Daily News Digest- 1st July'14

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Following made the Headlines:

India:

• Hotels Going Direct from Farm to Fork to Save Costs: Stay seasonal, stay local -that's one principle Taj Vivanta's celebrated executive chef Ananda Solomon swears by .A number of five-star hotels have taken the lesson to heart and are investing in their own kitchen gardens -not only do they get to ensure the best farming standards, they also save a lot of money because this means saving on the exorbitant prices they need to pay for imports. And it's not just exotic varieties -five-star hotels are tilling the land and growing tomatoes and pumpkins in their own farms, virtually in their own backyards. The upcoming ITC Grand Bharat Golf & Spa Resort in Manesar near Gurgaon will have an 11-acre farm where it will grow vegetables and herbs, and train the hotel's chefs on the flavours of India. Four Seasons Hotel in Mumbai has acquired use of a farmland near Mumbai, where it grows vegetables such as heirloom tomatoes. “We can't afford to import them anymore,“ said Andrew Harrisson, general manager at Four Seasons. He's awaiting the first crop of heirloom tomatoes in a few months. By growing their own farm products, hotels save almost 50% on vegetable costs that include storage, transport, import and the margins of middlemen. With a rise in the number of people eating out, and despite local restaurants giving hotels a run for their money, almost 50% of revenues for a star hotel come from food and beverage sales. Naturally, margins from F&B could be even higher if hotels can reduce costs.

• Choose the Car You Like, It's Raining Offers in Motown: It wasn’t too long ago when compact sports utility vehicles were attracting Indian customers by the dozen and were enjoying long waiting periods, but a year-long downturn has changed all that, with these hugely aspirational vehicles now being offered at a discount by desperate car companies trying to push sales. So, if you are looking to buy a car, this could perhaps be the best time to do so, given the current discounts and freebies. The rebates are available in not just hatchbacks or sedans, but even in SUVs like the Renault Duster or the Nissan Terrano, which are being offered with insurance freebies and exchange bonuses. This comes in the backdrop of passenger car sales gaining some respectability, hinting at good times ahead, prompting carmakers to roll out the goodies in the usually lean monsoon months. These freebies are likely to continue for three-four months as companies try to maximise capacity utilisations and cut inventories. “Discounts are at an historic high and have helped the industry to arrest the decline to some extent. We have seen some positivity in the market for the past two months and the aggression of carmakers to get more customers and increase traffic at the showrooms to help utilise plant capacities to the full,” said Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president (marketing & sales), Hyundai Motor India. Regular models like the Maruti Alto or Hyundai i10 have been coming with discounts, but vehicles like the Duster, Terrano or even the Honda Amaze that didn’t come with any deals until last year, are now being clubbed with offers of free insurance and exchange bonuses. The county’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India is offering customers the highest discounts since inception and riding on big-bang exchange carnivals through its dealers across the country to attract customers to trade their old cars for new ones. “It’s perhaps the best time to buy new cars as the slowdown has brought windfall gains to customers. Discounts in June are up by around 30-40% than last year with virtually every model now carrying some freebie,” said a senior Maruti Suzuki executive, preferring anonymity. Car sales registered a 3% growth in May this year after a 16-month gap, reinforcing the possibility of a possible turnaround in the festive months ahead. In absolute terms, the average discounts on most models are in the range of 35,000-55,000 for the current month which are almost double that of last year, dealer sources say. “The freebies are not just restricted to older cars, but are available in high potential cars like Maruti DZire, Hyundai Verna and even Mahindra Bolero,” said a Delhi-based multiple franchise auto dealer. Analysts tracking the auto industry say that the trend is likely to continue for the next few months. “Auto industry is going through a tough phase with passenger vehicle sales having taken a knock. While the main triggers are inflation, higher interest rates coupled with negative sentiment of customers, auto makers are offering deep discounts to create some sort of demand,“ said Abdul Majeed, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers. “In fact, very attractive prices are being offered to customers on almost on all models.“ Many of the carmakers are also offering discounts in June to make way for newer models that are expected to hit the market around the festive months starting late August. But going by the sluggish conditions, the quantum of discount makes it an attractive preposition for buyers even as the government has extended the excise benefits on automobiles until December.

• IBM Clicks on Apps as India Inc Mobilises Potential: You could soon get messages on discounts being offered by shops nearby a mall that you are visiting. Or could even get money from an ATM without a card. These are some of the apps based on sensors and biometrics that IBM’s enterprise mobile division is developing with corporates. While the US software major along with Indian real estate major DLF will deploy the app for malls at the latter’s upmarket destination in South Delhi, it is yet to deploy the ATM app based on its analytics in India. “The Indian market is very vibrant from the mobile standpoint. There’s a lot of capability being developed here by lots of different industry verticals,” Phil Buckellew, vice-president, enterprise mobile, IBM Software Group told ET. He said that the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) space in India and telecom are some of the industry verticals which are using apps to reach out to customers apart from better communication with employees. “After that, there is manufacturing, IT business,” Buckellew said. There are biometric projects that IBM is working on with Indian customers in the financial services sector. “Another area which is growing fast in the mobility space is using sensors to detect where you are inside a particular location. We are working with a lot of retailers, not Indians though,” Buckellew said. IBM launched its “mobile first” strategy two years ago, recognising the fact that corporates of all sizes would need to “mobilise” their business, which means, have mobile apps for their businesses.

• HUL has a 5-Pronged Strategy: Manwani: To make Hindustan Unilever (HUL) future ready, the company needs to nurture a continuous learning of environment that builds talent and new organisational capabilities, the company's chairman Harish Manwani told its 81st annual general meeting in Mumbai on Monday. Stressing that change is the “new normal“, Manwani said the current VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity) environment “requires companies to change the way they operate and constantly reinvent themselves“. He said HUL had a five-pronged approach to remain future ready: first, embracing technology and inclusive innovation that meets the needs of consumers across the socio-economic pyramid; second, committing to sustainable and responsible growth; third, building future-ready talent and capabilities; fourth, values-led and purpose-driven leadership; and finally , creating an agile and inclusive work culture. Manwani also mentioned the mobile marketing initiative ‘Kan Khajura Tesan' which has won several accolades including the Gold Lion at Cannes Lions Festival this year. “It is the combination of the hardware and software that will shape the corporate winners of tomorrow,“ he concluded.

• Inox Leisure in Talks to Buy Satyam Cineplexes: Multiplex operator Inox Leisure is in talks with Satyam Cineplexes to buy the Gurgaon-based rival, a move which would expand its foothold further in the film exhibition market in the northern region. According to the sources, Inox is in talks with Satyam Cineplexes to acquire its movie exhibition business.“We are in talks with Satyam Cineplexes to acquire it. It is still at very early stages,“ the source said. If the deal is through, it would strengthen Inox's presence in the northern region, which is dominated by Ajai Bijli-led PVR.

• Freshkins to Set up Mobile Shops to Sell Fruits, Veggies: In an attempt to modernise the highly unorganised fruit and vegetable retail industry, Freshkins Foods India will set up a network of micro-retail outlets and mobile shops to sell fruits and vegetables across Mumbai, reports Our Bureau. It plans to open 300 retail touch points over the next 18 months to provide fresh fruits and vegetables at consumers' doorstep. The initiative is supported by Maharashtra State Agriculture Marketing Board. The supplies will be procured directly from farmers.

• Yamaha Working on $500-Bike for Indian Market: Japanese two-wheeler maker Yamaha is working on a project to develop a small bike, which it aims to sell for around $500 (around 30,000) in India, a top company official said on Monday. The company, which has launched upgraded variants under the FZ series, however, did not confirm any timeframe for the launch of the bike. “The project is on. At this time we are not sure if the end product will cost $500. But we are working on the project keeping $500 as the benchmark price. We are trying our best,“ Yamaha Motor R&D India MD Toshikazu Kobayashi said.

• UK's Globo Buys B'lore Startup Sourcebits: A UK-based company has bought Bangalore startup Sourcebits, which makes mobile apps for enterprises, betting on the Indian firm's expertise in designing user-friendly software. Globo, headquartered in London, will acquire the services business of Sourcebits that accounts for 90% of the Bangalore company's revenue, according to a person familiar with the matter. Sourcebits, founded in 2006 by Rohit Singal, calls itself a design-driven software firm that attempts to stand out from the crowd with its focus on user experience. The company's clients include Bank of America, Disney, GE, Intel and IBM. For Globo, which specialises in enterprise software for mobile devices, the acquisition will give it a toehold in India. The addition of 167 Sourcebits employees will expand its presence in the United States, the UK company said in a statement on Monday. Sourcebits raised $10 million `60 crore) from Sequoia Capital (and IDG Ventures in 2011 and had revenue of $8.2 million (50 crore) last fiscal. About 60% of its revenue came from clients in the US. “Given that it is a capability buy, the company could be valued at 8-12 times its operating income,“ said George Anthrapar of investment bank Signal Hill, which is not in volved in this transaction. Sourcebits' operating income last fiscal was 10 crore. Singal will now focus on Sourcebits' gaming division called Wandake, according to a person aware of his plan. Singal, who studied at MS Ramaiah Memorial Hospital in Bangalore, could not be contacted for this story. Globo, founded in 1997, said the all-cash deal will add to its earnings in the first year as Sourcebits had already a significant pipeline of new contracts. SourcingLine, a Washington DC-based research and IT firm, named Sourcebits among the top 10 India-based mobile application developers.

• Zomato Buys New Zealand's MenuMania for Rs5 Crore: Online Restaurant guide Zomato has acquired New Zealand's MenuMania for an estimated 5 crore in an all-cash deal, making it the largest player in its space in the island country which has over 15,000 restaurants. Started in 2006 by Auckland based techie Cristian Rosescu, MenuMania was the largest rival to Zomato, which had started its operations in Auckland and Wellington in July last year. “This acquisition is the first of more to come this year. We will acquire in markets where local players dominate the ecosystem,“ said Deepinder Goyal, cofounder and CEO of Zomato, which has operations across 12 countries now. The company was funded with $37 million (227 crore), last year by Sequoia Capital and existing investor Info Edge. Goyal declined to comment on the exact amount of the MenuMania deal, but added that two more such acquisitions of similar companies are in the pipeline in southeast Asia and eastern Europe. With its organic and acquisition growth strategy Zomato aims to triple its revenue to about 100 crore by next year. Experts say it's a good strategy to expand inorganically in the food and beverages space. “It takes about 5-6 months to start making money in a new market as restaurants take time to sign up. This business is very local and one needs sales feet on the ground,“ said Ritesh Dwivedy , CEO of online food ordering site JustEat India, which has over 2,500 restaurants. MenuMania will be merged with Zomato within six months. “We will be able to combine our local knowledge about the market with the technology Zomato brings to the table. Users will have access to a common platform now,“ said Rosescu, CEO of MenuMania.

• Bangalore-based Startup Mu Sigma Acquires Singapore's Webfluenz: Startup posterboy Mu Sigma is making its first acquisition by buying Singapore-based social media analytics company Webfluenz. The Bangalore company, which is valued at $1 billion and counts Microsoft, Pfizer and Dell among its clients, will integrate Webfluenz's technology to create products to mine real-time intelligence from huge chunks of data. “Webfluenz will add significantly to Mu Sigma's products portfolio in serving our clients' advanced needs going beyond traditional social media monitoring,“ said Deepinder Dhingra, head of products and strategy at the data analytics company . Mu Sigma, which employs around 3,500 employees, declined to reveal financial details of the deal. Investment banking firm Nine Rivers Capital was the advisor to Webfluenz, which was founded by National Institute of Design graduate Bharani Setlur and Chennai Mathematical Institute alumnus Harish Mada bushi in 2010.The team created a platform to monitor, analyse and manage social media and the realtime web. “We are excited to be a part of Mu Sigma,“ said Setlur, the 33-year-old chief executive officer of Webfluenz. The firm has helped customers such as toy retailer Hamleys, Publicis Omnicom Group and Japanese advertising firm Dentsu to track and analyse social media conversations on topics or brands. The platform includes technology such as natural language processing, multi lingual text analytics and advanced algorithms for sentiment mining, according to the company.

• Liqour in Delhi to become costlier from Tuesday: Liquor in the national capital is set to become costlier from Tuesday. The rates of liquor is likely to increase by eight to 12 per cent as the revised excise duty regime and increased retailers margin component on liqour, notified by the Delhi government, would come into effect from tomorrow. Delhi government has decided to increase the retailer's profit margin in order to promote fair play and make the liquor trade look more profitable. According to the revised list, the retailer's profit margin component on Beer, Cidrem Alcopop has been hiked from the existing 8 per cent to 12 per cent of wholesale price. The retailer's profit margin on Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) has been increased to 20 per cent from the existing 15-18 per cent of the wholesale price. The retailer's profit margin on country liquor (Delhi Medium Liquor) has been increased from 3 to 6 per cent. "All this will come into effect from tomorrow," according to an official order issued by the Office of the Commissioner of Excise, Entertainment and Luxury Tax. Delhi government has already notified the revised excise duty regime, making liquor costlier by 8 per cent-12 per cent.

• Vijay Amritraj launches Indian wine in UK: Former Indian tennis star Vijay Amritraj has joined forces with one of India's largest premium wine producers to launch a new range of fine wines for the UK market. The Grover Vijay Amritraj Reserve Collection of white and red wines, which claims to be inspired by his legendary feats on the tennis court and iconic style of play, was launched at a Wimbledon-themed party at St James' Court Taj Hotel in London yesterday. "We want these wines to compete with the rest of the world - be it French, Californian or Chilean. They have to have the kind of quality that we as tennis players had when we left Indian shores. Also, I hope when people talk about the wine they also talk about the fact that it came from India," Amritraj told PTI. "This range represents a particular kind of taste that I enjoy; it's light on the white and it's got a rich red to it and you can pair it with different foods. The more important thing is that they are good quality and healthy wines that people can enjoy at fairly accessible rates," he added. Both wines will be distributed in the UK market through Cranbrook Wines and Myliko International priced at around 14.99 pounds. Amritraj is India's best-known tennis export, reaching No 16 in the world rankings in 1980 and beating many of the world's leading players during his 20-year career, including John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors. He also enjoyed a brief acting career, starring as M16 agent Vijay in the 1983 James Bond film 'Octopussy' and appearing as a starship captain in 'Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'.

• Snapdeal to showcase smartphone, sports cam: Online marketplace Snapdeal said it will showcase the first set of consumer-centric products, including a smartphone and a sports cam, created under its 'Launchpad' programme. In April, Snapdeal had unveiled 'Launchpad' offering a platform for innovators and inventors across the country. "Innovation and technology is the DNA of Snapdeal.com. The other existing sellers on the website are selling existing brands. We launched this platform to support creativity and innovation amongst new age entrepreneurs," Snapdeal Senior Vice President (Electronics & Home) Tony Navin said in a statement. The Click Pro (sports cam) and Alpha Feather (smartphone) are two products which Snapdeal is introducing with this edition of Launchpad as they address unanswered consumer needs, he added. Priced at Rs 12,999, the Alpha Feather claims to be the world's lightest 5-inch smartphone at 125 gms. Powered by the latest Android 4.4 Kitkat operating system, the device sports a 2 GB RAM, 1.3 GHz quad core processor, 13 MP rear camera, 8 MP front camera and internal memory of 4GB (expandable up to 32GB). "The team at Snapdeal has supported us seamlessly, they have helped us from the initial stages, reaching out to the consumers, marketing our product and distribution and logistics services. Also the partnership makes it easy for us to solely focus on innovation," Alpha Tech co-founder Kunjan Chauhan said.

International:

• Google to Shut Down Orkut in September: Google Inc will shut down its early social-networking service, Orkut, which was launched 10 years ago but has failed to put Google ahead in what has become one of the Web's most popular businesses. Google said it will shut down Orkut, which is widely used in Brazil and India but hasn't caught on more broadly, on September 30, to focus on its other social networking initiatives. The company declined to say how many users Orkut has. “Over the past decade, YouTube, Blogger and Google+ have taken off, with communities springing up in every corner of the world. Because the growth of these communities has out-paced Orkut's growth, we've decided to bid Orkut farewell,“ Google said in a post on the Orkut blog on Monday. Orkut was launched early in 2004, the same year that Facebook Inc, now the world's No.1 social network with 1.28 billion users, was founded. The service's shutdown comes as Google's social networking plans remain in question. In April, Vic Gundotra, the head of Google's social networking services, left the company. Gundotra oversaw the 2011 launch of Google+, a social networking service similar to Facebook. Gundotra said in October that 300 million users visit the Google+ web page every month. Google has increasingly sought to position Google+ less as a social networking “stream“ that competes with Facebook, and more as a means of establishing a unified “user identity“ system to improve Google's various Web properties. Last year, for example, Google began requiring users of its YouTube site to sign in with their Google+ identity before posting comments about videos. The company said it would preserve an archive of all Orkut “communities“ that will be available from September 30. “If you don't want your posts or name to be included in the community archive, you can remove Orkut permanently from your Google account,“ Google said.

• For Alibaba, a challenge is to turn mobile into money: Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd may have dominated online retail on personal computers, but is some way from replicating that leadership in shopping by smartphone and other mobile devices. Alibaba, which is heading towards a bumper New York IPO later this year, is throwing billions of dollars at figuring out how to thrive as half a billion people, 80 per cent of China's 618 million internet users, go online via mobile. The Hangzhou-based firm said last month that mobile has become an increasing source of transactions, now accounting for more than a quarter of the value of goods sold across its online marketplaces. But Alibaba's shift to wireless commerce is a double-edged sword: mobile commerce brings in significantly less revenue than traditional e-commerce. The quick-hit impulse buys commonly seen on mobile generate less money for merchants, and advertising on smartphones is a challenge few internet companies have overcome. Both problems threaten to squeeze future profitability. Making life tougher, rival Tencent Holdings Ltd has already planted its flag on smartphone screens with WeChat, the nearly ubiquitous app that has gone from a mobile messaging tool to a digital Swiss Army knife. "They're not just competing with other e-commerce companies, they're going against messaging apps. It completely changes how competitive they can be," said Sameer Singh, an analyst who writes about technology at Tech-Thoughts.net. "I don't think the same margins are realistic." Alibaba has spent more than $3 billion this year on mobile-focused investments. In its latest initial public offering prospectus, filed in the United States last month, "mobile" was mentioned 304 times - well ahead of "online" (264) and "internet" (144), while "computer" figured just 36 times.

• China manufacturing growth hits six-month high in June: China's manufacturing activity grew at its fastest pace for six months in June, suggesting that recent stimulus moves have started to have an impact. The official purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 51, from 50.8 in May. The PMI is a key indicator of the sector's health and a reading above 50 shows expansion. China, the world's second-largest economy, has taken various steps in recent months - including cutting taxes for small firms - to help boost growth. Last month, China's central bank said it will cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) - the amount of cash banks needs to keep in reserve - for banks engaged in lending to agriculture-related businesses and small companies. China's central bank, the People's Bank of China, said it would also encourage banks to lend more to exporters to boost shipments. In April, the government said it will cut taxes on small firms and speed up the construction of railway lines across the country.

• Legoland park for Japan to be built by 2017: A new Legoland park will open in Nagoya, Japan, with doors opening to the public in 2017, operator Merlin Entertainment has announced. The 32bn-yen (£185m) project will be the company's eighth park worldwide. Merlin, the operator of headline UK tourist attractions including Madame Tussauds and Alton Towers, will invest £53m in the project. Kirkbi, a company run by the original family behind the Lego brand, is also investing in the park. Merlin, the London-listed company, which bought Legoland in 2005, said that ultimately it saw potential for 20 Lego-themed parks worldwide. "We remain committed to our target of opening a new park every two to three years," said Merlin chief executive Nick Varney. The company has yet to announce details of what the resort will contain, but the original Legoland park in Billund, Denmark, has provided the model for its other parks worldwide. Typically they combine traditional theme park rides with detailed miniature Lego models of famous buildings and cityscapes from around the world.

• Internet outraged by Facebook's 'creepy' mood experiment: Internet users have reacted angrily to news that Facebook researchers manipulated the content some users were shown in an attempt to gauge their emotional response. For one week in early 2012, Facebook changed the content mix in the News Feeds of almost 690,000 users. Some people were shown a higher number of positive posts, while others were shown more negative posts. The results of the experiment, conducted by researchers from Cornell, the University of California, San Francisco and Facebook, were published this month in the prestigious academic journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. The study found that users that were shown more negative content were slightly more likely to produce negative posts. Users in the positive group responded with more upbeat posts. So it worked! Facebook was able to successfully change the emotional state of its users. While the mood changes were small, the researchers argued that the findings have major implications given the size and scale of the social network. Facebook's term of service gives the company permission to conduct this kind of research, but many users have reacted with anger at what they say is a dangerous social experiment. There is no indication that the 690,000 subjects were asked if they would like to take part in the study. Facebook uses an algorithm to determine which of roughly 1,500 available posts will show up in a user's News Feed. The company frequently changes this program to modify the mix of news, personal stories and advertisements seen by users.

• Marc Landis Elected Managing Partner at Phillips Nizer: Marc A. Landis has become the managing partner at Phillips Nizer, beginning Tuesday. Landis is a member of the law firm’s fashion law practice group and chair of the real estate practice. He is the first transactional lawyer to serve as managing partner, and only the second managing partner since the firm’s founding by Louis Nizer in 1926. Landis is also the firm’s official member of the International Council of Shopping Centers.

• Marks & Spencer Shifts Executive Roles: U.K. retailer Marks & Spencer disclosed a series of changes to its executive team’s responsibilities Monday, as part of the firm’s aim to “drive greater accountability and responsibility across the business,” the company said. As part of the shifts, Laura Wade-Gery, currently executive director, multichannel at M&S, will additionally be responsible for U.K. retail. And in order to accelerate M&S’ global brand position, the company said, executives in M&S’ international business will now report to Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, executive director, marketing and business development at M&S. Costas Antimissaris, business development director, has been appointed international director and reports to Bousquet-Chavanne. Meanwhile, Jan Heere, the current international director, is leaving M&S to return to Russia. Alan Stewart, chief finance officer, will be responsible for property as part of his financial asset management role. Hugo Adams, currently executive assistant to chief executive officer Marc Bolland, has been appointed property director, reporting to Stewart. The moves are effective immediately. Bolland said of the changes: “We now have the right infrastructure in place to take our business forward, and as we enter the next phase of our plan, we need to make sure our team structures and internal processes allow us to move with pace, simplicity and speed.” The company said it has also realigned responsibilities across the wider organization, in order to “promote swifter decision making and a speedier response to customers’ needs.” M&S, whose general merchandise sales — which include clothing — have faltered in recent years owing to increasing competition and an unclear target market for its designs, is due to issue a first-quarter trading update July 8.

• Carrefour Buys 53 Billa Supermarkets in Italy: French retailer Carrefour SA said Monday it has bought 53 Italian supermarkets under the Billa banner from the Rewe Group for an undisclosed sum. With a combined sales area of more than 624,000 square feet, the stores located in three regions of northern Italy — Lombardy, Liguria and the Aosta Valley — generated net sales of around 300 million euros, or $398.4 million, in 2013. All dollar rates are calculated at average exchange for the period concerned. “This acquisition, consistent with Carrefour’s multi-format strategy, will allow Carrefour to strengthen its presence in northern Italy,” said Carrefour, the world’s second-largest retailer behind Wal-Mart Stores Inc.  Carrefour had earlier reported the economic environment in Italy remained challenging in the first quarter, with like-for-like sales down 5.9 percent during the three-month period. Completion of the deal is subject to the approval of the relevant antitrust authorities and consultations with Billa’s employee representative bodies, it said.

• Chico's Appoints Miki Racine Berardelli: Miki Racine Berardelli was named president of digital commerce, chief marketing officer and executive vice president of Chico’s FAS Inc. Her responsibilities will include overseeing Chico’s, White House|Black Market, Soma and Boston Proper’s e-commerce efforts, as well as customer analytics, digital marketing, social media and strategic planning. Berardelli’s background includes developing customer-based strategies and marketing initiatives. Prior to joining Chico’s, she was chief marketing officer at Tory Burch. Before that, she was senior vice president of marketing at Ralph Lauren. Berardelli was recognized as one of the top women in cross-channel retail by Retail Online Integration and as one of Brand Innovators’ Top 50 Women in Brand Marketing. She served on the board of Shop.org, the digital division of the National Retail Federation, for the past seven years. “Miki will be joining a talented team at a very exciting moment,” said David F. Dyer, president and ceo of Chico’s FAS. “We’ve repeatedly stressed that a commitment to omnichannel innovation and customer focus lie at the center of our company’s multiple growth strategies. Miki’s talent and versatility will play a vital leadership role across all of our marketing efforts and in particular how we advance and align e-commerce, digital marketing, social media and other ways to drive our company’s growth in today’s ever-changing retail landscape.” Herbert Mines Associates in New York conducted the search for Berardelli.