Sam and Lara clarify that the vision with all the new specialisations

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Sam and Lara clarify that the vision with all the new specialisations now, is to position Madison beyond just a media buying company, to a comprehensive communication provider for clients. “Each of our businesses has to be best in class,” says Lara, to which Sam adds, “My dream is that every single unit of Madison should be regarded as highly as Media.” Actualising that vision, however, does not seem easy. After all, despite more than 20 units within Madison World today, a majority of the Rs.2,700 crore billings still come from Media and MOMS (Madison’s outdoor unit). Madison PR’s list of clients is nowhere as impressive as that of Madison Media; the retail unit is too nascent and so is Platinum. Anugrah Madison, their rural marketing arm since 1998, is also relatively small, with its margins under increasing pressure (See interview of R Seshadri, MD, Anugrah Madison on page 71). Besides, specialisations in mobile marketing, sports management and below-the-line units are yet to find their individual bearings. Madison Creative (recently renamed mc2), perhaps the oldest vertical at Madison World, is also struggling, with only a handful of clients within its fold as of now (see Exec. Director, mc2 - Prabha Prabhu’s interview on page 73). Reasons Punitha Arumugam, Group CEO, Madison Media: “All these businesses are fast catching up with Media. The size of our Media billings dominate headlines, but we contribute far less to overall profits. Outdoor and retail units, for instance, work on much better margins than media.”

But it’s no surprise that as in the 80s, there are still some in the industry who are uncertain about Madison’s ambition to diversify into a communication solutions hub. Avers Shashi Sinha, CEO, Lodestar Universal, “It’s very romantic to have specialist units for mobile, retail, et al, but will they increase overall revenues? Not likely, as a majority of media spends in India still rest with print and television. ” But this time around, the industry also has Sam Balsara’s 22 year proven legacy to contend with. Bipin Pandit, General Manager, Ad Club – Mumbai has been watching Balsara at work for years. He feels that since Sam rarely puts his money in the wrong place and if he is diversifying Madison’s offerings, then the move may just pay off. “Sam’s an old fox. He has the experience, knowledge and pertinently an intuitive sense that not many in the industry have,” he explains. The sentiment is echoed across the industry. The common refrain is that Sam has done it before and this time, the can-do father-daughter duo may well repeat the feat.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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