BusinessLine (Chennai)

Goafest is back — with a new theme and location!

- Team Brandline

Goafest, the premier event of the advertisin­g and marketing community is back — but this time in Mumbai.

The Advertisin­g Agencies Associatio­n of India (AAAI) and The Advertisin­g Club have chosen the theme — ‘The Age of Adaptabili­ty’ for Goafest 2024. It’s a fitting change, as the event in its 17th edition will have to adapt to a change of location for the first time, though of course the theme is appropriat­e given the momentous challenges the industry is facing.

Scheduled to take place from May 29-31 at Westin Powai, Mumbai, the event aims to highlight the resilience and innovative spirit of the advertisin­g and marketing industries in an era defined by rapid change.

“The theme for Goafest 2024, ‘The Age Of Adaptabili­ty’, was chosen to reflect the current ethos of our industry. Adaptabili­ty is at the core of what we do — from adjusting to new media

The fest will have chameleon as the mascot, a creature known for its adaptive prowess

platforms to adopting innovative marketing strategies,” said Jaideep Gandhi, Chairperso­n of the Goafest Organising Committee. “This festival will not only celebrate creativity but also the ability to pivot and thrive amidst challenges.”

Describing how Goafest202­4 will have a chameleon as a mascot, Rohit Ohri, Chairperso­n, Goafest Content committee said, “The chameleon is a

creature known for its remarkable adaptive prowess. Like the chameleon, which adjusts its colours to match its environmen­t, our industry too must continuous­ly evolve its strategies and creative approaches to thrive in changing landscapes.”

The ‘Age Of Adaptabili­ty’ concept has been created and designed by a young team at Abnormal Design Studios.

Like always, there will be a series of keynotes, panel discussion­s, and workshops and the Abby Awards, recognisin­g excellence and innovation in advertisin­g.

The Goafest organisers are expecting a significan­t increase in participat­ion thanks to the event being hosted in Mumbai. Registrati­ons are now open and early bird rates are available until May 15th.

When the shoe does not fit, it’s time to rethink size measures! And that’s what is happening in India. There may soon be a new sizing system called ‘Bha’ to measure footwear for Indians. Currently Indians use Europeans standards to gauge sizes. The need for a local system for shoe sizes has arisen given the di•erences in the Indian population’s foot shape and size.

Indian feet are flatter and wider. This was uncovered by a study conducted by The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI) that surveyed over a lakh of people in 79 locations on the size, structure and dimension of an average Indian Foot. The survey found that most Indians wear a size larger since European footwear measures are narrower. The proposed ‘Bha’ system — that is likely to be out by 2025 — is being spearheade­d by the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The expectatio­n is that Indians will get better fitting footwear with the ‘Bha’ sizing.

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