Comment by Riaz Haq on July 31, 2017 at 4:56pm

5 Most Profitable Business Sectors in Pakistan: 

https://www.researchsnipers.com/5-profitable-business-sectors-pakis...

Pakistan business sector is growing fast, a country with 193.2 million estimated population in 2016 has shown strong growth in the past five years which is expected to grow further. A study published by Harvard indicates that Pakistan’s economic growth will surpass China’s in the next 20 years, growth statistics and current development in the country including China Pakistan Economic Corridor CPEC attracts more businesses to invest in Pakistan from across the globe. Recently, France, United Kingdom, Turkey and China has shown special interest to start bilateral trade with Pakistan and private sector companies from these countries are also leapfrogging to make considerable investments in Pakistan.



Despite, these are many sectors in Pakistan that are underdeveloped but these five sectors including; FMCG, Chemicals and Fertilizers, Automotive, Textile and Energy/Petroleum are the most growing and profitable in Pakistan.

The data acquired from Karachi Stock Exchange KSE from 2013 to 2017 indicates that top companies who performed well are from the above five sectors. The companies witnessed strong growth and profitability over the four years.

1 FMCG

FMCG is the most lucrative and huge business sector in Pakistan, companies that are consistently growing and becoming more profitable includes; Colgate Palmolive, Unilever, Nestle and Engro Foods. The market is huge and still in growing stage whereas industry has few multinational players covering the whole market.

2 Chemicals and Fertilizers

“Chemicals and fertilizers” is another big sector which caters even bigger market, companies like ICI Pakistan, Fauji Fertilizer, Engro Fertilizers and Chemicals, Abbot, Lucky Cement and some other are dominating the market with strong growth over time and profitability.

3 Automotive

The automotive industry in Pakistan forms oligopoly, global players like Toyota, Honda and Suzuki dominates the market. However, Pakistan has allowed other automakers to setup car assembly plants in Pakistan, increasing disposable income and the transport needs in the country make the market more attractive, potential and profitable.

4 Textile

Pakistan’s textile industry is popular in all over the world; however, due to lesser facilities and government support Pakistan is not able to streamline its textile growth but the textile industry accounts for 57% of the country overall exports. There are several companies in this sector including Premium Textile and Din Textile that are quite lucrative.

5 Energy/Petroleum

Where there are people there is a need for energy in all segments of life whether you are at home, traveling, working, playing and having leisure energy and petroleum products are inevitable, Pakistan’s energy and petroleum needs are growing rapidly, it is estimated that Pakistan’s energy needs will surpass 50,000 MW by 2025. Petroleum and energy sector in Pakistan is expected to grow further and become more profitable in the future.

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 12, 2017 at 10:28am

Baskin Robbins appoints creative agency in Pakistan Shortly after signing a master licensing agreement with Baskin Robbins, AHG Flavours has hired Ogilvy & Mather to help develop the brand in Pakistan. 

Read more at: http://www.campaignasia.com/article/baskin-robbins-appoints-creativ...

http://www.campaignasia.com/article/baskin-robbins-appoints-creativ...

Baskin Robbins has named Ogilvy & Mather as its creative agency in Pakistan, charged with its go to market strategy and launch campaign. AHG Flavours Limited has a master licensing agreement with Baskin Robbins to develop the brand in Pakistan and launch 35 shops across the country, with the primary focus on the city of Lahore. Ogilvy & Mather was tasked to aid in the brand awareness across the portfolio of classic ice cream flavours as well as the range of custom ice cream cakes, frozen beverages, ice cream sundaes, and takehome ice cream treats. According to Asim Naqvi, the CEO of Ogilvy & Mather in Pakistan, his agency was tasked with creating the digital strategy and create a campaign deployed with outdoor media, social media, and the upcoming launch event. "We are pleased to be collaborating with Irfan, Harris and their team to begin developing the Baskin-Robbins brand in Pakistan by bringing our wide range of delicious ice cream flavours, cakes and other treats to Pakistani customers," said John Varughese, Vice President, Dunkin' Brands International. According to a study by Euromonitor in 2016, the ice cream and frozen desserts market in Pakistan was valued at US$152 million, with Unilever and Engro Foods categorized as market leaders from a volume perspective, due in large part to their low price point. Brand marketers distinguish ice cream brands into three distinct categories based on consumption behaviour: in-home, impulse, and out of home. The in-home ice cream category refers to the large tubs of ice cream that are purchased for family consumption in a home or large gathering. The impulse ice cream category refers to those sold in sticks, cups, and cones. The out of home ice cream category refers to what is consumed in HoReCa, recreational areas, and cinemas. Baskin Robbins effectively operates in all three categories with its own retail presence with a dine-in option, a distribution presence in major retail outlets, and as an option on the dessert menu. In Pakistan, the impulse category makes up roughly 70 percent of the category according to Falak Jalil, the former brand manager for Walls at Unilever. She says that in Pakistan half of ice cream consumption consists of kulfi (a local delicacy) with the majority being flavoured. The impulse category in Pakistan is dominated by Unilever's Walls and Engro Foods' Omore. On the international modern trade retail side, Baskin Robbins will be competing with London Dairy, Ben & Jerry's, Haagen Dazs, and Movenpick. On the dine-in side within its price points, Baskin Robbins will compete for the share of the throat with Johny Rockets, Movenpick, and Cold Stone. The first store of Baskin Robbins will open tomorrow in Lahore.

Read more at: http://www.campaignasia.com/article/baskin-robbins-appoints-creativ...

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 12, 2017 at 10:29am

THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE > PAKISTAN > PUNJAB
First Baskin-Robbins store opens in Lahore

By Our CorrespondentPublished: October 12, 2017

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1529378/first-baskin-robbins-store-ope...

One of the world’s largest chain of ice cream stores, Baskin-Robbins has opened its doors in Lahore.

“We’re delighted to open our first ever Baskin-Robbins store in Pakistan, and share our range of delicious ice cream flavors with the people of Pakistan,” the Vice President of Dunkin’ Brands International, John Varughese said in a statement.

“Our store will become the place to be where our visitors will make many happy moments with their friends and family, while enjoying our delicious ice creams and other tempting frozen treats.”

The ice cream store will feature flavours available internationally, including classics like Pralines ‘n Cream, Jamoca® Almond Fudge, Mint Chocolate Chip and Very Berry Strawberry and regional favorites like Mango Tango and Tiramisu.

AHG Flavours, which had announced obtaining licence for and opening of 35 Baskin-Robbins stores across Pakistan, expressed excitement at the launch.

“We’re excited to officially bring the world famous Baskin-Robbins brand to Pakistan, along with its range of premium ice creams and innovative ice cream treats,” the company said. “We look forward to this shop becoming an integral part of the local community, and to opening many more locations across Pakistan in the months and years ahead.”

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 12, 2017 at 10:38am

135 Million Millennials Drive World's Fastest Retail MarketMiddle class expected to surpass U.K., Italy over 2016-21

By 

Faseeh Mangi

September 28, 2017, 1:00 PM PDT

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-28/135-million-mill...

• Nearly two-thirds of Pakistan population under 30 years old
• Pakistan’s retail stores forecast to grow by 50% in 5 years

Pakistan’s burgeoning youth and their freewheeling attitude toward rising incomes have turned the nation into the world's fastest growing retail market.

The market is predicted to expand 8.2 percent per annum through 2016-2021 as disposable income has doubled since 2010, according to research group Euromonitor International. The size of the middle class is estimated to surpass that of the U.K. and Italy in the forecast period, it said.

Pakistan's improving security environment, economic expansion at near 5 percent and cheap consumer prices are driving shoppers to spend up big. Almost two-thirds of the nation's 207.8 million people are aged under 30, according to the Jinnah Institute, an Islamabad-based think tank.

“We have a new millennial shopper at hand. They don’t mind spending to have the kind of lifestyle they would like,” said Shabori Das, senior research analyst at Euromonitor. “It’s not like the Baby Boomer generation where savings for the future generation was important.”

Pakistan is bucking the trend in the U.S. -- where stores are closing at a record pace as e-commerce undermines bricks-and-mortar. It's also attracting foreign operators: Turkish home appliance maker Arcelik AS and Dutch dairy giant Royal FrieslandCampina NV entered the market last year via acquisitions. Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp. and Renault SA are all building plants in the South Asian nation.

Pakistan’s retail stores are expected to increase by 50 percent to 1 million outlets in the five years through 2021, Euromonitor said. Its three biggest malls, Lucky One in Karachi and Packages Mall and Emporium Mall in Lahore, opened in the past two years.

Pakistan is mirroring what India went through about four years ago. Both countries have young populations with more income and less inclination toward saving which is a distinct difference to what retailers elsewhere are dealing with, said Das.

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 15, 2017 at 10:20am

Hush Puppies hires Pakistan digital agency The Lahore-based digital agency will enhance consumer engagement experiences and digital marketing efforts through an innovative application of advanced engagement and marketing performance analytics.

Read more at: http://www.campaignasia.com/article/hush-puppies-hires-pakistan-dig...

Hush Puppies has named Wakhra Studios as its digital agency in Pakistan. Firhaj Footwear has the manufacturing and marketing licence for Hush Puppies in Pakistan and hired Wakhra Studios to for its knowledge of digital platforms and marketing experience. "I strongly believe that in today's world, digital marketing is becoming more and more important and content is the backbone that drives your digital strategy," shared Meshaal Danish, senior brand manager for Hush Puppies at Firhaj Footwear. She cited the depth of Wakhra Studios in understanding the brand and helping to create the branding positioning and strategy as a key differentiator. "We are extremely excited to be partnering with them and can't wait to show the work we will do together," she added. Established in 2013 by Daniyal Noorani, Wakhra Studios has leapt into the spotlight for using emotional messaging in campaigns around products normally marketed for their technical benefits. "I think the reason why Wakhra won is that we work to ensure that each and every piece of content that we create for digital is well thought out and designed." shared Noorani, founder and CEO of Wakhra Studios. "In addition, we really work closely with clients to understand their needs and also work with them to improve their marketing strategy." Danish Hasan, creative director at Wakhra Studios, said the digital strategy outlined for Hush Puppies includes Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and digital videos. "We will be looking after Hush Puppies complete digital presence from social to media buying," he said. "Our goal is that with Hush Puppies we generate content that starts more conversations around the brand and that people want to engage more and more with Hush Puppies on digital platforms."

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 15, 2017 at 10:30am

#US State Department buying #Facebook ads to influence opinion in #Indonesia, #Pakistan, #Iran and #Russia.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/military/sd-me-russia-facebook-...

Sure, America’s top spies are convinced the Kremlin unleashed legions of fake Facebook accounts and booked $100,000 in ads on the social media giant to tamper with the 2016 presidential election, but “likes” cut both ways.

American agencies have turned Facebook into a battleground for the hearts and minds of Russians, too.

In a pair of information campaigns that spanned 2010-2011 and 2015-2016, federal agencies that aim to spread America’s message abroad spent $59,541 in ads wooing Russian speakers, according for federal spending records.

That was part of a $1.6 million spending pool used by the State Department, the Voice of America and the U.S. Agency for International Development over the past eight years on overseas social media campaigns linked to Facebook. The Russian ad buys may have been a small portion, but that nation was one of the Washington’s top foreign policy targets, according to an analysis of government purchase orders by The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Moscow trailed only Indonesia ($136,217), Pakistan ($127,684), Iran ($87,381) and Afghanistan ($61,176) in Facebook-related spending by the agencies.

But there the similarities end. While American spy agencies insist that Russian attempts to alter the 2016 presidential elections involved hacking Democratic Party computers and mobilizing an army of bots to amplify often anti-immigrant and racist messages, U.S. agencies mostly use Facebook to promote diplomatic initiatives or drive readers to consume Voice of America and other media outlets sponsored by Washington.

Although State officials declined comment, the agency’s $3,166 worth of ad purchases in Russia appear to have been designed to raise awareness about the American consulate in Yekaterinburg, the nation’s fourth-largest city.

And Voice of America spent $56,375 promoting Russian-language television, radio and digital programming in Russia.

The agencies also used Facebook to reach audiences in the former Soviet republics of Armenia ($33,187), Uzbekistan ($19,275) and Georgia ($40,100).

Voice of America, run by the Broadcasting Board of Governors, is blocked on Russian news outlets so the overseas propaganda network employs what it calls a “digital-first strategy” to provide viewpoints rarely heard on Moscow-controlled media.

The agency and its consulting firm that appears to have purchased many of the ads — Washington, D.C.-based Chaise Management Group — did not return messages seeking comment, but experts in internet messaging say the investment is worthwhile.

“I think western governments should spend on advertising in ways like these — advertisements for news services, consular services, humanitarian assistance programs, etc.,” said Philip N. Howard, a professor of internet studies at the University of Oxford. “Election interference, and backing particular candidates, should be against the rules. The government is not allowed to advertise for political candidates in our elections; it shouldn’t advertise for its favorites overseas.”

In a written statement, USAID said that nearly $25,000 spent on Facebook and other social media-driven campaigns over the past six years in the Balkans, Afghanistan, Indonesia and Southeast Asia were successful because they matched the agency’s global mission, raising awareness of its public health initiatives, humanitarian assistance programs, scholarships and research opportunities.

For example, a three-month campaign this year targeting Cambodians created 25,000 new followers on USAID’s Facebook page. The featured ad was a Cambodian pop song that celebrated International Women’s Day.

A $30,000 Facebook ad blitz in 2015 that focused on war-torn Libya boosted social media posts for six civil society organizations there and helped the “broader effort to promote peaceful dialogue and reconciliation during the political transition in Libya,” according to the statement.

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 25, 2017 at 5:56pm

#Pakistan Investigates #Corruption Through #Advertising Agencies Which Received Government Money From Sharjeel Memon

http://adage.com/article/agency-news/corruption-investigation-pakis...

Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau in Karachi said in a statement to local media that the government officials favored themselves and certain ad agencies in awarding over-priced contracts. Corruption in government and business is a major problem in Pakistan.
Local media named Masood Hashmi, CEO of Orient Communications, which runs Orient McCann Pakistan, as one of the agency executives detained. Orient is McCann's local partner in Pakistan in an affiliate relationship that doesn't involve any equity. Global networks often have non-equity local partners, who pay a fee to use the network's name, in smaller markets where they do little business.
McCann's New York office says the company "is investigating the situation" and declined to comment.
Ad Age's phone and email messages to Orient Communications in Karachi weren't returned, and no one answered the phone at Pakistan's National Accountability Bureau.
Executives from other ad agencies, including Asim Amir Khan Sikander, senior executive director at Evernews Concepts; Gulzar Ali and Salman Mansoor, directors of Adarts Karachi; and Syed Naveed, owner of Media Power Link, were also named as being detained. The most senior government official accused is Sharjeel Inam Memon, the former Minister for Information and Archives Department, along with a former secretary, deputy director, information officer and section officer from the same government department.
The press reports said the agency executives and former government officials would appear before an "accountability court" this week.

Comment by Riaz Haq on February 22, 2018 at 10:26am

Ogilvy India and Ogilvy Pakistan collaborate for this brand

http://www.afaqs.com/news/story/52408_Ogilvy-India-and-Ogilvy-Pakis...

The ad is centred on two characters - a working mom and her school-going son.
What is it with Indian creative agencies making ads for Pakistani brands? Lowe Lintas Mumbai has been making ads for Surf Excel Pakistan for quite a while now. In the past O&M India and O&M Pakistan have collaborated to make ads for Shan Foods (Ramzan Mubarak and Food opens the door to our hearts). This time around, the two agencies have collaborated to make an ad for EBM's (a Pakistan based company) cupcake brand, Peek Freans Cake Up. One would also notice that the actors in this ad are all Indians. The digital ad was released on YouTube on February 16. The same ad is also being run as a TVC in Pakistan.

The ad film has been produced by Curious and directed by Vivek Kakkad.

The ad is centred on two characters - a working mom and her school-going son. The mother teaches her son good values via small letters that she keeps in his tiffin box along with the cake. The son ends up leaving half the cake with a letter of his own to his mother indicating that he is following the values she has taught him. It ends with one value that stands out - 'when you share a dessert with someone, it becomes even sweeter'. This puts a smile on the mother's face as the ad ends with both the mother, at her clinic and son at his school, each eating a share of the cake.

Talking about the collaboration on this particular ad and how it came to be, Sukesh Nayak, chief creative officer, Ogilvy West (India), says, "Ayesha Janjua, the marketing head of EBM (promoter of Peek Freans Cake Up), was the marketing head of Shan Foods when we made two ads for them and when she moved here, she just wanted to continue the relationship."

Adding about how a good piece of content can become borderless and get shared, Nayak says, "Content has to be inspiring enough to reach out to the people. The context of the storyline is just like something that comes across the world to us and we see it and say "wow!" I presume a film like this will reach out to a whole lot of people because this story is true for anybody. The story is beautiful and inspiring. It is about humanity and about what we want to achieve in life as a parent and that's the cultural truth they have gone after. Over the weekend, the ad was circulated among mothers in Mumbai and it just shows that a good piece of content is borderless and it will go from one mother to the other and people will talk about it and share it."

Sharing a little about the client's brief to the agency, Nayak says, "They were launching something for the first time, a unique product and they wanted to be in the world of relationships because it is a product that is consumed. They wanted to find strategic insights and we came up with real goodness inside, which exactly describes the product and human emotions that we are trying to capture in the ad."

In the past, ads focusing on family sentiments have been overdone. So we asked our experts if it is a well-executed ad and could the branding have been done subtly?

Veneet Bagga, an ad film director, founder and creative head, Onions Creative Media, says, "Sure, it seems done to death, if you look at it as a formula, but I won't discredit the sentiment itself. One emotion that drives every human is that of belonging somewhere and a film on family tugs at that very emotion and puts a smile on your face. So, yes, overall it's a good film and well executed but predictable in bits and a tad overstretched. Having said that, credit must be given to the finer details that got through to me, like the casting, unobtrusive music and the lovable kids."

Comment by Riaz Haq on February 22, 2018 at 10:29am

Evolution in Digitising OOH
Published in Nov-Dec 2017
Ayesha Shaikh
Uzma Khan, Head of Media, Unilever Pakistan, on why the industry needs to adopt and invest.

https://aurora.dawn.com/news/1142856

The most innovative change has been the incorporation of digital technologies in OOH, particularly in Lahore, where many digital screens, streamers and pole signs have been installed. Internationally, this is a common phenomenon, but in Pakistan, most billboards still use static images and skins and this is something Unilever would like to change.

AYESHA SHAIKH: What prompted Unilever to organise the vendor convention platform?
UZMA KHAN: There was a realisation across the industry that there is a lot of clutter in Out-of-Home (OOH); it was static, run-of-the-mill, boring and no campaign was really standing out. In fact, this was defeating the purpose of OOH. Unilever began speaking to their agencies to encourage them to start thinking digitally. The big idea in OOH is to develop synergies with digital because conventional OOH practices have become redundant. Digital OOH breaks the clutter by engaging customers with experiential marketing. Since the last two years, there have been ongoing conversations about revisiting OOH and this led to the first vendor convention platform in September.

AS: What purpose does this platform serve?
UK: This is an initiative Unilever Media have undertaken to educate OOH vendors, advertising agencies and technology providers about the international trends so that they start thinking and doing things differently. This is an ongoing process and we will be meeting with the stakeholders again to discuss new developments that have taken place and analyse what progress has been made.

AS: Who are the stakeholders and what was their response?
UK: Initially, there was a lot of reluctance and resistance. However, once we won a PAS Award for the LUX Style Awards (LSA) billboard with Mahira Khan inviting people to be a part of the event, the stakeholders realised that conventional OOH is no longer enough to generate talkability for brands. Digital OOH had become the new focus and it was then that we invited the stakeholders in OOH to come together on one platform. In addition to Unilever (representing the advertiser), there were technology providers, OOH vendors and advertising agencies, making it a four-party platform. The agenda was to listen to everyone’s side of the story, understand the issues and convey our vision that OOH has to go digital because soon, there will not be another choice. Expecting the entire OOH advertising industry to be structured and digitised overnight is unrealistic, but the planning process for this shift needs to start now.

Comment by Riaz Haq on March 9, 2018 at 6:14pm

Pakistan Radio Pioneer FM100 Continues Growth
The country’s first commercial FM station now covers 80 million people in nine areas of the country
WILL JACKSON9 HOURS AGO

https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/pakistan-radio-pioneer...

From its beginnings as one of Pakistan’s pioneers of FM radio, with broadcasts in three cities, FM100 has grown to now cover nine separate cities and continues to innovate across multiple platforms.

The station was founded in 1994, launching on-air in March 1995 as the country’s first commercial FM station, bringing a new, more youthful style of radio to listeners. Prior to this, only the national public broadcaster, Radio Pakistan, had begun FM transmissions.

NEW STYLE

FM100’s General Manager Operation Qazi Ahmed Mateen explains: “Initially we launched FM radio in three cities — Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad — on 100 MHz. The medium wave and shortwave radio industry was almost dead in our country. We were going to launch FM radio, which was very tough. At the time, there were no smartphones, and no in-car radio — only transistor sets at home. Our station grew more popular day-by-day, and gradually FM radios were installed in cars by auto makers, and also on public transport.”

With new licenses issued by the local regulator, the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA), FM100 now broadcasts in nine cities, adding Hyderabad and Rahim Yar Khan in 2012, followed by Gujrat, Abbottabad, Multan, and Jhelum. Around 80 million people can now receive the station, and in total, there are around 145 licensed commercial FM stations across Pakistan, and a further 45 noncommercial.

Mateen believes they brought a completely new style of broadcasting for Pakistan. “The entire package and style of the shows on FM100 was catered towards the new generation of listeners in the country,” he said.

--------------

As well as traditional FM transmission, the station’s audio is available via phone lines. Mateen explains this service is popular in the areas where there are no radio signals and no internet. “Different mobile and landline operators provide these services through their IVR (Interactive Voice Response) services; the user has to dial the number provided by the operators and they can listen to the live radio. The station must have the contract with the operators and the service is not free — the user has to pay the charges at a set rate per minute. It also provides revenue to the radio station and the operator.”


Alongside this, the station has now expanded its reach through the internet. “FM100’s social media activities aim to engage the maximum audience. We update Facebook and our web pages to provide all the information to the audience and clients about the station — daily schedules, presenter profiles and archives. Live streaming is available to those who are not in the range of the airwaves making the radio station global, where it can bring the station and Pakistan to the world,” he concluded.

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