The CMO’s MO: Sameer Saxena on navigating Legrand’s dynamic, ever-evolving marketplace

The CMO’s MO (modus operandi), spotlights some of India’s top CMOs as they share their marketing mantra, trends for the future, and what keeps them up at night. Here, we chat up with the who’s who of the country’s leading marketers, keeping the tone conversational, crisp and throw in questions that allow leaders to shine a light on their personalities, plans, and passion projects for the year ahead.

In this week’s edition of CMO’s MO, we have Group Legrand India’s marketing director Sameer Saxena in the hot seat. With more than 35 years of experience in industries including automotive, consumer durables, electrical, and tyres, Saxena has been leading Legrand India’s marketing strategy since 2013.

Being a board member for compliance and governance, his role covers market/customer insights and CSR, besides providing Legrand India with a strategic marketing direction. Prior to this current assignment, Saxena held leadership roles at Indo-Asian and Schneider Electric.

Starting his career as management trainee at Apollo Tyres, he advanced to the position of regional manager within the company. During his tenure as national distribution manager at General Motors, he opened the first Opel showrooms in India.

Read on to discover his thoughts and perspectives in this week’s CMO’s MO.

What are the three biggest marketing challenges for your brand right now?

The marketplace for Legrand India is dynamic and evolving, presenting both opportunities and challenges. Amongst the top three challenges we face is adapting to evolving consumer preferences and behaviours—both offline and online—more effectively.

Moreover, integrating innovation and sustainability with marketing campaigns to stand out in a crowded market with too much competition is becoming an uphill task. Similarly, it is challenging to have an integrated strategy to continuously enhance customer experience across multiple channels.

With the growing demand for smart homes and high-end properties, what are the top three opportunities that Legrand India is eager to tap into?

The highlight for Legrand India this year is the seamless integration of its smart home solutions with popular smart home ecosystems like Google Home and Amazon Alexa. The Internet of Things (IoT) technology presents exciting possibilities. Smart switches, coupled with increasing data penetration, are becoming increasingly desirable. In the next few years, we expect to see a surge in demand for smart and aesthetically pleasing switches.

With the rise of online shopping, there is a significant opportunity to enhance digital presence and e-commerce capabilities. We constantly strive to enhance the user experience on the Legrand E-Shop to drive online sales and customer engagement.

With AI becoming the buzzword, how is your company leveraging it across the board-?

We have integrated AI into our workflows to handle routine tasks, freeing up time to engage in creative problem-solving and innovation. AI-driven insights from the social listening tool help us tailor products and solutions that meet specific customer requirements, enhancing overall satisfaction and engagement.

As an electrical solutions company, how is our brand walking the talk on sustainability?

We constantly innovate for energy-efficient solutions, focusing on reducing electricity consumption through intelligent lighting and solar energy. Our waste management strategies aim to maximise recycling, using more recycled plastics and metals. By 2025, we aim to eliminate single-use plastics in packaging.

Beyond products, Legrand India supports environmental initiatives like solar installations for schools, mangrove restoration, and beach cleaning. We also back 'Team Sea Sakthi' in the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge. Legrand’s global goal is carbon neutrality by 2050, with key targets like eliminating single-use plastics by 2024 and cutting CO2 emissions by 50% by 2030.

What separates your brand culture from others?

Legrand India distinguishes itself from other brands through its focus on innovation and sustainability while staying true to its motto of #LiveTheAdvantage. From smart home solutions to advanced electrical systems, innovation is in our DNA.

With a global presence, Legrand India brings international expertise and best practices to the Indian market, offering quality, reliable, and durable products and solutions. This aligns with our group’s purpose of improving lives through simple, innovative, and sustainable solutions.