H.E Mr Emmanuel Lenain – Ambassador of France to India

Born on 27th March, 1970, Mr Emmanuel Lenain graduated from Sciences Po (IEP) in Paris and ESSEC Business School. He is also an alumnus of the Ecole Nationale d’Administration (ENA).

Mr Lenain began his diplomatic career in 1997, serving in the French Foreign Ministry’s United Nations Department, where he took part in peace negotiations on Kosovo. In 2000, he was appointed First Secretary to France’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, to follow cases related to the Security Council and the Sanctions Committees.

In 2003, he was assigned at the Embassy of France in Beijing as a Political Counsellor. In this capacity, he tracked China’s foreign policy and supervised negotiations on issues such as the European arms embargo and textile quotas. Mr Lenain returned to Paris in June 2005 to serve as the Prime Minister’s technical adviser on multilateral affairs until July 2007, when he came to Washington, D.C., to head the French Embassy’s Press and Communication Department.

From 2010 to 2015, he served as Consul General of France in Shanghai. Thereafter, he became Director for the Asia-Pacific Division of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development in 2015, a post he held until his appointment as Diplomatic Adviser to the Prime Minister in 2017.

In addition to his diplomatic activities, Mr Lenain has lectured on International Relations at Sciences Po and served as an expert on the Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict. Apart from French, he is also fluent in the English, Mandarin and German languages.

Mr Lenain has a passion for gelatine silver print photography. His work has featured in many publications. It has also been exhibited at Maison européenne de la Photographie (MEP), and entered the collections of this institution.

He is married to Mrs Géraldine Lenain, International Director of the Asian Arts Department at Christie’s. Géraldine Lenain wrote the first biography on the major Asian art dealer, C.T. Loo (1880-1957), which was published in 2013 to critical acclaim. With over 20 years of expertise in Asian fine arts and a wealth of international experience in Asia and the West, Géraldine Lenain plays a significant role in the auction world. She was elected President of the Friends of Musée Guimet in 2018. Raised in Hong Kong, Mrs. Lenain is French and obtained her Master’s in Art History at the Sorbonne in Paris. She speaks French, English and Mandarin. The couple has four sons.

https://in.ambafrance.org/Le-Service-Consulaire

Krikita Sharma – Digital Advertising Director at Conde Nast

Kritika works as a Digital Advertising Director at Conde Nast India, a global mass media company which is home to some of the world’s most iconic brands, including Vogue, GQ, Conde Nast Traveller and Architectural Digest.
 
Part of the initial digital team, she has been instrumental in growing the digital advertising business at Conde Nast exponentially from ground up, by driving an integrated business strategy and spearheading cross-functional collaborations to accelerate revenue growth. Kritika has spearheaded complex deals and large brand collaborations across various categories, including High Street, Luxury Fashion, Technology, Travel, E-commerce and Finance.
 
Previously she had the opportunity to work with Global companies, such as Microsoft, Facebook, Money Control and CNN.
 

With over 13 years of cross functional & leadership experience in Digital Advertising. Kritika has individual insights and learning’s into the best practices, processes, ad formats and content management in the digital ecosystem. 

https://www.condenast.com/

https://www.flipkart.com/

Sruthi Gottipati – General Manager & Editor in Chief at Brut India

Brut is a digital video company headquartered in Paris. As the founding editor of Brut India, Sruthi helped build the most-watched news publisher on social media in India from scratch. Sruthi is also an associate professor of journalism at Sciences Po, Paris.

She was previously awarded fellowships from the International Women’s Media Foundation and the International Reporting Project to cover underreported stories from Africa and Latin America. Prior to that, she was a reporter in the United States and in India, where she covered politics and general news for Thomson Reuters and The New York Times. She holds a Master’s from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. 

https://www.brut.media/in

Naiyya Saggi – CEO & Founder of BabyChakra

Naiyya Saggi is the CEO & Founder of BabyChakra, India’s top platform for maternity and childcare. Every month more than 2 million Indian families use BabyChakra for critical pregnancy and childcare decisions. BabyChakra leverages its intelligent app and web platform to build virtual care ecosystems of parents, doctors & products.

BabyChakra is part of the NITI Ayog’s Committee on Maternal and Child Health. We are backed by marquee angel and venture funds, are part of the prestigious Google Accelerator Programme and recognised as a top 7 innovative startup globally. BabyChakra has also been invited for a India-community building discussion session with Mark Zuckerberg, is a Facebook Start Company and also accelerated by Microsoft Ventures India.

Naiyya is a graduate of the Harvard Business School (MBA – Class of 2012) where she was a Fulbright and J.N.Tata scholar. Prior to BabyChakra, Naiyya was a management consultant at McKinsey & Company and at The Bridgespan Group (Boston) where she worked extensively in maternal, child health and education. Naiyya is passionate about mentoring and is a mentor at Facebook’s flagship #SheLeadsTech & Yes Bank’s Fintech Accelerator: ISME Ace.

Please reach out to me if you need any further information.

https://www.babychakra.com/

Fabien Pierrel – IT Transformation Director at Chanel Tech

With more than 15 years of experience on both operational functions (Supply Chain & Finance) and technological ecosystems, Fabien’s expertise is recognized in leading large-scale and complex projects within international context. 

Over the last decade, Fabien’s main focus was on global/strategic processes, local statutory/operation requirements and change management strategies. Travelling across the globe, he handled the design and implementation of various Core Models solutions, joining business processes and associated IT solutions. His initial connection with India started in 2012, within the Industrial sector and then continued in 2018 within the Luxury sector, by contributing to Chanel Tech strategy. 

Since 2020, Fabien has been appointed as IT Transformation Director to support Chanel stakeholders and preferred IT partners in their transformation journey (scalability, expertise, reactivity and innovation) to enhance customer’s experience.

https://www.chanel.com

Vikram Gupta – Founder and Managing Partner of IvyCap Ventures

Vikram Gupta is the Founder and Managing Partner of IvyCap Ventures, a USD 200 mn Venture Capital Fund that invests through the Alumni ecosystems that has portfolio of 30 companies. He has over 25 years of experience in Private Equity, Business Consulting, M&A, Strategy and Operations in Healthcare and Life Sciences, Education, Consumer Goods and other industries. He has held leadership positions across various well-known companies in India and Abroad.

Prior to founding IvyCap, Mr. Gupta was the founding member at Piramal sponsored USD 100 mn Healthcare focused Private Equity Fund that he conceptualized, and raised in 2008 when the world markets were going through turmoil. Mr. Gupta worked in the US with IBM Business Consulting Services for over four years in strategy and planning, business development and project management across various assignments. He conceptualized and led IBM’s Healthcare and Life Sciences practice for Clinical Genomics. He has also held senior positions with various well known Indian companies.

Mr. Gupta is the Co-Chairman of PEVCAI (Private Equity and Venture Capital) at ASSOCHAM and is an active member of IVCA (Indian Venture Capital Association) and CII (Confederation of Indian Industry). He received Distinguished Alumnus Service Award from IIT Delhi in the year 2020.
Mr. Gupta has completed his B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from IIT Delhi and has MBA degree in Strategy and Finance from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.

https://www.ivycapventures.com/

Vishal Gondal – CEO of Ncore Games

Best known as the father of the Indian gaming industry, Vishal Gondal sold his first entrepreneurial venture India Games to Walt Disney.  A health and fitness enthusiast, he runs marathons, treks and goes ski diving. A notable angel investor, Vishal was listed among the top 50 executives in the mobile content space by the UK based ‘Mobile Entertainment’ Magazine alongside noted people like Steve Jobs. His passion for technology, fitness & gaming led him to his next venture’ GOQii’ which is focused on helping people make a change towards a healthier lifestyle and be the force of good. He is also co-founder of nCORE Games, a leading Indian mobile games and interactive entertainment company. Currently, he brings his knowledge and love for interviewing people to a whole you platform by hosting a podcast series ‘Beneath the Force: The Vishal Gondal Show, he has conversations with personalities from various walks of life providing a sneak peek into their fascinating lives while in his own style.

https://www.ncoregames.com/

Geeta R Lobo – Country Service Line Leader – Social Intelligence Analytics at Ipsos India 

• Geeta has been working on marketing problems and helping clients make informed decisions over the last two decades.
• She has worked extensively across sectors and has been providing insights on shopper behaviour and retail management strategy.
• Her specific interest is in integrating new types of data and processing technology to extract insights.

https://www.ipsos.com/en

Ainara Kaur – Founder & CEO of Belora Cosmetics

Ainara Kaur, a serial entrepreneur at heart, co-founded Belora Cosmetics in 2019. Her role here is to spearhead strategy & marketing for the brand and drive consumer experiences.

During her experience of close to two decades, she has held leadership roles with organizations like Myntra, Ameriprise Financial, Yes Bank, MSL Publicis & worked on some of the leading consumer brands.

Ainara has also won several awards – India’s Greatest CEO of the year by Asia One powered by PWC, Femina Woman Entrepreneur Award, India’s Most Influential Marketing Leaders by CMO Council. She has also been a part of the CII National committee on e-commerce & Atal Innovation Mission.

Five years back an interesting turn of events pushed Ainara towards entrepreneurship. She left her high flying job, took a backpack & travelled across the world for six months. In her own words – “I travelled to Germany, France, Netherland, Austria, Slovenia, Italy, Hungary and Spain, among others. I backpacked, stayed in hostels and went to lot of places that a lot of people would not visit.”

“It is during these travels that I understood human behaviour & psychology and realised that people are inherently the same. Our needs & emotions are the same, only cultural influences differ. All of us gravitate to goodness be it in people or products. This forms the core philosophy of our brand – build products with goodness inside.” She added.

Also during these travels, she was exposed to the concept of clean beauty and found makeup in Europe that was made of great skincare ingredients and yet delivered high impact. When she decided to start a company that would create good-for-you wellness products along with her Co-Founder, they worked to bring this concept to Indian market in form of Belora.

https://www.beloracosmetics.com/

Gaurav Singh Kushwaha – Founder & CEO of BlueStone

Gaurav founded BlueStone in 2011, India’s leading online destination for fine jewellery. He functions as the Chief Executive Officer of the company, carving out short term and long term strategies that contribute to the brand’s growth and its consolidation in the jewellery e-commerce market. He brings in to the table, more than 20 years of experience in the domains of technology, e-commerce and internet marketing.

Prior to BlueStone, Gaurav co-founded Chakpak, an online entertainment portal in 2007 and successfully raised two rounds of funding. He has also worked with national and multinational firms including Amazon and Tavant Technologies.

Gaurav, an alumnus of IIT Delhi, is a prominent figure in the start-up realm and advises new and budding entrepreneurs on marketing and product strategies.

https://www.bluestone.com/

Jyotika Jhalani – Founder and Creative Director of Jannavi

The Cashmere Alchemist

Jyotika Jhalani established Janavi India in 1998, after a colourful decade at the World Bank. Her desire and vision was simple – to create India-proud designs with 100% pure cashmere in a way the world had never seen. The seed of this idea spun into reality when she converted her son’s bedroom into a small studio for her creativity to flow. She hasn’t looked back since. Today, her vision is reality – across 4 luxury lifestyle and retail destinations in India; and 100+ retail spaces in
U.S.A, U.K, Switzerland, China and Qatar.

Her lifelong tryst with the magic of cashmere and colour began with a ‘happy accident’ in childhood. An unexpected spill of ink and afternoon milk on her mother’s pink and blue reversible heirloom shawl, showed her the wonders of everyday chemistry – in this case, between pigment and liquid. She saw how the milk had ‘swallowed the ink,’ and the alchemy in the absorption power of the cashmere’s wafts and wefts was her eureka moment.

It didn’t stop at this magic shawl. Jyotika’s childhood inspired her ability to capture the textures of a carefree life, in the lightweight decadence of her brand’s special cashmere. Memories of the brazen sting of wild nettle in open fields. Of summers spent barefoot in Gulmarg, Kashmir, and at Rose Villa, her grandfather’s home. Most precious of all, was the lingering fragrance and warmth of a hug from ‘the gentle giant,’ her late father.

Jyotika’s chromatic perspective on life ushers in bold choices. Her aesthetic signature combines just the right touch of forward-thinking vivacity, with strokes of old-world, elegant whimsy inspired by her gracious hometown in the Himalayas, Kashmir.

A self-confessed ‘spiritual nomad,’ Jyotika seeks to celebrate the sacred natural rhythms of the universe, and to harness the inherent creativity that rests deep within the human heart. She likes to begin her day early, to ground herself in the meditative tranquillity of her favourite chant, ‘Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo,’ or sometimes, Bocelli’s ‘The Prayer.’ Jyotika will spend some quality time in solitude, and with family and her beloved pets, before immersing herself in a fast-paced, vibrant day at Janavi Headquarters in Noida, Delhi-NCR. She has shared her faith in the rejuvenative powers of sound, melody, and colour with her team – the spacious sunlit studio and cross-disciplinary departments are always reverberating with creativity because of this.

Since inception, Janavi has been known for its exceptional cashmere products. Its journey is about creating a particular world of luxury – beyond product. It has been exciting, unexpected, and closely guided by Jyotika’s spiritual sense.

https://janaviindia.com/

François Arpels – Founder & CEO of RISE IN Lifestyle Craft & Luxury 

Passionate about the dynamics and the levers leading to the expansion of brands, since 2002 François has been devising and executing global strategies for the transformation of large groups as well as independant brands in category leaders, with a focus on fine jewelry, beauty and accessories.

His current portfolio includes brands from Italy (fine jewelry distributed in 250 POS in 30 countries), Singapore (wellness at the crossroads between skincare and tech distributed in North America and Asia), and India that are relying on his active guidance for the definition and the operationalisation of innovative strategies for their global expansion.

In parallel, François is launching a digital marketplace with a strong editorial line focused on bridge to luxury and luxury ESG commited brands.

François has an intimate understanding of the Indian market where is has been involved for 15 years, and is the Chairman of the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry Retail Committee.

François is heir to French jeweler Van Cleef & Arpels, where he was actively involved as shareholder and member of the Executive Committee from 1988 until 1998, shortly before it was acquired by Richemont Group. He currently lives between Italy and India.

Joel Palix – Founder of Palix Unlimited

Joel Palix is a seasoned beauty executive with 30 years of international experience.

Previous roles include CEO of Feelunique a leading beauty e-retailer, CEO of Clarins Fragrance Group, CEO of Thierry Mugler, MD Europe of Yves Saint Laurent Beauty.

Joel Palix now runs his own boutique consultancy, Palix Unlimited, advising beauty brands and beauty financiers on DTC and E-commerce strategies, brand positioning,  innovation, acquisitions and new ventures. More information on www.palixunlimited.com

William Bao Bean – General Partner at SOSV

William is a General Partner at SOSV – The Accelerator VC – the #3 most active venture capital investor in the world in (2020, Pitchbook) with US$900m assets under management.  At SOSV he is the Managing Director of Chinaccelerator, the first startup accelerator to launch in Asia and the first and only active accelerator in Asia to have a unicorn go through its program – Bitmex a leading crypto exchange in the world, and also the Founder and Managing Director of MOX – the Mobile Only Accelerator which provides startups with free user acquisition to the 102m monthly active smartphone users in the ecosystem. William joined SOSV from SingTel Innov8 Ventures where he was a founding Managing Director supporting Greater China investments. Prior to that William was a General Partner at Softbank China & India Holdings, a venture capital firm backed by Softbank and Cisco, leading investments in China and South East Asia. William started his career in equity research most recently with Deutsche Bank where he was top ranked analyst in Asia Internet and China Tech, Media and Telecom and worked on IPOs and investments for Alibaba, Kingsoft, eLong (Expedia China), OnMobile, Rediff and Naukri.

https://sosv.com/

Moneka Khurana – Country Head at MOBILE MARKETING ASIA INDIA

https://www.mmaglobal.com/taxonomy/term/3485

Dev Lewis – Founder of China-India Networked

Dev Lewis is founder of ChinaIndia Networked and a Fellow and Program Lead at Digital Asia Hub.

His interests lie at the intersection of technology, politics, and policy
Dev was a Yenching Scholar at Peking University where he graduated with a Masters in China Studies, and has a degree in International Relations from Roger Williams University  He frequently writes for several regional publications and think tanks, and previously spent time at Gateway House, a foreign policy think tank in Mumbai, and Infosys China, an IT services Multinational.

https://chinaindianetworked.substack.com/

Kori Higgins – Operations and Business Development Professional

Kori Higgins is an operations and business development professional,
with over 12 years of experience in financial markets, technology, and
policy. Most recently as Head of Operations for Vibrant, Kori led the
launch and scaling of a blockchain wallet in Latin America. Prior to
Vibrant, Kori drove international business development efforts for the
Stellar Development Foundation. Having started her career in politics at
the U.S. Senate and Center for Strategic and International Studies, and
spending four years as Director of Business Development at Landscape
Capital Management, Kori’s breadth of experience makes her a
multidisciplinary thinker and problem solver. Kori is a frequent public
speaker, a start-up mentor, and a thought leader on DeFi and the future
of work.