From Lab to Limelight: How Cytori Therapeutics Became India’s Regenerative Medicine Authority
For over a decade, Cytori Therapeutics had pioneered adipose-derived regenerative cell (ADRC) therapies, with its Celution® System transforming stem cell treatments across 50+ countries. Yet in India—a market ripe for regenerative medicine—awareness of its breakthrough technology lagged behind its global footprint. Despite India’s $2.4 billion regenerative medicine potential and a surge in reconstructive surgeries, Cytori remained a silent innovator, its solutions confined to niche academic circles rather than mainstream clinical practice. Working closely with various market entry partners on the project, EXL PR focused on the brand narrative and media outreach
The Mandate:
Elevate Cytori from a behind-the-scenes biotech player to the definitive voice of stem cell therapeutics in India’s healthcare revolution.
The Strategy:
Bridging two critical gaps—surgeon education and ethical adoption—while positioning Cytori as the catalyst for India’s next leap in precision medicine.
The Blueprint: Science Meets Storytelling
a) Surgeon-Centric Advocacy – Enabled Cytori masterclasses on ADRC applications, featuring live demonstrations at Apollo Hyderabad and Elixir Mumbai. A few leading plastic surgeons from India were invited to witness Celution® procedures firsthand at U.S. partner hospitals.
b) Ethics Committee Buy-In – India-specific clinical dossiers highlighting cost-benefit ratios for cleft corrections, breast reconstruction, and burn treatments—key areas with high surgeon interest but low tech penetration were presented to several major hospital ethics committees
Enabling Public Narrative Shift
a) Launched India’s first “Regenerative Medicine Media Forum”, placing bylines in The Hindu BusinessLine and ET HealthWorld on ADRCs’ role in reducing surgical revisions.
b) Orchestrated a well attended media launch in Mumbai.
c) End customer promotions at select hospitals in Mumbai and Hyderabad drove 200+ pre-booked procedures within a week.
The Impact: From Adoption to Authority
a) Major hospital partnerships were secured with Apollo, Reliance, and Elixir networks—now offering Celution® as a standard of care.
b) 85% surge in surgeon inquiries post-campaign, with Cytori’s India revenue exceeding projections by 34% in Year 1.
c) Media dominance: secured major features in clinical journals and mainstream press, including a Times of India spotlight on “stem cells as India’s next surgical revolution.”
From ethics committees to OPDs, Cytori became synonymous with accessible, evidence-based stem cell therapies—proving that even cutting-edge science needs a narrative to match its ambition.
Lessons Learned
In India’s healthcare market, technical superiority isn’t enough. Cytori’s success underscores that credibility is won at the intersection of clinical proof, surgeon advocacy, and public storytelling—a formula that turned a niche biotech solution into a national standard.
From Obscurity to Overbooked: How Aroma Homespa Became Bangalore’s Most Coveted Wellness Destination
When Aroma Homespa launched its pioneering Hydro Spa therapies near Bangalore’s Whitefield tech hub, it faced a perfect storm of challenges: an inconvenient location, zero brand recognition, and skeptical consumers unfamiliar with ultrasonic bubble and far-infrared therapies. Worse still, its bootstrapped founder duo refused to burn capital on traditional ads—demanding a marketing strategy as lean and innovative as their calorie-torching treatments (300 calories in 15 minutes).
Our Mandate
Transform Aroma from an unknown startup into Bangalore’s most talked-about wellness experience using nothing but strategic storytelling and earned media.
Strategy & Rollout
Phase 1: Experience-First Credibility
a) Conducted an immersive “spa audit”—our team personally tested every therapy to identify unique hooks (e.g., “lunchtime weight loss sessions” for IT professionals).
b) Developed a “See Before You Skepticize” media program, inviting 25+ health/lifestyle journalists to experience treatments firsthand—with no pitch, just proof.
Phase 2: Hyper-Local Storytelling
a) Positioned Aroma as “Bangalore’s Anti-Stress Secret” for overworked techies, leveraging vernacular media like Vijaya Karnataka to tap into regional pride.
b) Created “Spa Science Simplified” explainers for luxury magazines, demystifying ozone therapy’s pain-relief benefits with dermatologist quotes.
Phase 3: Scarcity Marketing
a) Leaked “soft launch” slots to Bangalore Mirror’s lifestyle editor, sparking FOMO-driven bookings before official opening.
b) Engineered a “No Ads, All Word-of-Mouth” narrative that made media coverage feel like insider intel rather than marketing.
The Results: When PR Becames the Business Model
a) 300% surge in bookings within 6 months—all from earned media, with weekends fully booked 3 weeks out.
b) 100% franchise interest from high-net-worth investors who read about Aroma in The Hindu’s startup spotlight.
c) Media domination: Features in Deccan Chronicle, Times City Bangalore, and ETPanache, with 80% of stories highlighting the founder’s “David vs. Goliath” journey against luxury spa chains.
“We didn’t just get customers—we created believers,” noted Aroma’s co-founder.
From skeptical journalists to wellness influencers who trekked across Bangalore for treatments, the campaign proved that in experiential luxury, credibility is currency.
The Lesson
Aroma’s success rewrote Bangalore’s spa marketing rules: When your product delivers transformative results, your best ad is the customer’s voice—amplified through strategic media partnerships. By swapping ad spend for authentic storytelling, Aroma achieved the impossible—making a far-flung location a destination and turning first-time entrepreneurs into industry icons.
From Legacy to Leadership: How Malati Manipal Hospital Rewrote Its Story in Bangalore’s Competitive Healthcare Landscape
When the revered Dr. Malati Hospital merged with Manipal Health Enterprises, it faced an existential paradox: while its legacy commanded deep trust among longtime patients, Bangalore’s new generation of tech-savvy, health-conscious professionals viewed it as a relic—despite its world-class specialists and cutting-edge facilities. With 78% of South Bangalore’s IT corridor residents bypassing the hospital for flashier competitors, the stakes were clear: transform perception without erasing 30 years of hard-earned credibility.
The Diagnosis: EXL PR’s research revealed a critical gap:
a) Legacy patients associated the hospital with Dr. Malati’s personal care
b) Young professionals assumed it lacked the technology and convenience of corporate hospital chains
c) The merger’s benefits—expanded specialties, Manipal’s academic rigor—were virtually unknown
The prescription? A dual narrative strategy that honored the past while aggressively claiming the future.
The Treatment Plan: Strategic Storytelling with Surgical Precision
Phase 1: Bridging Generations
a) Launched “The Best of Both Worlds” campaign, pairing Dr. Malati’s founding philosophy (“Medicine with a Human Touch”) with Manipal’s tech-forward infrastructure in press materials.
Phase 2: Doctor-as-Hero Content
a) Identified 12 high-potential specialists (e.g., a robotic surgeon formerly at Johns Hopkins) and positioned them as “The New Faces of Compassionate Care” through bylined articles on Bangalore’s healthcare trends.
b) Secured 42 media interviews in 6 months by syncing doctors’ expertise with breaking health news (e.g., dengue outbreaks, workplace stress).
The Impact: Metrics That Redefined Success
a) 43% increase in IT/ITES patient registrations within a year—the fastest-growing demographic.
b) 60+ earned media placements, with 60% highlighting both legacy and innovation
From skeptical tech employees choosing Malati Manipal for executive health checks to legacy patients embracing its new healthcare programs, the campaign proved that in healthcare marketing, authenticity and innovation aren’t opposites—they’re prerequisites.
The Prognosis
This case study redefines hospital rebranding: When mergers risk diluting identity, double down on storytelling that celebrates continuity and change. By making doctors the heroes and patients the narrators, Malati Manipal didn’t just survive Bangalore’s healthcare wars—it emerged as a model for how legacy institutions can thrive in disruptive times.
