MUMBAI: Indian creative agency The Social Street has named Navin Fernandes as its managing partner for its sports marketing arm.
In his new role, Fernandes will be responsible for all the agency’s sports-related aspects, including strategy, new business, partnerships, events and activities. He will work in close co-operation with Mandeep Malhotra, founding partner & CEO, The Social Street.
The Mumbai-headquartered agency also has offices in New Delhi and Bengaluru.
Fernandes has over 15 years of experience in the industry. When it comes to sports marketing, he was responsible for signing and managing some top Indian sportspersons such as Gautam Gambhir, Varun Aaron, KL Rahul, Ashwini Ponnappa, Subrata Paul, Tania Sachdev, CS Santosh and Tuhin Satarkar through his seven-and-a-half-year tenure as the national athletes manager for Red Bull India.
Before joining The Social Street, it was under his leadership at UBA India that the company signed 30 top basketball athletes, nine of whom currently represent the Indian men’s national team.
Among the noteworthy sporting projects Fernandes has spearheaded in India are the country’s first BMX, Skateboarding, Kite Surfing, Parkour, Sport Climbing and Chess events.
He is also two-time national gold medallist and Top 25 ranked athlete in the NCAA Div III collegiate championships (USA) in the 110 metre hurdles.
Commenting on the latest appointment, Malhotra noted: “Navin is an exciting addition to the TSS family. We are thrilled to have him lead the charge of our expanding sports offering. He brings with him a valuable and unrivalled depth of experience in the sports and marketing arena. His high energy level and enormous talent aligns well with The Social Street’s vision for doing things differently.”
Fernandes adds: “I’m really excited to be working with a young, dynamic and highly successful team at The Social Street. It’s exciting times for sports in India, we are now finally moving away from the tag of a cricket only nation to a multi-sport nation. In a field as vast as sports, it is Important to create value for all key stakeholders involved (federations, team/league owners, brands, athletes & fans). I’ve had the privilege of working with some of the world’s most dynamic brands and it would be great to share some best practices with the team here in creating engaging and meaningful experiences for our partners across platforms and also help us be a part of building & developing a sporting culture in India.”
Fernandes’ appointment comes as a strategic move for The Social Street to further strengthen its sports marketing offering. The agency has worked with some prestigious sporting tournaments in the country such as International Premier Tennis League (ITPL), Premier Futsal League including individual teams, Pro Kabbadi League, Indian Premier League (IPL), Bengaluru Tigers at the Super Fight League (MMA), Tamil Nadu Premier League (cricket) as well as major sporting events for Star Sports and Hotstar.
In August this year, The Social Street also announced a partnership with UK-based creative, design & brand agency Works Ltd. in a move to foster creativity in sports in India and increase its focus on accelerating growth in the world of sports and entertainment.
