StartupTalky

Tag: d2c brands

  • Quickshift (QS): End-to-end fulfillment solutions for your eCommerce business

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Quickshift.

    Quickshift (QS) offers a complete suite of fulfillment services for any D2C brand that wants to scale up quickly while offering the best customer service. Through its tech-enabled, multi-city warehouses and integrated shipping, it offers- transparent order management, storage, shipping, COD, RTO, Non-Delivery Receipt (NDR), and ultimately customer delight. Its shipping coverage is 29,000 Pin Codes across India and is currently servicing over 150 D2C brands.

    StartupTalky interviewed Anshul Goenka & Prodipto Roy (Co-founders, Quickshift) to get insights into the startup story of Quickshift. In this article you’ll discover how Quickshift was conceptualized, its business model, funding, and more.

    Quickshift – Company Highlights

    Startup Name Quickshift
    Founders Anshul Goenka (CEO), Prodipto Roy
    Headquarters Pune, Maharashtra
    Founded 2018
    Industry eCommerce fulfillment
    Website quickshift.in

    Quickshift – About and Vision
    Quickshift – Industry Details
    Quickshift – Idea and Inspiration
    Quickshift – Product/Service and USP
    Quickshift – Founders and Team
    Quickshift – Business Model & Revenue Model
    Quickshift – Launch and Marketing Strategies
    Quickshift – Growth
    Quickshift – Funding and Investors
    Quickshift – Competitors
    Quickshift – FAQs

    Quickshift – About and Vision

    Quickshift (QS) offers a complete suite of fulfillment services for any D2C brand that wants to scale up quickly while offering the best customer service. A challenge for a D2C brand today is how to fulfill in a cost-effective manner within a time frame of same-day or 1-2 days if they get an order from another part of India typically 2000 km away. If the brand does not service, then they risk disappointing the customer, and cannot build scale, thus increasing their Cost of Customer Acquisition further. This is where QS steps in. Through its tech-enabled, multi-city warehouses and integrated shipping, it offers- transparent order management, storage, shipping, COD, RTO, Non-Delivery Receipt (NDR), and ultimately customer delight.

    QS wants to be the company of choice for any brand marketing its products digitally. It wants to be recognized for its tech-leadership, building inefficiency in the post ‘buy’ phase of the customer, a critical time when the Post Purchase Dissonance sets is and the same can be lost.

    QS’s team believes in the Indian consumption story. It seems tremendous opportunity in the consumer value chain that technology presents. These would start forming as the endeavor grows.

    Quickshift – Industry Details

    The total logistics market in India is about US$ 215 Bn in Yr. 2020, it is expected to rise to US$ 450 Bn.  Like-wise the 3PL logistics market is about US$8 Bn, likely to expand to US$18 Bn in the same time frame. Based on current data, QS’s market share of this serviceable 3 PL market is 0.2%.

    Source: Edelweiss Report (3PL)

    Shiprocket Success Story – Best Shipping Solution For MSMEs
    Shiprocket is a logistic startup founded by Saahil Goel and Gautam Kapoor. The company provides tech-enabled logistic solutions. Read more to know their success story.
    StartupTalkyLakshya Singh

    Quickshift – Idea and Inspiration

    The business model has been functioning of research as well as evolution. QS in its very early days was offering fleet as well as fulfillment, it realized the need for technology and the substantial difference it would make in Order Management, right up to the customer and then the payment process. Hence QS started integrating the full value chain. Once brands onboarded, they got the advantage of integrated processes. They no longer had to talk separately to tech enabler for Order Management, a warehousing company (and multiple ones for different zones), a logistics/courier partner for the last mile, etc., steps that increased the no. of transactions and created complexities. Instead, QS was answering that. The brands themselves asked QS to open more centers to enable their fulfillment go pan India, and hence came the multi-city distribution plan.

    Quickshift – Product/Service and USP

    QS has built integrations with all leading marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart, Nykaa, Ajio, etc as well integrates with any own developed e-com platforms like Shopify, Woocommerce, Magento, etc. On the shipping side, Quickshift can reach out to 30000 Pin Codes across India through its affiliations promising same day and next day TAT’s. It has its own fulfillment centers in Mumbai, NCR-Delhi, Pune, Bangalore, and Kolkata, all tech-enabled to manage the process efficiently and in a cost-effective manner. It provides a dashboard to its customers that offers them to have a birds-eye view of its stocks across warehouses, its orders getting processed, despatches, COD’s and also insights into its sales and inventory.  

    • QS reduces the costs of fulfillment by over 35%
    • For a brand, it provides a single point of contact for Warehousing, Order Processing, Shipping, and Technology
    • In addition, to International brands that would like to create a distribution network to tap the Consumption potential in India, QS provides a one-stop-shop to establish its reach within India

    Quickshift – Founders and Team

    Anshul Goenka (CEO) and Prodipto Roy are the co-founders of Quickshift.

    Co-founders of Quickshift
    Quickshift co-founders – Anshul Goenka and Prodipto Roy

    Prodipto recently joined as a co-founder, however, the founders knew each other since the inception of Quickshift and he was advising and mentoring the startup throughout. When Quickshift reached a decent scale and the workload starting increasing, it is then when Asnhul proposed to Prodipto to come in full time as a co-founder. Prodipto saw value in what Quickshift was building and for the team, he brings 2 decades of experience with him, therefore it was an easy match. Currently, Anshul looks over Operations, Tech & Product, Finance, While Prodipto looks over Sales, Marketing, CRM and we jointly discuss strategy, hiring, etc.

    The current company Size is about 30 Corporate employees including Tech, Ops, Sales and Marketing, MIS & Finance. They have additional 70+ folks working across fulfillment centers in various cities.

    The hiring process of Quickshift is very simple. The candidate should be driven by Quickshift’s mission and vision and should be able to see value in what the team is building. Experience and Skillset do matter but eventually, the candidate should be passionate about what the startup envisions.

    QS team
    Quickshift Team

    Quickshift – Business Model & Revenue Model

    All brands need storage, order fulfillment, and shipping. QS provides that. It has a pay-per-use model for charging its customers. It charges for its services rendered for example Platform fee, Inward processing, Storage, Order Processing, and Shipping. It has an EBIDTA of 60%.

    Quickshift – Launch and Marketing Strategies

    The first part is to go after a genuine problem statement that has a large market. If your product or service truly solves the pain point then getting your first set of users is not very difficult.

    The second part is to have great/committed folks join your team.

    Your first set of customers has to be handheld. The founders have to actively be involved in their day-to-day affairs. Regular interactions with your first set of customers help you learn and better the experience that you are building. A relationship has to be built and your clients have to be like your partners through thick and thin.

    Quickshift has recently started marketing across digital mediums, only when the team was sure that they have a product that is ready to take on the market, did they aggressively build campaigns. Initially, it was more about performance marketing but we have also focused on building a ‘go-to’ brand, which has top-of-the-mind recall be it with its potential customers, employees, investors, etc.

    List Of Top Logistics Startups In India | Indian Logistics Industry
    Nations can’t function if their logistics are wobbly. Here is a list of the top logistics startups in India that are redefining the supply chain and transportation segments.
    StartupTalkyAshwini

    Quickshift – Growth

    QS is operational in Mumbai, NCR-Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, and Pune. Its shipping coverage is 29000 Pin Codes across India. It is currently servicing over 150+ D2C brands.

    As the trends move more towards online/eCommerce and social commerce consumption, Quickshift is in a space that is bound to grow. It has plans to scale up in terms of its capacity, more technological introductions that further enhance the customer service feature as well as make the entire fulfillment experience seamless, more efficient, and more competitive are planned.

    Quickshift – Funding and Investors

    Quickshift’s funding details are as follows –

    Date Stage Amount Investors
    July 2021 Seed USD 770,000 Anicut, Axilor

    Quickshift – Competitors

    Shiprocket, Wareiq, and Eshopbox are the competitors of Quickshift.

    Quickshift – FAQs

    What is Quickshift?

    Quickshift (QS) offers a complete suite of fulfillment services for any D2C brand that wants to scale up quickly while offering the best customer service. Through its tech-enabled, multi-city warehouses and integrated shipping, it offers- transparent order management, storage, shipping, COD, RTO, Non-Delivery Receipt (NDR), and ultimately customer delight.

    Who founded Quickshift?

    Anshul Goenka (CEO) and Prodipto Roy are the co-founders of Quickshift.

    Is Quickshift an Indian company?

    Yes. Quickshift is an Indian company headquartered in Pune, Maharashtra.

    When was Quickshift launched?

    QS was launched in 2018.

    How does Quickshift make money?

    Quickshift has a pay-per-use model for charging its customers. It charges for its services rendered for example Platform fee, Inward processing, Storage, Order Processing, and Shipping.

  • How Cloud Tailor is using ML to deliver Personalized Fashion Styling

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Cloud Tailor.

    Cloud Tailor is a D2C mobile app that enables Personalized fashion styling, fashion visualization, recommendations, order placement, tracking, and fulfillment. It is the only tech-enabled personalized fashion brand in India – Serving global women customers from India. StartupTalky interviewed Susmitha Lakkakula (Founder, Cloud Tailor) to get insights on the startup story and roadmap of the organization. In this article, you’ll discover how Cloud Tailor was started, its journey to date, marketing strategies, revenue model, and more.

    Cloud Tailor – Company Highlights

    Startup Name Cloud Tailor
    Founding Team Susmitha Lakkakula, Rudra Pratap, Mahesh Patel
    Headquarters Hyderabad
    Industry D2C Fashion
    Website cloudtailor.in

    Cloud Tailor – About and Vision
    Cloud Tailor – Industry Details
    Cloud Tailor – Idea & Inspiration
    Cloud Tailor – Product and USP
    Cloud Tailor – Founders and Team
    Cloud Tailor – Name, Tagline and Logo
    Cloud Tailor – Business Model & Revenue Model
    Cloud Tailor – Launch and Marketing Strategies
    Cloud Tailor – Challenges Faced
    Cloud Tailor – Achievements & Milestones
    Cloud Tailor – Funding
    Cloud Tailor – Advisors & Mentors
    Cloud Tailor – Competitors
    Cloud Tailor – Tools used to run startup
    Cloud Tailor – Future Plans
    Cloud Tailor – FAQs

    Cloud Tailor – About and Vision

    Cloud Tailor is a D2C mobile app that enables Personalized fashion styling, fashion visualization, recommendations, order placement, tracking, and fulfillment. Cloud Tailor’s unique asset-light ‘Online + Offline’ global fulfillment business model ensures the best quality and price outcome for personalized fashion in guaranteed timelines.

    Vision: To be the ‘One Stop Shop’ for all personalized fashion choices for global women.

    Mission: To simplify and enhance personalized fashion choices for global women.

    “We as founders believe that we have the right mix of technology skills, marketing focus, idea intensity talent, prior startup experience to make Cloud Tailor the No. 1 ‘top of the mind’ brand for personalized fashion across the globe” says Susmitha Lakkakula, Founder, Cloud Tailor

    Cloud Tailor – Industry Details

    Cloud Tailor Industry
    Ladieswear Fashion – Market Size

    The Women’s wear industry is a 185 Billion USD valued business per annum globally. The correct estimates of the Personalized fashion industry are not available since it is a completely fragmented market and there are no organized players in the market now.

    As per the founder’s discussions with multiple fashion experts and market leaders in this domain, the team has estimated the market in India to be a minimum of INR 8000 Crores per annum driven primarily by domestic consumption. The overseas market order fulfillment in India is an extremely under-served market accounting for only 2% of all organized personalized fashion orders. There is a huge scope to present a brand and offer timely dispatches in the best possible price points to overseas customers for their personalized fashion requirements.

    Also Read: How is AI being used in Fashion Industry

    Cloud Tailor – Idea & Inspiration

    The primary inspiration was the founders’ constant lookout for market segment gaps and under-served requirements. They excel at building an organized online solution to cater to offline requirements in society. The founding team saw a huge gap in the ‘Professional Services’ for personalized fashion, as Susmitha Lakkakula, and her husband, Rudra Pratap, faced a lot of issues trying to place orders to tailors, following up, and trying to reach them over the phone and in-person for updates and progress. The duo decided that it was time for someone to simplify this workflow and accept the challenge. Thus Cloud Tailor was born.

    The first set of validators of Cloud Tailor were Industry veterans such as Mr. M C Cariappa (President, Marketing and Sales, Jockey India) and 10 boutique owners with whom the team did the idea-bounce back. All of them immediately suggested that they get started on the startup. Since they conceptualized the initial business plan and structure in Covid times in March 2020, Susmitha had to take police permission for vehicle pass to go around to meet fabric and sewing machine traders, talk to cutting masters, tailors, and other intermediaries to understand how the personalized fashion industry functions and the crucial cogs in the machinery. Susmitha went about doing online courses on fashion on Udemy and other portals. Rudra went about bringing the first UX and UI mobile app screens to life by personally sketching them. He then digitized them and hired a Flutter developer – Tarun Dak from Ahmedabad to bring them to life on Google Cloud, Firebase DB, and Flutter.

    The first MVP app version in flutter was made live in the Play Store and iOS store in January 2021. To scale it to the next level, the team sought to onboard Mahesh Patel, who was then the National Head for eCommerce and online sales at Jockey India. He introduced Susmitha to M C Cariappa who was his boss. Mahesh loved the idea and scale possible and joined Cloud Tailor as Co-founder. M C Cariappa was the 1st full-time advisor to join Cloud Tailor.

    The team decided to fire on all cylinders and put their personal savings together to get the professionally designed app UX and UI did by Lollypop.design. When Anil Reddy (Founder, Lollypop) listened to their vision and idea, he immediately agreed to help them build the best UI app for Cloud Tailor and also offered to personally design the ‘Cloud Tailor’ logo. The current app in development at its App and Cloud Development center in Hyderabad is being built around the researched UX and UI designs made by the same team at Lollypop.design, who had made Myntra, Paytm money, housing.com, Swiggy, Vodafone idea, and the Aditya Birla app among many others.

    Zara Business Model that makes it Fashion Retail Giant
    Zara is a Spanish fashion retailer known for fast fashion. Learn about the business model of Zara which makes it the leader of Fashion retail.
    StartupTalkyRoshni Tamta

    Cloud Tailor – Product and USP

    USP and innovation:

    1. Only tech-enabled personalized fashion brand in India – Serving global women customers from India
    2. Cloud Tailor app (Beta is live on Android and iOS) is the only mobile app that has a full fashion styling, learning, social sharing, order placement, tracking, and rewards program
    3. It fulfills global orders for ‘Any Style – Any Design’ – Exclusively for women’s wear
    4. The entire backend fulfillment and stitching/shipping also happens through the ‘Cloud Tailor Operations app’ and browser applications at its dedicated Cloud Tailor Fulfillment Centers
    5. ML-based recommendation and upselling engine within the app
    6. VR visualization of dresses styled by the customer or by the fashion designer within the app
    7. Cloud Tailor has been running the Hyderabad Fulfilment Center for the last 5 months (as of Oct 2021) and is now scaling the Fulfilment center operations to Gurgaon, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, and Ludhiana in the next 4 months
    8. This gives a never-before option to Cloud Tailor’s overseas customers to choose the city for the styling and stitching of their fashion
    9. It is currently serving customers in 4 countries (US, Australia, UK, and Singapore) apart from India
    10. The startup has a full-time team of app and cloud developers at its Hyderabad Software development office
    11. Cloud Tailor is guided by a well-accomplished team of advisors from Jockey, Amazon, Geodis, GATI, and TESCO Retail in this rapid scale-up process
    12. The Cloud Tailor customer app has been made by the lollypop.design team which has made the Myntra, Paytm money, Vodafone India mobile, housing.com, and Swiggy apps. bringing vast industry expertise into its app
    Cloud Tailor

    Key problems Cloud Tailor is solving:

    • One-Stop-Shop for all personalized fashion – No more boutique hopping for different categories of personalized fashion
    • Professional and Trained staff – Customer-centric app and offline interactions
    • Tech powered organized solution in the organized boutique market across the world
    • Overseas customers – One Stop Shop (aka mobile app) for all their personalized requirements
    • Customers can now select their home – city (for local styling cues and nuances) for all stitching orders while being based in any country globally
    • Guaranteed delivery dates – No more follow up with the tailor and No more repeated calls and anxiety
    • On app fabric options to select and tag to the orders
    • Huge opportunity for job creation for its on-app Fashion Designers (It limits to NIFT, NID, and Pearl Academy graduates and alumni for now)
    • Dedicated ‘Fashion Designer’ for Cloud Tailor Gold club members
    • ML-based recommendations of wardrobe shortlisting of styles – Shorten order decision cycles
    • Save all measurements on the app and tag them to the profile – Checkouts will now be a breeze
    • Doorstep measurements option in serviced pin codes for that exact fit as required
    • Lifetime free alterations for its orders – No more hunting for alteration tailors
    • Social Styling options – Share your designs and images on the Cloud Tailor app – Tag them on social as well – Let someone else order your style – Earn redeemable buttons
    • On app ‘Loyalty Program’ – Cloud Tailor Buttons – Redeemable on order value
    • Offer a professional work environment with good benefits to its staff

    Cloud Tailor – Founders and Team

    Susmitha Lakkakula, Rudra Pratap and Mahesh Patel are the co-founders of Cloud Tailor.

    Susmitha is leading the company formation, strategy, USP, and product features. Rudra handles the mobile app and cloud part of the work and also the offline expansion and the details. Rudra and Mahesh Patel are friends and have known each other for the last 14 years Mahesh has a sharp business acumen has come from a business family in Gujarat. He is an expert at going to market, branding, online sales, and business partnerships at a global level. He immediately liked the idea to join as a co-founder when Susmitha and Rudra both had gone for his housewarming in Bengaluru in January 2021.

    Cloud Tailor Co-founders
    Cloud Tailor – Founding Team

    Susmitha Lakkakula | Founder & Full Time into Cloud Tailor

    • Masters in software engineering: BITS Pilani (Software Engineering)
    • EPBM – IIM Kolkata
    • MSc – Information Science: Osmania University
    • Work Experience: Wipro Technologies/ Quantum/ Dell/ Quest (Total 19 Yrs)

    Rudra Pratap | Co-Founder, Cloud Tailor

    • Masters in software engineering: BITS Pilani (Software Engineering)
    • EPBM – IIM Kolkata
    • BCA – Utkal University
    • Diploma in Advertising and PR: NiA
    • Work Experience: Wipro Technologies/ Reliance / Aliens Real Estate/ Cosyn/ raksan (Over 19 years experience)

    Mahesh Patel | Co-Founder, Cloud Tailor

    • Bachelors in Hotel Management, Sunway College University, Kuala Lumpur
    • Executive MBA, NIMT
    • Work Experience: Jockey (Page Industries), Shop CJ, Reliance, Spencers, Aditya Birla Retail

    Cloud Tailor Team

    Currently, Cloud Tailor has a total of 8 Full-time employees and 4 part-time employees. The founders are very selective in hiring as they need to be sure that the person will be able to don multiple hats when required, is flexible to adapt to a startup, and think like an entrepreneur when it comes to the customer.

    The founding team had initially booked ‘bookmytailor’ as the name of the brand and also got it Trademarked. Eventually, they realized that it did not signify the Technology depth of the startup and also the aspect of workflow happening virtually and seamlessly. Hence they brainstormed for over 3 days and found that ‘Cloud Tailor’ was an apt depiction of what they intended to be perceived as by their customers. It also had a nice ‘Cloud’ connotation to it which signifies both the ‘Cloud virtual part’ as well as ‘the cloud nine’ significance which meant satisfaction and happiness.

    When they approached Lollypop team, Anil himself volunteered to design the logo. There were multiple iterations and logo designs they ran through over 45-60 days and eventually zeroed in on the one. The founders went ahead and trademarked the ‘Cloud Tailor’ word mark and this has been registered to as well.

    Cloud Tailor Logo

    The tagline: ‘You Design, We Stitch’ also signifies the importance of the customer in the whole process and also that the customer is a part of the whole cycle. Mita, Rajesh, and Anil from the Lollypop team played a crucial role in sharing options and also shortlisting the logo options down to the last 3.

    Illustration of various Cloud Tailor Designed 

    Cloud Tailor – Business Model & Revenue Model

    Cloud Tailor offers a simple and reliable tech-based solution for personalized fashion solutions for global women.

    Cloud Tailor Business Model
    Cloud Tailor Revenue Model

    Cloud Tailor’s revenue model is driven by 4 sources:

    • Hyper Personalized Fashion: Style – Order – Track – Socialize. Repeat. ML-based recommendation engine
    • Ready to Fit: The Tatkal version of ‘Personalized Fashion’. Tag your saved measurements >> Select ‘Ready to Fit’ SKU >> Place Order (dispatch in 24 hours)
    • Accessories: Select from the hand-picked accessories to match your fashion: Clutches, Tote Bags, Belts, Handbags, and many more
    • B2B Clothing Line / Personalized Fashion Outsourcing: Dedicated styling/stitching unit setup to service other brands/boutiques anywhere in the globe

    Since the startup operates across all styles and design segments in women’s wear, each order is unique and thus its prices depend on the order type, the accessories, the work and time required to complete the order.

    Cloud Tailor – Launch and Marketing Strategies

    The team at Cloud Tailor used WhatsApp marketing and created small flyers on Canva and posted them in the gated community Whatsapp groups. They had their first order on the 2nd day of the first post. After that, the startup had a constant stream of orders and also because the team generated a lot of goodwill with the experience of their first critical set of customers whom they took special care of.

    They also did a small budget Google Analytics campaign for the US, Australia, and the Middle East to place its brand amongst the target group there. Apart from Whatsapp, they also used Facebook marketing with boost posts. Initially, the team also ran branding runs on the boosting on FB and Instagram.

    “We will still attribute our earliest quick success to the importance of closed WhatsApp groups of residents/ladies for maximum impact” – Susmitha added.

    Cloud Tailor hired a social media agency in July 2021 and like any online marketing hack, social media planning takes time and patience. The startup plans to do Customer Testimonial reels, Live comments, user stories, and process reels on how Cloud Tailor’s app enables easier and faster order design and placement. It Social calendar is also made and executed by the social team. Another important thing that the startup did, was to hire Social media interns from MBA colleges who would track the trends and act as growth hackers for the startup.

    The startup is in talks to use popular apps with specific partnerships for coupons and branding. It is currently running a tight ship and is diligent in its spend for the agency and interns process. The startup would enhance the team strength and build more branded content in due course in a planned manner.

    Cloud Tailor has grown mostly by customer word of mouth and repeat sales – since there is no other brand around who provides a similar service and a mobile app. Hence its best ROI was in spending time with its existing customers and nurturing their trust to be able to build credible support and core referral and brand ambassador group.

    Insane Marketing Strategies Successfully Implemented Ever | StartupTalky
    Do you love Marketing? Which is your Favourite? Here, we’ve made a list of some Insane Marketing Strategies that were successfully implemented. Check the article.
    StartupTalkyKaran suri

    Cloud Tailor – Challenges Faced

    1. Being Software Engineers by career and training: The founding team learned basics of fashion, garments, styling, sketching, fabrics, machinery, repairs, manpower requirements
    2. Learning the fashion domain intricacies and nuances during COVID time with an infant at home and pre-teen
    3. Placement and ROI of fulfillment centers
    4. Overseas cities where they can scale for orders
    5. Differentiation factor communication to customers
    6. Keep increasing repeat order comfort with existing customers

    Cloud Tailor – Advisors & Mentors

    Cloud Tailor
    Cloud Tailor – Advisors

    Cloud Tailor – Achievements & Milestones

    Cloud Tailor’s biggest achievement – Highest Order Value from Single customer so far in Sep 2021: Rs. 51000 (From a repeat customer in the US, Houston). This shows the potential and scale the startup can grow to.

    Some of the Current Milestones achieved by Cloud Tailor are –

    1. Beta versions of Android and iOS apps LIVE
    2. Hyderabad Fulfillment Center Operationally break-even within 4 months of commencement
    3. M C Cariappa, President (Jockey – Page Industries) joined as a full-time advisor
    4. Abhishek Dwivedi, Head (TESCO – Soft Development) joined as a full-time advisor
    5. Harry Lagad, Regional Director (GEODIS) joined as a full-time advisor
    6. Chirag Bhuva, Leader – Asia Pac, Amazon Business Customer Services joined as a full-time advisor
    7. Started Software Development Office in Financial District, Hyderabad with 2 Full-Time Developers on payroll
    8. Full System Architecture on AWS with API interfaces and ML-based systems designed and approved by the team – Development in progress
    9. Achieved 70% customer repeat orders every month due to the convenience
    10. Average Order value in Aug 2021: Rs. 3000

    Cloud Tailor – Funding

    The team has bootstrapped Cloud Tailor through the current scaling stage and is currently raising funds to scale it faster, build the app and cloud development teams, set up 2 company-owned fulfillment centers and 6 partner-owned-operated fulfillment centers.

    Cloud Tailor – Competitors

    Cloud Tailor is an only tech-enabled personalized fashion brand in India – Serving global women customers from India.

    Cloud Tailor – Tools used to run startup

    Few tools which Cloud Tailor uses to run the startup –

    1. Zoho books – accounting
    2. Canva – posts design
    3. AWS – Stateless Architecture – Lambda, EC2, Cognito, Jitsu, Pinpoint, Postgres, API Gateway
    4. Knowlarity: IVRS
    5. Razorpay Payment Gateway
    6. Razorpay Payroll

    11 Best Sales Intelligence Platform & Tools | Sales Solution
    Companies use sales intelligence software to improvise on the quality & quantity of sales leads. Check these 11 best sales intelligence solutions
    StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi

    Cloud Tailor – Future Plans

    Short term goals [end 2022]:

    1. 1 million MAU
    2. INR 2 Crores in ARR / GMV
    3. Stable Ver 3 of Cloud Tailor app and backend operations apps
    4. Fulfillment centers in 4 cities
    5. Brand Interaction Signature kiosks/centers in 4 cities
    6. 3 B2B partners for ‘managed backend fulfillment’
    Cloud Tailor Projected Growth

    Long term goals [by 2025]:

    1. 10 million MAU
    2. INR 100 Crores in ARR
    3. VR View of fashion styled
    4. Fulfillment centers in 7 cities
    5. Aggregated Partner operations in 7 Tier 2 cities
    6. Brand Interaction Signature kiosks/centers in all 7 cities
    7. 10 B2B partners for ‘managed backend fulfillment’

    Cloud Tailor – FAQs

    What is Cloud Tailor?

    Cloud Tailor is a D2C mobile app that enables Personalized fashion styling, fashion visualization, recommendations, order placement, tracking, and fulfillment. Its unique asset-light ‘Online + Offline’ global fulfillment business model ensures the best quality and price outcome for personalized fashion in guaranteed timelines.

    Who founded Cloud Tailor?

    Susmitha Lakkakula, Rudra Pratap, and Mahesh Patel are the co-founders of Cloud Tailor.

    Is Cloud Tailor funded?

    No. Cloud Tailor is a bootstrapped startup.

    What is the tagline of Cloud Tailor?

    Cloud Tailor’s tagline – ‘You Design, We Stitch’ signifies the importance of the customer in the whole process and also that the customer is a part of the whole cycle.

  • ikOOji Startup Story: Brand that creates magic for kids

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by ikOOji.

    Founded by Karan Singh and Manuraj Singh Johar, ikOOji is a one-stop shop to find premium quality kids’ furniture products. It is delivering happiness not only to the faces of little ones but parents too. Parents can now browse multiple options while sitting at their homes without worrying about the design, delivery, durability & installment. As everything is taken care of. Shopping for kid’s furniture can now be easily done just like any other home essentials.

    ikOOji is based in Gurugram and entered the industry in July 2020. With the expertise of stalwarts of the furniture manufacturing industry & a strong team of founders, ikOOji has become India’s favorite kids’ furniture brand in less than 1 Year of operations.

    StartupTalky interviewed Mr. Karan Singh, Founder of ikOOji to know the Startup Story and the roadmap of the organization. He also gave insights on the business model of ikOOji, how it started, funding, challenges faced, competitors & more. In short, know the Journey of ikOOji since its inception to date!

    ikOOji – Company Highlights

    Startup Name ikOOji
    Founder Karan Singh, Manuraj Singh Johar
    Founded July 2020
    Headquarters Gurugram
    Industry Kids Furniture
    Website ikooji.com

    ikOOji – About and Vision
    ikOOji – Industry Details
    ikOOji’s Journey – How it Started
    ikOOji – Product/Service
    ikOOji – Founders and Team
    ikOOji – Name, Tagline and Logo
    ikOOji – Business Model and Revenue Model
    ikOOji – Startup Launch
    ikOOji – Challenges faced
    ikOOji – Competitors
    ikOOji – Recognition and Achievements
    ikOOji – FAQs

    ikOOji – About and Vision

    ikOOji is a one-stop-shop to find premium quality kids’ furniture products that will run for ages and will be loved by the kids endlessly. The mix-match of fun and functionality with dreamy aesthetics contributes to making the best range of furniture products that not only makes the space vibrant but makes the first experiences of the littles ones, a magical one!

    ikOOji comes from the term Ikuji, which in Japanese means “Childcare”. The meaning matches with the core values of the organization i.e., to leave no corners unturned for excellent childcare through high quality and sustainable furniture for kids of all ages.

    “Crafting furniture that connects with the heart of our little ones is what we always focus on. The direct approach and objective have resulted in making us a brand of the kids, for the kids, by the kids within a year of operations” says Karan Singh, Founder, ikOOji

    Without a fail, ikOOji is delivering happiness not only to the faces of little ones but parents too. Now parents have a place to shop for furniture for their kids. Before ikOOji, there wasn’t a reliable place to shop. Either you have to wander around places or spent hours with the carpenter to make it done. On the other hand, this pandemic wouldn’t spare so much time outdoors. But after ikOOji, parents can now browse multiple options while sitting at their homes without worrying about the design, delivery, durability & installment. As everything is taken care of. Shopping for kid’s furniture can now be easily done just like any other home essentials.

    Within one year of operations, ikOOji has become the leading and trusted Indian kids’ furniture online store. With this same energy and dedication, the company is visioning to be one of the topmost online kid’s furniture stores in the future.

    Fabrento—Online Furniture Rental Services
    Fabrento provides Furniture and Appliances on rent in Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, and Chandigarh. Read about Fabrento Company Profile, Revenue, Founders, Business Model, Logo, Growth, Funding, How it works, products etc.
    StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi

    ikOOji – Industry Details

    Scope Of Growth

    • The target audience of the Metropolitan cities is in majority especially the young parents ranging from 28-40 years of age who are always seeking for transforming and recreating creative vibrant spaces for their kids.
    • Stats for kids’ furniture as per the industry estimates concluded that the offline market is hitting across 10% to 15%  of growth on yearly basis, whereas the online market is growing at 300% year on year.
    • 85% of the market is unorganized and there is immense scope for growth and penetration.
    • Famous marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart, and Pepperfry are launching more brands and categories on a monthly basis and getting a great response. So definitely the scope for kids’ furniture is definitely way more than our imagination.

    [Source – Business Standard, MoneyControl]

    Competitors’ Analysis

    Slowly the online marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart, and Pepperfry are shifting their priorities on kids’ furniture by launching a variety of options for young parents. New budding competitors have been observed but their prime audience is new parents targeting nursery furniture like cribs, diaper-changing stations & more.

    5% YoY growth In the organized Kids Furniture segment since ’15 with Pepperfry projecting 500 Cr in ‘21 through Kids segment. Market share is expected to grow to 24% for organized offline retail and 14% for online retail by the year 2025. ikOOji is a growing online furniture store that offers high-quality and sustainable furniture for kids of all ages. Serving vibrant and creative options of furniture loved by juniors. Focusing on building happy spaces for kids. This sets ikOOji apart from others.

    Rapid Demand Surge in Furniture Market in India due to Work From Home
    The new working culture of Work from Home has impacted many businesses. The Indian Furniture market has witnessed a demand rise due to people working from home
    StartupTalkyVibhavari Madki

    ikOOji’s Journey – How it Started

    Challenges Faced by the Founding Team –

    It’s never easy to set up a business or organization. People have to cross the hurdles or roadblocks in their journey. Just like that ikOOji’s founders too faced many. The setup was planned to be launched in July 2020 but the pandemic happened. Everything was closed worldwide, they were really confused about how to begin with their journey. Even the small task like buying the raw material, arranging the labor or setting up the processes was a challenge now. Amidst July, they realized that for them nothing would be easy. So only the key mantra of patience and consistency will make it work.

    Slowly and steadily, they started again with the same passion and motivation and started selling the furniture on marketplaces. Surprisingly they received a good response and parents were loving the furniture. This pushed them on rolling out the new collection. Selling on marketplaces acted like a blessing and the positive response acted in channelizing new energies in them. Because of this, today ikOOji proudly owns more than 500+ SKU.

    Over the period of time, the daily consistency & efforts from the team resulted in switching the buyers to the website and the majority of them are now preferring to buy from the website only. ikOOji is based in Gurugram and entered the industry in July 2020. With the expertise of stalwarts of the furniture manufacturing industry & a strong team of founders, ikOOji has become India’s favorite kids’ furniture brand in less than 1 Year of operations.

    The Eureka Moment

    Both the founders Manuraj Singh Johar and Karan Singh are college friends and have worked together for years. Being new parents themselves, they were discussing their parenting journey and surprisingly realized that both of them faced trouble in finding one reliable cradle in the market.

    This thought rang the bell in their minds that just like them how difficult it is for other parents too. They researched about it and realized that there is a gap in the Indian market for kids’ furniture. This eventually gave birth to “the idea of ikOOji”.

    ikOOji was started in July 2020 amidst the pandemic. The initial months were not easy. The problems faced in the initial months were already calculated by the founders but the new problems because of lockdown weren’t predicted. But slowly and steadily they worked it around in their favor. As the situation outside made it impossible for the new parents to shop furniture offline so they gave ikOOji a chance which resulted in wonders.

    “We were selling our products in marketplaces first but later people recognized ikOOji and they shifted to the website. This whole process resulted in making ikOOji as a leading Indian brand in a year” Karan added.

    ikOOji even managed to get its first funding from Aakanksha Bhargava, the successful entrepreneur leading a larger relocation business in India. The CEO of PM Relocation which offers global mobility services across the world operating on both B2C and B2B models with a clientele of over 500 MNC’s.

    She is now the Director & Advisor of the team. Being a mother herself, she is able to bring trusted and resourceful inputs to the direction. Even delivering all across India has now become easy. ikOOji is now successfully operating the D2C (Direct To Customer) model.

    In the lockdown days, ikOOji has been really appreciated by the parents as they were able to shop premium quality furniture for kids at the ease without any troubles. Despite the lockdown, ikOOji has been regular in delivering furniture all over India.

    Avni’s CEO on Insights on Starting & Scaling D2C Brand
    Avni is a D2C brand that provides menstrual care products. Sujata Pawar (Co-Founder & CEO of Avni) shares her perspective on D2C Industry & how she scaled Avni
    StartupTalkyJeenal Jain

    ikOOji – Product/Service

    ikOOji – A brand that creates magic for kids’

    Here at ikOOji, the team believes in spreading smiles and creating lasting memories with kids’ furniture. Keeping little ones happy is its top concern, so they always stay updated with their rising expectations and likeness, in order to maintain kid-friendly aesthetic furniture. Creating a base of functionality and layering it with admiring designs which are just as magical as the imagination of the little ones.

    We are a brand for the kids, by the kids, of the kids. This approach sets ikOOji apart from others.

    All of ikOOji’s designs are approved by podology experts. The collection changes every season. Amending all the new requirements and high-quality functionality, ikOOji launches its new collection. To date, the company has been successfully serving more than 500+ SKU to clients.

    ikOOji – Founders and Team

    Manuraj Singh Johar and Karan Singh are the founders of ikOOji.

    Karan Singh | Founder, ikOOji

    ikOOji Founders
    Karan Singh – Founder, ikOOji

    15 years of designing and marketing experience across sectors including travel, consumer products, & FMCG.

    Manuraj Singh Johar | Co-founder, ikOOji

    ikOOji founders
    Manuraj Singh Johar – Co-founder, ikOOji

    17 years of experience in Product Development, Consumer Businesses, Hospitality & Tourism.

    Aakanksha Bhargava | Director & Advisor, ikOOji

    ikOOji Team
    Aakanksha Bhargava – Director & Advisor, ikOOji

    The CEO of PM Relocations which offers global mobility services across the world operating on both B2C and B2B models with a clientele of over 500 MNC’s.

    ikOOji comes from the term Ikuji, which in Japanese means “Childcare”. The meaning matches with the core values of the organization i.e., to leave no corners unturned for excellent childcare through high quality and sustainable furniture for kids of all ages.

    ‘Brand For The Kids, By The Kids, Of The Kids’

    ikOOji Logo

    ikOOji – Business Model and Revenue Model

    Having 10,00 sqft of the area where all the labor, craftsmen, and designers work in crafting premium wooden quality kids’ furniture. ikOOji delivers across India. After getting its first funding from Aakanksha Bhargava, ikOOji serves a D2C model. So parents all across India can now shop superior quality furniture for their kids just sitting in their houses without worrying about quality, durability & delivery.

    ikOOji has stepped into the market with an initiative to bridge the gap in the market for kid’s furniture. Along with the coming years, it has a strong belief to be successful in doing that.

    ikOOji’s prime audience is young parents with kids aged 0- 16 living in the metropolitan cities of India. Tier 1 and Tier 2 are whom it is targeting.
    All the evolving parents who believe in creating unique spaces for their kids will be its potential customers.  

    How Mother Sparsh became an esteemed brand in D2C Industry
    Dr. Himanshu Gandhi (Co-Founder & CEO of Mother Sparsh) shares his perspectives on D2C Industry & how he scaled Mother Sparsh. Get Insights on Starting & Scaling D2C Brand
    StartupTalkyJeenal Jain

    ikOOji – Startup Launch

    Initially, when Karan & Manuraj started ikOOji, word of mouth advertising made the brand popular amongst their small social circle consisting of family and friends. Then they started social accounts of ikOOji on Instagram and Facebook and that eventually help in calling for its first customers.

    “The majority of sales increased when they signed up for online marketplaces.We actually received a good no. of response and the audience actually started recognizing ikOOji as a brand. This profit shifted us in building on own website and staying active on all our social media channels” says Karan Singh, Founder, ikOOji.

    Soon, the audience shifted to its main website and now ikOOji is a full-grown online Indian furniture store in the market.

    ikOOji – Competitors

    ikOOji’s competitors include Ikea kids, Alex Daisy, Mollycuddle, Urban Ladder, Habios, and Rabitat.

    ikOOji – Recognition and Achievements

    ikOOji received funding within a year of operations and welcomed on board- Aakanksha Bhargava, the successful entrepreneur leading a larger relocation business in India. The CEO of PM Relocation which offers global mobility services across the world operating on both B2C and B2B models with a clientele of over 500 MNC’s.

    RentoMojo Company Profile – Business Model | Competitors | Funding | Founder
    RentoMojo allows to rent furniture, appliances and electronics. Read about RentoMojo competitors, valuation, founders, funding, business model, revenue, valuation, CEO
    StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi

    ikOOji – FAQs

    What is ikOOji?

    ikOOji is a one-stop-shop to find premium quality kids’ furniture products that will run for ages and will be loved by the kids endlessly.

    Who founded ikOOji?

    Karan Singh and Manuraj Singh Johar are the founders of ikOOji.

    What is the business model of ikOOji?

    ikOOji operates on the D2C (Direct To Customer) model.

    Who are the competitors of ikOOji?

    ikOOji’s competitors include Ikea kids, Alex Daisy, Mollycuddle, Urban Ladder, Habios, and Rabitat.

    What does ‘ikOOji’ mean?

    ikOOji comes from the term Ikuji, which in Japanese means “Childcare”. The meaning matches with the core values of the organization i.e., to leave no corners unturned for excellent childcare through high quality and sustainable furniture for kids of all ages.

  • How Lifelong built its Value Chain via tech-enabled D2C Model

    This article is part of the Behind the Scene series by StartupTalky where we bring you insights into how a company operates at ground level. Source ~ from the horse’s mouth that is as told by the founders, core management.

    Lifelong Online is a digital-first consumer durable brand. Started in 2015, it has an exclusive range of products across a wide spectrum of categories like Home, Kitchen, Grooming, and Lifestyle. Lifelong, one of the fastest-growing Indian consumer durables startups has been able to disrupt the category, largely occupied by big brands, a traditional distribution model, and barely any innovation.

    It was the inertia of the eco-system that Bharat Kalia, Co-Founder of Lifelong, saw as a massive opportunity – with increasing internet penetration, pan-India distribution led largely by e-commerce giants, a younger, discerning customer that participated much more in purchase decisions via content, product ratings, and reviews, Bharat knew the customer was ready for a new age durables brand.

    It serves over 500 cities in India through both online (Amazon, Flipkart, Tata Cliq, Nykaa, PayTM, Snapdeal, 1Mg) and offline presence. In 2019, Lifelong raised funds (40 crores INR) from Tanglin Venture partners, which was the series A round of funding for the company.  

    At present home and kitchen appliances contribute approximately 33% to the overall sales, 33% by lifestyle and health category followed by 33% contribution from grooming and sports together.

    StartupTalky interviewed Bharat Kalia (Co-founder & CEO, Lifelong India) to know How Exactly Lifelong leverages Data & technology to become the digital-first consumer durable brand. Get insights on the Behind the scene operations of Lifelong, Its marketing strategy, pricing strategy, business model, plans & more.

    Lifelong India – Company Highlights

    Company Name Lifelong India Online
    Founders Bharat Kalia (CEO), Varun Grover (COO)
    Headquarters Gurugram, Haryana
    Industry Consumer Durables
    Website lifelongindiaonline.com

    And here’s what Mr. Bharat Kalia has got to say –

    1. How does Lifelong India operate via both online and offline channels across 500 cities? From partnering & onboarding to final customer service, what does the value chain process look like?
    2. What strategies does Lifelong India adopt while catering to Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities? According to you, what are Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities? Are there any challenges you face while catering to these cities?
    3. As a Made in India brand started in 2015, what did Lifelong India’s business model look like in the initial days? Would love to know the gradual growth of the company since then.
    4. How did it feel like to get the first institutional funding in 2019 from Tanglin Venture Partners? What are your plans post getting the funds? A hint on the strategies used by the company to attract investors is much appreciated.
    5. We were wondering how you provide functionally crafted products priced at least 30% lower than traditional brands? What are the strategies you employ?
    6. In the era of dynamic technology, what role does data/AI/ML/Insights play in the company? How do you keep up with the rapid technology advancements around the globe and pace the race with your competitors?
    7. How do you plan to strengthen mean distribution channels in India with a major focus on product design & innovation? How are you planning to manage the first multi-line facility that is set to go live in the next 3 months? What effect will it have on the company & economy?
    8. What does the future look like for a Tech-enabled D2C Model? Are you planning for any strategic/business expansion plans?
    9. As a passionate entrepreneur yourself, how can one connect to you for fruitful advice and guidance?

    1. How does Lifelong India operate via both online and offline channels across 500 cities? From partnering & onboarding to final customer service, what does the value chain process look like?

    Lifelong India Home-Page
    Lifelong India Home-Page

    Established in 2018, Lifelong has been built through data-driven insights with a strong focus on its online presence. To extend our offline outreach, we have partnered with several modern trade retail stores and institutional buyers.  

    Our value chain is based on a meticulously developed data bank, which was gathered through our mass markets in Tier 2, Tier 3 cities, and beyond. We focus on the current search and conversion trends to identify buyer needs, the available products in the market, and the gap between the two.

    Once we pinpointed the lacunae, we move towards our R&D, working towards improvements, adjustments, fixes, or modifications to improve value. The resultant product is subjected to a beta test where it goes through market analysis to further verify its value and functionality.

    If everything goes well and there is positive feedback, the product is launched. We follow the market protocols in generating awareness, targeting consumers, and establishing the product in the market. Today, we have over 15-20% repeat buyers, and we pride ourselves on providing effective nationwide customer service within 24-72 hours.

    2. What strategies does Lifelong India adopt while catering to Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities? According to you, what are Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities? Are there any challenges you face while catering to these cities?

    Lifelong Logo
    Lifelong Logo

    When addressing Tier 2 or Tier 3 cities, it is crucial to understand that the demand in these markets can vary significantly from what we see in bigger cities. The consumers here are price sensitive and may lack access to mega brands. From a marketing perspective, they refer to certain specific media for information, which may be different from the Tier 1 audience.

    Even when it comes to the product, they look for a separate set of features. For any brand to succeed, it must grasp these differences when devising strategies. For instance, we are working on a washing machine that is unaffected by any fluctuations in the water pressure. This is a critical feature in cities prone to power plant malfunctions or pressure inconsistencies.

    Consumers often belong to close-knit communities and are often well-acquainted with their sellers. In such a scenario, it is a challenge to establish a personal connection for a brand that doesn’t have a physical presence in the market. At Lifelong, we have focused on building these bonds through efficient service and creating value for our customers.

    Offering a swift turnaround time of 48 hours or less, we have ensured efficient and timely delivery. As a result, we have been able to garner customer loyalty as more and more customers show strong association and appreciation with the brand.

    How Entrepreneurs Market in Tier 2 and Tier 3 Cities | Marketing Way
    We asked entrepreneurs from diverse fields – how do they market to the audience in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. And here’s what we got to know.
    StartupTalkyJeenal Jain

    3. As a Made in India brand started in 2015, what did Lifelong India’s business model look like in the initial days? Would love to know the gradual growth of the company since then.

    We are a direct customer brand that operates in two large sub-segments – 1. Health and fitness 2. Home and kitchen.

    From our beginning with a mixer-grinder in the kitchen appliances segment, today we have established a strong foothold in the categories of Home, Health, and Fitness appliances. We embarked on this journey with the sole purpose of creating a better product for the mass market based on the available insights.

    In this endeavor, we learned that India loves the idea of a great product sold at an honest price. Since then, we have been using data to drive product development across sub-categories. Unlike mammoth brands representing vertical categories, we are independent of distributors and retail counters.

    Our direct dealings with the consumer have worked wonderfully in establishing us as an organization that feels homely and is indigenous.

    4. How did it feel like to get the first institutional funding in 2019 from Tanglin Venture Partners? What are your plans post getting the funds? A hint on the strategies used by the company to attract investors is much appreciated.

    For me, funding provides capital that is essential if you want your company to continue on its growth trajectory. It can be expensive, as it means one has to sell a part of their enterprise. However, the right funding at an apt hour is critical in positioning the brand to scale great heights.

    For us, Tanglin Venture Partners were extremely supportive investors, and they believed in the depth of our operations as well as ideologies. With this success, we are gearing up for our next round of funding. We aim to maintain our profitability while directing additional funds towards product development and expanding our service networks.

    Tanglin Venture Partners Logo
    Tanglin Venture Partners Logo

    We don’t have a specific strategy to attract investments. The investors of today are savvy and highly discerning. Only ventures that have the potential to succeed can hope to garner interest and funding. Hence, as long as one has a fundamentally strong business that creates value, attracting suitable investments will never be worrisome.

    List of Top Direct To Customer(D2C) Brands in India
    Indian D2C Brands are emerging in markets through today’s e-commerce platforms. A list of D2C brands in India and How they are making profits.
    StartupTalkyRishita Jain

    5. We were wondering how you provide functionally crafted products priced at least 30% lower than traditional brands? What are the strategies you employ?

    As a company, data is part of our DNA. Any development from our end begins with an extensive analysis of factors like clickstreams, consumer preferences, product availability in the market, and desirable and undesirable features. Once we identify what the consumer wants, we focus on giving them products that not only meet their expectations but also surpass them.

    By directly dealing with consumers, we have been successful in gaining at least a 30% price edge over conventional brands. Instead of relying on retailers to sell our products, we engage directly with the buyers.

    In the process, we save on overheads such as sales staff’s salary, distribution margins, and other related expenses. These cost benefits are enjoyed by our customers who receive quality products at pocket-friendly rates.

    6. In the era of dynamic technology, what role does data/AI/ML/Insights play in the company? How do you keep up with the rapid technology advancements around the globe and pace the race with your competitors?

    Technological advancements are the core of all our business activities. We use Big Data, analytics, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to drive product development. Further, Machine Learning and AI are also used to improve our customer service.

    These disruptive solutions resolve up to 30% of the queries based on what we have collected over time. They even help us conduct multi-lingual buyer surveys, simultaneously helping us gather authentic information.

    Technology is dynamic, and keeping pace with it is the only way to succeed. We regularly track all the domestic and international trends. However, when it comes to successfully handling all these frequent changes, the credit goes to our dedicated team. Handling challenges becomes easy once you have the right people for the right job.

    7. How do you plan to strengthen mean distribution channels in India with a major focus on product design & innovation? How are you planning to manage the first multi-line facility that is set to go live in the next 3 months? What effect will it have on the company & economy?

    We have no intention to create multi-distribution channels in India. We wish to continue operating in a direct-to-consumer format. Online merchants such as Flipkart, Amazon, Tata Cliq, Bulbul, and Meesho platforms that allow us the opportunity to directly sell to our customers are our preferred options.

    When it comes to a multi-line facility, we are in the process of testing different strategies by distributing our manufacturing across the subcontinent. This will even help us combat the difficulties posed by the state-wise lockdown and serve our consumers better. We aim to establish robust data supply channels for the next couple of years so that we can overcome any uncertainties that the future holds.

    How Mother Sparsh became an esteemed brand in D2C Industry
    Dr. Himanshu Gandhi (Co-Founder & CEO of Mother Sparsh) shares his perspectives on D2C Industry & how he scaled Mother Sparsh. Get Insights on Starting & Scaling D2C Brand
    StartupTalkyJeenal Jain

    8. What does the future look like for a Tech-enabled D2C Model? Are you planning for any strategic/business expansion plans?

    The silver lining for tech-enabled D2C models was the growing acceptance of online platforms, enabling organizations like ours to create a deeper penetration in the market. As a consumer-oriented brand, we aim to continue growing at a rapid pace. We are set to launch multiple yoga activities by year-end or the by early next year

    9. As a passionate entrepreneur yourself, how can one connect to you for fruitful advice and guidance?

    I am a very approachable person. If anyone, be it a customer or otherwise, is looking for advice, guidance, or support, my email is the best way to connect with me. My contact details are present on our website, and I am eager to help in whatever capacity I can.

  • Avni’s CEO on Insights on Starting & Scaling D2C Brand

    In this new Insight series we connect with industry professionals to gain idea on starting and scaling a D2C Brand. It features startup experience, growth hacks, D2C industry highlights and learnings directly from expert!

    A little background, D2C brands are companies that built its offering around direct digital marketing channels as opposed to selling through an online marketplace, retailer, or auction site. In D2C (Direct to Customer) business model, any seller/manufacturer willing to sell their products directly to end-customers can set up an online website cum store, or promote the products on various social media platforms eliminating the middleman.

    StartupTalky exclusively interviewed Sujata Pawar, Co-founder & CEO of Avni to know her perspectives on D2C Brand & how she and Apurv scaled Avni to over 27 retail stores & served 5,000 women in just 1 year! Founded by wife-husband duo Sujata Pawar and Apurv Agrawal in 2020, Avni provides innovative and eco-friendly menstrual care products.

    D2C Brand Avni – Company Highlights

    D2C Startup Name Avni
    About Menstrual Healthcare Startup
    Founders Sujata Pawar (CEO), Apurv Agrawal
    Founded 2020
    Headquarters Mumbai
    Industry Femtech, Health & Wellness
    Website myavni.com

    Excerpt from the interview –

    1.From where did it all begin? It’d be great to walk through the initial journey of Avni.

    Sujata Pawar comes with a background in pharmacy. She was already working on a venture when she had an uncomfortable personal experience using commercially available sanitary pads which led to rashes. She started researching the issue and figured that the only reason for the skin troubles she was facing was the chemical-based pads. She got to know that not only were these sanitary napkins causing skin troubles but also affecting the environment and sanitation workers.

    When she wanted to opt for a more sustainable alternative, she learned that there were no products that were viable on all these three grounds. Then she decided to address this gap by launching Avni, a menstrual healthcare startup, which is also environment friendly. Over the period, the co-founders realized that sanitary napkins cannot alone replace all the products that cater to menstrual needs as a lot of women use different products that are causing harm. The brand then launched the Avni Ezeepad and Avni cups.

    Avni D2C Startup
    Avni Logo

    As an entrepreneur moves ahead, one by one he notices other obstacles too. Along the journey, the co-founders realized that there is less awareness, and more fear due to the lack of reliable support for women when it comes to the choice of products. Thus, the brand launched India’s First 24X7 period helpline accessible via whatsapp/call/sms which will make the transition smooth and help women develop a sustainable period routine. Putting the efforts in the right direction did prove fruitful for the brand. The brand raised INR 65 Lacs in seed funding in April 2021 from WeFounderCircle. All in all, the brand has already reached over 5000 customers.

    LAIQA Company Profile – Best Sanitary Napkins available in India | Founders | Story
    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified informationon different startups and organizations. The content in this post has beenapproved by the organization it is based on. The scenario of feminine hygiene is fast changing in India. There was a timewhen there were many …
    StartupTalkyChayanika Goswami

    2. How do you differentiate yourself from other D2C brands in the ecosystem? Highlight the USP, Features & the problems that Avni tends to solve.

    Avni has been putting all its efforts towards creating menstrual care products that are skin-friendly, chemical-free, and do not cause any harm to the environment too. While pursuing this ambition, co-founders came across the fact that the traditional methods that women used to follow during periods were way more effective than the current commercially popularized options. For example, cloth-based pads were never harmful, only the use of dirty cotton cloth can cause infection. Digging deeper unfolded the better alternatives and formed the foundation of Avni product line.  

    Avni Menstrual Products
    Products – Avni Ezeepad, Avni Cloth pad, Avni Menstrual Cup

    3. The pandemic has posed its own challenges & opportunities. We are intrigued to know how it impacted the D2C industry in general and Avni in particular?

    The pandemic did impact all the industries and activities. However, we maintain availability on most of the eCommerce platforms including – Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, 1mg, Qtrove, Shycart, Vayas Sakhi, Upciclo, ThePinkBox etc. However, what intrigued us more during the pandemic was that even the lesser privileged face this monthly cycle and the challenge of unavailability of the products. In order to address the same, we tied up with local NGOs in different regions across the country and ran a drive to educate them and provide the young girls, and underprivileged women with the Avni product kits. Each of the product kits could easily cover their periods for over 4 years.

    How are Indian Startups fighting Covid 19?
    In this hour of need, startups have again risen to the occasion to help Indiacope with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. From providing freevaccinations to imparting mental health sessions, Indian startups hasn’t leftany stone unturned to help the country fight the Covid 19 pandemic. Star…
    StartupTalkyJeenal Jain

    4. What are the offline & online marketing strategies adopted by Avni? How do you ensure that your D2C brand is known across the nook & corner of the target market?

    As we are in a space which is sensitive and has taboos associated with it, we are working on increasing the awareness regarding best menstrual health practices. We conduct live interview sessions with experts from this field who share their views, their experience which could be useful women & girls across ages. As we started during Covid times, we only had online channel at our exposure. One thing that worked in our favor was that ours is an essential commodity. To have reached to various customers, we listed our products in the most common and trusted online platforms in India. We are now present on Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal,1 mg, Qtrove, Shycart, Vayas Sakhi, Upciclo, ThePinkBox with presence in few more platforms expected to be completed in the next month.

    5. Amongst 1000s of companies in the D2C domain, how did you evolve Avni’s brand identity & create brand loyalty amongst customers?

    With information overload these days due to accessibility of internet, everyone is confused on the correctness or authenticity of source. Since our founders are from healthcare background, we wanted to ensure that information passed on by us if authentic and from a verified source. Once we are able to help customers with right set of information, trusts start building which results in long lasting customer loyalty.

    Azah: Promoting Feminine Hygiene
    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified informationon different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by the organization it is based on. Feminine hygiene and its awareness has never been given its due importance inIndia It is only re…
    StartupTalkyChayanika Goswami

    6. How does Avni’s supply chain model add value to the company? What does the process look like?

    All our products are developed in-house and Made in India, in line with our honorable Prime Minister’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat. All our products are manufactured as per our raw material and final product specifications. Once a customer places order, the order is dispatched from our central warehouse after quality checks and customized packaging. With a robust supply chain, we are able to cater to almost 29000 pin codes. Our customers receive emails messages at each and every stage of orders processing, right from order receipt, completion of packaging, pick up of order by courier partners from warehouse till delivery. Our customers also receive phone call if their delivery is missed to reschedule the delivery. This gives our customer visibility of their order status in a transparent manner.

    7. How do you ensure a higher degree of personalization/uniqueness in your product range? Are prospective customers surveyed? Is your R&D strong? How do you stay on top of new technologies & changing customer habits?

    We introduced our products with the option of customization for customers. Any customer who visits our website, can order Avni Ezeepad pack of 12 based on their preference from available 3 most commonly used sizes. This ensures customer to buy as per their needs. We are constantly in communication with our customers with our helpline number. We communicate with almost 1500 customers every month via our helpline taking their feedback and views on the products and sharing information available with us. These inputs along with our panel of experts are continuously working on developing new products, bringing in changes in the existing product to improve customer experience and interactions with Avni

    8. What metrics do you analyze to compare your performance from that of your competitors & previous periods?

    For us, the simplest way to analyze our performance in the track to growth is new customers every month and the number of repeat customers. More than 5000 customers and a repeat percentage of almost 30%, gives us motivation to keep on creating much better product and experience.

    9. It’d be great if you could share any Advice/expert’s opinion/findings on the D2C ecosystem in India. And what do you think is the future of this industry? What should the budding entrepreneurs have a look out for?

    D2C space in India is evolving at a fast pace. Internet has been a boon for this industry and consumers are now well aware and well read about products, the options they have and pros & cons. India has witnessed huge growth in customers shopping online. This has given all start-ups like us to showcase products across wider set of audiences without much hassle. There is a huge scope to introduce new concepts and products in the Indian market. In our opinion, all budding entrepreneurs should just grab the opportunity as any time is right time to start.

  • Mother Sparsh CEO on Insights on Starting & Scaling D2C Brand

    In this new Insight series we connect with industry professionals to gain idea on starting and scaling a D2C Brand. It features startup experience, growth hacks, D2C industry highlights and learnings directly from expert!

    A little background, D2C brands are companies that built its offering around direct digital marketing channels as opposed to selling through an online marketplace, retailer, or auction site. D2C business model in India eliminates middlemen to reach the end consumers and thus saves costs spent on distribution.

    StartupTalky exclusively interviewed Dr. Himanshu Gandhi, Co-Founder and CEO of Mother Sparsh to know his perspectives on D2C Brand & how he scaled Mother Sparsh from INR 10 lakhs investment to achieving an annual turnover of approximately INR 22 crore in FY20. Mother Sparsh is an innovative eco-friendly baby & mother care brand focused on delivering a holistic experience to the mothers and babies with their natural, eco-friendly, biodegradable, paraben-free and chemical-free product offerings.

    Let’s see what Dr. Himanshu Gandhi, Co-Founder and CEO of Mother Sparsh has got to say –

    1. Initial Journey and Growth of D2C Brand Mother Sparsh
    2. How Mother Sparsh is different from other D2C brands in the ecosystem?
    3. Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on D2C industry in general and Mother Sparsh in particular
    4. Offline & online marketing strategies adopted by Mother Sparsh
    5. How founders of Mother Sparsh evolved the brand identity & create brand loyalty amongst customers? How do they control the 4P’s?
    6. Mother Sparsh’s Supply Chain Model
    7. How Mother Sparsh ensures higher degree of uniqueness in its product range? How does this D2C brand stay on top of new technologies & changing customer habits?
    8. Metrics used to compare D2C brand Mother Sparsh from its competitors
    9. Advice/expert’s opinion/findings on the D2C ecosystem in India & the Future of D2C industry

    1.From where did it all begin? It’d be great to walk through the initial journey of the company from ideation, team building to launch, funding, revenue & growth.

    The inception of Mother Sparsh happened after my marriage with Rishu Gandhi, who happens to be the co-founder of the company. Prior to our entrepreneurial journey, I was a government officer while Rishu was a Java Developer at Infosys. After our marriage, we discovered our shared zeal to identify and fill the gaps in the baby and mother care segment.

    We got into rigorous Research & Development (R&D), which was inclined towards recognizing the specific personal care needs of babies as well as mothers, and evaluating it in lieu of the gaps in the market. Therefore, our relentless endeavor to fill the gaps in the segment by working on a need-based proposition led to the birth of Mother Sparsh in 2016. We started with a seed funding of nearly INR 10 lakh, which was used in R&D and development of our first few products. We were able to break even in FY ’20 and went on to close the previous financial year with revenue of nearly INR 22 crore.

    2. How do you differentiate yourself from other D2C brands in the ecosystem? Highlight the USP, Features & the problems that your brand tends to solve.

    There are several D2C brands in the personal care segment, but the same does not stand true in the case of baby and mom care brands in India. Even if there are a few, they are mostly the ones with product portfolios laden with harmful chemicals and toxins. We are probably the only Indian nature-based baby and mom care brand that caters directly to the end consumers with its wide range of innovative products. For instance, we were the first D2C brand in India to introduce 99% Pure Water unscented biodegradable baby wipes that are good not just for the sensitive skin of the little ones but for the environment as well.

    As mentioned earlier, our USP is that we bring the power of nature-based ingredients and Ayurvedic herbs in the most unadulterated manner, in a form that suits the modern lifestyle of millennial moms as well as their babies. While working on a need-based proposition, we have introduced products like Dashmoola Hair Lep, which new moms can use to deal with all kinds of post-pregnancy hair and scalp related troubles. Over past few years, we have fulfilled our commitment to solve or personal care woes of moms and babies with solutions that originate from mother nature.

    3. The pandemic has posed its own challenges and opportunities. We are intrigued to know how it impacted the D2C industry in general and your company in particular? What strategies, plans etc., did you adopt and where do you stand at present?

    The pandemic has brought about a significant change in the buying pattern of the consumers, with the trend now being more inclined towards online buying. This stands true for the consumers based in metro cities and those based in tier-2 cities. Further, for D2C brands, the consumers are much more willing to adapt and evolve to purchase products directly from the official brand website. This has been enabled by the increased assurances that the consumers have gained with regard to buying products and merchandise from the brand website.

    For D2C brand, the marketing strategies were focused to increase the website sales and the marketing orientation has changed towards website. Moreover, the brand has worked and developed a loyalty & good customer retention programs. For example, we have curated a specific set of offers for our website to help retain our customers.

    We observed a significant increase in the traffic during the pandemic which also helped us to make a change in our marketing orientation and eventually we had invested a decent amount on our website to get the traffic along with the specific set of offers for customers.

    A Detailed Case Study on Wakefit Startup
    Sleep is important to have a healthy life. Nowadays, people have cut down theirsleep due to the excess use of smartphones. This has been a major concern forpeople of all ages. The wise ones are the ones who are aware of this and havetried to cut down the excess use of screen time. One of them i…
    StartupTalkyRishita Jain

    4. Target-based marketing is the craze these days! What are the offline & online marketing strategies adopted by your brand? How do you ensure that your brand is known across the nook & corner of your target market?

    Mother Sparsh has always tried to work towards baby-mom specific set of products and bring innovation through its merchandise. In terms of reaching to our target audience, Mother Sparsh worked for better penetration via hospital sampling amongst premium hospitals across PAN India, catering specifically to expecting mothers during the early phase of pregnancy. We have effectively worked in this manner to achieve success and the brand continues to working on the sampling mechanism this year as well.

    Besides, the brand campaign designed is ensured to serve with the right set of communication for reaching out to the influencers. As per the feedback from various mothers, we have witnessed a big concern over hair fall in the post-pregnancy stages. So while making the effort of understanding the consumer need and bringing innovation as a factor, we launched Ayurvedic Dashmool Hair Lep.

    Also, we ensured a wider outreach via various campaigns on Instagram and Facebook groups & mom communities so as to reach every nook & corner of our target market.

    5. Amongst thousands of companies in the D2C domain, how did you evolve your brand identity and create brand loyalty amongst your customers? How do you control the 4P’s (Price, Place, Promotion, Product) of your brand.

    In India, the culture of buying products via D2C companies is evolving at a very nice pace and is currently in a dynamic phase in our country. For Mother Sparsh, the key for creating a brand identity has always been its offering. In terms of our efforts, we have managed to provide India’s first water based wipes which is eco-friendly. The brand has maintained its ethos and launched products on Need-based Proposition and throughout worked to evolve the market.

    The journey of Mother Sparsh has evolved with bringing innovation from its products, whether it be India’s first water-based wipes or After-bite solution for babies, which is very unique and one of its own kind of curative action.

    As mentioned earlier, the brand recently launched Ayurvedic Dashmool Hair Lep, specifically curated product for hair-fall for post-pregnancy. The concept of this product was introduced from home remedy which is positioned against chemically made gel/crème based products available in the market.

    With regard to controlling the 4 Ps of Marketing Mix –

    • For products we strive towards innovation and need-based positioning
    • For pricing we work on a valued pricing mechanism.
    • For place, we cater to aspirational consumers hailing from middle to higher income group, and
    • As far as promotion is concerned, we have relied majorly on brand website offers, hospital sampling and top e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Firstcry etc.

    6. How does your supply chain model add value to the company’s process? From product development, making the prospective customer aware of the product to order placement, distribution & post sale services, what does the process look like?

    The brand inherits a culture of R&D and quality driven products, therefore, the value of pursuing or products starts from deep dive market research. Also, we incorporate the feedback of consumers (mothers) about the need and requirement for their wellbeing. With this extensive study, comes the quality work of our R&D team to understand and recommend the most suitable offerings in sync with the ethos of innovation of the organization.

    While different types of media vehicles are leveraged, we enable effective communication by inking associations with various influencers on social media as well as tools like Facebook ads, google ads and print ads.

    With every effort of launch, we are always willing to provide the feedback to our team members so as to continuously work on our offerings which eventually helps us to evaluate and create future path for new development and process enhancement.

    Mamaearth: Bringing Toxin-Free, Natural Skin Care Products To India
    When it comes to the cosmetic industry, consumers are always concerned about theprocess through which the products are manufactured. This is why we now see ahuge buzz about organic products, natural hair care items, and pure skin careproducts. People want to ensure that they are using the best qu…
    StartupTalkyRishabh Rathi

    7. Product Differentiation is the key! How do you ensure a higher degree of personalization/uniqueness in your product range? Are prospective customers surveyed? Is feedback mechanism reliable? Or any other strategy? Is your R&D strong?How do you stay on top of new technologies and changing customer habits?

    The uniqueness of our product range comes from the fact that we provide expertly crafted nature-oriented solutions in the form of ready baby products. The brand inherits a culture of R&D and quality driven products. The journey of Mother Sparsh has evolved with bringing innovation from its products and inheriting the values of innovation. We stay on the top of the things majorly by motivating our R&D team to attend webinars and encourage them to widen their area of study.

    8. What metrics do you analyze to compare your performance from that of your competitors & previous periods? (E.g. conversion rate, unique customer, visitors rate etc., ) Real-life case studies/metrics information would be much appreciated.

    Mother Sparsh’s offerings for the niche nature-based baby and mom care market have no competition as such with any other brand. This is primarily because most baby and mom care brands thrive on chemicals and toxins rather than nature-oriented ingredients. More or less, the way we serve our consumers is different where we indulge in consolidating our understandings about home remedies & natural remedies to develop new products.

    9. It’s be great if you could share any Advice/expert’s opinion/findings on the D2C ecosystem in India. And what do you think is the future of this industry? What should the budding entrepreneurs have a look out for?

    D2C undoubtedly is the future in the market. But as a founder, we are concerned about the quality parameters which we feel should be enhanced so as to give value to the end consumer. It is also imperative that any entrepreneur who introduces new products in the market must ensure that while they are conducive to the needs of the consumers, they should not leave any harmful after effect on the environment.

    The idea behind the endeavors of any budding entrepreneur should be to thrive on eco-friendly and organic product range that leads to holistic wellbeing of both individuals and environment.

  • Top 24 Leading D2C Brands in India to Watch Out for in 2022

    The pandemic has majorly affected startups around the globe. It has entirely changed the perspective of consumers towards brands and the marketplace. Consumers are widely preferring well-established brands and raising great concern towards hygiene, sanitation, convenience, quality and health.

    In these times, the Direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands are gaining great profit and upraise in the market. On this note, tons of conventional brands such as LG, Havells, Ajanta-Orpat and Piaggio picked up the D2C model and applied it in their business.

    Brands across the globe are shifting towards the D2C business model, removing the middle source. These brands are launching their native stores so that consumers could directly contact them. In India, D2C startups are running to a great extent.

    However, in pandemics, these D2C brands suffered as well. As the D2C brand’s investment rate declined by 69% as compared to previous records. Meanwhile, the total funding was raised around $117.6 million throughout the year.

    The D2C brands from all sectors including home decor, fashion & cosmetics, FMCG and electronics experienced advancement in numerous aspects. In this article, we have listed the top 24 D2C brands in India. Let’s get started!

    What Is a D2C Business?
    How Does the D2C Business Model Work?
    Advantages of D2C Business
    Top D2C Brands in India

    What Is a D2C Business?

    D2C brands are companies that build their offering around direct digital marketing channels as opposed to selling through an online marketplace, retailer, or auction site. D2C business model in India eliminates middlemen to reach the end consumers and thus saves a lot of costs spent on distribution.

    How Does the D2C Business Model Work?

    In the D2C model, Any seller or manufacturer willing to sell his products directly to his customers can set up an online website or store and promote the products on various social media platforms. This business model completely eliminates the middleman.

    A study revealed that around 55% of consumers prefer to buy products directly from a brand or manufacturer’s website rather than retailers and distributors. This is a benefit for D2C brands in India and gives them an edge over conventional methods that involved middlemen.

    Advantages of D2C Business

    Increase in Sales

    As more and more consumers are finding it convenient and reliable to buy products from the manufacturer’s website, it assures a rapid increase in sales.

    Understanding Consumer’s Needs

    Establishing a direct relationship with consumers enables the companies to clearly understand their needs and in turn, personalise their experience so that they visit their store again.

    Cost Reduction

    When the company is self-sufficient in reaching its customers, it negates the role of any third-party distributors who earlier had to be paid.

    Diverse Catalog of Products

    Now that the companies do not require a physical area for selling their products, they can sell from a diverse catalogue of products, enabling them to offer extensive variety to attract customers.

    Top D2C Brands in India

    1. Bombay Shaving Company

    Bombay Shaving Company is a prominent men’s grooming brand based on the D2C model. This is one of the leading D2C brands in India. Bombay Shaving Company is the first-ever personal care brand that fulfils all the requirements of the consumers, globally. The Company was founded by Shantanu Deshpande in 2016 and is headquartered in Delhi NCR.

    Today, Bombay Shaving Company have over 2 million users and has around $3.4 billion market value.

    2. Mamaearth

    Mamaearth Website
    Mamaearth Website

    Mamaearth is a well-distinguished brand that received huge customer engagement and loyalty. As the consumers are putting generous efforts into fulfilling personal care needs, Mamaearth made its appearances over all the e-commerce websites such as Amazon, Flipkart, Firstcry and Nykaa, which resulted in the company with huge profitable deals.

    The users are widely preferring Mamaearth for their skincare and that’s why the company grew a huge consumer base. The revenue of Mamaearth has increased by around 3 times from the last 2019 records.

    3. The Moms Co.

    The Moms Co.
    The Moms Co.

    The very amazing personal healthcare brand for mothers. The Moms Co. sells personal care products, for all purposes like mom and baby care and postnatal, certified toxin-free by Australia. Its products are available on all e-commerce as well as physical shops. And its major source of revenue directly comes from its selling. The Moms Co. holds a market value of $6.5 billion.

    4. Plum

    Plum Website
    Plum Website

    Plum is an organic omnichannel clean beauty brand. Plum has experienced great profit since the consumer shift to the internet. The brand holds a value of around $23 billion by the year 2022.

    Plum’s team size has heightened twice that of actual and catering of over 250M+ consumers per month.

    5. Loom Solar

    LOOM SOLAR is a D2C startup, a manufacturer of Solar Panels and Lithium batteries in Renewal Energy space based out of Faridabad, Haryana. It is founded by two brothers Amol and Amod (Ex- Schneider, Airtel) in 2018.

    The Company helps Home Owners to reduce electricity bills in urban areas, while in small towns, it helps consumers to have 24X7 electricity by putting solar panels and Energy Storage Systems on the Rooftop

    Recently, it reached a milestone of powering 50,000 homes from Solar Power across India.

    Top 15 Salon Franchise in India you should consider in 2021
    Salon franchise is one of the most profitable businesses in India. If you are planning to start a franchise here are 15 Salon Franchises you should consider.
    StartupTalkyPooja Uniyal

    6. Wakefit

    Wakefit Website
    Wakefit Website

    During the pandemic, people have put immense concern and time into the style of their houses. And for this, the innovative sleep & Home Furniture Solutions Startup has experienced extensive growth. As of 2019, Wakefit had revenue of INR 80 crore and by the time of 2023, it has targeted up to INR 10,000 crore.

    7. Wow

    Wow Website
    Wow Website

    Wow is a widely famous skincare pharmaceutical D2C brand founded by Arvind Sokke and Ashwin Sokke; Manish Chowdhary and Karan Chowdhary. Wow is a total of $50 million worth of business.

    Wow has its products in over 5,000 stores and pharmacies across India.

    8. Sugar

    Sugar Cosmetics Website
    Sugar Cosmetics Website

    The immensely growing beauty and makeup startup, Sugar Cosmetics was founded in 2015 in India. Sugar Cosmetics mainly targets women between the age of 18 to 25. Today, it has more than 2500 retail locations in over 130 cities across India. Its products are easily available at Lifestyle, Health & Glow, Shoppers Stop and NewU.

    9. BoAt

    BoAt Website
    BoAt Website

    BoAt is a very famous and distinguished electronic lifestyle company that provides stylish and high-quality electronic devices, at reasonable prices. BoAt’s products are available on every e-commerce website including Amazon and Flipkart. The company sells over 10,000 products every day and has more than 20 million users in India.

    10. Noise

    Noise Website
    Noise Website

    Noise is a D2C startup with a duo partnership with Chinese manufacturers to develop smartphone cases and sell them in India. Noise has a total revenue of INR 430 crore.

    Top 5 Best Advertisement Wars of the decade
    Brand wars are always fun to watch when some of the biggest brands show their creativity in their advertisements. So, here are some of the best advertisements wars.
    StartupTalkyPratyusha Srivastava

    Best D2C startups
    Top D2C brands in India

    11. Licious

    Licious Website
    Licious Website

    Licious is a distinct meat and seafood d2c brand that provides absolutely clean fish, eggs and meat.  The company runs on a farm-to-fork model and provides its customers with the highest quality and totally fresh meat and seafood.

    Licious has over 3500 employees and receives millions of orders every month. Its customer base is over 1 million.

    12. Sleepy Owl

    Sleepy Owl Website
    Sleepy Owl Website

    The cold-brew coffee brand, Sleepy Owl caters for the demands for brewed and epicurean coffee across India. Sleepy Owl has numerous outlets in different cities and also, many online channels for selling its amazingly flavorful brewed coffee.

    13. Country Delight

    Country Delight Website
    Country Delight Website

    Country Delight is a leading startup for supplying fresh and pure milk at the doorstep of customers. It runs on the D2C business model and refers to consumers immediately.

    Country Delight improves the wholesome practice of Indian farmers and pays the price before its date in order to beat the competitors.

    14. Pepperfry

    Pepperfry Website
    Pepperfry Website

    Pepperfry is known to be India’s biggest and very famous online furniture startup. It provides furniture, kitchen equipment, bath, housing and dining appliances. Today, the startup has over 3.5 million active users and more than 5 million visitors per month.

    Pepperfry holds over 20 studio locations across India and 500+ vehicles for delivering the furniture consumer’s houses.

    15. Healthkart

    Healthkart Website
    Healthkart Website

    Healthkart was founded by two IITians: Sameer Maheshwari and Prashant Tandon in 2011. This D2C brand offers great quality fitness products and assistance to help the consumer in attaining their fitness purpose.

    Healthkart offers customers to order fitness products online as well as from offline stores. Its products are available in over 110 offline stores in 40 cities across India.

    Secret Behind Magnum Ice Cream’s Successful Marketing Strategy
    What makes Magnum ice cream wildly popular? It is time to find out the Marketing Strategy of Magnum, ice-cream’s SWOT Analysis, Target Audience & Campaigns
    StartupTalkyPV Vyshnavi

    16. Lenskart

    Lenskart Website
    Lenskart Website

    Lenskart is known as the biggest organised eyewear brand in India. The company offers over 5,000 designs of frames and around 45 different types of personality lenses. Lenskart has over 600 outlets in more than 66 cities across India. Its revenue as of 2020 is INR 967 crore.

    17. Melorra

    Melorra Website
    Melorra Website

    The first-ever lightweight jewellery startup, Melorra, was developed by Saroja Yeramilli. Melorra is a Bengaluru-based leading D2C company in India that offers jewellery in a wide range at affordable prices.

    Melorra is known as the biggest distributor of jewellery in India, which has delivered its jewellery in more than 1,700 towns.

    18. Flatheads

    Flatheads Website
    Flatheads Website

    Flathead is a prominent Indian footwear startup that offers very stylish as well as comfortable footwear, suitable for every occasion. Flathead was founded by Ganesh Balakrishnan and Utkarsh Biranda. It follows the D2C business model and has grown extensively.

    19. Bewakoof

    Bewakoof Website
    Bewakoof Website

    Bewakoof is a very popular clothing brand that widely targets the young generation in India. Bewakoof has over 10 million active users every month and has revenue worth INR 200 crores as of 2020.

    Bewakoof generates ML models to optimise their customer’s accession channels and enhance broad customers’ accession costs.

    20. Candes

    Candes Website
    Candes Website

    Candes is one of the top D2C brands in India that recently raised its funding up to $3 million. Candes is a Delhi-based startup founded by Sandeep Agarwal and Vipin Agarwal in 2015.

    The annual revenue of Candes is around INR 200 crore. And have sales worth INR 10 crore every month.

    21. MyGlamm

    MyGlamm has recently opted for the most intriguing way of reaching more consumers. It has adopted the lifestyle content platform POPxo, in order to enhance the digital reach and create the 3C funnel.

    Today, the company has over 2 million active users. MyGlamm generally targets women between the age of 16 to 25 and through this, it has witnessed a growth in its revenue up to INR 200 Crore.

    22. Zissto Sauces

    Zissto Website
    Zissto Website

    Zissto Sauces is a Mumbai-based company that offers a selection of convenient, tasty, and authentic sauces. Launched by Kanhai Porecha in 2017, the company aimed to save cooking time, especially for bachelors and working couples.

    Kanhai started Zissto after returning to India from the UK where he did his graduation. He said he wanted to introduce authentic and easy-to-go Indian cooking sauces.

    Today, the brand sells 50,000 sauces bottles across Mumbai, Chennai, and online portals like Amazon and Flipkart.

    23. Everpret

    Everpret Website
    Everpret Website

    Everpret is one of the top Indian D2C brands. It manufactures and sells designer bags for working women. The founder, Yashas Alur, worked in a Bengaluru-based company before starting his own business. There, he noticed many women employees carrying more than one bag which was highly inconvenient that didn’t suit their work attires.

    From there, the idea of redesigning workbags to fit all essentials seeded inside him. So he quit his job and raised funding of Rs 8 lakh for his idea from his former boss.

    Yashas launched the Everpret website in January 2018 and started selling designer bags for working women that had enough room to fit all their essentials and also complimented their work clothes.

    24. Super Smelly

    Super Smelly Website
    Super Smelly Website

    Super Smelly is India’s first and only certified zero toxins personal care brand that offers products specially formulated for teenage skin. The company was launched by Dipali Mathur and Milan Sharma in 2018.

    As the brand is still too young to have its own manufacturing setup, Super Smelly products are manufactured at third-party facilities located across other parts of India. However, R&D is done in-house. They only use fragrances that are completely free from any toxins and allergens. The product is effective and completely toxin-free as well.

    Super Smelly is available across all major e-commerce channels. The brand also serves US and UK customers through Amazon. It is now witnessing a month-on-month sales growth of 70 percent.

    Conclusion

    The internet has brought people closer than ever before. Today, with the internet not just being a luxury for a few, but turning into every household commodity, we have seen the emergence of direct to consumer (D2C) brands in India and as a commerce model in the consumer arena. D2C Model is the future of Indian trade and retail.

    FAQs

    What are D2C brands?

    Direct to consumer companies in India have created a new methodology for eCommerce success which is taking their products directly to their buyer. Direct to consumer is a term that means when brands sell directly to their end customers eliminating the role of retailer, distributor, wholesaler, or other outlets.

    What are some of the top D2C brands in India?

    MyGlamm, Wow, MamaEarth, BoAT, Bewakoof, Noise and Licious are some of the top D2C brands in India.

    Why are D2C brands successful?

    Most D2C brands are successful because they don’t have to share first-party data with retailers as they directly sell the products to consumers.