MM Agrawal Group To Launch ‘Moonshot’, A Mega Omni-Channel Digital Platform To Power Brands

MM Agrawal Group (MMG), unrivalled leaders in distribution of global brands in India, is set to launch its mega Omni-channel tech platform, Moonshot. MMG, founded in 1964, is one of India’s leading, well-respected, and trusted conglomerates with deep domain knowledge and expertise in sectors such as food & beverages, hospitality, education, oil & gas, and many more. The soon to be launched platform, “Moonshot” will bring together the best-in-class technology & digital team to work closely together with an excellent distribution & marketing team. After being one of the biggest bottlers for Coca Cola and responsible for running McDonald’s in North and East, MMG is one of the most sought-after brand in the country, with a very deep understanding of the Indian consumer market, proven expertise in PAN-India distribution, marketing, and sourcing across all channels (offline, retail and online).

MMG is now primed to leverage its strengths to empower a wide spectrum of brands, SMBs and individual entrepreneurs operating in the competitive Indian consumption ecosystem. In its first phase, Moonshot will provide an omni channel distribution platform to brands in the Food & Beverages, Personal Care & Home care space giving them access to touchpoints in General trade, Modern trade and E-commerce covering all aspects of B2C, B2B, D2C and exponentially growing online marketplaces. In the next stage, Moonshot will make equity investments (both minority and majority) in emerging and promising brands, thus creating a house-of-brands under one roof.

Commenting on the launch of this pioneering digital platform, Anant Agarwal, Promoter Director, MM Agrawal Group (MMG), said, “India is a land of innovation and opportunities. Whether it is an international brand planning market entry or an emerging business expanding its reach to market, everyone is looking to scale up their business. Moonshot, backed by MMG’s strong legacy of more than 50 years, combined with deep domain knowledge and winning team will prove to be a winning formula for ambitious brands seeking to create successful operations. Moonshot is an industry-first omni[1]channel platform that will act as a trusted aid to these brands and enable them to soar through Indian consumer landscape effortlessly. With this web and app enabled platform our intent is to scale up local and new age brands/ products and give them an opportunity to truly take their products to the Moon.”

What You All Need To Know About Pandemic and Diabetes?

 

* Blood sugar control and good nutrition are essential factors for supporting people with diabetes

The coronavirus pandemic is unchartered territory and healthcare providers are learning more about the disease as they are simultaneously taking care of patients. What we do know is that those with underlying health conditions are more at risk for complications with COVID-19, and there may be some unique considerations for people with diabetes, specifically.

For example, diabetes and hyperglycemia, a condition in which blood sugar is high, are linked to less favorable outcomes in people who have tested positive for the virus. Helping people achieve good blood sugar control can help improve outcomes, and appropriate nutrition therapy can serve a key role in helping people with diabetes manage their condition, enhance glucose control and improve health outcomes.

Prevalence and Impact of Diabetes and the pandemic

India has the second-largest share of individuals living with diabetes in the world with one in 11 Indian adults managing the condition.1 Globally, people with diabetes have a 50% higher decease risk than those without.2

People with diabetes can be more vulnerable to viral infections because of their impaired immune response, and some viruses may thrive in an environment of elevated blood glucose. 

Nutrition’s Vital Role in Diabetes Management

Nutrition is a vital component to helping people manage their diabetes, achieve good blood sugar control, and improve health outcomes. Physicians caring for individuals with type 2 diabetes, including those infected with the virus, strive to keep blood sugar levels within normal ranges. For those who need nutritional support, diabetes-specific formulas (DSF), which are specifically designed for people with diabetes, can help blood sugar control. Diabetes-specific formulas provide key nutrients and health benefits such as:

slow-digested carbohydrates with a low glycemic index that can help minimize the effect on blood sugar levels

monounsaturated fatty acids that can replace saturated fats and support lipid levels such as cholesterol

prebiotics and dietary fiber that promote bowel health and improve cholesterol levels

High-quality protein and other nutrients for immune system support, including antioxidants (vitamins C, E, selenium), vitamin D, vitamin A and Zinc

Studies have shown that diabetes-specific formulas can result in improved health outcomes in people with diabetes. Consuming diabetes specific oral nutrition supplements, like Ensure Diabetes Care, can help manage blood glucose levels and support weight management in adults given its slow-release carbohydrate system.

Although there are still many unknowns with virus, what we currently know is that there are some unique considerations for people with diabetes that can put them at more risk for serious complications. Good nutrition is especially important for people living with diabetes, to help them manage their condition and improve their overall health outcomes.

Gift Your Loved One Vi Personalised Number And Curated Photobook To Make Your Valentine’s Day Memorable

It is that time of the year when people are gearing up to celebrate the festival of love on the special ‘Valentine’s Day’. And what better way to express your love with photo albums that take you down the memory lane and a customised sim card as a gift! Vi, leading telecom brand, is here to make your Valentine’s Day truly memorable with a special offer in association with Zoomin.

Gift your loved one a customised mobile number – be it birthday, anniversary date or any other special series with a Vi postpaid SIM and avail a customised photobook from Zoomin worth Rs 299 for free. Vi’s partnership with Zoomin allows you to select your best pictures and take your partner down a memory lane with a specially designed 20 page photobook. The offer is valid from 9th – 14th February, 2022.

To avail this, visit: https://www.myvi.in/new-connection/buy-postpaid-sim-connection-online?utm_source=Valentine   

-          Select Vi postpaid sim  - individual or family plan

-          Select VIP mobile number and place the order (SIM delivery with zero delivery cost)

-          Get the coupon code for your Zoomin photobook

-          Visit Zoomin website/App

-          Select your 20 Page 5.5" customizable Photobook worth Rs. 299

-          Add your favorite pictures and preview your photobook

-          Apply the given coupon and get your valentine gift delivered (delivery charge/taxes for photobook applicable)

For more details, visit:  https://www.myvi.in/new-connection/buy-postpaid-sim-connection-online?utm_source=Valentine  

About Vi:

Vodafone Idea Limited is an Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group partnership. It is India’s leading telecom service provider. The Company provides pan India Voice and Data services across 2G, 3G and 4G platform and has a 5G ready network. With the large spectrum portfolio to support the growing demand for data and voice, the company is committed to deliver delightful customer experiences and contribute towards creating a truly ‘Digital India’ by enabling millions of citizens to connect and build a better tomorrow. The Company is developing infrastructure to introduce newer and smarter technologies, making both retail and enterprise customers future ready with innovative offerings, conveniently accessible through an ecosystem of digital channels as well as extensive on-ground presence. The Company is listed on National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in India. The company offers products and services to its customers in India under the TM Brand name “Vi”. For more information, please visit: www.MyVi.in and www.vodafoneidea.com

Spinny Acquires AI-Powered Car Connectivity Solutions’ Startup, Scouto

* The deal adds another technology solution in Spinny’s capabilities to serve unparalleled car ownership experience in the county

Pre-owned car retailing platform Spinny has acquired a 100% stake in AI-powered Connected Car startup Scouto. The deal will mark one of the first consolidations in the AI-powered used car solutions segment where Spinny is gunning big to emerge as the market leader.

Founded by ex-racecar driver Akshay Gupta (CEO) & Shubham Sharma (CTO), Scouto has built an end-to-end Connected Car technology suite that provides detailed intelligence on car's health & performance, connects the vehicle owner to automotive service providers (e.g., insurers, Fast Tag players etc.) and improves the overall car ownership experience significantly. The company is focused on the consumer car industry and caters to the various start-ups in the Automotive Aftermarket & used car space in India. In FY22, Scouto clocked approx INR 5 crores in revenue.      

The Ahmedabad based startup was backed by DevX Venture Fund, iCreate & Bhuva Family Office before being acquired by Accel,Tiger Global & Elevation Capital backed Spinny.

Niraj Singh, Founder & CEO of Spinny said “as part of the acquisition, Scouto’s founders will become an integral part of Spinny & help build and drive our connected car offerings forward. We are very excited about the integration & the synergies of Scouto with Spinny. By augmenting each other’s capabilities, we can accelerate towards building the country’s largest and the most trusted used car brand”

Scouto has built the entire technology-stack in-house and boasts of industry-beating hardware & software capabilities. The company believes that by building the entire technology ground-up with an integrated, Make-in-India approach, every vehicle in India can be transformed into a smart and connected vehicle.

“We absolutely love what we do & have been working with the Spinny team for a very long time. We admire Niraj’s vision of building with a highly customer centric approach. The more we worked together, the more we realized that the synergies are plentiful and hence decided to join hands. It is Day 1 for us at Scouto again, and our goal is to ensure that every car in India is connected. We will accomplish our goals with Spinny and continue to design, build, and innovate new technologies that provide an unparalleled customer experience”, says Akshay Gupta

In December 2021, Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar partnered with Spinny as a strategic investor and a lead brand ambassador. Sports icon, PV Sindhu, a believer and a customer of Spinny who would also be a part of a series of marketing initiatives focused on realizing the aspirations of a billion car dreams.

About Spinny

Founded in 2015, Spinny is a used car retailing platform that aims to bring about transparency and convenience in the car buying and selling process in India. Spinny operates across the entire value chain of pre-owned cars, embedding superior technology and processes to deliver a premium experience to customers. As a testimony of Spinny's commitment to transparency and quality, every car on the Spinny platform comes with a 200-point inspection checklist, 5-day no questions asked money-back guarantee and 1-year after-sales warranty. Currently, Spinny has 36 car hubs & operational in 22 cities - Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Indore, and Coimbatore.

For more information visit: https://www.spinny.com/

Defy - India’s First Social Crypto Exchange Club Launches Baskets

* Enables investors to diversify their portfolio with the help of crypto experts

To make investing easier, India’s first social crypto exchange club Defy has introduced Baskets. With the help of Baskets one can diversify their portfolio while keeping a track of what experts are investing in. Baskets consist of a set of coins based on a theme and curated by experts who strongly believe in those coins, themes, and investment strategies. Some of the theme-based Baskets that have been made available are Blue-chip basket, Metaverse basket, Gaming basket, Defi basket, NFT basket, and Altcoins basket.

Investing in crypto is confusing and to an extent daunting and those are the issues Baskets is looking to resolve. Since its inception, crypto has been home to much volatility and the number of budding coins since then has not made things any easier.

From the Cofounder/CEO, Bhagaban Behera, on the release of Baskets:

“Crypto is increasingly getting complex and crypto investors need to continuously keep themselves updated. Defy Baskets will help crypto investors invest quickly and smartly by enabling access to themes, ideas and strategies crafted by experts instead of just investing in individual coins. This will also help investors diversify their portfolio and learn to predict trends by observing experts.”

The Baskets on Defy have been created by leading professionals, researchers and industry experts who have a deep understanding and knowledge of the movements in the crypto market. 

Baskets enable investors to diversify their portfolio thus reducing the risk that each coin carries, and maximizing the returns for their portfolio. One can also create their own Baskets, have discussions with friends and even invite them to invest in Baskets that the investor and their friends are passionate about.

You, as an investor, can explore the entire range of Baskets, learn about the people investing in them and make informed, independent decisions. You can leverage the knowledge and expertise that other crypto investors carry so that you can grow your investments together.

HDFC ERGO Partners With Visa To Partner Banks And Platinum Cardholders From Fraud

 HDFC ERGO General Insurance, India's leading private sector general insurance company in the private sector, announced its first-of-its-kind partnership with Visa, the global leader in digital payments to offer curated insurance covers for Visa’s Platinum cardholders for select Public Sector banks.

The usage of cards as a form of payment has witnessed an increase and seen tremendous acceptance as a preferred mode of payment during the pandemic. Banks, the issuers of cards, are at the forefront of driving usage by creating a network of merchants accepting cards and providing discounts and offers to incentivize increased spend. However, card usage often gives rise to concerns around payment safety and potential unauthorized/fraudulent transactions in the minds of consumers. RBI has mandated banks to offer Zero Liability to cardholders for frauds reported. Through this association with Visa, HFDC ERGO aims to insure the risk of fraudulent transactions and enable the issuing banks to offer Zero Liability to their cardholders.

Speaking about the partnership Mr. Sanjay Kaw, President – Commercial Business, HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company said, "This policy is applicable for Visa’s Platinum cardholders and will provide security to Visa’s partner banks. This in turn will give the card users peace of mind while performing any transaction. We are glad to have partnered with Visa to offer yet another first-of-its-kind cover to its consumers.  According to RBI, fraudsters siphoned off ?615.39 crore in more than 1.17 lakh cases of credit and debit card frauds over 10 years”

“India has seen a rapidly increasing number of new consumers use their cards for digital payments in the past year and Visa is committed to providing them a secure payment experience. We are delighted to partner with HDFC ERGO to offer a complimentary fraud insurance cover for our Platinum Debit & Credit cardholders across participating issuers. The proposition is aimed at addressing consumer concerns around making payments with cards and ensures that our cardholders remain protected in the unlikely event of card fraud,” said Sujai Raina, Head – Business Development, India, Visa.

The policy will offer all Visa Platinum Credit & Debit Cards of participating issuers with fraud insurance cover for an amount up to ? 1 lac. For this program, Visa is the master policyholder and the insurance coverage is provided by HDFC ERGO General Insurance Co Ltd., complimentary to Visa Platinum cardholders of participating banks.

About HDFC ERGO:

HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company is a joint venture between HDFC Ltd. and ERGO International AG; the primary insurance entity of the Munich RE Group of Germany. HDFC ERGO is one of India’s largest non-life insurance company in the private sector. A digital-first company, transforming in to an AI-first company, HDFC ERGO is a leader in implementing technology to offer consumers the best-in-class service experience. The company has created a stream of innovative & new products as well as services using technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Natural Processing Language (NLP), & Robotics. HDFC ERGO offers a range of general insurance products and has a completely digital sales process with ~93% of retail policies issued digitally. The self-help tech platform developed by HDFC ERGO has empowered the customers to avail 58% of the services virtually in a self-help mode on a 24x7 basis with ~40% of the customer requested services digitally.

The Company offers a complete range of General Insurance products including Health, Motor, Home, Agriculture, Travel, Credit, Cyber and Personal Accident in the retail space along with Property, Marine, Engineering, Marine Cargo, Group Health and Liability Insurance in the corporate space. Be it unique insurance products, integrated customer service models, top-in-class claim processes or a host of technologically innovative solutions, HDFC ERGO has been able to delight its customers at every touch-point and milestone to ensure consumers are serviced in real time.

About Visa:

Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at Visa.com.

Seagram’s Royal Stag Proudly Sponsors The West Indies Cricket Team For Their Tour Of India During 2022

Seagram’s Royal Stag is proud to announce its collaboration as Official Sponsor of the West Indies cricket team for the ongoing tour to India. Team West Indies is synonymous with performance that is enhanced by natural Caribbean flamboyance, and this style fits in perfectly with the Royal Stag brand philosophy – “It’s your life. Live it large.” True to its iconic status and love for the ‘gentleman’s game’, Royal Stag is all set to root for these cricketing titans who are loved by cricket aficionados across India.

Cricket has always been central to Royal Stag’s brand communication. Over the years, the brand’s continuous association with the world’s top cricketers and teams has bolstered its engagement with cricket lovers across the country. This year, Royal Stag raises a toast to the game by associating with a team that plays with heart and passion, and celebrates its successes with style, panache, and exuberance – a perfect alignment with the brand core.

Speaking on the sponsorship, Kartik Mohindra, CMO, Pernod Ricard India, said “For a whole generation of cricket fans, West Indies embodied the perfect blend of unmatched talent, positive attitude and unparalleled flair. In the last decade, the team has rediscovered that unique spirit and has players who have helped the Caribbean win two T20 World Cups. Royal Stag has over the years celebrated all these qualities, which makes this association even more special. What's more, several players in this squad are adored in India because of their remarkable game-changing performances in T20 cricket. Royal Stag has been synonymous with the excitement and pulsating action of limited overs cricket for almost two decades now. By becoming the official sponsor of the West Indies for the ongoing series, we continue our association with the magic of the sport.”

Dominic Warne, Cricket West Indies Commercial Director, said: “We are really pleased to develop this new partnership with Royal Stag in India with our exciting West Indies Men’s team. Fans in India and around the world have always had a great love and following for the West Indies teams and players.  In a busy year of intense cricket with India due to the Caribbean tour later in 2022, we’re excited about this association with an action-packed ODI and T20I Series ahead of us.“

ABOUT ROYAL STAG:

Seagram’s Royal Stag is the flagship brand of Pernod Ricard India. Royal Stag has been a consistent star since launch, and a brand quite often credited to have changed the rules of the game. It is for the young, confident, progressive, and inspiring individual who embodies self-belief. The brand has been inspiring the youth of India through its communication around the philosophy of “It’s your life. Live it large”.

ABOUT PERNOD RICARD INDIA

Pernod Ricard India (P) Ltd. is a fully owned subsidiary of Pernod Ricard SA and is a fast-growing multinational alcohol beverage company delivering quality products to its consumers across the country. With leading brands in each category, Pernod Ricard holds one of the most dynamic and premium portfolios in the industry led by Seagram’s whiskies such as Royal Stag, Royal Stag Barrel Select, Blenders Pride, Blenders Pride Reserve Collection, Imperial Blue, 100 Pipers and a wide range of International premium brands that include Chivas Regal, Ballantine’s, The Glenlivet, Royal Salute and Jameson Irish whiskey. Some of the eminent brands in white spirits category include ABSOLUT vodka, Jacob’s Creek and Campo Viejo wines, Martell cognac, Beefeater and Monkey 47 gin, Kahlúa and Malibu liqueurs, Mumm and Perrier-Jouët champagne. Pernod Ricard India is recognized as an industry leader with various recognitions and achievements that help the company deliver quality products to the consumers. Seagram’s whiskies are exported to 26 countries across the world. Pernod Ricard India is a socially responsible organization with a strong belief to strengthen corporate citizen by addressing social, economic and environment sustainability in all key states.