Tata Motors partners with Football Legend - Lionel Messi as the global brand ambassador for its Passenger Vehicles

Lionel Messi signed-up as the Global Brand Ambassador for Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles. Tata Motors will be the first Indian brand to be endorsed by Lionel Messi. The Company will roll-out the association campaign, #madeofgreat, starring him, tomorrow.

Key Highlights

• The Passenger Vehicle Business will be undertaking an overall brand association campaign with a brand ambassador for the first time
• Tata Motors will be first Indian brand endorsed by the international sports icon, Lionel Messi
• This will be a long-term partnership for endorsing Tata Motors range of passenger vehicles, globally

Mumbai, 02 November 2015: After an exciting year of aggressive and highly engaging marketing campaigns for its new generation products like Zest, Bolt and GenX Nano, Tata Motors is all set to make huge strides in marketing its new product line-up, inspired by its Horizonext strategy.

The Company has signed-up the football player star, 4 consecutive times Best Player of the World, Lionel Messi, in a long-term association as it global brand ambassador to promote and endorse its passenger vehicles, globally. To start with, Tata Motors will first roll-out the association campaign, #madeofgreat, starring Lionel Messi.

This is the first time ever that the Passenger Vehicle Business will be undertaking an overall brand association campaign with a brand ambassador. The campaign is based on consumer insight and rides on a strong consumer motivation of ‘Seeking Excellence’ & ‘Self Belief’ which is epitomized by the confluence of two global brands- Tata Motors and Lionel Messi.

The core idea of this campaign - Made of Great emerges from the inspiring thought of ‘What drives us from within is what makes us great’. The Company will also soon launch an exclusive, limited edition merchandising range of this association.

Announcing the association, Mr. Mayank Pareek, President, Passenger Vehicle Business Unit, said, “We are very excited to have Lionel Messi on board. He is talent galore with conviction & is an icon for today’s youth. Watching him play football is magical. His determination on the field is awe-inspiring.”

“ He is a winner who is trustworthy, reliable, pioneering, simple and driven by self-belief, which is the core idea of this campaign - ‘What drives us from within is what makes us great.’ Tata Motors is driven by design, technology and strives towards excellence. Through this powerful campaign, we will communicate the values & ethos of the passenger vehicle business.”

As we look to expand our footprint across the globe, Messi’s unique ability to appeal globally, transcending geographies, makes him ideal person to represent our brand, internationally. This is the first campaign in the series and many more will unfold as we move on in this long-term association. We hope our customers like this new campaign and we look forward to their continued support.”

Mr. MayankPareek, President – Passenger Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors, presenting the association Jersey to Lionel Messi to welcome him onboard as the global brand ambassador. Signs up a long-term association with him to promote and endorse Tata Motors passenger vehicles, globally.

Endorsing an Indian brand for the first time, the magician of football and an inspiring youth icon, Lionel Messi said, “Namaste India. I am very excited about my first association with an Indian brand and am extremely thrilled to be a part of the Tata Motors family. I have always been fascinated by India and have heard such great things about this diverse country.

I was once in India with Argentina National Team and I hope to visit it again. Tata Motors is a true representation of India and a well-established brand, globally. It is important to believe in yourself and keep pushing to achieve success and that is what the first campaign stands for. I hope together we are able to inspire many more.”

Tata Motors is at a defining juncture in its evolution as it gears up to disrupt the passenger vehicles’ industry with path-breaking offerings. Taking these offerings to consumers with aggressive and innovative marketing is an equally important area of focus for the company. Tata Motors and Lionel Messi share many common traits with ‘a conviction to succeed’ being one.

Right from his childhood, Messi overcame every hurdle that came his way to become a football legend. Similarly, undeterred by fierce competition and challenging business environment, Tata Motors continues to stir up the passenger vehicle industry with its innovations. With this association, Tata Motors embarks on an exciting journey to connect with its global audiences effectively.

The first campaign, #madeofgreat is hinged on the Company’s philosophy of providing best-in-class innovations in the passenger vehicles segment with a combination of stunning design, thrilling performance and exciting new technologies. The campaign builds upon Tata Motors’ DNA of trust, authenticity, reliability, simplicity, as well as its commitment to innovation.

This campaign has been conceptualized by Tata Motors and Soho Square Advertising & Marketing Communications. The creative agency team lead by Kunal Jeswani, Anuraag Khandelwal and Satish deSa has spent over five months on the making of this campaign. It has been directed by Daniel Ben Mayor and filmed by a team of international experts in Barcelona.

Tata Motors has used the best graphic expert, Ambassador to bring alive the visual experience. Wizcraft is bringing this campaign alive on-ground, while DigitasLBi and SMG Convonix are seeding it across the digital platform, with Lodestar UM spearheading the media strategy.

This association comes at a time when the Passenger Vehicle Business is witnessing month-on-month growth on the back of recently launched cars – Zest, Bolt and GenX Nano, which are leading the recovery for the Business. Tata Motors has bagged over 51 awards for its innovative marketing campaigns, in the last fiscal year.

The Company has evolved as an aggressive marketer with its go-to-market strategy and innovative consumer engagement plans. Taking its marketing strategy to the next level, Tata Motors will continue to create compelling communication campaigns for the business and its brands to connect with its customers innovatively.