Dentsu India Slingshot has taken over creative and media duties for Harman India’s Harman Kardon and JBL. The agency will look after marketing communication, campaign design, and media planning for the two brands.
Yogesh Nambiar, Head of Marketing at Harman India, said, “We were on the lookout for an integrated agency that could manage the end-to-end marketing mandate for our key brands – Harman Kardon and JBL. In Dentsu Slingshot, we found a team that had the capabilities and unique business model to effectively manage these requirements. Our outlook for the coming future is bullish and we are excited to partner with Slingshot while we seek exponential growth for our business in India.”
Simi Sabhaney, CEO, Dentsu India said: “It was music to my ears to hear the news of winning the communication and media mandate for both Harmon Kardon and JBL. We are proud to associate with them.”
Kunal Dubey, VP & Head of Business, and Lucky Saini, VP Digital & Marketing Solutions, Dentsu India Slingshot, added, “Harman Kardon and JBL are both iconic brands from the house of Harman. Winning the end-to-end media, communications and strategy mandate of both these brands is a big victory for us. It enables us to think holistically on brand building. We are extremely excited to partner with them on this journey. Our aim is to create iconic work that not just builds the brand but also propels the business forward.”
Bollywood superstar and award-winning actor, Ranveer Singh, is the newest brand ambassador of JBL®globally, who joined the roster in 2019.
Founded in the 1960s by Sidney Harman and Bernard Kardon in the United States, Harman International Industries, Inc., popularly known as Harman (or HARMAN), is a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics that designs and produces connected products for automakers, consumers, and enterprises worldwide. Associated products include connected car systems, audio and visual products, enterprise automation, and connected services. In 2017, Samsung spent nearly $8 billion to buy Harman International.
Among Harman’s top customers are Audi, Lexus, Subaru, and Toyota and gets its maximum business from connected cars.
Headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, Harman has significant operations in the Americas, Europe, Asia and markets its products under brands, such as AKG, AMX, Becker, Crown, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Lexicon, dbx, DigiTech, Mark Levinson, Martin, Revel, Soundcraft, Studer, Arcam, Bang & Olufsen, and BSS Audio.
In an interview to The Hindu Business Line in 2019, Harman President and CEO Dinesh Paliwal had said, “Last year, we grew 100 per cent year on year in India. We expect India to grow for us 50 percent in consumer audio space for the next five years. Overall, we are growing 40 percent year on year in India. India is an under-penetrated market for Harman.”
