KPMG and T&L to prepare Goa Tourism Master Plan

The Department of Tourism, Government of Goa has announced the appointment of a consortium of KPMG Advisory Services Pvt. Ltd. and Tourism & Leisure Advisory Services Sl. (T&L) to prepare a 25-year tourism master plan for Goa. Mr. Dilip Parulekar, Tourism Minister, Govt. of Goa, said “We are expecting best-in-class output from this consultancy assignment. The focus is to create an implementable Master Plan rather than blindly copy tourism products and strategies from other locations, which might not work in Goa. To do this, a key activity is to get inputs from all stakeholders including the general public. This will ensure that the Master Plan adequately considers the impact on the Goan economy as well as focuses on preserving the social, environmental and cultural fabric of the state”. The plan is expected to lay down the framework for deciding which tourism products to focus on and identify the ‘right type of tourist’ for Goa. It will develop a vision for tourism in Goa over the short-term (5-year), medium-term (15-year) and long-term (25-year). This includes setting clear goals on elements such as number of tourists, average days spent and expenditure per tourist, contribution to Goa’ economy, job creation and entrepreneurship opportunities for Goans, and increasing environmentally sustainable tourism. A study of Goa’ tourist carrying capacity is proposed to provide guidance while quantifying the vision elements. The Tourism Master Plan will suggest changes to each element of the tourist value chain. This includes direct tourist products/activities such as hotels, events, car rental etc. and indirect tourist products/activities such as food suppliers, furniture, handicraft suppliers etc. The tourist value chain is critically dependent on infrastructure enablers such as water, power, waste, communication, health and safety and specific recommendations on each element will be made. Mr. Nikhil Desai, Director Tourism, Department of Tourism said, “Goa Tourism is going through exciting times. Our marketing and promotional activities are bearing fruit with significant growth being witnessed in both domestic and international tourist numbers. Our tourist product portfolio is evolving with several quality products and activities such as seaplane services and whitewater rafting being introduced. The Master Plan will set a framework for deciding which tourism products to focus on and recommend where in Goa to set them up. A key aim is to identify the ‘right type of tourist’ for Goa and develop a strategy to attract such tourists while ensuring sustainability.” Special emphasis will be placed on cultural, heritage, eco-tourism, hinterland, wellness, MICE, wedding and adventure tourism in the plan. The consultants will also develop a Tourism policy and institutional framework. The tourism policy will include framework for resource allocation, investment , incentives and initiatives. Inputs for the master plan will come from in-depth market survey of current and potential tourists, interactions with international and domestic tour operators, airlines and travel agents. A committee will be formed to monitor progress of the consultants on a regular basis. The time frame for drawing the plan is 38 weeks from the date of commencement and the consultants will be responsible for converting the master plan into executable projects. KPMG is one of the world’s largest professional advisory services firms and is present in 155 countries. T&L is an international consulting firm specialized in the tourism and leisure sector and is headquartered in Spain.

Wal-Mart launches B2B e-commerce platform

The e-commerce platform will provide a similar assortment of products and special items. Wal-Mart India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Wal-Mart Stores Inc of the US, on Tuesday launched its B2B e-commerce platform -www.bestpricewholesale.co.in -exclusively for members of Best Price Modern Wholesale (BPMW) stores in Hyderabad and Lucknow, providing them with an online shopping opportunity. As a virtual store, the e-commerce platform provides a similar assortment of products, as well as special items to its members. "This initiative is aimed at enhancing our members' shopping experience by integrating physical and digital store presence. It represents an additional channel for us to serve our members better and help them save money as it comes with the added convenience of ordering online, door-step delivery within 24 hours and several payment solutions," Wal-Mart India president and chief executive officer, Krish Iyer, stated in a press release. Prior to the launch, workshops with members were organised by the Wal-Mart India team in Hyderabad and Lucknow to generate awareness on this initiative and also to create better understanding about the website navigation, benefits and registration processes. Wal-Mart India's cash & carry business is a B2B format and hence only registered members of the BPMW stores in the two cities will be eligible to transact online.

TAM's new app to provide easy access to data

The mobile app has been launched on iOS, Android and Blackberry platforms. TAM Media Research, the television audience measurement cell servicing the industry for the last 15 years, has gone digital and launched a mobile app, "TAM India", across platforms. It aims to provide quick and easy access of weekly top line TAM data to its subscribers across advertisers, media agencies and TV Broadcasters categories. The app (available for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry users) is available for download on App Store, Google Play and Blackberry World. Subscribers can also get the download link by visiting TAM's website. The app will be updated every Thursday immediately after the regular release of TAM data to the industry. With this proactive measure, TAM Media Research becomes one of the first in the world to have thought of and executed such initiative for the industry. Says L V Krishnan, CEO, TAM Media Research, "We have fortified our service commitment to the industry with that of anytime, anywhere access to data and quicker decision-making for clients. I am especially excited about the different ways in which this mobile app will be of value to senior management." "TAM India" Mobile App will, on a weekly basis, provide a quick snapshot of different channel genres, markets and programmes. At any given point in time, this App will have data not only for the latest week, but also the preceding four weeks.

Milestone Brandcom creates ‘goal posts-cum-bus shelters’ for Fastrack

Amplifying its commitment to promote a sporting culture in the country, Fastrack, the apparel brand from Titanis has come up with an OOH campaign for the football World Cup. It has turned bus shelters into goal posts to announce the 25 per cent sale on football related clothing and accessories. Executed by Milestone Brandcom, the life-size goal posts-cum bus shelters stood out as the best place to get out of the rain as the monsoon descended on Bangalore, Pune and Mumbai. The agency installed seven goal posts in the three cities. This innovation is a part of a larger campaign that is running across 28 cities, where Fastrack has taken the OOH route to announce this offer. The overall campaign includes 800 sites across these cities which includes format such as billboards, bus shelters, and unipoles at key intersections and junctions. Nabendu Bhattacharyya, Founder and MD, Milestone Brandcom, says, "All brands have something to offer to football fans this World Cup. So our creative team also came out with relevant disruptive idea catering to the youth. The project was a real challenge, but passers-by just love our goal posts-cum-bus shelters and we have received a lot of positive feedback from all three cities."

Amul sponsors Team India at Commonwealth Games ’14

Amul recently announced its sponsorship of the Indian contingents to the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, Incheon, South Korea by signing a MoU with the Indian Olympic Association. The MoU was signed by Rajeev Mehta, Secretary General, IOA and R S Sodhi, Managing Director, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Amul) in a function graced by Rakesh Gupta, Joint Secretary and Anil Khanna, Treasurer, Indian Olympic Association. Amul has become the Official Sponsor of the Indian team in the category of Dairy products. Announcing Amul’s support for the Indian contingent to both these prestigious sporting events, Mr. R S Sodhi said that “Amul is committed to strengthening the support to sports in various forms and encourage young generation from all corners of the country to take up sports. I take great pleasure and pride in announcing our sponsorship of the Indian contingent to the XX Commonwealth Games and the XVII Asian Games.” Explaining the rationale of this association, he said that milk is nature’s original energy drink and plays a pivotal role in building the physical and mental strength of the athletes. Amul has embarked upon an “Eat Milk with Every Meal” campaign to highlight the importance of milk and dairy products like cheese, yogurt, butter, ghee, paneer etc. in the daily diet. India is the largest producer of milk in the world and Amul is not only India’s but Asia’s largest milk brand. Further, he said that this association and activities around it will help in engaging the kids and youth so that they can enjoy a healthy life. Lauding Amul’s support to the Indian Olympic contingent, Mr. Rajeev Mehta, Secretary General, IOA said “This support to the Indian sports will go a long way and further strengthen the bond between Amul and IOA and leave a longer lasting impact on the sports lovers and sports persons. Amul will launch a series of advertising campaigns for milk and various dairy products to promote this association in the coming months.“ The XX Commonwealth Games will be held at Glasgow, Scotland from July 23 to August 3 and the XVII Asian Games scheduled to be held at Incheon, South Korea from 19th Sept– 4th October, 2014.

Economic Times awards the best companies to work for

The Economic Times' annual property - ET Awards for Corporate Excellence, awarded India's best companies to work for in 2014. The ceremony, which took place at June 27 at Four Seasons in Mumbai, was executed by Fountainhead Entertainment. Speaking about the association with ET, Rahul Sharma, Associate Account Manager - Client Service, Fountainhead Entertainment, said: "We have been associated with ET for over 10 years and execute this property every year. We were briefed to conceptualize and execute the awards with some light entertainment. We developed an effective stage design for the venue sticking to ET's standard of elegance and simplicity." The event, attended by around 300 CEOs and HR Heads, started with a welcome address by Ravi Dhariwal (CEO, BCCL) followed by a speech by China Gorman (Global CEO, GPTW) and a keynote address by R. Gopalkrishnan (Executive Director, Tata Sons). The awards were then distributed to the top 50 companies. A standup act by Anubhav Pal and an HR vs HR panel discussion moderated by author Ravi Subramanian also took place. The event culminated with a photo session for all the winners. Explaining the setup and layout, Sharma said: "The setup consisted of a center LED wall with lycra panels on either sides and two edge-lit wings with backlit logo units providing prominence to the logo and depth to the set. Since the venue was not very wide, we complemented the venue layout by using the ultra slim K-Array Redline speakers." Gaurav Mandloi, Deputy Manager, The Economic Times, commented on Fountainhead's execution: "It was a seamless show with an extremely clean and elegant setup."