The Hindu Business Line : HLL official to head Britannia's marketing

Informed sources said that Mr Neeraj Chandra, Regional Brand Director at HLL, responsible for mega brands such as Lux and Lifebuoy, is slated to join the bakery major jointly owned by the Wadia family and the French foods giant Danone.

Mr Chandra steps into Britannia at a time when the company's top management has seen a constant churn for almost two years, since the controversial exit of the former Managing Director & CEO, Mr Sunil Alagh.

The company appointed Ms Vinita Bali, a former Cadbury and Coca-Cola executive, as its new CEO late last year along with a revamped top management that included Mr Vidyut Arte, who joined as director of marketing and sales from Cadbury India.

However, in a surprising development, Mr Arte quit a few months later to return to Cadbury, extending the churn among top officials of the company once known for management stability and employee retention.

A little earlier to Mr Arte's exit, the company's Chief Operating officer (COO), Mr Nikhil Sen, put in his papers ending prolonged speculation regarding his future role in the wake of Ms Bali's appointment.

With interests in the domestic bakery and dairy businesses, Britannia, as per the year 2002 revenue segmentation, earns over 80 per cent of its revenues from biscuits and high protein foods. Its major brands include Tiger, Cream Treat, Vita Marie Gold and Good Day.

The dairy products, now operated through a separate joint venture with New Zealand's Fonterra Co-Operative, accounted for 12 per cent of the revenues, while bread, and cake and rusk accounted for four per cent and two per cent respectively.

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