Farhan Akhtar is an Indian director, actor, producer, singer, screenwriter, and television host. He is primarily known for his work in Bollywood. He hails from a family of veterans and is the son of film actress and screenwriter Honey Irani and poet and lyricist Javed Akhtar. He has an elder sister, renowned filmmaker Zoya Akhtar.
He made his directorial debut in 2001 with the critically acclaimed Dil Chahta Hai, which received the National Award for Best Hindi Film in 2002. His sophomore movie, a war drama, Lakshya, was released in 2004 and is regarded as a cult film. He garnered significant commercial success with Don in 2006, starring Shah Rukh Khan. He made his debut on the big screen with the musical drama Rock On!! In 2008. He launched a social campaign called M.A.R.D. (Men Against Rape and Discrimination) to spread awareness about the rape and discrimination faced by women.
He has earned success and respect on his own accord, despite coming from a family of people with connections in Bollywood. He has been on the checklist of many brands, especially after having established himself as a leading actor in the industry. He is the face of several brands and continues to be sought after by many more.
An Indian luxury products company, the Titan, is the manufacturer of fashion accessory products like watches, fragrances, eyewear, jewelry, etc. It is a part of the Tata Group and has its headquarters in Bangalore. Xylys is an exclusive brand of Swiss-made watches by Titan. It brings the precision of Swiss watchmakers.
The brand signed Farhan Akhtar as its brand ambassador in 2011. On their association together, the Vice President, Ajoy Chawla, said, “Farhan is a new age, multi-talented individual admired for his unconventional work. He embodies the Xylys brand’s core values of sophistication, individualism, and authenticity, yet unconventional. We believe he will enable Xylys to connect deeply with the new age, global Indian seeking to express their own identity uniquely.”
Farhan also added, “A great deal of design thought is required in the making of a film or bringing a character to life. Only when the design is in place, you can infuse it with passion, and I feel that the ideation behind creating every timepiece from Xylys has followed a similar process. It is great to be associated with a Swiss watch brand that exemplifies precision for detail, uncompromising functionality, and design excellence. I am all the more excited to represent a Swiss watch brand from House of Titan, and I look forward to the days to come with Xylys.”
O.M.R.O.N.
Based in Kyoto, Japan, Omron is an electronics-based company founded in 1933 by Kazuma Tateishi. It is particularly known for manufacturing its medical equipment like blood pressure monitors, thermometers, etc. It is also known to be one of the world’s first manufacturers of Automated Teller Machines (A.T.M.).
In 2013, Farhan Akhtar was signed on to promote the company’s new age blood glucose monitors, also known as glucometers. India is known to be the diabetes capital of the world, and so there is a massive demand for blood sugar level measuring machines here.
Farhan Akhtar, on their association, commented, “Keeping fit and staying healthy is essential for everyone in this fast-paced age. I am delighted to partner with O.M.R.O.N. in its mission toward the realization of a healthy life and the prevention and treatment of lifestyle-related diseases. Strict adherence to international quality and safety standards makes O.M.R.O.N. the right choice for you and your loved ones.”
They signed on Farhan Akhtar in 2015 to be the face of the deodorants at Park Avenue through a televised advertisement.
The advertisement was aimed at promoting the deodorant through ways other than the generic attracting the opposite sex plot line and revamping the marketing strategy based on the lifestyle and the true meaning of male grooming and masculinity, and sparking a fresh conversation around it.
Ford Figo Aspire
Ford Motor Company is a multinational automaker with its headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan. It is through this company that the concept of Fordism (a type of industrial work management) and assembly lines were introduced in the industrial world.
In 2015, Farhan Akhtar was appointed to be the brand ambassador of the new Ford Figo Aspire, a compact sedan.
Commenting on the car he is promoting, he said, “I love the way it looks, I mean look at it, it’s fabulously contemporary and it is great driving it around in city conditions. It’s also got some nice features like the SYNC technology with the Ford Applink and Emergency assistance and then there are the airbags, which make it a safe car.”
IndusInd Bank
A first among the new generation banks in India, IndusIndBank was inaugurated in 1994 by the then Finance Minister, Manmohan Singh.
The bank signed Farhan Akhtar to be the face of their brand and represent a new feature called Video Branch in 2014. Video Branch is an extension of the feature ‘Responsive Innovation’, which aims at providing customers with a convenient and hassle-free experience. As banking is becoming more and more digitalized, features like these are extremely useful for customers.
About the tie-up, Farhan Akhtar said, “I am happy to be associated with a young and fast-growing brand which has responsive innovation as an integrated theme. I have seen the earlier brand campaigns by the bank, and I am sure my association with the brand will complement the brand growth and take it to new heights.”
Yepme
Based in Gurugram, India, Yepme is an online shopping brand that specializes in the retail of men’s and women’s clothing and accessories. It was launched in 2011 by Vivek Gaur, Sandeep Sharma, and Anand Jadhav.
Yepme signed on Farhan Akhtar as their brand ambassador in 2014, with him featuring in a music video for the company.
On their association, Farhan Akhtar commented, “We are incredibly eager to release this music video. Regarding the usage of special effects and transitions, the video is unique and reflects the everyday life of today’s youngsters in a unique and entertaining way. Since Farhan is an iconic figure among Indian youth and is a class apart from others as a singer-songwriter, actor, director, and multi-talented artist, we are confident that the song and visuals will find their way to everyone’s hearts and minds. Farhan is also someone who is liked, respected, and also highly relatable to our audience. The video is one of its kind in terms of the use of special effects and transitions – and captures the slice of life of today’s youth in a fun and unusual way. This is a completely fresh approach to building a connection with today’s youth, and we are confident that the song and visuals will make way to the heart and minds of everyone – especially since Farhan is an iconic figure amongst Indian youth and is a class apart from others, being a singer-songwriter, actor, director, a multi-talented artist – he is someone who is liked, respected and also highly relatable for our audience.”
Code by Lifestyle
Code by Lifestyle is a formal and casual clothing retail brand for men and women. Farhan Akhtar was signed on to endorse the company as their brand ambassador in 2015.
Code by Lifestyle has emerged to be one of the most preferred brands by men who have an eye for the new age and a sharp sense of style. Farhan, with a versatile range of achievements and an effortless and confident style, perfectly embodies everything the brand wants to deliver and more.
Farhan also commented, “I really like the collection Code has. The apparels are both trendy and stylish. It’s great to be representing the brand.”
Farhan Akhtar is one of the most skilful Bollywood celebrities, having expertise in not only his acting skills but also in direction, writing, singing, and production. His witty and charming personality and huge fan following make him a popular choice among brands for their endorsements. Be it fashion and lifestyle, automobiles, or banks, this man has played a role in almost every kind of brand endorsement.
FAQs
What is Farhan Akhtar’s Net worth?
Farhan Akhtar’s net worth is 2.5 million USD.
Who are Farhan Akhtar’s parents?
Farhan Akhtar’s parents are Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani.
What is Farhan Akhtar’s age?
Farhan Akhtar is 48 years of age.
What was Farhan Akhtar’s first film?
Farhan Akhtar’s first film as a director was Dil Chahta Hai, and as an actor was Rock on!!
The article is contributed by Shivaani Jain – Co-Founder, TAGGD
In this age of ‘new kind of fashionable’, it’s no longer uncool to sport homegrown labels. Back in 1991, the Indian economy opened doors and flooded the market with foreign goods. These were mostly lifestyle brands that Indians had long heard about, but never got to sample. Liberalisation also created the conditions for—maybe even inspired—indigenous creators to later prosper at home and also abroad.
More than 30 years later, from those watershed weeks and months, Indian fashion designers – to name just one creative niche – are now making waves, among local as well as international clients. Once restricted to those with money to spend, fashion has become democratised as it has penetrated non-metropolitan India. And because it is online, it is widely available, accessible and affordable. No wonder it is being endorsed and embraced by millions who reside off the beaten metro track, who crave the same apparel and attire – casual, formal and informal – as their megalopolis-living counterparts, and also the same comforts and indulgences.
Indeed, the bigger transformation is happening outside of Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore. Today, it is small-town India – small in size but certainly not in aspiration – that is shaping the India of the future, in terms of what it buys and even the lifestyle trends to come. So, what a Moradabad, a Coimbatore, a Nasik and a Cuttack thinks today, India will likely think the same tomorrow.
The changing face of lifestyle
This is not entirely unexpected, but it has been hastened by COVID-19, a process quickened by families being confined indoors and thus relying on e-commerce to take care of their desires as much as their needs. The pandemic brought home to us that life indeed is short, and we might as well make the most of it while we’re at it. So, if wearing that funky outfit, or that sexy one-piece (designed by one of us) allows us to feel good, why not indulge?
Unsurprisingly, it’s the digital revolution that has made e-commerce accessible to Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets, thanks to the government’s Digital India initiative. This has enabled fashion and other brands alike to target the country’s non-metro towns and cities as future growth areas while giving the clientele here options besides the tried-and-tested names, and the opportunity to stay in touch with the latest trends in the fashion domain.
Because, when it comes to fashion, brands and collections are the same almost everywhere, and online shoppers are not guaranteed any exclusivity when they go looking to add to their wardrobes. Hence, now, they are more than willing to try out – and accept – labels that don’t come with the big-city tag, and to experiment with brands that are new to the market, and of which little is known.
In fact, the very thought of helping homegrown brands from locations off the fashion radar, in towns and cities away from the major urban centers, has empowered patrons in these places to own and wear such labels with pride. And while the brands may lack the staying power and cachet of the top-of-the-line labels, they do understand the power and magic of digital. So, assisted by on-off lockdowns and a population habituated to virtual shopping, they are evolving by adapting to the digital savviness of the consumer as well as the changing face of the industry.
The success of homegrown brands has been further driven by the ubiquity and high impact of influencers. Alongside, the rise of influencer marketing has given small-city youth a platform to leverage their presence on social media and earn a decent living. Fashion offers rewards as much as it lifts spirits and boosts confidence.
The well-heeled and well-travelled may still opt for high-street chains such as Zara, Marks & Spencer or H&M (among many others) but a growing number of Indians are much less hung up about the ‘name’ than their predecessors once were. And the reason behind this change is the fact that there are many more indigenous designers and labels out there, a majority of them boasting creations of great standards, and more than capable of giving British, European and American brands a good run for their money.
Moreover, these made-in-India brands are nowhere near as overpriced as some of their international counterparts are. In fact, they are very reasonable on the average middle-class pocket, offering fashion and lifestyle that is affordable for you and me.
The metros may be where all the action is, but hidden from the eyes of many metro denizens is what’s happening in India’s Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Already, girls and boys from these urban spaces form a sizeable chunk of service economy across the country. This is a demographic that is growing, and it is one that will constitute a greater part of the workforce of tomorrow’s India. And, as their profiles grow, so do their ambitions. These confident Indians seek nothing but the best—in clothes and accessories, in gadgets and cars, in holidays and experiences.
There are e-commerce marketplaces and e-retailers successfully catering to and answering this swelling demand. Yet, while women’s wear and menswear might make up the bulk of the sales, Mrs and Mr are just as interested in jewellery, cosmetics and home décor—and when it comes to clothes, their junior or teen daughters and sons don’t want to be left behind.
It really is a whole new ecosystem – of hip and homegrown fashion and lifestyle brands, and their customers who are looking to keep themselves up-to-date with the latest trends. And in this ecosystem, the fashion influencers are key facilitators, playing an important role by sharing styling ideas and tips—to bring out the best in you, to make you look good.
Thankfully, gone are the days when fashion in India was a preserve of the elite and the wealthy, and that is surely for the better. Because its increasing inclusivity has exposed the majority of Indians to lifestyle choices they never had. It’s of little surprise, then, that homegrown brands are making a beeline for Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, for it is here that cash registers are ringing at their loudest. When it comes to fashion, there’s no more happening place in the country than the small-town India of big dreams.
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 Future Group.
Supermarkets in India are unusual in various aspects, owing mostly to the range of customers and, as a result, the retail sector’s different distribution strategies. The food business in India works throughout channels, from mom-and-pop shops to major supermarkets to online grocery stores.
We all have heard about the Big Bazar, one of the largest Indian retail chains of hypermarkets. All groceries, food, clothing, and retail stores are united underneath one rooftop. The retail chain of the company was founded by Kishore Biyani’s parent firm, Future Group, which is well-known in the Indian fashion and retail sectors.
Kishore Biyani founded the Future Group, an Indian firm headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. With prominent grocery chains like Big Bazaar, as well as lifestyle outlets like Brand Factory and Central, the firm is well-known in the Indian fashion and retail industries.
Future Group, an Indian conglomerate, is well-known in the Indian fashion industries and retail, including prominent supermarket chains such as Big Bazaar, as well as lifestyle boutiques such as Brand Factory. The company is also well-known in the FMGC and integrated foods production industries.
Future Group is a business conglomerate that manages practically all of its operations through its several operational entities depending on target industries. For instance, its retail business segment, Future Retail Limited, operates retail hypermarket or supermarket chains Big Bazaar (now owned by Reliance), FBB, Food Hall, Food Bazaar, Hometown, and others, while its clothing and fashion outlets Central, Brand Factory, and Planet Sports are run by another one of its business units, Future Lifestyle Fashions Limited. Furniture is sold at HomeTown stores around the country as well as digitally.
The Future Group also advertises its style and sporting brands such as Indigo Nation, Lombard, Spalding Bare, and FMCGs such as Clean Mate, Tasty Treat, Fresh, Ektaa, & Pure, Sach, Premium Harvest, and others through these numerous retail boutiques and supermarkets. It has operational firms that handle internal financial concerns and consultancy for the rest of the company.
Future Group – Industry
Future Group is a conglomerate or a multi-industry company.
Retail:
The retail industry in India is expected to increase to $1.5 trillion by 2030, up from $0.793 trillion in 2020, due to social-economic reasons such as industrialization, rising incomes, urbanization, and the expansion of nuclear families. The Indian e-commerce market, on the other hand, is anticipated to reach $350 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 23%.
Financial Services:
India’s financial industry is broad and quickly increasing, both in terms of new entrants and the robust expansion of current financial services organisations.
The industry includes commercial banks, insurance companies, co-operatives, pension funds, mutual funds, and other smaller investment companies. The banking regulator has recently approved the establishment of new firms, such as payment banks, extending the sorts of entities that operate in the market. Nonetheless, India’s financial business is predominantly a banking sector, with commercial banks accounting for about 64% of the total capital in the financial system.
According to the Future Group’s website, more than two million people visit their digital networks and stores every day to explore their product brands and collaborate with them in procuring, producing, and transporting items that meet the requirements and ambitions of a newer or future India. This is where their name is derived from.
Kishore Biyani, began his career selling stone-wash denim fabric in Mumbai in the 1980s. He is the CEO and creator of Future Group, as well as Big Bazaar and Pantaloon Retail, two retail firms. His ambition was to make something that only the wealthy could purchase available to everyone.
He planned to develop his own brands and commerce channels, and spend extensively on building the country’s top consuming ecology in the near future. Along the way, he invested in and mentored a number of other entrepreneurs and companies. He exemplifies the company’s motto, ‘Rewrite Rules, Retain Values,’ and believes Indianness to be the organization’s fundamental value.
Future Group – Startup Story
Kishore Biyani, the founder of Future Group, started working at his father’s, brothers’, and two elder cousins’ fabric-trading firm, “Bansi Silk Mills,” but was disillusioned and dissatisfied with the way they operated the company. Kishore noted that several of his friends used to wear “stonewashed” cloth pants at that time.
His first entrepreneurial breakthrough came when he discovered a local fabric producer who specialised in that type of cloth and marketed it to garment manufacturers and distributors in the city. In 1983, he established his own company, ordering the production of attractive cloth for sale to garment makers.
Pants were once known as “Patloon” in Hindi, from which they derived their brand name Pantaloon. Kishore later founded the Future Group to give his “Pantaloon” brand a new dynamic. Using a franchise concept, he developed the “Pantaloon” brand into retail. Afterwards, when, in 2001, the basis for Big Bazaar was established, Future Group added a slew of new brands, including Home Town, Ezone, Factory, Food Bazaar, Central, and Fashion at Big Bazaar.
Kishore listed 60 percent of his firm on the Indian stock market to acquire funding for retail upgrades, development, and advertising in 1992. By 1994, the Pantaloon franchise company had grossed 9 million rupees.
Biyani built his debut department store in Kolkata in August 1997, first renting and remodelling a 10,000 square foot space. This retail chain was much more than double the size of any other in Calcutta, and within three weeks, he opened 2 more such market stores. In 2001, he expanded his success by creating a network of retail establishments under the Big Bazaar nameplate. There were more than 100 Big Bazaar outlets around the country by 2009.
The Big Bazaar shops were purposefully built to seem chaotic, similar to the classic market stalls that his consumers were already used to. The Big Bazaar shops serve over two million consumers every week, while Pantaloon Retail employs over 30,000 people and has over 12 million square feet of retail space spread over 1100 locations in 75 cities. Every year, more than 300 million people, or one-fourth of the public, visit or return to the Big Bazaar outlets.
Future Group – Mission, and Vision
Future Group’s mission statement says, ” We share the vision that our customers and stakeholders are best served by creating and executing future scenarios in the consumption space leading to economic development.
We will be the trendsetters in evolving consumer brands and delivery formats and by making consumption affordable for all customer segments. We shall infuse Indian brands with confidence and renewed ambition. We shall be efficient, cost-conscious and committed to quality in whatever we do.
We shall ensure that our positive attitude, sincerity, humility and united determination shall be the driving force to make us successful.”
The organisation shares the vision and belief that the best way to serve its customers and stakeholders is to create and implement future consumption scenarios that contribute to economic progress.
Future Group – Operations, and Subsidiaries
Financial Services:
Future Ventures
Future Generali India Life Insurance
Future Capital Holdings (for internal financial services)
Future Generali General Insurance
Retail:
Future Lifestyle Fashion Ltd
Swathi Tiffin Shop
Future Retail Ltd
Future Enterprises Limited
Foodhall
Future Consumer Limited
Other Services:
Future Brands
Future Innoversity
Future Supply Chains
Future Group – Business Model
Being in the industry of multi-brand retailing commerce is the company’s primary focus. There are roughly 20 small hypermarket easyday outlets and over 210 supermarket easyday stores available to the organisation.
Value business and home business are the two most common retail models. Food Bazaar, a supermarket; Big Bazaar, a hypermarket; Food Hall, a supermarket; FBB, a fashion destination; and Easyday convenience stores, are all part of the company’s revenue operation. eZone, a consumer durables and electronics chain and Hometown, a one-stop shop for home renovation, are two of the company’s home businesses.
Italy-based Generali is an insurance firm that operates in India under the Future Generali Insurance brand. In India, Future Generali is represented by two legal entities: Generali India Insurance Co. Ltd. (Non-Life Insurance) and Generali India Life Insurance Co. Ltd. (Life Insurance).
Celio
Celio, a French fashion house, first entered the Indian market in 2008 in a 50:50 joint venture with Pantaloons Retail India Ltd, a subsidiary of Future Group (now Future Retail Ltd). Celio increased its interest in the joint venture to 65 percent in November 2013.
Clark
C&J Clark International Ltd. is accessories and footwear retailer established in the United Kingdom. The Future Group and Clarks Future Footwear Ltd have a 50:50 joint venture.
Staples Inc
Under a joint venture with Future Group, Staples Inc., a US-based office supplies store, has a presence in over nine cities in India.
FabFurnish
FabFurnish joined a Future Group company in April 2016.
Skechers
In 2012, Skechers entered India with a joint venture with Future Group. Skechers bought out Future Group’s 49 percent ownership in February 2019, bringing the joint venture to a close.
Future Group – Competitors
DMart, More, Spencer’s Retail Limited, Bigbasket, Reliance Retail, Star Market, Nature’s Basket, Mahindra, Hypercity, and Peppertap are the top ten competitors in Future Group’s competitive group.
Future Group – Controversies
Future Group and its founder Kishore Biyani are accused by the Jeff Bezos-led e-tailer of disobeying an interim decision issued by a Singapore arbitration court in October, which blocked the asset sale. Amazon has also urged an Indian court to imprison Biyani and has requested local regulators not to accept the Future-Reliance agreement while the arbitration is still ongoing. Amazon charged Future Group of violating provisions of a mutual agreement by publicizing an asset sale transaction with Reliance, the conglomerate led by Mukesh Ambani, in early October 2021.
Drowning in debt, Future Retail Ltd (FRL) announced in April 2022 that it has missed the deadline for repaying lenders Rs 5,322.32 crore due to continuing lawsuits with e-commerce giant Amazon and other concerns. This pushed Reliance Industries’ retail arm, Reliance Retail Ventures, to seek an amendment of the agreement’s long-stop date in order to complete the agreement with the Future Group.
The halt on the arbitral process between Amazon and Future Group before the Singapore International Arbitration Centre was removed by the Supreme Court of India in April 2022. Future Retail’s request for a stay of proceedings before SIAC will also be heard on a priority basis, according to the Bench. According to the Supreme Court’s judgement, the interim motion will be sent to the Delhi High Court, where proceedings have already commenced, as agreed by both companies.
With prominent grocery chains like Big Bazaar, as well as lifestyle outlets like Brand Factory and Central, the firm is well-known in the Indian fashion and retail industries.
Who founded Future Group?
Future Group was founded by Kishore Biyani.
Which companies do Future Group compete with?
DMart, More, Spencer’s Retail Limited, Bigbasket, Reliance Retail, Star Market, Nature’s Basket, Mahindra, Hypercity, and Peppertap are the top ten competitors in Future Group’s competitive group.
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 POPxo.
POPxo is India’s largest online community for millennial women to read, watch, purchase, and hang out, which was founded in 2015. POPxo brings a welcoming and empowering environment that encourages women to live their best lives.
POPxo is aimed to merge content and commerce, which started as content and eventually had its own private label brand. POPxo’s articles, videos, and social networking material are in six languages – English, Hindi, Marathi, Bangla, Tamil, and Telugu – which has attracted over 39 million monthly users who spend over 3 million hours across all of the company’s platforms.
POPxo also partners with the leading companies to increase its reach and engage its audience. The whole platform runs on the basis of content that fascinates young girls. Furthermore, it also features on its website, Bollywood news, life hacks, retail listicles and more.
POPxo was acquired by MyGlamm’s parent, The Good Glamm Group on August 7, 2020. The six-year-old company’s investors – Chiratae Ventures, Kalaari Capital, and Neoplux Venture Capital have joined the board of MyGlamm soon after the acquisition. Furthermore, Priyanka Gill, the founder of POPxo also joined MyGlamm as a cofounder. Here’s all about POPxo, its Founders and Team, Business Model, Revenue Model, Services, Funding, FAQs, and more.
POPxo – Company Highlights
Startup Name
POPxo
Legal Name
Luxeva Limited
Headquarters
Gurgaon, Haryana
Sector
Beauty, Health & Lifestyle
Founded
March 2014
Founders
Priyanka Gill and Namrata Bostrom
Parent Company
The Good Glamm Group
Operating Revenue
$1.61M in FY19
Funding
$12.4 mn (2021)
Number of Employees
251 to 500
Website
www.popxo.com
Popxo – Latest News
January 24, 2022 – Popxo parent, The Good Glamm Group acquires Organic Harvest, a beauty and personal care D2C startup led by Rahul Agarwal.
October 1, 2021 – Popxo enters the Indian cosmetic industry with a Makeup Collection from Myglamm.
POPxo has been founded in 2014 as India’s largest online community for women that offers discussions, content, and products across a wide range of domains including fashion, beauty, lifestyle, work, and more. Founded by Priyanka Gill and Namrata Bostrom, PopXo offers millennial women an excellent platform where they can read, watch, shop, and hang out. Along with exclusive products across brands, PopXo also offers text and video content in a manner that is accessible via social media on mobile and PCs across the web. PopXo has last reported having crossed the 9 million mark in terms of user acquisitions every month and has boasted of witnessing over 102 million monthly engaged content views.
Popxo was acquired by MyGlamm in August 2020 and has since served as a subsidiary of MyGlamm, which eventually turned into The Good Glamm Group in September 2021. The Popxo parent, MyGlamm includes The Moms Co, St Botanica and Sirona, along with other content platforms – POPxo, Scoopwhoop, and BabyChakra, as per January 2022’s reports, and has already turned unicorn in November 2021, thereby being hailed as the first beauty commerce unicorn company of India.
Popxo – Industry
The Indian industry comprised of online personal care and beauty brands and products are estimated to reach $4.4 billion by 2025. There is also likely to be a 4X increase witnessed in the number of shoppers of beauty and personal care products online, which was last reported to be 25 million in FY20 and would be going up to 110 million in FY25.
Popxo – Startup Story
The Popxo is founded by two dynamic women – Priyanka Gill and Namrata Bostrom. During 2012-13 there was no content platform at scale in English for women. So, this was the point when they thought of creating a useful platform for women and began Popxo in March 2013. Priyanka Gill first started Estylista in September 2013 in London for the NRI women, which is popularly known as the base of PopXo. For the first few years, the company started working out of London and raised its first institutional round of funding.
Initially, Popxo created content that enthused women who love to delve into fashion, beauty, lifestyle, wedding, relationships, work, fitness et cetera. The most popular things that attracted women to the Popxo website are hair and skin protection, and other products.
The greatness of the website lies in the production of 1500+ articles in six languages that the Popxo website was last recorded to be publishing every month. The team understood the audience well and presented articles in the same way, which lead to content creation to adding relevant videos. Today, the platform produces 60-70 videos a month and generates 100-150 million views a month. The duration of videos is between 3-7 minutes. Furthermore, they even produce web series.
Priyanka is the Co-Founder and President of MyGlamm and the Founder and CEO of POPxo and Plixxo. She lives in London with her husband and two children as a digital media entrepreneur and storyteller. She enjoys working with creative and entrepreneurial people, particularly women, and considers it a privilege to be in their company. She is now enrolled in a joint London Business School and Columbia Business School EMBA – Global program, said her Linkedin profile post dated May 24, 2021.
Her passion for writing merged with entrepreneurship when she started her own site, Estylista, which is now known as POPxo. She returned to India in 2014 to create POPxo, envisioning her company as a safe and engaging community that helps Indian women lead their lives. Influencer marketing seems to be on the verge of breaking out in India. As a result, she began developing a tech-enabled platform to take advantage of this enormous opportunity. Plixxo was released in 2017 and is powered by PopXo. It was here that India’s first generation of influencers grew up. Priyanka Gill has experience serving as a freelance writer and editor and an investor and board member for several companies. She eventually served as an advisor at PolkaRare and a seed investor of Kalamint, a role that she is still continuing with. She co-founded The Good Glamm Group on Darpan Sanghvi and Naiyya Saggi in September 2021 initially with the merger of MyGlamm, PopXo, and BabyChakra.
POPxo’s Plixxo also joined MyGlamm, India’s premier beauty conglomerate, in 2020, marking a watershed moment and a watershed year. Three powerful brands merged to form one incredible enterprise that goes by the name The Good Glamm, the parent company of MyGlamm in August 2020 and since then, Gill has been appointed as the Cofounder of the latter.
Namrata Bostrom was the co-founder of PopXo, who has also been the CEO of the company as well from the initial phase of the company and stepped down from the role in March 2017. Bostrom is an Economics student who has The University of Oxford and London Business School as her alma mater. Bostrom earlier served as a Consultant at The Boston Consulting Group, and as a Sales and Product Strategist at EDITED before co-founding PopXo. After leaving the role at PopXo, Namrata joined Facebook, the company that she is still aligned to as the Product Management Lead.
PopXo initially had a team of 15 people working together, which eventually grew to include more than 200 employees strong.
POPxo Founder and CEO – Priyanka Gill talks about POPxo
PopXo’s vision has always been “to build a content-community-commerce platform for women.”
The mission of the company was to help the users find their inner natural glow. Now, as a part of The Good Glamm Group, PopXo’s mission is aligned with the mission of its parent, which aims to build the global Digital FMCG Conglomerate of the Future.
Popxo – Name, Tagline and Logo
PopXo Logo
PopXo’s tagline has said, ‘Take it up a POP!’ – and we live and breathe it with everything we do.
Popxo – Business Model
Popxo targets millennial women aged between 18-35 with a range of products across diverse industries including fashion, beauty, lifestyle, wedding, wellness, and entertainment. The company has recently forayed into the cosmetics industry. The social community platform for women has entered the cosmetics industry, which is currently valued at $20 billion with a Makeup Collection by MyGlamm. MyGlamm has acquired Popxo towards the end of last year, and this development has come almost a year after that.
This new makeup collection is termed POPxo Makeup Collection by MyGlamm and will include nail kits, face kits, eye kits, and lip kits in order to cater to all makeup needs. The entire range is reported to be priced under Rs 499 per product in an effort to stay within the affordable limits for younger women. The Popxo Makeup Collection powered by MyGlamm will be sold on the MyGlaam app and website along with being available at popular company stores and kiosks across the country.
Popxo – Revenue Model
Sponsored content is the initial source of revenue. The company approaches brands and claim to have a large audience. Popxo knows what people want and can assist you in selling. The company made content for them, including social media and video content. That comes first while influencer marketing comes in second. Ads come in third, and e-commerce comes in fourth.
Popxo’s money comes from sponsored material, which accounts for half of our total. Influencer marketing accounts for 40% of income. They started selling online in the fourth quarter of the previous fiscal year.
Fashion– POPxo allows you to stay up to speed on the latest fashion trends by reading fashion articles and watching videos. Thefashion experts of the company provide the users with everything they need to stay on-trend, from styling advice to shopping hotspots and must-have items. The platform also offers the latest news on fashion in both western and Indian. It also provides the best tips and fashion hacks that suit you. This platform also offers the latest updates on celebrity attires (both Bollywood and Hollywood).
Beauty– The team of beauty specialists is committed to providing the users with the best services available in the industry. The beauty section has it all, from unbiased product reviews to makeup hacks to skin and hair care advice. The users get updates on skincare, makeup, hair, bath & body, nails, hair products, beauty products and DIYs.
Lifestyle– POPxo also offers related content from a wide range of topics. It provides the consumers with popular articles across all categories, from travel and education to sex and relationships.
Wedding– Wedding planning can be as stressful as you imagine, which is why Popxo is also there to assist. The wedding area keeps young brides-to-be up to date on the latest trends. POPxo has all you need to know about weddings, from bridal makeup to honeymoon ideas.
Wellness– Overall wellness, according to POPxo, is at the heart of a healthy lifestyle. So, if the consumers want to live a healthier life, check out Popxo’s wellness section which has articles on managing stress and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
Entertainment– Popxo will make sure the users get the best of everything from the comfort of their homes on laptops or mobile phones, from movie recommendations to what’s going on in the lives of their favorite celebrity.
Popxo is home to all feminine things. POPxo’s online store, which includes items such as home decor, beauty, clothes, face masks, mobile accessories, stationery, rakhi presents, and more, is an attempt to make online shopping for women in India more enjoyable!
POPxo has raised a total funding of $12.4M in over 7 rounds of funding. POPxo is funded by 21 investors. Neoplux, IDG Ventures, Summit Media, Oppo, Kalaari Capital, STRIVE, Chiratae Ventures are the lead investors of POPxo.
Date
Round
Amount
Lead Investors
Apr 25, 2018
Series C
$5M
Neoplux, Oppo
Mar 1, 2018
Series B
$750K
–
Mar 16, 2017
Series B
$3.3M
Chiratae Ventures, STRIVE
Nov 5, 2015
Series A
$2M
500 Startups, Chiratae Ventures, Kalaari Capital
Nov 1, 2014
Angel Round
$500K
—
Jul 1, 2013
Seed Round
$300K
—
Popxo – Growth
PopXo grew considerably with a well-knit team of 33 people in its textual content team. Let’s look at some of the prominent milestones that PopXo managed to attain throughout the years:
It has drawn over 39 million users per month
PopXo has delivered content in over 6 languages
The startup has seen over 10.18 mn visiting its content across the mobile app in a month
PopXo claims to have 1.6 bn monthly social media impressions
Popxo – Startup Challenges
Founded by Priyanka Gill and Namrata Bostrom, ideating, founding, and growing PopXo was difficult for two independent women entrepreneurs, which both of them managed really well, earning themselves quite a name in the industry. The first challenge for PopXo was to expand the content it produced and the kind of content produced by the website. The challenge that followed was the creation of an app. Even here PopXo absolutely nailed it. The website witnessed an overwhelming 500K initial downloads!
Popxo – Competitors
Though Popxo, when it was launched, was the sole platform focused on confident and educated women, which speak to them directly without taking down to them, PopXo has been a lot of companies competing with it once it started achieving milestones. Some of the PopXo competitors can be noted as:
ScoopWhoop
Polka Cafe
BuzzFeed
The Business of Fashion
nippon.com
Luxe Radio
The Canberra Times
Popxo – Future Plans
Popxo forayed into the beauty segment with POPxo Makeup Collection by MyGlamm, where both MyGlamm and PopXo are a part of The Good Glamm Group in October 2021 and is currently targeting a revenue run rate of Rs 100 crore in the upcoming 12 months.
Popxo – FAQs
What is POPxo?
POPxo is an Indian online platform specially for women to read, watch, shop and hangout. POPxo covers content related to beauty, weddings, health and lifestyle.
Who started POPxo?
Priyanka Gill has founded POPxo in 2015.
Who is the owner of MyGlamm?
Darpan Sanghvi owns MyGlamm.
Does POPxo creates videos along with content?
Yes, POPxo is able to create over 2000 pieces of content along with 150 videos, 800 stories and a large number of social media graphics.
Would you wear a counterfeited shoe, if nobody else around you can tell if that is fake or not? The answer may vary as it is a very subjective thing. However, we can note that most people will say yes. The reason is simple. Brands are super expensive and if you want to look trendy and all cool, then you might want to consider counterfeited stuff. A counterfeit good is relatively highly cheaper than the original. Not only this, but the fake product will also look exactly the same as the original product, making it more likely to be bought.
I bet you have already seen counterfeits or fakes of originals, even for once in your life. They are quite everywhere. You can find ‘Air Jordans’ at a price of a cake, a ‘G-shock’ bad copy at about four dollars and Adidas apparel at a local market. All of these are obviously fake or counterfeited to look almost exactly the same. The quality? not at all the same. This article is about the unseen black market of counterfeits at the global level. Read on to know how and why their business is booming and how you can not fall for them.
“Almost all absurdity of conduct arises from the imitation of those whom we cannot resemble.” ― Samuel Johnson
Counterfeited goods are goods that are not original. They look the same and has all the features but are fake. The hype for fashion brands is so much all around the world. This hype has led to people trying to tap into the market with copies of the original. The fakes look the same with no guarantee of quality.
Not to mention, counterfeiting is a crime and has legal consequences. Most of the time, a counterfeit uses the very mechanism that a consumer uses to buy original brands. They use the brand name, logo or a phrase that only the real and original company uses to fool customers. For example, the famous “Just do it” phrase of the sportswear brand Nike is hugely counterfeited to lure people into buying fakes.
Knock Off of Nike Airforce One
Brands such as Adidas are also not lagged behind in this, they are copied too. Fake producers or manufacturers try to steal the very authenticity of a brand and in doing that deceive people with fakes.
In Fact, the most copied brands are those brands whose market value is high. For instance, the most counterfeited brands are – Nike, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Rolex and Prada. All these brands have the best goodwill in this world.
Counterfeiting, as mentioned before, is a fraudulent imitation (a forgery) of a trusted brand and product, and it is considered a serious crime. Under U.S. federal law, criminal counterfeiting offences can be punished for life (in the prison) and up to $30,000,000 can be asked to pay in fines. Counterfeiting can also be prosecuted as a felony (acquisition or concealment) in most states in the United States.
Why Do People Buy Counterfeits?
There can be many reasons why people buy counterfeits. However, there can be many common and obvious reasons for people buying counterfeited products, the list surprisingly does not end here only. Among all the reasons that are common let us discuss every reason why they do this. Let us dive into why this type of industry is booming without any sort of recessions,
Cheaper in price
This one is an obvious reason. People tend to turn towards products that are fake because they are much cheaper. They are much cheaper than the relative original products. For example, a counterfeit bag can be purchased for 12 dollars while the original branded bag may cost as much as $500 dollars. This huge price gap makes brand lovers move to a counterfeited product and thus this keeps the industry of fakes moving.
Latest trends
We live in a world that is changing at a super rapid pace. Not only technology is becoming obsolete fast, but fashion also is not behind in this race. You jump on to one trend and voila! There is another trend waiting to happen. The fashion world has also turned into a hyper changing world. Everywhere you go you see fashion trends, be it on print media, social media and whatnot.
Making a fashion statement every time you go outside can be hazardous to your pocket. This is not a bad trait or a bad thing. Everyone is just trying to look cool and stay on the trend that’s running elsewhere. Sometimes this pressure to stay in the trend can lead a person to buy first copy products. It is easier on the pocket and makes you the centre of attention instantly.
Ignorance at work
In this modern era, where we jump to a website for even small little things, it is normal to fall for fakes. Anybody can sell anything online, without much of a hassle. Sometimes what happens is that people buy products online believing that they are buying an original.
Many times, they are sold counterfeited or knockoff products that can lead to a damaging effect on the original brand name. While people buy it in ignorance, the revenue generated by these deceptive businesses is often quite huge.
A famous example can be taken off Amazon. Anyone can sell anything on Amazon without much pre-requisite. This has taken hostage the hopes of many online shoppers and now they only believe the brand’s original website.
Types of Counterfeits
Any product that steals the charisma of a reputed brand is a counterfeit. However, when it comes to the legal aspect of counterfeiting, the definition has many types and turns. We are trying to discuss some of them here.
Piracy
Piracy is the most common type of counterfeiting that involves people obtaining copies of the original work, and that is done without the maker’s permission. They copy it from the internet, or they download it from somewhere (If that is a digital asset).
Piracy is a big problem for all artists in and around the globe. Music can be made freely available easily and that too without the artist’s permission. It is the same with sneakers, same with clothing and all sorts of accessories.
There are many laws to protect it like one that says – Making unauthorised copies of copyrighted music recordings is against the law and may subject you to civil and criminal liability. A civil lawsuit could hold you responsible for thousands of dollars in damages. Criminal charges may leave you with a felony record, accompanied by up to five years of jail time and fines up to $250,000 (Title 17, United States Code, Sections 501 and 506).
Trade Secret Infringement
A trade secret, as the name suggests is a set of rules or checkmarks that a company follows internally for its products. The secret formula for Coca-Cola, which is locked in a vault, is an example of a trade secret that is a formula or recipe.
Coca-Cola secret vault
Usually, patent infringement and trade secret infringement go hand in hand and they happen together. If that secret of a brand is made public then, it will have a catastrophic impact on the brand value of that corporation.
Patent Infringement
This law is broken when someone breaks the rules of someone’s patent. A patent can be defined as a contract that excludes or stops others from making, using, or selling an original invention by the patent holder for some years. If someone does anything against that patent, that is known as patent infringement and is liable for punishment or penalty as the law suggests. However, it is to be noted that patents are territorial in nature.
So that means, if a patent is registered in the United States, then anyone in the United States is prohibited from disobeying the patent. However, elsewhere in the whole world, the invention can be exploited to any extent in their country where the patent is not registered.
The Market Size of the Counterfeit Industry
The industry’s scale of counterfeited goods is as big as the fashion industry itself, if not bigger than that. The hype of fashion and trendy wear is so much and thus they invite fakes from every nook and corner of industries.
According to the International Anti Counterfeiting Collision (IACC), the total market value of all the counterfeiting sold products all over the world, was 1.5 trillion dollars in the year 2015. This is a huge old number and we can only assume how much in magnitude it is growing and at what pace.
If we talk about scaling the counterfeit industry at the global level, the numbers will be shocking. The global counterfeiting industry is literally expected to hit the $4.2 trillion mark by 2022. Moreover, with these skyrocketing numbers, fashion industry losses are also skyrocketing.
The fashion industry according to reports lost about 50 billion in 2020 alone, due to the sale of fake products. Clothing, as we note later on in this article, appears to be the most counterfeited product in the market. They are followed by the products in the cosmetic industry, personal care, watches and jewellery, luggage and luxury handbags.
The growing importance of intellectual property rights in knowledge-based economies has generated concerns about the potential adverse effects of counterfeiting and piracy on governments, rights holders and consumers. Footwear is the most counterfeited category amongst all.
A recent OECD study on counterfeiting and piracy (in 2008) attempted to quantify the scale of the effects due to these illicit activities. This study focused on the infringement, through counterfeiting and piracy, of trademarks, copyrights, patents and design rights, to the extent that they involved physical products.
Counterfeiting is not a small business but is a very big and scalable business. It can be stretched to any point if not checked and regulated. In the Fiscal Year 2020, the Department of Homeland Security seized over 26,000 shipments of counterfeit goods valued at over $1.3 billion at U.S. borders. This is just random news of one locality but globally the counterfeiting industry is so huge. Not just on the producing side but as well on the consumption side. The trends of growth in the global counterfeit market are led by consumer demand and then an equivalent supply comes out of the blue.
Total Value of Seized Counterfeit in 2016 by Industry
What is the Effect of Counterfeiting Products on Luxury Brands?
This is obvious to note that when a counterfeit is sold in the market and someone purchases it, the loss is borne by the original brand. The original brand whose products are being counterfeited has to bear the loss of revenue due to the fake product. Each and every sale of this type further and further decreases the profitability of brands.
Sales Losses due to Counterfeit Goods
We can easily see from the above graph that the most counterfeited products are in the clothing industry. The reason can be easily ascertained in a manner that “clothing” is the most visible item of attire. So people love to buy these products that are noticed easily without further (and forceful) flaunting. The second most counterfeited item lies on the face of pharmaceuticals all over the world. All these cause losses of real cash for globally reputed brands.
What’s in the Logo? (The logo game)
Fake vs Original Nike
A logo is the main point of identification, it is the first thing that people notice. It also works as a differentiating factor from other products. Thus, it acts as a quality stamp for a product or service or even experience.
Honestly, it’s all about the logo. A famous logo helps connect instantly with the values that the brand follows. It is a super important thing to be working at because it is the first impression. It is literally the first impression that customers get of the brand. If it is bad, it will lead to a bad impression and if it is thoughtfully made then it will lead to a good first impression.
A first good impression then can lead to a customer walking in your store and then most probably buying something from you. It’s memorable, acts as a separator, and even customers expect it.
Business people or entrepreneurs spend a good amount of time and money on making designs for their brands. They know how crucial they are in building a brand image out there in the public. All the things have to be taken care of while making a brand logo, be it the size of the logo, the story it tells, the colour it wears and much more.
Speaking of counterfeited goods, a logo is their main attraction. The quality might not match with the real original product but the logo is mostly a work of fine art. People buy it for that specific purpose only, they just want to look good from a distance. No one checks the quality of a product, the logo is the only thing that shines and can communicate fashion trends.
After-Effects of Counterfeiting
Once you buy a fake product and show it off to your circle of friends, the story doesn’t end here. There are many after-effects to it. The most common and easily seen effects that can affect you are listed here –
Stealing taxes
The counterfeit product not only costs some bucks to the company or to you, but it also costs the city where you reside. Why do you ask? Because counterfeiting people don’t pay taxes. Tax comes from products that are rightfully made and supplied, it comes from legit sources and legit manufacturing. All these aspects are not present in the fake market, so it is clear stealing of taxes.
It’s Illegal
This point has been seen over and over again in previous paragraphs, that it is illegal to manufacture fake products and it is also illegal to buy and promote fake products. It hurts the company that puts in all the original efforts to make and market the products. This hurts the creative process and literally every process (Unique to itself) that the company goes through to get the product on to customers.
Health Hazardous
Again, any fake good or product of any sort can be hazardous to your health. As we saw in the above graph, the pharmaceutical industry is the second most counterfeited industry. This raises concerns about which medicines are real and what are fakes. If chosen wrong, they can be bad for your health. So, a small discount can go a long way in deteriorating your health.
Brand’s Response to Counterfeiting
In the year 2017, top sportswear brand Nike thought of selling its products (shoes and clothing mostly) via Amazon. They were determined to cut off the fake products being peddled over Amazon. Soon after, they had to cut off the strategy and they began to pull out all their ties with Amazon. The reason was again “fake counterfeits”.
Amazon even tried to filter out all the fake names but it didn’t work. Even after delisting, the fake stores popped up again on the website with another name. Due to the high magnitude of fakes in the Amazon market, Nike’s originals were even badly rated.
Since then, Nike has been investing in customer relationships with direct connection to them and thus on brick and mortar stores. Nike has been investing in creating new store formats, such as a 68,000 square foot flagship store in New York.
Nike Store
Nike’s response denotes what the brands are doing in this regard. While they can’t shut each and every counterfeit producing entity, what they can do is educate their customers. That is what brands are doing, they are trying to reach out to customers directly. They are investing in brick and mortar stores, maintaining their websites like there is no tomorrow etcetera.
All these tricks are working too, they are able to capture quality customers. Now, people who want to buy originals know where to get them. The most trusted way to buy any genuine product still remains the brand’s website and its brick and mortar stores. This is the way out, to educate customers.
Another way is to track every item the brand produces, all its appearances and where they live at the moment. To note everything also includes leveraging new solutions, like the blockchain. Louis Vuitton is working closely with Microsoft and ConsenSys to create the Aura Ledger, which will closely trace the origins of their luxury products.
The industry’s size of counterfeited or first copy products is as big as the fashion industry itself, if not bigger than that. The hype of fashion and trendy wear is so much and thus they invite fakes from every nook and corner of industries.
The game of counterfeits is run by the fashion trends and the people who will go to any length to hop on every trend wave. Any fashion that changes rapidly is known as fast fashion. In this ever-changing world, fast fashion is the keyword in any fashion industry across the globe.
The hype around these topics and the urge to look good at any cost are setting the fuel for counterfeit markets. The price of these fakes have eventually to be paid by originals and the middlemen who manufacture these products get to earn some real quick cash. However, some believe that these counterfeits are free marketing for the originals but the big picture tells a different story.
Nike’s are the most copied brand and this establishes some curiosity to try out the real originals. Whatever is the conclusion on the counterfeiting industry, we know that it is fishy in quite every sense. Henceforth, when you want to buy some trend-setting products, go to the store directly or shop from their official website.
FAQ
How big is the counterfeit industry?
The counterfeit industry is worth more than $500 billion.
Which country imports the most counterfeit goods?
China is the biggest exporter of counterfeit goods with on the top with estimated half-a-trillion dollar worldwide imports of counterfeit and pirated goods.
What is the most counterfeited brand?
Rolex is one of the most counterfeited brands in the world.
Early humans figured out a way to cover their bodies to safeguard against weather. The accessories they built were named clothes. The sole purpose of this invention was to protect the naked skin from heat, wind and other normal natural phenomena.
The way we dress up today is different in different parts of the world, but the purpose has changed dramatically over the years. The purpose of clothing is not only to cover your body anymore, it is to make a style statement, to look apart from the crowd. This has led to a boost to fashion retails all over the world.
One of the most popular fashion retailers is Zara. We all have heard about it. That expensive brand whose clothes people find aesthetic and boast about it. The same brand has a unique aspect that probably no one knows about. It spends literally nothing on advertising. How cool is that? Such a big name in the industry that too without commercials. This is the article where we dissect the marketing strategy of Zara. Read on.
Zara is a Spanish apparel retailer. The company produces and retails clothing items, swimwear, shoes, perfumes and beauty. It was founded by Amancio Ortega in 1975. The age range of customers to which it caters is from 18 to mid 30s. It is also the largest brand under Inditex group. The company specialises in fast fashion. So, what is fast fashion ? The phrase denotes fashion wear that is quick, explosive and thus highly profitable in nature.
Zara is said to specialise in designing new works of fashion every now and then. It is said according to some reports that this retailer takes just about over a week to produce and get outfits to the stores. Six months is industry average. This sure provides the company a better edge on the fast fashion line of business.
How Zara is Succesful despite spending minimal on Advertising
One of the most unique things that sets Zara apart is that it spends an amount of nuts in its marketing. It has a policy of no advertising. Without advertising the brand is able to hold such a big and premium market share of the world. Here we discuss how does it do this magic.
Augmented reality shopping
Zara Shop the Look
The Spanish fashion retailer seems to leave no innovation unturned to woo customers. Zara is entailing tech into shopping, in order to create magic out of this combination. It has introduced augmented reality shopping for customers via their app.
Basically when you point at a dress at a Zara dress in their store, the sensors in the area will detect that and will show models wearing that apparel. This makes choosing a dress more easy and convenient for customers. The target audience are millennials because they are generally tech-savvy. H&M, a rival, is also trying to hold its hands on building something like this to extend customer experience, a report said.
Fast Fashion
Zara is god in fast fashion, it follows a policy of being fast without caring for who is first. Many retailers try to be trendsetters and fashion innovators, but Zara just doesn’t buy that.
Rather than working to set trends. Its work is to identify the current fashion wave and rapidly surf over it. Its main target audience is teens of 20 something who are always looking for ways to look cooler. Zara does the work for them.
Taking customer feedback seriously
We as customers may not take what we say about how we like a brand or hate someone, but Zara does. It is all ears for customer feedback. Anything you buy from the store is the beginning of a transaction with the store. The feedback they take from you is to ensure that the transaction relation remains in the future.
Anything you report is taken to higher order to build better products. Thus including customers in the designing process is such a good way to build customer loyalty. Today not the company, the customer calls the shots.
No advertising policy
Well, the real thing is that, no marketing is also marketing in the case of Zara. How you may ask? People love to buy exclusive stuff. Zara is a brand of which you will not spot a single billboard. This gives a sense of exclusivity. So this creates a chance for customers to be in the cool spot of society. It invests extensively on brand experience rather than ads.
Store locations
Zara Store
While we can say that Zara doesn’t spend on ads, one thing to look at as an exception is that it spends on locations. Rather than spend on locations it invests in them. Adding to the brand experience. Every Zara store around the globe can be found in famous crowded places. It invests in the appeal of a store, to get as many customers inside the commercial zone.
Supreme Customer Experience
Zara Customer Experience
It must be obvious by now, that Zara does everything to get customers a great experience with the brand. It consistently tries to provide more and more reasons to visit their stores again. It doesn’t just want to push their product out, they want to get the people in. They trade in value more than the product. Today’s economy consists more of experience than product.
Zara knows it well that value today is measured beyond the price. So it is super trend-tight in this manner and high on customer experience. To provide value consistently to its customers, building brand loyalty with fashion enthusiasts.
Zara is all about the customer, it can be said safely. Product used to be the king earlier but not anymore. Zara makes the customer experience the king. It knows that the product will be changed rapidly but brand loyalty is more important and constant. This is what the word “brand” actually means, it means a good image or perception in the eyes of the general public. That is built by being consistent with your value supply. Name any brand in the world, it operates with a similar idea. This is what sets someone apart from being just a different cog in the wheel of the market.
FAQ
Does Zara spend on advertising?
No, Zara does not spends big budget television commercials, internet ads or billboards.
How is Zara so successful?
The company is successful because it has a phenomenal operating supply chain and manages its inventory well.
How does Zara advertise?
Zara uses anonymous models to advertise their clothes.
The World is constantly changing and evolving. Every moment transforming, new ideas take birth are implemented. Trends dominate today’s world and go fast as they come. In a moment everyone is involved and in the other everybody has already forgotten about it and is catching up with another.
In the fashion industry, as the word suggests, fast, quick, and trendy clothes are made for the consumers that are made and distributed rapidly among its consumers.
The brands involved in the fast fashion industry:
Get the latest styles that are trendy into their stores.
The clothes are usually sold at a low price using cheap labor.
They produce these clothes in huge quantities and the consumers buy them recklessly. Because everyone is wearing it and it works.
Fast fashion is a threat to the environment, gives rise to social problems, and majorly contributes to climate change.
It heavily influences many aspects and brings about negative changes.
Climate change is real and it is happening. No matter how long the World leaders may deny it and entrepreneurs may go on with the sole aim of making money. Using, exploiting, polluting the resources as well as ignoring what they are doing to the planet.
Wastage of Water
Not to mention the gallons and gallons of water that go into the making of the clothes. That also involves generating 20% of the wastewater. Plus dumping microplastics into our oceans, which is half a billion tons of it.
The growing culture of exploiting laborers
How are these companies able to manufacture their clothes so quickly? There has to be someone involved, and yes, here come the laborers. Brands involved in the fast-growing fashion industry exploit their workers. They are exploiting their basic human rights.
Making them work for insane work hours with only little pay. These laborers also include children from developing countries. The labor policies are not ethical with gender inequality, forced labor, and freedom of association. This issue has been brought up constantly, by many activists and other personalities and this inhumane practice must be put to an end.
A report issued in 2016 by Human rights group Asia Floor Wage Alliance (AFWA) also reported cases of sexual harassment and low wages.
Sustainable Fashion and the Conscious Collection
People are looking for clothes that are more sustainable, recycled, or been. Thrift shops are a new option available in the market. Thrifting is becoming a thing now. Consumers are more aware now and prefer clothes made in an eco-friendly way. Even though the Swedish brand has come up with its “The Conscious Collection” H&M has been criticized by many regarding what it deems is sustainable.
Hasan Minhaj on Fast fashion
The famous show Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, which creates awareness about the issues that are important in a fun way, all the while educating us about how we can make a difference for good, is a Netflix show. The problem of the fast fashion industry is as real as it gets. The extent of it is such that Hasan Minhaj had to go to an episode of thirty minutes; the Ugly Truth of Fast Fashion.
He smartly covers every aspect of the fast fashion industry and how it is changing the business model in his unique comedy series in 2019. The episode is a must-watch as it brings out the flip side of fast fashion.
Featuring lesser Black models in their advertisements was observed by the people, accusing H&M Africa of racism. The brand tweeted, saying that marketing their campaigns, they wanted to convey their image positively.
And show fashion in the light of inspiring way conveying the feeling of positivity since their marketing campaigns have a huge impact.
Taking that, they communicated that the “white models” portray a “positive image” for the brand. It faced more backlash from the people. Another tweet came saying:
“We have worked with many models from various ethnic backgrounds in our campaigns.”
Cultural appropriation? Not for the first time!
Belonging to the H&M Loves music summer collection, which was a limited edition, a faux leather headdress was called out by the Native Americans.
H&M Headdress
The line was designed to include clothing and accessories for music festivals and similar events. The headdress was later removed from the US and the Canadian stores.
Racist Advertisements and Culture appropriation
H&M closed all its stores in South Africa after the protestors from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) organized mass protests and thrashed the stores over the racist ad in 2018. The ad revolved around a Black child model with a green hoodie, reading the text “Coolest monkey in the jungle” As you are aware, calling someone monkey is used as a slur.
People on social media called out H&M for its racist ad. The image was later taken down from their website. Some of the celebrities that had signed contracts with H&M said that they would no longer be working with the brand. Some expressed shock.
LeBron James on its Instagram expressed his opinion on H&M’s ad
H&Ms decision to close their stores in South Africa came after a drop in their quarterly sales in a decade.
Other fast fashion brands and H&M and the need to do better
These fast-fashion brands in the industry need to draw a clear line between making a profit and working with ethics. The business model of the fast-fashion industry is only leading to more problems.
The ad campaigns and the ads have to be designed by doing their research work. Keeping in mind the sentiments of the people as they have a huge impact. These brands need to draw a line on innovation and cultural appropriation.
FAQ
What is fast fashion?
In the fast fashion industry fast, quick, and trendy clothes are made for the consumers that are made and distributed rapidly among its consumers.
What are some of the fast fashion brands?
Zara, H&M Group, UNIQLO, GAP, and Forever 21 are some of the top fast fashion brands.
What are the disadvantages of fast fashion?
The disadvantages of fast fashion are, not paying fair living wages to workers, poor working conditions, child labor, environmental destruction and increasing amounts of water pollution.
Shalini Rath
