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  • Interview - Mr. Saurabh Bajaj

Leader's Message


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" You need to first visualise who you wish to be 15-20 years down the line and then let that vision guide you."

Q. Dear Mr. Bajaj, your journey as a professional is very rich, kindly tell our readers about your professional journey?

I have been working in the field of Sales & Marketing for the past 17 years. I passed out of IIM Indore in 2004 & started my stint with Wipro Consumer Care in Uttar Pradesh &Uttranchal. After a short stint of only 15 months, I joined Cadbury where I spent a decade.

After, about 4 years in Sales, I moved into Marketing & served the Gifting & Kids portfolio for 4-5 years working on iconic campaigns like ‘Iss Diwali AapKiseKhushKarangay?’ & ‘Cadbury Gems – RahoUmarless’.

Post which I went back to Sales as a Branch Sales Manager for Rest of Maharashtra, MP, Chhattisgarh & Goa. This was the role with the largest people span in the country with 40 Sales Offices, 8 ASMs and an annual turnover of 650 Cr.

Next I moved to Diageo as the Innovation Head for Premium & Luxury Spirits and had an opportunity to work on several iconic Brands like Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, VAT 69, Black & White and Black Dog.

I joined Britannia 4 years back as the Marketing Head for International Business which offered me an opportunity to get an understanding into the lives of consumers across Middle East, Egypt, Nepal & Bangladesh. And then in 2019, I took over the role of Marketing Head for Britannias Dairy portfolio.

Q. Tell us more about some of the iconic Brands that you have worked on.

I have had an opportunity work on a number of iconic Brands through my career, starting with Santoorwith its consistent message of helps you look younger.

The Brands I really enjoyed working on was Cadbury Celebrations & Cadbury Gems where I would like to believe that I was able to make a meaningful contribution in as well.

Finally the Alcobev Brands and the Biscuits Brands that I have worked on in the past 6 years are those that have been a part of our lives for many years.

Q. What are the 3 most important ingredients to build an iconic Brand?

In my opinion the ingredients that are required to make a perfect mix for an iconic Brand are as follows:
a) A high quality product that is well loved by consumers and preferred.
b) Recognisable assets like an iconic Product, Pack Design, Communication, Tag line etc
c) Owns a deep consumer insight that has timeless appeal across consumers and stands for something beyond just a functional product.

Q. What are the biggest professional challenges you faced and how did you overcome that?

I guess, my most memorable experience was when I joined the Brand manager as Cadbury Celebrations where the brand was not growing for the past 3-4 years and had a negative bottom line.
Over the next 4 years, not only did I double the Brand from 150 Cr to 300 Cr but also moved up our bottom line from a negative Operating Income to double digit profitability.
This was achieved through iconic communication of “Iss Diwali AapKiseKhushKanagay?” as well as bold changes in the business model where we went from 24 SKUs to just 6 over the 4 years that I managed the Brand.

Shubhranshu Singh

Mr. Saurabh Bajaj Marketing Head - Dairy aT - Britannia Industries Ltd. view linkedin profile

Q. If you must give some life advice, what would you suggest to your 20 years old self?

The advice that I would give to myself & often give to others is that ‘You are only limited by your imagination'. In order to achieve all that you wish to, you need to first visualise who you wish to be 15-20 years down the line and then let that vision guide you.

Once you build a vision for yourself, like I did 15 years back, which was to take up the role of a Marketing Head, next you need a 5yr, 10 yrs& 15 yrs plan to help break down your journey.

After breaking down that journey, meet your milestones 5 years at a time & don’t forget to enjoy each ride for itself and not just what you will eventually get.

Q. In today's world we observe a tilt towards digital media comparative to traditional Media, do you think Brand Marketing will switch to All Digital Mode?

My belief is that Brand Managers are essentially Entrepreneurs hired by companies to run their business models. And hence a far bigger role for a Brand manager is to fix the product while working along sides with their R&D, Supply Chain, Finance & Procurement colleagues.

Digital is however definitely a great enabler to more efficient communication & offers a new route to market in the form of ecommerce that is important for all Brands to embrace. .

Q. What are the biggest mistake/s marketing manager who is at the start of her/his career, should avoid?

The biggest mistake that a Brand manager at the start of his or her career should avoid is to make decisions with a short term lens be it joining a start-up for excitement, or a company that they don’t like just because it pays more.

In the early years of your career, its critical to visualise where you want to go and hence take judicious decisions that give you a firm foundation that you can eventually leap off from.

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