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Havas Group has announced the India launch of its global business and digital transformation consultancy, Gate One, marking a significant addition to the Havas Village ecosystem in the country. The new entity, based in Bengaluru, will operate under the leadership of Karan Ingle, Client Director at Gate One India, and will integrate closely with Havas India’s existing agencies and operations.
Gate One, founded in London in 2013 and acquired by Havas in 2020, has grown into a 300-member global consultancy with offices in London, Dublin, and New York, with Paris expected to open soon. Its India foray marks a critical step in the consultancy’s international expansion and is being closely watched within both the consulting and advertising ecosystems.
“This is another proud moment for us,” said Rana Barua, Group CEO, Havas India, South East Asia and North Asia. “Each new agency we add strengthens the ecosystem and brings fresh vibrancy. Gate One joining our family not only adds consulting firepower but also deepens the collaborative energy within the village model.”
While Havas has traditionally been associated with advertising, media, and healthcare communications, Gate One represents a distinct proposition. Unlike creative agencies, it competes directly with Big 4’s - Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC.
Gate One set up operations in India in 2024, but was officially launched on September 3. Since then, it has already partnered with legacy clients in the retail and pharma sectors.
Introducing the consultancy to Indian audiences, Ben Tye, Managing Partner at Gate One, explained, “Gate One is a global business and digital transformation consultancy. We were founded with a mission to ‘deliver change that counts.’ Since joining Havas in 2020, the integration has been highly successful - accelerating our growth while creating a unique blend of creativity and consultancy. This is not about competing with other Havas agencies but about complementing them. We bring strategic and operational transformation capabilities to the table, which align perfectly with creative and media services.”
Gate One’s service portfolio spans operating model design, organizational change, digital innovation, customer experience transformation, and technology investment optimization. Its consultants work closely with C-suites, embedding themselves in client teams to deliver tangible outcomes.
Why India?
Tye said, “India is the fifth-largest economy and one of the fastest-growing consulting markets, currently valued at $8.3 billion and expected to nearly double by 2030. With many of our global clients already having significant operations here, India is strategically critical for Gate One. Our ambition is to combine global delivery excellence with the agility that India’s fast-evolving business environment demands.”
The Bengaluru launch, Ingle added, was a natural choice given the city’s position as India’s tech and digital hub. “Bangalore offers a mature ecosystem with multinationals that truly understand transformation. That made it the ideal base for our India entry.”
He further said, “We believe we have something unique in India when you consider the full capabilities of them Village model. By bringing together creativity, CX consulting, and media, the combination is extremely powerful. Our hope is that the addition of Gate One in India will not only accelerate the growth of our own business but also serve as a key driver of Havas’ overall growth in the country.”
Small but Strategic
Heading the India operations is Karan Ingle, who brings over 15 years of consulting experience in the market.Ingle emphasized that Gate One is not chasing scale for its own sake.
“Our vision isn’t to be the biggest consulting firm, but the boldest,” he said. “We want to deliver meaningful, outcome-driven consulting that combines global delivery excellence with agility tailored to India’s needs.”
The India team remains small for now, but Ingle emphasized that expansion will be deliberate, focused on selectively handpicking high-quality talent.
“We’re carefully cherry-picking talent, people with strong EQ, critical thinking skills, and entrepreneurial drive. We’re not building an army; we’re building a strike force. And unlike agencies, we benchmark hiring and compensation to the consulting industry, ensuring we attract the right people,” he explained.
The consulting space in India is dominated by the Big Four. Gate One’s differentiation, according to Tye and Ingle, lies in its focus on agility and its ability to go beyond advisory into hands-on execution. “Clients no longer want just PowerPoint decks,” said Ingle. “They want fast, entrepreneurial consulting that delivers real outcomes. India is no longer just a back office, it’s at the forefront of innovation. The question businesses are asking is: how can we lead the world from here? That’s the space we want to play in.”
The firm’s strategy in India will center around building deep relationships with a handful of anchor accounts rather than spreading thin. Success, the leadership said, will be measured not in headcount or revenue size, but in long-term impact for clients.
AI and the Future of Consulting
Like most professional services firms, Gate One is also reimagining its delivery model with the help of artificial intelligence.
“AI has the potential to fundamentally reshape how consulting is delivered,” Tye noted. “It allows us to scale, increase efficiency, and deliver insights faster. But it’s not just about efficiency, it’s about creating new ways to engage with clients and solve problems.”
The consultancy expects AI-driven models to become a core part of its differentiation in the coming years.
The Road Ahead
For Havas Group, the addition of Gate One strengthens its positioning as an integrated partner for brands in India.
For Gate One, India is both a testing ground and a growth frontier. With global clients already operating in the country, the launch offers immediate opportunities, while the expanding domestic consulting market promises long-term growth. Tye added, “We’re careful not to grow too fast, starting with a small set of clients, building deep relationships, and earning repeat business. Just as importantly, we hire selectively, guided by both values and talent, to ensure we grow with the right people.”
Ingle stressed that transformation goes beyond digital and AI, encompassing operating models, people, training, and culture. Positioning themselves as transformation consultants, they focus on tailoring solutions to client needs to deliver measurable outcomes.
“The opportunity is huge, but it’s not about size, it’s about significance. Our aim is to help clients not just keep up with change, but to lead it. So, for us, it’s about being outcome-led rather than just process- or technology-led.
That’s the philosophy we carry into every engagement, and that’s what will shape our growth in India as well as globally,” he concluded.
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