Goafest 2026's top creative honors went to Mountain Dew's Darescore (QR-coded bottles grading mountain difficulty), Kansai Nerolac's Barefoot Journey (heat-reflective temple walkways cooling surfaces by ~15°C), and Perfetti's Center Fruit GenAI voice campaign in Indian dialects—signaling tech-led brand storytelling as the new creative benchmark.

Financial Express · BrandWagon · 5/26/2026, 5:22:50 PM

VBL extended its exclusive PepsiCo bottling and trademark pact in India by a decade to April 2049, covering brands like Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Sting, Mirinda, 7UP and Tropicana across 27 states. Crucially, PepsiCo dropped the SPV restriction, letting VBL diversify into businesses beyond Pepsi operations.

ET Retail · 5/22/2026, 4:56:31 AM

VBL extended its exclusive India bottling and trademark licensing agreement with PepsiCo by a decade to April 30, 2049. Critically, the revised pact drops the non-compete clause that barred VBL from non-PepsiCo businesses, opening the door to category and brand diversification across its 27-state footprint.

NDTV Profit · 5/21/2026, 5:35:10 PM

VBL extended its exclusive PepsiCo bottling and trademark license for India by a decade to April 2049, superseding the earlier 2039 term. Critically, PepsiCo lifted the SPV restriction, clearing VBL to pursue non-PepsiCo businesses — a structural unlock for diversification across its 27-state footprint.

ET Small Business · 5/21/2026, 2:57:47 PM