Rising Star: Pankit Chheda, Executive VP, Marketing, Mitashi Edutainment

Pankit Chheda harbours an immense love for technology and everything related to it. So when he took up commerce after completing his SSC, aptitude tests showed he was in the wrong field and that he should have chosen something like engineering.

“I ending up in marketing was a very lucky chance. During Senior College (FYBCOM) admissions at HR College of Commerce & Economics, a friend was filling an extra form, which caught my eye. I inquired what it was and decided to give it a shot just for fun. The form got me into a very select add on vocational course in advertising, sales and marketing where only 30 students in the entire college are admitted/selected in any given year.”

Little did Chheda know that this decision, made on an impulse, would prove to be a defining moment in his life.

The course required Chheda to get some experience working for a brand and his first brush with Mitashi was as an intern in the year 2006. Eventually, when Chheda completed his post-graduation, he joined Mitashi in 2010 and has been with the brand ever since.

Calling his time at Mitashi an adventure, Chheda said, “In my time here, the company has transformed from a toys/gaming company that operated in a few states to becoming an electronics giant that is spread across India and also has an international footprint (Middle East & Europe), a company that has defied market trends and competes head on with some of the best brands in the world. It has been a privilege to be a part of this journey.”

According to Chheda, the most challenging project that he has worked on so far was the ad campaign they did with Dainik Bhaskar for IPL.

“We had to roll out 49 ads over 49 days (every day of the IPL) in 13 states with over 50 editions with fresh offers and dealer panels. Ensuring an error-free and timely rollout, coordinating with the teams for fresh offers and our designers, then rolling out one artwork every day was one of the most gruelling and fun experiences of my life.”

Speaking about the most fun project that he has worked on so far, Chheda remembers the kick-off event they did for 2017’s festive season.

“I had the most fun during our season kick-off/launch event in 2017, where we launched our curved LED TVs. To give the event a theme of curved LED TVs, we made a 45ft wide and 12ft high curved LED screen. The reactions on people’s faces said it all, we had the top industry professionals and business owners attend the event and they had never seen anything like it and were truly amazed at the event. They carried that excitement and enthusiasm back with them and throughout the festive season, giving us a record festive 2017.”

Chheda believes that his biggest strength is the fact that he is a long-term planner and can constantly innovate, negotiate and outperform the set budgets.

His weakness, however, he feels is that he is too hands-on.

“My weakness would probably be that I love to be hands-on with literally everything. It has been an asset till now but as the company grows it would be a trait I will need to evolve.”

Signing Rajasthan Royals in the very first year that he joined Mitashi is probably his biggest achievement, says Chheda.

“I worked silently for more than six months on it and it was such an achievement for me personally to have it work out and was such a big learning experience. It made me feel like Mitashi has truly arrived on the scene.”

Being awarded “The Backbone & Brand Custodian for Mitashi” by the management at the Road to Tomorrow event in August 2017, is also a proud moment for Chheda.

As someone who never planned to be in the industry, it is the dynamic nature of the profession that keeps Chheda invested in his job and interested in the field.

“The world is evolving and the customer is evolving even faster. Staying ahead of them, understanding their needs and coming up with solutions to their needs and problems is something I love. I love how I am learning every single day at the job. It keeps me excited and on my toes all the time. I also enjoy the challenge of Mitashi competing with the big brands with our limited means and how we have been able to develop a connect with our customers, our partners and cement a place for ourselves in the industry.”

For a technology nut like him, this is an interesting time to be in marketing, what with the quantum leap that digital marketing is taking. But when asked about where he sees the future of marketing going, Chheda is quick to point out that no matter how big digital marketing gets, traditional marketing will always grow.

“We have definitely seen a huge scope in digital marketing and seen how many brands are growing these days solely by marketing themselves digitally. However, I would like to believe that traditional marketing will only grow stronger in the coming years as whoever it may be, big or small brands people do intend to get back to the place from where they started eventually.”

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