THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON, CELEBRATE WITH SIGNATURES

 THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON, CELEBRATE WITH SIGNATURES 

BY THE LEELA FROM THE LEELA PALACE CHENNAI

 Winter is here, bringing with it Christmas cheer to warm our hearts and souls. Enjoy the joyous fiesta with a delightful hamper filled with goodies from The Leela. Mark the culmination of this beautiful year and let us curate a beautiful note etched with an everlasting affair that leaves you with an unforgettable new year.

Lovingly handcrafted by our master pâtissiers, choose from an array of traditional goodies like barentazen, brunsli, chocolates, gingerbread,  plum pudding, dundee cake, macaroons, pies, tea and curate an indulgence hamper for your special ones.  Celebrate the most magical time of the year with our thoughtfully curated delicacies that are certain to fill your heart with the glow of this festive season.

Signatures by The Leela is available at The Leela Palace Chennai starting at INR 1500 + taxes

For more details, call: + 78248 13894 or email: festivity.chennaiatheleela.com

Delivery options available

Introducing Starbucks Season’s Gifting

Introducing Starbucks Season’s Gifting – This festive season add the Starbucks magic to your corporate gifting

Staying true to its stature of an unparalleled coffee house experience, Tata Starbucks has announced the launch of its all-new corporate gifting platform that provides consumers, employees, business partners and clients an array of customised options to celebrate festive gifting.

Embracing the joy and elation of a gifting experience, the Starbucks corporate gifting collection features a variety of its signature offerings ranging from merchandise, speciality coffee, chocolates, gift cards to delectable treats and desserts, each carefully curated to make corporate gifting a seamless experience. One can also customize gift hampers as per their requirement. This gifting collection is the perfect convergence of style, class and elegance.

Flipkart fosters a sustainable value chain to drive responsible

 Flipkart fosters a sustainable value chain to drive responsible
consumption during the Festive Season

Photo Release: Flipkart, India’s home grown e-commerce company is going plastic free for millions of packages along with deploying over 2000 electric vehicles in its delivery fleet prior to the festive season and the Big Billion Days. After successfully eliminating single-use plastic in its own supply chain in July this year, more than 75% of Flipkart’s seller fulfilled shipments are now being processed in sustainable packaging marking a 20x increase over July 2020 covering more than 70 facilities across India.

The increase in adoption rate is a significant outcome of the efforts of teams working with its seller partners, a transition path to gradually adopt sustainable packaging alternatives. The sustainable packaging alternatives were co-created with seller partners to customize designs catering to durability, size constraints and cost efficiency for different product categories.

These 2000 electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers have been deployed across 90 cities in India and will help deliver smiles this festive season sustainably. Earlier this year, the company had committed to deploy 25,000 EVs in its supply chain by 2030 towards its transition to 100% fleet electrification as part of its collaboration with The Climate Group's EV100 campaign.

Mahesh Pratap Singh, Head - Sustainability and Social Responsibility, Flipkart said, “Festive season is about creating progressive value for all stakeholders and we are proud to uphold our promise to our customers to bring them a sustainable festive season with each order. The Flipkart teams have come together to ensure our delivery executives are delivering to thousands of pincodes across 90 cities in more than 2000 electric vehicles, which is a proud moment for us in our journey towards 100% electrification of our last mile fleet. Some of these cities include Bengaluru, Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Waidhan, Hyderabad, Vidisha, Shajapur, Jhabua, Pune, Sonai, Mysore, Rampur and many more as we continue to build sustainability into every part of our work."

Dollar Industries Limited launches brand new TVC campaigns for

Dollar Industries Limited launches brand new TVC campaigns for the festive season

Dollar Industries Limited has always been the quintessence of peerless fashion in its segment. In its new avatar it has blazed a trail with a new campaign to promote its existing range of Dollar Bigboss and Dollar Missy. 

 

Post a meticulous brand architecture exercise led by LinConsult, the strategic consulting division of Mullen Lowe Lintas Group, the campaign developed by Lowe Lintas Kolkata reflects the brand’s alacrity to adapt to changing consumer trends and break existing stereotypes when it comes to fashion, both for men and women. The quirky and enigmatic campaign explores many aspects of self, audaciously embracing and proudly showcasing a collective individuality and shattering of the status quo. The campaign is a powerful celebration for those unconstrained by norms and definitions.

 

Vinod Kumar Gupta, Managing Director, Dollar Industries Limited, commented, “We have expanded the Bigboss portfolio to include not just innerwear but also athleisure, gym wear and casuals for men. With our decade long association with Akshay Kumar, our brand has witnessed a 3x times growth. Coming to Dollar Missy, for women, armed with an enviable range of womens wear, we felt it was time for us to break old-standing beliefs as well. Our festive collection consists of 102 colors to choose from. The leggings cater to various occasions and are a perfect fit for the women across various leagues of life.”

 

The Dollar Missy campaign film, featuring Bollywood star Chitrangada Singh contradicts the popular philosophy of women prolonging to dress up, the campaign showcases how Dollar Missy enables today’s Gen Y woman to get ready in a jiffy so that she may seamlessly juggle between her personal, official and social lives. Over the years Dollar Missy has been supporting women through their product, giving the feeling of total confidence and providing fit solutions for all shapes and sizes. 

 

The Dollar Bigboss commercial starring Akshay Kumar reveals the actor’s perfect clone effectively devised, failing in one final and most vital test. Unlike the Dollar Bigboss vest worn by Akshay, his clone’s vest gets easily ripped off portraying only the original brand can stand up to the test of advanced strength and durability. The brand focuses on delivering the very best in comfort by promising a great fit, premium fabrics and uncompromising quality.

 

Speaking on the idea behind the two campaigns, Janmenjoy Mohanty, Regional Creative Officer, Lowe Lintas said, “Fit Hai Boss as a tagline has always worked wonders for Dollar Bigboss and this time around we have used the phrase to develop a plot which is futuristic but at the same time it delivers a key message – Bigboss can’t be cloned. This imagery goes hand-in-hand with the newly created Dollar brand identity which speaks of the modern times, the science and innovation involved. Akshay is a brilliant actor who pulls off the film with flying colours. With regards to Missy, the concept was derived from the product itself. These easy-to-slip-on legwear are meant for a wide variety of occasions and uses and lends itself perfectly to the idea that today’s multi-tasking woman is game for #SpeedDressing.”

 

Both the commercials have been directed by the renowned Ad film maker, Shiven Surendranath. The campaign has been released on both electronic and online platforms. The advertising campaign will be featured and supported by digital, social media, high impact outdoor locations, print and TV. The new campaign marks the next chapter of the iconic Dollar story. The campaign portrays the authenticity and individuality that empowers the consumers focused on expressions of masculinity and femininity.

Mahindra logistics adds 10,000+ seasonal jobs

 Mahindra logistics adds 10,000+ seasonal jobs
ahead of festive season

 ~Actively employing from LGBTQ+ community, People with Disabilities and Armed Forces~

Mahindra Logistics Ltd. (MLL), one of India’s largest Third-Party Logistics (3PL) solution providers is likely to inject the much-needed cheer back into job openings ahead of the upcoming festive season. While MLL has already employed 10,100 people on a seasonal basis, a significant number of these employees will be retained in various operations. In addition to this, the company takes pride to add 40% staff to its third-party workforce during the pandemic.

Keeping true to its five-year roadmap, the company is actively employing differently abled persons, ex-servicemen from the armed forces and bridging the gender diversity gap by hiring more women from various backgrounds and experience. In FY21, MLL aims to hire over 500 persons with disabilities both on its rolls and the rolls of its business partners.

Gender diversity remains a challenge, specifically in the logistics sector. To bridge the gap, Mahindra Logistics is one of the sector leaders to initiate a special initiative called – ‘Udaan’ – a second careers (comeback) program and second career internship program for women at all levels, functions and divisions. The company has already started hiring women under Udaan program and the plan is to take this number to 50 by 2021. MLL has recently started hiring associates from transgender community at their warehouse in Bhiwandi, Maharashtra.

                                                                                   

Mr. Rampraveen Swaminathan, Managing Director and CEO, Mahindra Logistics Limited, said, “We encourage and value diversity amongst our employees, associates, business partners, customers and communities. It is therefore imperative to make MLL attractive for millennials, provide equal opportunity to women as well as persons with disabilities, recruit employees from diverse backgrounds like armed forces, and LGBTQIA workforce. We remain committed to our larger RISE purpose, by empowering these associates with skills which enables their long-term career development & employment” he adds.

MLL strongly believes that skill development is sacrosanct for a sustainable and independent workforce. In the last 2 years, the company has trained around 20,000 personnel (including drivers and warehouse operators) under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) scheme of the Government of India. 

Flipkart introduces ‘Launchpad’ internship program for

 Flipkart introduces ‘Launchpad’ internship program for
students in supply chain ahead of the festive season

• Students from tier-II cities and beyond will get an opportunity to work across key supply chain functions at Flipkart’s facilities across India 
• ‘Launchpad’ to help students gain critical skills in supply chain management and create an ecosystem of trained professionals for the e-commerce industry

Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace, has introduced an internship program for undergraduate students from tier-II cities and beyond to offer an opportunity to work in its state-of-the-art supply chain ahead of the festive season and the Big Billion Days. This 45-day paid ‘Launchpad’ Internship Programme is aimed at helping students gain critical skills in supply chain management and create an ecosystem of trained professionals for the e-commerce industry.

 Launchpad is designed to introduce students to work in Flipkart’s supply chain and help them understand the processes that form the backbone of e-commerce. The program has been designed to shape India’s future workforce in various essential supply chain roles, which will help in creating an ecosystem of well-qualified, well-trained, and skilled professionals in the long run.

 Flipkart is working with educational institutes across 21 locations including Binola (Haryana), Bhiwandi (Maharashtra), Uluberia and Dankuni (West Bengal) and Malur (Karnataka), Medchal (Telangana) and many more to identify meritorious students and engage the selected students at its fulfilment centres. The internship program rolled out during the upcoming festive season and in the run up to Flipkart’s The Big Billion Days will offer the students an insight into the heightened scale of e-commerce operations during the festive season.

 Upon joining, students will be trained in various aspects of supply chain management while following strict practices that prioritise their health and safety. This includes mandatory thermal screening before entering the facilities, maintaining social distancing while at work and use of the Aarogya Setu app at all times.

 Speaking about the programme, Amitesh Jha, Senior Vice-President, Flipkart, said, “Flipkart is always at the forefront of sharing knowledge and building an ecosystem of skilled workforce for the fast growing e-commerce industry in India. In this pursuit, we introduced Launchpad internship program last year to offer students hands-on experience of working in a state-of-the-art modern supply chain and inculcate necessary skills to succeed in this industry. As internships create a lot of excitement among young students as they set foot into the professional world, our carefully devised internship program works towards the overall development of the students. We are confident of providing an engaging and immersive working experience to our interns during the upcoming festive season, which will help generate more interest towards the supply chain.”

 Launched last year, the internship program saw the participation of over 2,000 students from across the country learn supply chain management during The Big Billion Days and is among the several initiatives introduced by Flipkart to bring together ecosystem partners. This exposure helps students build long-term resiliency and agility in their operations while upskilling them in this fast changing external scenario.

Bank of Baroda Offers Interest Rate

 Bank of Baroda Offers Interest Rate, Processing Fee Waivers for Home, Car loans in Festive Season

 Bank of Baroda, India’s premier and third largest public sector bank, has announced retail loan offers ahead of the festive season.

 

The offer will be applicable for Home Loan and Car Loan product, wherein the Bank is offering waiver of @0.25% in the existing applicable rates for Baroda Home Loans (Under take over cases only) and Baroda Car Loans across the board.

In addition, the Bank will also waiver processing fee. With this competitive pricing and waiver of processing fee, the prospective customers get an extra incentive to shift their existing home loan to Bank of Baroda and buyers of new cars can look forward to very attractive rates as well as speed of processing.

Said Shri. H.T. Solanki, Head and GM - Mortgages & Other Assets said, "With the introduction of these retail loan offers for this festive season, we intend to gift the existing loyal customers and also offer new to bank customers an attractive proposition for availing car loans or shifting their home loans who will be benefited from lower rates and waiver of processing fee on offer.”

 

Flipkart increases focus on

Flipkart increases focus on business customers ahead of festive season

Enables GST invoice capabilities for Offices & Institutions such as SOHO (Small Offices & Home Offices)
& SMBs (Small & Medium businesses)

Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace is strengthening its focus on business customers by now enabling customers to get their GSTIN on their invoices, thereby allowing them to claim input tax credit on their purchases. In a first of many initiatives towards enabling online commerce for businesses and enterprises; the capability to allow GSTIN on their invoices will help millions of business entities - to claim input tax credit on their business related purchases, saving up to 28% on their purchases.

The platform will service different types & sizes of organisations, that could belong to corporates, offices attached to facilities like manufacturing and warehousing, SOHOs, offices of CA organisations, clinics, law firms, consultancies and Institutes include service organisations like schools, colleges, hospitals, banks, salons amongst others.

The face of India’s office sector is evolving at a rapid pace. According to industry experts, over 50Mn businesses have a growing need for office equipment and infrastructure to serve their employee base. As a result the sector is likely to see YoY growth of 80% through e-commerce. The pandemic has further added pressure on O&Is to not only re-look at their office infrastructure and requirements but has also had an impact on their cash flows. Capabilities such as GST invoicing for office related purchases can further help these organisations save money and reallot resources appropriately. Flipkart has seen an average query of about 4000 per month from brands and O&I seeking such capabilities to support their businesses.

Business entities transacting on Flipkart can purchase stationery, Mobiles, TVs, office chairs, laptops, etc. while at the same time solve for their ad-hoc needs, have greater transparency, save time from market visits & broken supplier base. To avail GST input tax credit, businesses need to choose a product which has GST enabled sellers, add their GSTIN details during checkout & claim the GST invoice to claim the benefit.

Earlier in September 2020, Flipkart announced the launch of Flipkart Wholesale the digital B2B marketplace of India’s homegrown Flipkart Group showcasing its commitment to B2B businesses by offering a one-stop solution for the retail ecosystem which will offer Indian businesses a wide selection of products at significant value, powered by technology and with an aim to grow their business. Flipkart Wholesale is currently available for fashion retailers, especially footwear and apparel, in Gurugram, Delhi and Bengaluru, with plans to expand to other cities by the end of year 2020.

PepsiCo India and Airtel Partner to Offer

PepsiCo India and Airtel Partner to Offer Customers a Super Digital Experience This Festive Season

The on-going challenging times have impacted consumers’ lifestyle and behaviours – People are consuming more data and are spending more time with their families at home, leading to increased in-home consumption of food and beverage products

PepsiCo India today announced a special initiative with Airtel involving its most loved snack brands, and in the process also offering a special digital experience for all Airtel Prepaid customers. Ringing in the festive season, every customer would get upto 2 GB of Airtel Data with the purchase of LAY’S, Kurkure, Uncle Chipps and Doritos packs. Participating consumers can redeem the offer upto 3 times on every unique mobile number.

Data is most important today and people across generations are spending more hours indoors than ever before. Whether it is remote working, content streaming, gaming, e-learning or e-shopping, everyone is relying on data to stay connected.  For the quarter ended June 30^th 2020, average mobile data consumption per user on Airtel’s network increased to 16.3 GB, an increase of 40% over last year.    

Apart from the growing importance & consumption of data, the second insight that emerged during recent times is that in-home consumption is witnessing a significant uptake. As people continue to spend more time at home with their families, there is an increase in demand for snacks.

In line with this connection between the top two trends of today – data and in-home consumption - PepsiCo India and Airtel have joined hands to offer customers up to 1 GB free data with INR 10 pack and 2 GB free data with INR 20 pack of PepsiCo products including LAY’S, Kurkure, Uncle Chipps and Doritos. To avail the benefit, consumers can simply check the free data voucher code printed behind the snack pack and go to Airtel Thanks app - ‘My Coupons’ section and enter the voucher to claim the data offering. Once the user has availed their code, the data can be redeemed immediately or at a later date of convenience and requirement till January 31^st, 2021. Once redeemed, the data will remain available for three days in the customer’s Airtel account.

Shashwat Sharma, Chief Marketing Officer, Bharti Airtel said: “At Airtel, we are obsessed about offering our customers the best network experience. We are thrilled to partner with PepsiCo India to help all their customers experience our award winning 4G data services. This also gives us the opportunity to reward our loyal customers with complimentary data and unlock a world of digital experiences on Airtel Thanks when they buy their favourite packet of snack.”

Sharing his thoughts, Dilen Gandhi, Senior Director and Category Head – Foods, PepsiCo India, said, “The ‘new normal’ has catapulted everyone into a more digital world than ever before. At PepsiCo India, as part of our digital first approach, we follow evolving digital trends and develop matching strategies.  Our insights showed us that consumers are enjoying our products and seeking convenience while working and watching content at home. The partnership with Airtel is, therefore, a perfect fit that will further compliment the in-home experience of consumers. With festive season kicking in, the special initiative truly emphasizes the importance of staying connected with friends and family.”

The free data offer is available to all Airtel prepaid customers across India and will be a perfect combination for them to enjoy their favourite snack while accessing data at the same time.

Green Park Christmas Cake Mixing Ceremony Event

Green Park Christmas Cake Mixing Ceremony Event 

As the festive season approaches, the staff & management of Green Park, like every year would be celebrating the traditional fruit mixing ceremony at the Hotel Meadows lawns on the 17^th of November 2018.

Every year, the fruit mixing ceremony is held across Hotels as a mark of the festive season’s beginning. The stirring ceremony is part of an age-old Christmas tradition of cake mixing and one of making wishes for the New Year. The ingredients of the festive fruit cake are mixed with wine and liquor in advance so that the ingredients can develop aroma and taste. Originally a family affair, it is for many years celebrated within organizations to spread camaraderie and goodwill.

Speaking on the history of cake mixing ceremony, it dates back to 17th century in Europe. The ceremony marked the arrival of the harvest season. During this time, lots of fruits and nuts were harvested and used in the making of the traditional plum cake. This was saved till the next harvest, with the hope that it would bring yet another fruitful year. The sugar content of the liquor and fruit juices help preserve the ingredients. Also, for the cold "Christmassy weather", the plum cake is a perfect energy food.

We at the Green Park celebrate this day with our esteemed hotel guests, staff and special invitees from various walks of life, every year. This year we would have our guests join us for the event on the 17^th November (Saturday) at 4 pm. The event would start off with the staff doing a small march across the lobby in to the lawns along with the team of chefs. The guests would then join the team around a large table where the fruits are kept and pour decanted spirits & wines into the fruits. The mix would then be placed in large containers and left for about a month, before making the cakes

The Chefs of Green Park Hotel under the leadership of their Senior Executive Chef  V. S.  Thangappan take pleasure in conducting the event and the entire team of employees & the guests staying at the Hotel would be participating in this ceremonious event.  Mr Sudip Sengupta, Vice president, Green Pak Hotels would inaugurate the event.