake in Liqvd Asia

Arnab Mitra and Zubin Nalawalla, founding members of Liqvd Asia, along with their team of 28, will now be part of the Concept Group.

Concept Communication has acquired a majority stake in Liqvd Asia, an experiential digital marketing company. With this, the two founding members of Liqvd Asia - Arnab Mitra and Zubin Nalawalla, along with their team of 28 - will become an integrated part of the Concept Group driving the digital mandate in the country and some other selected markets of Asia.

As Asia's first experiential multicultural marketing entity, Liqvd Asia started operations in 2013. Its clients include Celkon Mobile, Axis Bank, Benetton, LifeCell, Lonely Planet, Sennheiser, Kalpataru, Glanbia plc and Adidas Originals. In just over a year and a half, LIQVD ASIA has already established itself as a strong contender in the Digital ideas space. The company is headquartered in Mumbai and has a presence in Singapore as well.

Commenting on the acquisition, Vivek Suchanti, chairman and managing director, Concept Communication, says, "This acquisition consolidates our position in the digital space. Arnab's expertise will help us create a bouquet of offerings to our clients across various Group entities. With the addition of Liqvd Asia, we are taking another step in helping our clients 'get digitally right'. We are delighted to welcome Arnab and his team to be an integral part of Concept Family."

Mitra has spent more than a decade in strategising and implementing digital strategies for multinational brands like Samsung, Research In Motion, Volkswagen, General Motors, Capgemini and Redbull. He has led his teams to winning several prestigious digital accolades.

Before starting up, Mitra worked as national director for Starcom Mediavest Group and prior to that he has worked with Havas Media, where he was heading the agency in South Asia.

Sharing his views on the merger, Mitra says, "We're excited about becoming a part of the Concept Group. Concept is recognized as a formidable brand in the country and Vivek has been one of most respected names in the Indian advertising and related services industry. With this merger we will soon emerge to be the leaders in providing digital experiential solutions in the country and region."

Concept Communication has been a name to reckon with in the financial communication space since its inception. Scarecrow Communications, led by Raghu Bhat, Manish Bhatt and Arunava Sengupta; ITSA Brand Innovations, led by Emmanuel Upputuru and Anirban Mozumdar; Enormous Brands LLP, led by Ashish Khazanchi and Ajay Verma and Brandnomics Consultancy, envisioned by Viren Razdan, are a part of the Concept Group. The Group also includes one of the country's leading public relations firms, Concept PR.