What Founders & Brand Leaders Say About Building EPIC Brands & the EPIC Brand MapTM
“The EPIC Brand Map helped us see our brand with fresh eyes. It wasn’t about flashy overhauls, it was about refining what mattered. The subtle but strategic evolution of our identity, combined with a comprehensive packaging experience framework, brought new coherence and confidence to Re’equil. The process was precise, insight-led, and deeply energizing for our team.”
Vipul Gupta
Founder & Director, Re’equil India and Author, The Overnight Glow
“It all started with the Building Epic Brands training, which opened our eyes to the power of the EPIC Brand Map. What followed was a deep, structured branding journey across our group companies. Whether B2B formulations or B2C skincare, each brand was sharply defined, positioned, and brought to life with its own distinctive identity. The clarity, precision, and strategic thinking behind the process made it a game- changer for us.”
Jaspreet Gulati
Co-founder, Hitech Formulations
“The EPIC Brand Map helped us pivot decisively from a broad IT services company to a sharply positioned global player focused on logistics and supply chain platforms. The process wasn’t just theoretical; the live labs and trainings with our core team brought the transformation to life. It was evocative, insight-driven, and gave us the clarity to build with purpose.”
Sumeet Soni
Founder & CEO, Zapbuild
“Attending the Building Epic Brands program was a turning point for us. The EPIC Brand Map gave us a clear, powerful framework to shape our Ayurvedic cosmetics brand with intent and authenticity. As a couple-led venture, it helped us align our vision and grow the brand steadily across India, while staying true to what makes us unique.”
Himanshu Chadha
Founder & Managing Director, Aryanveda Herbals & Nimson International
“Attending the Building Epic Brands training with my core team was a pivotal moment for us. The EPIC Brand Map gave us the clarity and conviction to reposition Chuk De as India’s safest whole spices brand. It brought together deep consumer insight, sharp storytelling, and strategic precision—shaping a brand our customers can truly trust.”
Vikram Luthra
Director, Lifestyle Foods & Chukde Spices
“From shaping CHUK’s identity as India’s first compostable tableware brand to leading the rebranding of our listed entity from Yash Papers to Pakka, the Brand Maps created by Saurabh have been at the core of our transformation. Every element, from strategy to execution was handled with evocative storytelling, insight-led thinking, and sharp clarity. As we now scale globally as a regenerative packaging leader, this foundation continues to guide our journey.”
Ved Krishna
Group CEO, Pakka Inc & Vice Chairman, Pakka Limited
“The Building Epic Brands program was a turning point—not just for our business, but for me personally. The EPIC Brand Map gave me the tools to sharpen my personal brand and build India’s leading glass packaging company with greater clarity, confidence, and consistency. The frameworks are timeless—we still use them to guide strategic decisions today.”
Deepankar Aggarwal
Founder & Director, Ajanta Bottle
“Building a global luxury lifestyle brand from India demands more than great products. It demands strategic brand thinking. The Building Epic Brands workshop was a mind- opener. It made me see the long-term value of brand assets and the role of the EPIC Brand Map in creating evocative, insight-driven narratives that scale beyond borders. It’s been a foundational influence on our journey.”
Gaurav Aggarwal
Co-founder & Managing Director, Stonex India
“When I attended the Building Epic Brands training, the idea was still on paper. Today, that idea is one of India’s leading angel investment networks. The EPIC Brand Map gave us the clarity and conviction to shape the brand from the ground up—and Saurabh’s team ensured it was implemented with professionalism and precision. It set the tone for everything that followed.”
Prashant Narang
Co-founder, Agility Ventures
“I first got hooked to the EPIC Brand Map during the Building Epic Brands training nearly four years ago and it’s been our go-to framework ever since. Across more than 10 brand launches and rebrands in food FMCG, e-commerce, retail, and HoReCa segments including our corporate brand Pansari Group, we’ve relied on the EBM to bring clarity, depth, and structure. It’s made our execution sharper and our brands significantly stronger.”
Shammi Agarwal
Managing Director, Pansari Group of Industries
“I worked with Saurabh and his team nearly a decade ago, and what stood out even then was their deeply insight-driven approach. From defining the brand architecture for DRB Foods to rebranding Nutty Gritties and creating a flanker brand, every move was rooted in strategic clarity. Since then, Nutty Gritties has scaled 10x across products, geographies, and segments and the EPIC Brand Map we created back then still holds strong. That’s the power of getting it right from the start."
Dinika Bhatia
Founder & CEO, DRB Foods & Nutty Gritties
“Saurabh created our EPIC Brand Map when Gyandhara was just a startup in the agri-inputs space. Three years later, that same brand map continues to guide us daily as we scale to become one of India’s top five cattle feed brands by volume and value. It sharpened our positioning as the better-quality choice in the market, and has been a key driver of our 5x growth. It’s more than a document, it’s our brand compass.”
Ritu Agarwal
Managing Director, Gyandhara Industries
“I was advised to bring Saurabh on board as we built our men’s health startup, then operating in the sexual wellness space. What followed was a deeply thoughtful, insight- driven journey that led to the creation of the EPIC Brand Map for RxMen (then Qurex). His strategic clarity and patient guidance helped us rebrand as a category creator in men’s health, with a strong foundation that continues to shape our growth.”
Shailja Mittal
Founder, RxMen
“We first worked with Saurabh and his team 7–8 years ago to shape a category-defining brand in the premium preschool space. Early Learning Village emerged as an epic brand, built on a sharply articulated EPIC Brand Map co-created with my co- founders. As we grew, we brought Saurabh back on board to develop brand extensions, restructure our architecture, and craft fresh Brand Maps for our new sub-brands. Their strategic clarity and consistency across stages have been invaluable.”
Priya Dhawan
Co-founder & Head of School, Early Learning Village
“When I was leading growth for our family business, Microlit, in high-precision liquid handling instruments, Saurabh gave us the confidence to think bigger - to build a global brand from India rather than remain a white-label player. He shaped our EPIC Brand Map and worked closely with his team to craft a truly world-class brand system. Seven years later, that foundation still holds strong - today, over 50% of our total sales come from global branded business. It was a pivotal shift, and it all began with the brand.”
Aviral Jain
Director & Global Marketing Head, Microlit
“I’ve always known Saurabh as a branding guru. He first worked with me nearly a decade ago on my first large gated community project, which was developed in the hills, a passion project that, thanks to its success, led a series of future project launches. Saurabh shaped the Brooks Arthaus brand using his proprietary methods, and that foundation has stood strong, establishing Brooks as a very powerful brand for gated communities. We’ve since launched multiple projects, some as brand extensions under the same name, guided by the same principles he brought to the table from day one.”
Nilanjan Bhowal
Founder & Principal Architect, Design Consortium
“I first met Saurabh 12 years ago when he walked into our school at my father's request. We were seeking to rebrand a 35-year-old institution to reflect its philosophy as a modern & progressive school but one that is deeply rooted in values. Back then, the EPIC Brand Map as a concept was still taking shape, but even in its early form, his approach was thoughtful, insightful, and deeply impactful. It reshaped how we saw the school as a brand. Since then, he’s been a constant companion in our journey both at the school and later in my edtech startup, shaping our brand maps and growth with the rare blend of a friend, mentor, and advisor.”
Siddhartha Kapoor
Director, Modern School & Founder & CEO, Lernio
EPIC Practitioners who Mastered the Map
These aren’t just profiles. They’re lived journeys through the map.
"Defining SOCIAL’s brand essence amid rapid growth was a challenging but necessary step. As we expanded across outlets, teams, and revenue, it became critical to articulate what makes SOCIAL truly distinctive. Saurabh and his team worked closely with our core leadership to shape a sharp, strategic positioning that now sits at the heart of our EPIC Brand Map. It captured what makes SOCIAL truly distinctive and now serves as a clear, consistent compass that continues to guide our growth."
Divya Aggarwal
Chief Growth Officer at Impresario Entertainment & Hospitality Pvt Ltd
“As part of the corporate brand team at HCL Group, shaping the brand essence, architecture, and identity system of a global, iconic organization is no easy task—especially with diverse initiatives under one umbrella. We engaged Saurabh and his team to define a cohesive brand architecture anchored in our core belief: Human Potential Multiplied. Through a series of patient, insight-rich live labs, they helped us craft EPIC Brand Maps (earlier known as BOD Brand Framework) for our group brands and built a unified, sustainable system that strengthens the HCL corporate brand for the long run.”
Rajat Chandolia
AVP and Head, Marketing and Branding, HCL Group
“I first experienced Saurabh and his team conducting live labs for various HCL Group initiatives and was deeply impressed by their clarity and depth. That led me to bring them into the Shiv Nadar Foundation, where they helped shape the EPIC Brand Map for our literacy education initiative - one of our oldest and most respected programs, touching the lives of hundreds of thousands of children and adults across India. Their approach was insight-driven, collaborative, and deeply aligned with our mission.”
Anshul Adhikari
DGM Marketing, Shiv Nadar Foundation
“I had the privilege of working closely with Saurabh while he was shaping the EPIC Brand Map into a powerful, holistic framework for brand direction. Later, I attended the Building Epic Brands program and was truly blown away by the clarity and impact a well-crafted brand map can create. Under his guidance, I learned to map brands myself - a skill that I constantly find myself applying in my work as a management consultant. I was also fortunate to contribute as an editor to parts of the book he later published. It’s been a rare learning journey, and a truly inspiring one.”
“Being personally trained and mentored by Saurabh on the EPIC Brand Map while working on multiple client projects was a game-changing experience. Over time, I developed the ability to craft these sophisticated maps independently and that has fundamentally shaped how I view brands. In my current role as a management consultant and even personally, this skill helps me instantly spot brand challenges and unlock strategic opportunities with clarity and confidence.”
Rukhsar Khan
Management Consultant, Accenture Strategy
“I’ve had the privilege of attending the Building Epic Brands training in 2020 and being part of the core teams led by Saurabh on brand mapping projects across industries. The EPIC Brand Map is more than a framework - it’s a powerful skillset that has put me miles ahead of my peers in the branding space. It’s been foundational to my growth as a brand strategist.”
Abynaya Thiagarajan
Engagement Manager, BOD Consulting
“When I joined Saurabh at BOD Consulting, I was drawn by the promise of learning the EPIC Brand Map, it was a skill I’d heard about but never seen done with such clarity and depth. Brand mapping is nuanced and often unstandardized, and I was looking for a mentor who could guide me through its intricacies. Not only did I find that in Saurabh, but I also had the opportunity to work across industries, shaping brand maps and identity systems for a wide range of clients. It’s been a transformative learning journey.”
Shubhangi Bhatia
Engagement Manager, BOD Consulting
“I’ve been fortunate to accompany Saurabh on many client visits, where our conversations often centered around the art and complexity of brand mapping - a skill that’s critical yet often misunderstood. With a background in brand and marketing, I knew the theory, but watching Saurabh bring it all together on a single canvas was eye-opening. Over time, I had the opportunity to co-create these maps with him, quickly learned the craft, and now build them independently for BOD clients. Today, I’ve taken it a step further - training both undergrad and postgrad students in the same framework that once inspired me.”
Somil Makhija
Senior Engagement Manager, BOD Consulting
“I’ve had the privilege of working closely with Saurabh for nearly a decade, shaping future-ready brands and winning global recognition along the way. As Head of Content, I’ve played a key role in crafting verbal identity systems - an essential layer of the EPIC Brand Map that defines both the spoken and written voice of a brand. It’s the kind of work I deeply care about. What makes the EBM truly exceptional is how seamlessly it fuses business strategy with creative expression; it’s the only framework I’ve seen that does both with clarity and coherence.”
Divya Rathore
Associate Director & Head of Content, BOD Consulting
“As Lead Designer at BOD for nearly a decade, I’ve had the opportunity to shape several award-winning visual identity systems, translating brand concepts into real, resonant experiences. The EPIC Brand Map has been our primary foundation for this work, providing the clarity and direction needed to design identities that are not just beautiful, but deeply aligned with brand strategy. It’s a joy to work with a framework that so effectively bridges insight and creativity.”
Shreya Patil
Visiting Faculty, Sir JJ Institute of Applied Art & Founder, Rooh Connect
“As a design lead at BOD, every brand I worked on had the EPIC Brand Map at its core. I may have been building complex visual identity systems, but without that strategic foundation, it would’ve been a headless exercise - we’ve all seen identities that look good but lack depth. The EBM gave our work purpose and cohesion. Today, in my role at Jio where I work as an art director, I continue to apply those principles, where structured design thinking is not just valued, but expected across every platform.”
Kabir Tambe
Art Director, Jio
"As an educationist passionate about how learning shapes futures, I first met Saurabh when he was consulting for the education brand I was part of. My curiosity led me to join his Building Epic Brands training about five years ago and what I learned then has stayed with me ever since. Saurabh just doesn’t teach branding. He creates an entire world around it. His training is immersive, intentional and transformative. It sharpens how you think, feel and communicate your purpose. The clarity and structure of the EPIC Brand Map continue to influence how I approach every role I’ve taken on since."
Shruti Nagar Dave
Author, The Wrong ABCs of Preschool, Faculty, Teacher & Council Member, HighScope Educational Research Foundation
“Before and during my MBA, I explored internships in PR and marketing, but something always felt incomplete. That changed when I joined the Building Epic Brands training 4–5 years ago. The experience was truly transformational, not just for my career, but my entire approach to brand thinking. I’ve applied those learnings in my personal life and across roles in product marketing at a leading bank and now as a media strategist at one of the largest media planning companies. It gave me the clarity and confidence I was looking for.”
Tarunika Sharma
Manager Media Planning, Mindshare
“I’m a techie turned marketing professional. After completing my engineering in Electronics & Communication, my Master’s in IT Strategy from Barcelona became a turning point, I realized I didn’t want to stay in tech. I returned to India and explored advertising, marketing, and communications before joining Saurabh at BOD. That’s where I got a first-hand experience of the EPIC Brand Map, and it completely reshaped how I understood branding. Since then, I’ve applied its principles in building my own video marketing startup, in my leadership role at a higher education institution focused on the development sector and even to my personal brand as I became a published author. It’s a lens I carry with me in everything I do.”
Sparsh Verma
Lead Marketing Manager, Indian School of Development Management and Author, In The Ashes' Echo
“I first worked with Saurabh as a client, running a cloud bakery startup. I later joined him in a leadership role at BOD Consulting before moving to Canada, where I’ve worked across the development and financial services sectors. Through it all, Saurabh has been a constant companion and everything I’ve learned about how epic brands are built, I owe to him. His framework, the EPIC Brand Map, is truly transformational when you're shaping or realigning a brand. Nothing else comes close.”
Sachin Kapoor
Regional BD Manager, CIBC Toronto
“I’ve spent most of my career in branding and marketing. I joined BOD nearly 9 years ago after leading The Design Village, and it was here that I learned the EPIC Brand Map directly from its creator, applying it hands-on with incredible clients across industries. I later joined one of those clients as their marketing lead, continuing to work closely with Saurabh to shape their brand maps and rollout journeys. In my leadership roles at VC-backed startups, the EBM toolkit stayed with me. And now, as an entrepreneur and personal brand, those learnings remain part of my everyday practice. It’s a framework that grows with you.”
Swati Aggarwal
Founder & CEO, resonaX.ai
Building EPIC Brands Training Program: June 9–11, 2025 | Indian Habitat Centre, New Delhi
Join our flagship 3-day, immersive, in-person training program designed around the 19-element EPIC Brand Map™. This program combines live instruction, practical application, and expert feedback; all culminating in the EBM–Foundation certification..
