Brands are to culture as words are to language
Reading Time: 5 minutesThe Brand Absorption Matrix: Legacy FMCG risks slow death by empty repetition. D2C risks fast death by empty novelty.
April 23, 2026
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Strategy thesis on how to grow FMCG in the India of today and tomorrow
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The Red Queen Race of India 2-3-4: A demand-side pressure cooker
Reading Time: 5 minutesThe red queen race in India 3-4 is a demand side pressure cooker
April 16, 2026
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Why the Red Queen Effect in India is complex
Reading Time: 6 minutesNo matter how ahead you are, you have to keep running even to stay in the same place. If you want to start winning the race, you need to run even faster! This is the Red Queen Effect.
April 3, 2026
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Why there is a legit role for both legacy FMCG and D2C in India
Reading Time: 3 minutes“If, or else” buying behaviour + the undifferentiated middle disappears in the age of abundance
March 25, 2026
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The small bets trap
Reading Time: 3 minutesBig FMCG systems eat their young. Small bets need parallel enabling structures
March 19, 2026
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Meaning is the atomic unit of strategy
Reading Time: 4 minutesMeaning exchange creates double thank you moments. That’s why even in capitalism, meaning is the atomic unit of strategy
March 10, 2026
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$1 to tighten the bolt. $99 to know which one.
Reading Time: 4 minutesIf you want to move up the value chain, master strategic thinking. One sign of a good strategic thinker is that they set very high standards, which makes them insufferable.
January 28, 2026
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Layers of advantage
Reading Time: 4 minutesWhen we practise one kick 10,000 times, we are compounding our advantage. But oftentimes, we have to stack different advantages on top of each other until our position becomes bulletproof.
December 31, 2025
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7 shades of bulls**t
Reading Time: 4 minutesMuch like an elephant that grows up tethered to a stake, and so never tests its strength against the flimsy, frayed piece of rope tying it down, we live with this bulls**t in our own heads that silently and unknowingly crubs our potential.
December 18, 2025
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The Bhasmasura curse that plagues big brands
Reading Time: 3 minutesbig brands inadvertently set insurgent brands up for success that’s the Bhasmasura curse
October 16, 2025
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Honey, who shrunk my share?
Reading Time: 3 minutesLarge, mature, category leader brands lose share like an iceberg melts. This happens because consumers move forward, while brands regress.
October 13, 2025
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Sampling unlocks willingness to buy
Reading Time: 3 minutesMy hair mascara story: sampling, even forced trials break consumer resistance which over time converts to more usage, even loyalty
October 6, 2025
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