If you thought being a boss was an easy task, you might want to think again. A boss isn?t someone who simply directs but also leads. It is a tough balance to strike between a task master, guide, leader and a role model. And most often than not, it is a thankless job. 

This week Exec Lifestyle caught up with several media executives and asked them if they can assess what type of bosses they thought they were. The answers are amusing. Have a look.

By Papri Das

When Yugoslav expatriate, Ivana Perovic Shah first moved to India as a teenager, she was amazed by the cultural diversity she experienced amongst her classmates. Born in Serbia, Ivana was welcoming of new culture and people, thanks to her father?s transferable job as a Yugoslav diplomat and this helped her soak in the varied flavours of this country.

Little did she know that years later, this very knowledge and interest in India?s diverse behaviour will help her as the CEO of AP Group, a leading retail and distribution of international luxury brands in the country.

Married to Daniel Shah, owner of Club Cabana in Goa, Ivana feels herself quite at home in India and has grown quite accustomed to the Indian way of life. She not only understands the regional languages but also actively researches on consumer behaviour and the market in India for luxury goods.

In a tete-a-tete with Exec Lifestyle, Ivana shares how India is emerging as a promising market for high end lifestyle goods.

As CEO of a company that distributes international luxury-wares, what has been your observation of the ups and downs in the Indian market for luxury goods in the last decade?

The last decade has been very important for the Indian luxury market. Not only has there been an influx of most international luxury brands venturing into the Indian market, but also a rise in the High Networth Individuals (HNI) in the past six years.

Consumers are more informed through travel and media (print and online). The customer base is slowly expanding. We saw that from only traditionally wealthy, the base is moving towards new age HNIs with high purchasing power. While we have seen a lot of growth, the luxury market is yet to see its boom.

What has been your observation of the Indian consumer?s mindset when it comes to luxury brands?

India has been long known for its love for luxury goods. Indian royalty, who were idiolised by the general public, often indulged in luxury products like cars and jewellery.  Post liberalization, the Indian economy has seen a considerable growth rate. It has also broadened people?s mindsets and spending power. Besides, the industrial and IT revolution has also given birth to a completely new set of quality-conscious, global Indian consumers. Luxury has become all about displaying the individuals? hard earned currency. Hence, people have become exceptionally brand aware and brand conscious. With the correct products that cater to the Indian taste and mindful investment in real estate for the prime locations, luxury brands can go a long way.

As an expatriate how difficult was it for you to relate to the local mindset and evolve marketing tools accordingly?

Thanks to my father?s postings, I have spent all my teenage life in India, therefore I understand the market very well. My Masters degree in marketing helped me come back and implement the knowledge and adapt to what I know about the Indian culture.

The market is complex but with the right tactics and extensive research, we divide our resources and apply accordingly. For example, north India is open to spending more on products and the southern part of the country looks for value-for-money. Therefore, we promote our higher range products in the north and premium range in the south.

What is luxury according to you?

Luxury is high quality products, that have been meticulously created and that last for years. The design should be classic and not mindlessly themed on a short-lived trend. The best way to spend is by investing in a piece that can be passed on for generations, something you also identify with. A beautiful watch or a piece of jewellery is what I would go for.

In the coming years, what are the major trends that you foresee in the Indian luxury market and how are you planning to tap that for your company?

There are a few factors that will facilitate the growth of the Indian luxury market. These are: infrastructure, favorable regulatory environment and awareness through online media. There will be an increase in the number of young HNIs who look to buy luxury goods. We are going to tap the opportunities by bringing in the right product portfolio and expanding in the right markets. The brands are soon going to be even more accessible through online marketplaces. Fashion trends will soon be at par with the international ones, which will give us more opportunity to experiment and bring in trendier styles.

Keeping women in mind, which watches would you recommend fellow executives and why? Which are your favourite watches so far?

Must have watches for a woman would be:

1. A classic watch piece that can be worn for formal occasions.

2. A timepiece that shows a more fun side of you when not at work.

My personal favourites are rose gold watches and printed watches, which are in trend at the moment. My favorite brands would be the Gc Femme Bijou, Guess Rigor or Chopard Happy Diamonds.

In this episode of Talking Point our host chats up the dynamic managing director of Maxus south Asia region, Kartik Sharma. With an experience of over two decades in media and advertisement, Sharma has led his team to win several awards.

In this interview he speaks of how target oriented advertisement is the future of digital advertisement, the role of data in it and why he prefers advertisement to entertain over advertisement educate.

In this episode of Talking Point, Exec Lifestyle chats up Cyrus Oshidar.

Touted as one of the 10 most influential people from advertising world in India, Oshidar is

credited for his inputs in giving MTV India its iconic brand image.

In this candid chat with our host Papri Das, Cyrus opens up on his new digital venture

101India.com, and how digital will give away for sharing unconventional stories.

By Papri Das

In the land of the Kamasutra, people have finally woken up to the joys of sex toys or sexual wellness products. While Indian laws prohibit the sale of sex toys in the country against obscenity, India?s Gen Z has come to accept and appreciate its use and no longer treats it as taboo, dirty, illegal, pornographic or vulgar.

While education and awareness has brought a majority of this progressive change, a word of thanks must go to the number of e-shops that have sprung up catering to the need gap of the adult product market in India. Sites like IMbesharam, OhMySecrets, Shycart and That?s Personal have given Indian consumers a safe, private and trustworthy haven that caters to their needs of adult and sexual wellness products.

When That?s Personal was first launched in 2013, it created quite a stir in the industry. This new e-shop, which openly sold lubricants, seductive couple games and lingerie, became a talk of the town, albeit in hushed whispers. It's been two years since That?s Personal launched and its CEO Samir Saraiya says that the site has been doing well.

Exec Lifestyle caught up with Saraiya in a candid chat on how big the adult product market is in India, the latest trends amongst the site?s consumers and how Indians are opening up to sex products.

Excerpts:

How big is the market for sexual products in India and how far have e-commerce sites been able to penetrate it?

The market potential in India is huge. The market size is estimated to grow to Rs 9000 crore by 2020. We?ve just hit the upper crust of this huge market where the early adopters have opened up to us. The outlook towards sexual health and sexual wellness is changing every single day. We?re growing at a rapid pace of over 400 per cent over the last year. This is testament to the fact that the adoption of sexual health and wellness as a concept is, now, becoming a widely accepted phenomena.

Recently Snapdeal and OhMySecrets got in trouble for selling sexual products. Have you faced any such legal problems at That's Personal? How do you ensure your products are all legal to be sold in India?

There are no legal concerns in the actual sale of sex toys, apparels and ancillary sexual products. Since these items are not banned for import or sale in India, there is no legal bar for their sale. However, the concern arises only in the manner in which these sex toys, apparels and related products are displayed and exhibited for sale in India.

Under Indian law, ?obscenity? is an offence. Therefore, if any of these items are advertised and / or displayed for sale using any obscene pictures, graphics, display mechanism, or otherwise in any obscene manner, then there could be a cause for concern. Although neither the Indian Penal Code nor the Information Technology Act, 2000 defines what ?obscenity? is.

As long as the products are not ?obscene? and/or displayed or exhibited in a manner, which is not ?obscene?, there is no legal concern on the sale of such products. However, this does not mean that a pornographic magazine or a movie can be freely sold or distributed in India simply by camouflaging its physical appearance. The fact that the content of such a product/ article is ?obscene?, it will fall certainly within the purview of Section 292 of the Indian Penal Code and hence illegal in India. We have a dedicated team who go through the products very carefully and curate the ones, which won?t fall under the obscenity laws and won?t look offensive. They have the right to veto any products they feel are obscene for India socially. Also, we steer clear of sex toys or pharmacy products as well.

How difficult was it to launch the site in India, get it marketed and even get people on board?

We sell only those products, which are completely legal to sell in India. We?ve been very conscious of staying away from products that are anywhere close to the magical remedies act. We believe in the concept of sexual health and wellness and we?ve projected ourselves as a clean, youthful and a fun brand to interact with. This clean positioning and projection has led to the entire system believing and supporting in us.

We get around 50 resumes a day for various openings that we have on our site. Rich talent is attracted and willing to work with us because of the growth opportunity that this sector has as well as the fun, youthful and innovative nature of the work environment that exists within our organization.

Have you ever been accused of 'corrupting' India's culture?

Absolutely not! In fact, we received accolades from everywhere when we launched. We received tremendous affection and support from all quarters where people were keen for a business like this to start. We have a loyal community on Facebook and LinkedIn and a legion of fans on Twitter, who eagerly anticipate the content that we create for them. We receive so many calls and emails enquiring about the products and wanting to know more about how to use them. We also get a lot of hilarious customer queries. For example: One specific query that we receive often is about Gujaratis enquiring if a lot of our products are vegetarian and we have to inform them that all products are purely vegetarian!

Do you think people equate sex store to pornography, and shy away from it?

I think equating a sex store to pornography is now pass? and a belief of the 1990s. The mindset of people is evolving every day and they?re able to differentiate clearly between pornography and sexual health/wellness.

How much money does an average buy make you? How are the items priced?

We have items for all types of audiences. So, we have economy products ranged between Rs 0 ? 1000 and on the other end of the spectrum, we also have extremely premium brands like LELO, which are priced well over Rs 20,000. The average purchase order value is Rs 2600 with about 2.2 products/order. The average order value is three times of any other regular E-Commerce organization, which is something that really puts us in good stead.

Is their any data to support the demography that visit and buy from the site?

The number of male visitors at 61 per cent easily outdoes the number of female visitors who form about 31 per cent of the visitors in India. However, females constitute about 39 per cent of the total purchases as opposed to 61 per cent by men. Essentially, females purchase more when they visit.

However, the number of females visiting our site is rapidly growing and we think we?ll reach a stage within this calendar year where females will be purchasing more than males. The age group between 25 ? 34 years forms about 52 per cent of the total purchases on the site.

As per the site, what are the most popular items on the site?

Massagers are our leading contributors followed by Lubricants and Women?s Sensual Lingerie. The youth, especially, is trying more of Adult Games that we have. The most significant trend, however, is in the gifting category. Increasingly, people are trying to gift their spouse, friends, etc. something naughty or fun for their weddings, birthdays and honeymoon travels. This gifting trend is in fact very popular amongst girls with more than 74 per cent of the gifting orders coming from women.

Where are the items sourced?

We source products from all across the world. We have 32 top international brands that we have exclusive deals with. There are no Indian brands manufacturing these items.

Fun facts:

The market size is estimated to grow to Rs 9000 crore by 2020.

Number of male visitors at 61% easily outdo the number of female visitors who form about 31% of the visitors in India.

The most significant trend, however, is in the gifting category, mostly popular amongst girls with more than 74% of the gifting orders coming from women.

*Survey and assessment conducted by That?s Personal team from their consumer reports

By Papri Das

Our memories of ?friendship? mostly takes us back to our school and college days, when we could share a carefree laugh, confide our secrets, or fight and make up quite easily with friends. That concept of friendship most definitely fades away as we grow older and enter the mad race to success. Gradually the endearing term ?friend? takes a back seat and politely makes way for terms like ?colleague?, ?associate?, ?business partner?, and ?client?, especially in the corporate world.

The situation is bleaker for the ones who do succeed. Apart from responsibility and power, executives and top honchos in business are also given a position that keeps them away from most -- a very revered but isolated position indeed. In the cold harsh world of number crunching, boardroom politics and competition, is there any room left for friendship to flourish?

Indeed there is, say several top media executives, whom Exec Lifestyle approached on the eve of Friendship Day, which falls on 2 August.

To the grand old man of Indian media, Madison World chairman Sam Balsara, friends are critical for survival. He simply can?t do without them. ?I value and cherish my friends from outside and within the industry alike, and can?t imagine my life without them,? says Balsara, who enjoys friends amongst a wide circle. ?Some of them started off as colleagues, clients or business associates and eventually got closer over the years. From casual professional greetings, you start exchanging meaningful conversations, which may trail off from work. There is no reason why I can?t call them my friends. They are very important to me.?

When asked about how he maintains friendship with his competitors Balsara calmly replies, ?We are all mature. We may compete in the marketplace but we know how to keep our personal and professional ties separate. Competition never gets in the way.?

Madison Media and Madison OOH CEO Vikram Sakhuja opines, ?There is no reason why executives from the same industry can?t be friends. In fact, it is quite easy to get along with each other due to common interests and the comfort zone of understanding each other. One keeps bumping into each other at industry events and it's strange if you can?t find a single one with whom you can strike a chord. Now, one can?t compare this friendship with childhood friends; it's a different ball game altogether.?

Without naming names, Sakhuja says that while he has plenty of friends in the industry especially old colleagues, times of conflict have tested and strengthened his bond with them.

Viacom18 executive vice president Anuj Poddar couldn?t agree more. ?You spend more than nine hours a day in office, and sometimes even more. Therefore naturally your colleagues are the ones you are closest to. I am friends with not just my immediate colleagues, but colleagues of yesteryears as well. Just because you stop working together doesn?t mean you stop being friends,? he adds with a chuckle.

?Take my friend Ashish Patil from Yash Raj Films for example. We have never worked together directly, but over the last ten years of knowing him, I have grown to like him as a person and we became good friends. Very recently, he conducted a training session for my creative team. He is just someone I can count on without hesitating,? shares Poddar, adding that he would do the same for Patil.

Echoing the same sentiments, Patil, who is Y-Films, brand partnerships and talent management vice president, says, ?Anuj is someone I wouldn?t say no to provided I am free and the topic is of my interest, and he understands that well.? Revealing that he isn?t much of a social person, Patil says, ?Over the years, I have made many associations. I have come to learn a lot from them and even approach them for help and vice versa, and this association goes beyond petty profit and loss.?

Another great example of how business partners can also be good friends are Fazila Allana and Kamna Nirula Menezes - the duo who founded and run Sol Production Pvt. Ltd. From boss and subordinate, to business partners and now family, their relationship has molded into many shapes over the years. However, none of it has affected their friendship.

?Kamna and I met over fifteen years ago, when I was working in UTV. I used to be her boss at that time and now she is part of the family,? reminisces Sol Production Pvt. Ltd co-founder and managing director Fazila Allana. When queried as to whether being business partners had ever come in the way of their friendship, Allana says, ?So far (touch wood), we have never faced any challenges maintaining our friendship. It?s because our value systems have been compatible to begin with. We trust each other?s judgment. When it comes to business, difference in point of view is actually a good thing, especially amongst those who respect each other?s opinion. Be it friendship or partnership in business, respecting the other?s opinion and understanding them is crucial.?

Exec Lifestyle further implored how Allana spends time with her long time friend Kamna; whether they go to spa together or shopping? To which, she says, ?We spend a lot of time together. I am more of the spa person than Kamna. We mostly go watch movies together, and dinners... the usual things friends do.?

In this fickle era of backstabbing, dishonesty, cut-throat competition and money mindedness, all is perhaps not lost in the wake of some true blue friendships that have weathered numerous storms of time.