Gratitude during times of Crisis

One of the key gifts of COVID (and yes! there is a silver lining to it), is time for oneself. As I sit today and introspect my life journey, I am filled with immense gratitude towards my mentors. They have given me various opportunities & experiences, which have enabled me to continuously focus on my life’s motto of continuous learning, while making me a strong sales leader today. 

I vividly recall the time I started my career with ITC as a management trainee in Sales & Marketing domain. ITC’s famed Sales & Distribution model and different categories of Cigarettes, Foods & Personal Care were up for me to see from close across various geographies in the country for over 4 years.

During this time (circa 2008), the organized retail sector was burgeoning and I was raring for a new challenge. The nascent Private Label business at Aditya Birla Retail was this arena towards discovering and contributing in a different industry.

Having experienced both sales and brand management, the next opportunity came in the form of Regional (and later National) Customer marketing role at Cadbury, which built my ability to draw strategies that directly impact customers and sales for the organisation.

This started my lifelong interest in Customer & Shopper Marketing domain and I started yet another ‘S’ curve with Perfetti’s offer to set-up the Trade Marketing vertical. Having successfully set that, the next big challenge came when I was chosen to head the Transformation Office for the commercial organisation. Not only did I expand my width of experience but it enabled me to build relationships & appreciation of different verticals and impact Perfetti’s growth & profitability.

My quest for exploring Channel Sales and leading large teams came in with leading E-commerce, Nepal & presently as Head of Western Region. As I take up this new role, I am reminded of the faith reposed in me by all my mentors. A big thank you for your guidance all throughout my journey and for making me a better person and a better professional.