They help clients make the write choices! RMA Media (Ronny Mistry Associates Private Limited) have been in the business for 29 years and are among India’s leading advertising representatives for international media. They exclusively represent elite publications like Bloom-berg BusinessWeek, International Herald Tribune (the global edition of The New York Times,) The Daily Telegraph (UK), Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) Group, Nikkei Business, Japan, Silver Kris (the in-flight magazine of Singapore Airlines), etc. "Two years ago we saw that many international clients also wanted to reach the Indian audience through a few Indian magazines and dailies. The world can now target the Indian business community via publications like Businessworld and BSensex (the in-house magazine of the Bombay Stock Exchange) and we are in conversation with many other Indian publishers too,” says Faredoon Kuka, RMA’s managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO). "We see great potential in this and it helps in cross selling too.”
With offices in Bombay, Delhi, Bangalore, Madras, Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Cochin, Hyderabad as well as Dubai, RMA offers the Indian government and corporates integrated solutions via print, online, conference, outdoor, television, mobile, etc. "Now we go to our clients with total solutions so that they can use all the platforms which we can offer,” Kuka asserts. With Wall Street woes impacting businesses globally, "as you know the last one-and-a-half to two years have been slow all over the world. We are looking forward to its (global economy’s) revival and I am sure it will happen soon,” Kuka declares.
The recession has seen a shift in strategy with regard to channels of communication. Digital information — faster, cheaper and easier than physical communication — has clicked with the advent of newer, technologically advanced electronic devices. "We have seen online advertising picking up in the last few years as this gives an opportunity to our clients to be present on respective websites at quite a low investment compared to the print media,” states Kuka.
The Kuka family (from left): Faredoon, Nancy, Sharmin and Rushad
Believing in the motto "no destination is too far, no challenge is too big,” RMA also provides media planning, research and consultancy within India and the UAE (United Arab Emirates). "India Advantage” reports are brought out every year within publications like the International Herald Tribune or during major events like World Travel Market (a premier global event for the travel industry). "We brought out one recently at the time of Davos (World Economic Forum meet) in February 2010. We are looking at bringing out one more when US President Barack Obama visits India in November this year,” Kuka remarks. RMA has also been supporting various publishers/Groups like Centcom Limited (Chemical and Engineering News) and have assisted them in exhibitions like CPhl India (trade show for pharmaceuticals). "In the steel industry, we have assisted International Sheet Metal Review in BLECH India (exhibition for sheet metal working) which was a great success,” he adds. International advertising will further pick up as a number of Indian companies have advertising agencies outside India. "Also now many clients are looking at doing a sustained campaign over a period of three to six months. This is very important to penetrate the respective markets,” Kuka believes.
Acknowledging the company’s contribution on the occasion of RMA’s silver jubilee four years ago, Nicholas Edgley, international sales director, The Telegraph Group wrote from London: "RMA Media and The Telegraph Group have been working together for 15 years and they have been key to developing our relationships with either very large/medium/small companies and continue to grow our revenues from India... Kuka and his team have always been the most trusting and honest partners to our company. They have produced excellent country reports for our titles and… secured an excellent survey on India producing well over £ 100,000 of new revenue for The Daily Telegraph… Without a doubt RMA achieved this by pure hard work and more importantly a total understanding of the clients and agencies in their region.”
"We are especially impressed with... Kuka’s dedication and proactive nature in regularly updating himself and his team... on changes in SPH and keeping us abreast of the changes on their side… RMA Media has grown SPH’s print business in these markets with a year-on-year average increase of 30 percent since our partnership in the 1990s,” stated Leslie Fong, executive vice president, marketing division, SPH. "We are pleased to be represented by an honorable company such as RMA Media and have high regard for the high level of professional services rendered by you and your staff members,” commended Tatsuo Ito, managing director of advertising, Nikkei Business Publications, Inc., Tokyo in his letter of congratulations.
Kuka’s wife Nancy is a director at RMA Media. Their 22-year-old son Rushad is in his final year studying graphic designing and media at Raffles College (Global). "He should be joining us shortly,” says Faredoon. Daughter Sharmin, aged 19, has just returned after completing one year of hair styling in Vancouver, Canada. "Our Group has been like a family over more than two decades. We enjoy whatever we do and hence it is never work but a pleasure,” Kuka observes.