Sharma told Research that although the firm is already established in various locations across Asia, the firm was set up to work with companies from outside the region who were interested in understanding local consumers.

The new partnerships have a “hyper-local” focus, Sharma said.”MRSS India will approach domestic clients. We want this to be a hyper-local agency rather than a company that just has a presence in India. We’ll hire local staff and management.”

Sharma says he plans to repeat the model in other countries around Asia Pacific, and promises a further announcement to this end within the next month. Sharma said: “We work in China and Indonesia a lot, but not with local clients. Our plan would be to tie up with people in these markets.”