Mktg - Nalli Silks business moves to McCann

McCann Erickson Bangalore has been awarded the creative duties for Nalli Silks. The agency acquired the business after going through a two stage pitch process. Other shortlisted agencies in the pitch process were JWT Chennai, TBWA India Chennai and Dentsu Chennai. O&M was the incumbent agency and it had worked with the brand for the past decade. The size of the business is estimated to be Rs 12-15 crore.

Nalli Silks is also reviewing its media duties, which have been with Media Edge so far. The brand has now decided to get a new media agency on board and two prominent names are being considered for the portfolio.
Poorna Govindaswamy, brand manager, Nalli Silks, tells afaqs!, "People head to Nalli if they have to buy a wedding sari, but they go elsewhere to buy a sari for the reception. We want to change that perception and that is why we have come up with the concept of Nalli Next. Now, people will be able to buy saris for all occasions, such as cocktail saris, casual wear, and for corporate meetings, from our store."

Govindaswamy adds, "We will have a 360 degree communication. For the past year, we haven't done much as we were channelling our thoughts for the new venture."

afaqs! spoke to Prasoon Joshi, executive chairman, India, and regional executive creative director, Asia Pacific, McCann Erickson, who confirmed the development. He says, "Nalli Silks is a respected brand and we are lucky that we’ve got an opportunity to build the brand."

Nalli Silks is an 80 year old heritage brand, which is in expansion mode. It has already made its mark in all the metros across India and is now making forays into Tier II cities. It has come up with a new format store named Nalli Next, which will enable consumers to purchase designer saris as well as home furnishings under the same roof.