Opportunity brief
Overview
YUGANTAR, presented by FINNOVATION as part of XAVIESTA 5.0, is an immersive marketing strategy competition that challenges participants to rewrite the destiny of a fictional Indian footwear brand. Through three interconnected rounds, teams will investigate the brand's history, uncover the strategic decision behind its downfall, rewrite a defining moment in its journey, and navigate the consequences of their choices. From analysing fragmented evidence and developing revised marketing strategies to tackling real-time marketing crises, participants must demonstrate their consumer understanding, analytical thinking, creativity and strategic decision-making. Here, every decision shapes the future, and every consequence tells a story.
Round 1 – The Archive
Decode the Brand
Teams will receive a fragmented case archive containing old advertisements, consumer reviews, sales data, competitor movements, internal memos and market research relating to Kadam Footwear, a fictional Indian footwear brand.
Participants must reconstruct the brand's timeline, identify the single strategic decision that changed its destiny and support their conclusions with evidence from the provided documents.
Round Details:
- Team Size: 4 Members
- Mode: Online on Unstop
- Format: Fragmented Evidence Reconstruction + Written Hypothesis Brief
- Submission: One PDF containing:
- Reconstructed timeline of 8–12 events in chronological order.
- Hypothesis brief of maximum 500 words.
- Supporting evidence with document references.
- Qualification: Top 12 Teams
- Evaluation: Timeline accuracy, identification of the turning-point decision, evidence-based analysis and critical thinking.
Round 2 – The Butterfly Effect
Rewrite the Past
The qualifying teams will get an opportunity to change one defining decision from Kadam Footwear's history. They must analyse how this single intervention could have altered the brand's journey, considering its impact on brand equity, market share, profit margins, competitive positioning and consumer perception.
Based on their revised historical scenario, teams must develop a coherent marketing strategy and justify the consequences of their chosen intervention.
Round Details:
- Team Size: 4 Members
- Mode: Offline
- Format: Single-Decision Rewrite + Revised Strategy Brief
- Challenge: Rewriting one historical decision and analysing its consequences.
- Submission: Revised strategy brief.
- Qualification: Top 6 Teams
- Evaluation: Strategic coherence, consequence analysis, marketing strategy, positioning and decision-making.
Round 3 – The Present Break & Break the Chakra
Survive 2027, Then Choose the Future
The final round brings the consequences of each team's revised decision into the present. Each finalist will face a team-specific marketing crisis shaped by the changes introduced in Round 2.
Teams must allocate a limited marketing budget across digital marketing, influencers, product, retail, partnerships and consumer research to respond to the crisis. They will then face a CEO-level dilemma, choosing whether to Accept, Alter or Reset the brand's future direction.
The challenge concludes with a live boardroom presentation and jury cross-examination, where teams must defend their strategy and decisions.
Round Details:
- Team Size: 4 Members
- Mode: Offline – Live Defence
- Format: Crisis Budget Allocation + CEO Dilemma + Jury Presentation & Cross-Examination
- Challenge: Team-specific marketing crisis and strategic decision-making.
- Finalists: Top 6 Teams from Round 2
- Evaluation: Crisis management, resource allocation, consumer understanding, creativity, brand vision and strategic defence.
Overall Rules & Regulations
- Each team must consist of exactly 4 members across all three rounds.
- No substitutions or changes in team composition will be permitted once registration is completed.
- The competition is open to all college students. Valid College ID cards are mandatory for offline rounds.
- The competition will follow three stages: Round 1 (Online), Round 2 (Offline) and Round 3 (Offline Grand Finale).
- The top 12 teams from Round 1 will qualify for Round 2, and the top 6 teams from Round 2 will advance to Round 3.
- The decisions and interventions made in earlier rounds will determine the scenarios and challenges faced in subsequent rounds. Teams must maintain continuity throughout the competition.
- Round 1 analysis must be based exclusively on the archive and materials provided. AI tools may be used only for language polishing and not for generating the analysis itself.
- No external data or internet research is permitted for the case analysis. Participants must rely on the provided materials.
- During Rounds 2 and 3, decisions must be based solely on the materials and information provided by the organising committee. External market data is not permitted.
- One laptop per team is permitted for submissions and offline work. Mobile phones are strictly prohibited during offline rounds.
- All submissions must follow the prescribed format and be submitted through the official channel within the stipulated deadline.
- Late submissions and resubmissions will not be accepted.
- No communication, file-sharing or collaboration between competing teams is permitted during any round. Violation will result in disqualification.
- The decisions of the judges and organising committee will be final and binding at every stage.
- The organising committee reserves the right to amend the rules, timelines or competition format if required, with prior notice to participants.