Latest news with #ETRetail
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
EUME opens first store in Bengaluru, aims 8-10 new EBOs this year
Bengaluru: Backed by a recent Rs 25 crore Series A funding round, homegrown premium luggage brand EUME is accelerating its offline retail footprint with plans to open 8–10 exclusive brand outlets (EBOs) this year, co-founder Naina Parekh said in an interview with ETRetail. 'We are working on launching about 8 to 10 EBOs this year,' Parekh said. 'We are hoping to go into key cities such as Bombay, Bangalore, and Delhi. These are our top priority cities at this point.' The Mumbai-based brand opened its first store at Phoenix Mall of Asia , Bengaluru, on Saturday. EUME already runs two company-owned stores, one in Mumbai's Infiniti Malad and another in Hyderabad's Sarath City Mall. 'We are trying to now bring the visibility of our products in stores, so that the customers know what EUME stands for,' Parekh said, explaining the focus on offline expansion. Hinting at interest from potential franchisees, Parekh said, 'We've had a few people already approach us for franchising, but I think we still have to solidify our retail plans before we can go out into a franchise model.' EUME, which raised its Series A funding in early 2024 led by Gujarat Venture Finance Limited (GVFL), had said the funds would be utilised to ramp up product development, strengthen its online presence, and expand into offline retail through EBOs and strategic partnerships. The company's existing product portfolio includes a mix of smart backpacks, travel accessories , and personal care lines. Without sharing the exact revenue details, Parekh said that the brand currently operates at a monthly run rate of Rs 4–5 crore.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Spykar charts cautious growth, bets on ‘Made in India' strength amid rising fast fashion competition
New Delhi: Denim and casualwear brand Spykar posted a 6-7% growth in FY25, in line with its conservative plan for the year, as it chose to focus on internal efficiencies over aggressive expansion, said Sanjay Vakharia , Co-founder and CEO of Spykar Lifestyle , in an exclusive interaction with ETRetail. 'There was no push for growth last year. It was a course correction year for us. Despite that, we grew 6-7% over the previous year,' said Vakharia. The brand stayed cautious in light of subdued consumer sentiment and avoided inventory overbuilds. Instead, it invested in back-end stability and retail discipline positioning itself for stronger, more sustainable growth ahead. Spykar doubles down on Made-in-India supply chain With trade realignments and tariffs in focus globally, Vakharia underscored Spykar's 100% India-based manufacturing and sourcing model, calling it both a strategic and value-driven choice. 'We are proudly and completely made in India . Our entire supply chain including yarns, fabrics, accessories, embellishments is domestically sourced. There's no dependency on imports,' he said. He added that recent policy shifts and tighter scrutiny on Bangladesh-made products may benefit Indian manufacturers in the long run by reducing unfair cost advantages. 'Bangladesh gave Indian manufacturers a tough time due to ultra-low labour costs. The government's move to check these products was long overdue and will level the playing field,' he noted. India-first playbook: 500+ towns, 160+ own stores While global giants like Zara, H&M and Uniqlo are expanding in India's metros, Spykar sees opportunity in its wider reach across 500+ towns, including 160 exclusive brand outlets. 'Most international brands are still focused on the top 20 cities. We are already present in 160 cities through our stores and in over 500 cities via trade networks,' said Vakharia. 'That gives us a big first-world advantage. There's huge headroom in the next 350 cities.' Competing with fast fashion — but on quality, not price Spykar welcomes the rise of homegrown fast fashion players, but is firm about not joining the race to the bottom. 'The first casualty in cheap fashion is quality. Indian consumers may love a good deal, but they are extremely value-conscious,' said Vakharia. 'It's not about buying cheap — it's about getting the right product at the right price.' He believes newer fast fashion brands are helping bring unorganised consumers into formal fashion, which eventually benefits established brands like Spykar by creating aspirational upgrade pathways. At the product level, Spykar is investing heavily in customised fits for Indian body types, trend-driven collections, and a sharp price-to-quality balance that appeals across demographics. Looking ahead With cotton prices stabilising and global headwinds potentially favouring India's apparel sector, Vakharia is optimistic but measured. 'The more stable the environment, the easier it is to plan. We hope the current momentum holds,' he said. As the market polarises between hyper-value and premium segments, Spykar is betting on fit, quality, and trust to stand its ground — not just against global brands, but also against the rising tide of domestic fast fashion players.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
The Belgian Waffle Co to invest Rs 20 cr for 280 new stores, eyes Rs 100 cr FMCG play
The Belgian Waffle Co , the brand that is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, is planning to invest Rs 20 crore to open another 280 stores over the next 2 years, Ankit Patel MD and CEO at The Belgian Waffle Co, told ETRetail. Currently, the brand has a presence across 40 cities with around 700 outlets. "For scaling the brand further, we take cues from global brands on standardizing the processes and opening our franchise outlets ," he asserted. "We open 100-120 new outlets every year. Last year, we opened nearly 140 outlets and foresee opening a similar number of outlets over the next 2 years," he further added. At present, 50 per cent of the outlets of the brand follow the COCO model, and the remaining 50 per cent are run by franchise partners. However, going ahead, the brand plans to expand its company-owned and company-operated outlets in the major metro cities. "Out of the 280 outlets that we are planning to open over the next 2 years, around 100-110 outlets will be company-owned and company-operated and the remaining will be franchise outlets because we still continue to franchise but largely in Tier III, Tier IV cities," he explained. As far as the formats are concerned, the brand follows 3 formats - kiosk, take away and cafe model. The kiosk and take-away outlets of the brand span across 70-110 and 130-150 respectively, and the CAPEX involved to open them stands at Rs 11-12 lakh. Whereas, the cafe spans across 250-450 and the CAPEX stands at Rs 16-18 lakh. "At present, 10 per cent of our stores are present in malls in the kiosk format in the malls, 5 per cent are take-away outlets at high-streets, and the remaining 85 per cent of outlets follow the cafe model and have a presence at high streets," he stated. At present, the brand has 3 warehouses in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru, and it is planning to open another in Kolkata in the next 3-4 months. "Our warehouse in Mumbai spans across 14,000 whereas in Mumbai and Delhi, warehouses spread across 3,300 respectively. The one opening in Kolkata will be of a similar size to Delhi and Mumbai," he stated. "We are backward integrated and, to an extent, manufacture some raw material on our own. In terms of raw materials, 50 per cent of the business comes from our manufacturing and the remaining 50 per cent comes from our vendors," he further added. Apart from this, the brand is also expanding its presence in the FMCG segment. Currently, it offers 9 SKUs offering pancake and waffle premix, waffle crisps, and chocolate spreads. "There is a white space in the sweet snacking space in India, and that is the reason why we plan to scale and grow this division as well," he asserted. Currently, FMCG contributes 1-2 per cent of the revenue of the brand, and over the next 3-5 years, the brand plans to increase it to 15 per cent. "Today, our FMCG products are available across some 1,100 retail touch points, across GT and MT stores, and over the next 3-5 years, we plan to make it a Rs 100 crore category," he added. Currently, 33 per cent of the revenue of the brand comes from the West, 27 per cent from the North and South, respectively, and the remaining 13 per cent comes from the East. The brand, which claims to be EBITDA profitable for the past 10 years, raised Rs 30 crore in 2021, and has no plans to raise capital going ahead. "We have been growing 30 per cent year-on-year and closed the last fiscal at Rs 450 crore," he concluded.
Time of India
22-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Quick commerce is the new battleground: How brands are adapting, scaling and winning the 10-minute race
Bengaluru: Quick commerce , once an emerging experiment, has now become a growth engine for new-age brands and legacy players alike. At the recently held panel discussion at ETRetail's E-commerce & Digital Natives Summit 2025, titled 'Instant Impact: What Brands Must Get Right in Quick Commerce Ecosystems' moderated by Jivraj Singh Sachar, Investor and Podcaster, Indian Silicon Valley , founders and senior leaders across categories shared how they are decoding the unique opportunities and constraints of this fast-evolving channel. Vinay Maheshwari, Founder and CEO, The Health Factory , said his brand was an early mover in quick commerce. 'Traditional trade is very difficult to penetrate when you're doing retail and get that distribution right. It takes brands years and years of experience, and I believe that every new channel gives rise to new brands. And quick commerce is that level playing field where national players and the D2C/new age brands get a level playing ground,' he said. He emphasised how quick commerce allows for rapid national expansion. 'Now you can do 40 cities in the span of six months. If you've got your operations ready, you've got your manufacturing ready... at least from a distribution standpoint, it gives you leverage into the Indian ecosystem.' Pallav Bihani, Founder and CEO, Boldfit , admitted initial scepticism about his fitness accessories selling on 10-minute platforms. 'We never thought people would buy yoga mats on Blinkit… but I think it's the new reality,' he said. 'Quick commerce works well if you've built a lot of awareness elsewhere. Not a great platform to build discoverability unless you're in a very specific use case. But once that awareness is there, it becomes a great channel to capitalise on the demand you've created.' He warned that brands ignoring this channel could risk being forgotten. 'It's to capture the intent that's there. Brands that are not there on quick commerce right now stand a huge risk of being forgotten.' Ankur Goel, COO, Epigamia (Drums Food International) , shared that his experience underscored the platform's strength in consumption and flexibility. 'Quick commerce is a lot less prone to seasonality,' he said, explaining that reduced store footfalls during rains don't affect consumption thanks to at-home delivery. 'If I wanted to eat one cup of Greek yogurt, I will end up ordering a pack of four.' Highlighting the marketing opportunities unique to quick commerce, he added, 'Epigamia is a breakfast option at 9am, a mid-meal snack at 12pm, a post-workout snack at 6pm, a dessert post 10pm. The flexibility with quick commerce is that I can tailor my communication depending on the actual use case, a luxury traditional retail doesn't offer.' Rahul Kumar Srivastava, COO, Parag Milk Foods , noted that while 95 per cent of their business still comes from traditional channels, quick commerce is seeing exponential growth. 'We are still learning,' he said. 'We manufacture ghee under Govardhan, cheese under Go, farm-to-home milk under Pride of Cows, and sports nutrition under Avvatar. Each has a preferred channel, but we're seeing tremendous growth on quick commerce across categories from milk to paneer, yoghurt to flavoured milk.' He highlighted operational challenges. 'We have to manage micro inventory for very hyperlocal fulfilment. Milk has a two-day shelf life, curd is 15 days, paneer is 20… how are you going to handle 40-50% growth with perishable commodities?' Akshay Gulati, Co-Founder and CEO, Slikk , which operates in fashion and lifestyle, discussed how apparel presents unique challenges for Q-commerce. 'Fashion and lifestyle is an input-difficult business,' he said. "Generally, other verticals are output difficult. But here, supply chain is complex, with brands having thousands of SKUs.' Since quick commerce is real-estate constrained at the backend, SKU selection becomes critical. 'You have to be super careful in terms of what you put in your dark store and whether it's loved by customers… it's very important to get that Pareto right,' he said, referring to the 80/20 rule of sales concentration. 'The biggest challenge is replan. Fashion has a longer lifecycle. It's capital intensive, recovery is slower. So, we've focused deeply on understanding supply chain better than traditional marketplaces.' Aniket Shah, Co-Founder and CEO, Swish , a brand focused on 10-minute food delivery, spoke about competing in a space dominated by giants like Zomato and Swiggy. 'Food has the highest product-market fit when it comes to 10 minutes,' he said. 'Everyone wants everything from chai to dessert, delivered quickly.' To build a differentiated product, Shah focused on infra-first innovation. 'Even if there's one bad experience, not just on time but on quality, people just tend not to order again. So consistency and quality is very important. We have started imagining how the infrastructure for kitchens should be built so that food can be prepared faster."
Time of India
21-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Your Brand Lives Online Now. Why Indian Retail Needs a Digital Wake-Up Call
For years, retail success meant having great stores, stylish interiors, and busy footfalls. But in 2025, the real shopping doesn't start on the street, it's online. Still, most digital stores today feel basic, outdated, or like Rander, Founder and CEO of BOMBAYDC, tells ETRetail why this mindset needs to change and how retailers can build powerful, experience-first digital stores that actually grow the brand. Edited excerpts: Q: As a digital products company that builds digital experiences, you work with many retailers. We see that the physical retail stores are often well-designed and thoughtful. But why do the digital stores for many of these same brands look basic as if treating the online store as a side channel? Ankur Rander: Today, in the era of connected world commerce, people discover, research, and compare products online. That's what drives both online and offline sales. So, investing significantly in offline stores while using generic e-commerce templates for digital stores is a missed chance by brands to stand out. If an online store doesn't make the brand felt, it is losing an opportunity to be considered. Q: So, in your opinion, what makes a good digital store today? Ankur Rander: Right now, many digital stores are treated like brochures. But they need to be living systems that respond and adapt. A digital store is also not just a website anymore. It's an ongoing experience that happens across mobile, desktop, voice, chat and even in local languages. It should feel alive, not static. A great store today: Offers convenience of all kinds. Convenience trumps most easy to scroll and scan through with various options to find a product brand - in a top-to-bottom scroll, it should convey why your brand almost like an offline conversation with an expert and helps people feel the product even when they can't touch it. Gives consumers an elevated yet simple product understanding and thus enables them to make informed decisions and not just list real time AI-driven recommendations that are based on users browsing and purchase content. using visuals and videos to explain the product and its usage, detailed imagery Social proof backed by influencer content and more. Connects seamlessly with your offline store in meaningful ways such as real-time inventory view, live video calls with store staff to see the material closely, etc. Find at the store and pick up at the store. Should have a super streamlined and trackable returns and delivery process with a fast and stable checkout. Interestingly, size mismatch is one of the biggest reasons to return an online purchased perhaps, a better UX for customers to experience the size and make an informed purchase would help reduce returns. Q: In India, internet adoption is seeing massive growth, especially in tier 2 and beyond markets. It is plausible that the next 500 million shoppers won't all speak English or type fast. What role do you see vernacular languages playing in the growth of retail and digital commerce? Ankur Rander: It's not just helpful, it's the biggest unlock. Traditionally, navigating a website meant clicking through menus: Men → Sports Shoes → Styles → Scroll through 100 products. It's tedious. It's not how real people shop. Now imagine this: A user simply says, 'Mujhe black shoes chahiye' and sees exactly that, they glance through the results and add, 'Shinny material nahi chahiye, office wear chahiye' and instantly, the list updates again. That's the future, not dropdowns and filters, but conversation-led commerce. Thanks to large language models that support over 12 Indian languages, the entire country can now shop in their own language. Designing for voice and vernacular is no longer optional. It's the gateway to India's next 500 million digital customers. Because when someone can speak in Kannada, Bhojpuri, or Marathi and find exactly what they want, that's not just better UX. That's real inclusion and progress. Q: For this new age of consumers, how do you envision AI and other advanced technologies will change the online shopping experience? Ankur Rander: We're already testing prototypes that lets users talk to a website or app. You say what you want. The system uses AI, we are currently using the Open AI models along with our own architecture and understands your request, and shows results directly. It tries to understand intent and helps people shortlist.. It works in many Indian languages. So suddenly, your store becomes accessible to 50 per cent more people. That's a huge opportunity. Q: Going back to your work with retailers, what happens when a brand works with BOMBAYDC? How does their journey of building a digital store of 2025 look like and how would you define the ROI? Ankur Rander: The first step is plotting. BOMBAYDC's team shops the brand's products just like customers do. That gives insight into the gaps and opportunities. The team studies the product, the brand, and what the customer is really looking for when they want to buy. Then, they map the user journey, which varies for different products like shoes, refrigerators, or clothing. Some products need more explanation than others. Some need more education than others. The job is to understand what questions a customer asks before they even enter the category, and then build helpful interventions along that journey. Next, the right design and content are applied - videos, images, UX flows, all aligned to the brand's tone and the consumer's mindset. The third, and often most broken piece, is design-tech synergy. At most companies, design and development teams are disconnected. This leads to common breakdowns, like a design that can't be built properly. At BOMBAYDC , this doesn't happen. Strategy, design, content, and tech are all built under one roof to ensure delivery and alignment. And yes, the ROI is real and here is why and how it matters. Every product discovery starts online. Before a customer walks into a store, they've already searched for the product, compared it with alternatives, and perhaps read up on features, reviews, or watched videos. This really means that 70–80% of the decision about making the purchase is already made online. Thus, if your brand doesn't show up with the right information, experience, and storytelling during discovery, it's already lost the game. Q: Any recent work? Ankur Rander: A great example is Lotto India . Their newly launched digital store in India was designed by us for 'everyday athletes' and delivers a style-first, mobile-native experience. These are brands now meeting users where they are - online, with clarity and conviction. We used video to let users experience the product's fit and function. Q: One final question Ankur, what do you think CMOs and CXOs should be asking their digital and marketing teams? Ankur Rander: Sure. It's important to ask: Does our digital store give customers the whiff of our brand? For eg: Is it as premium as our product? Are we designing an experience that will help users shortlist the products?Is our design, content and assets enough to interest people and give the right and targeted information to take the next steps?Are we delivering what today's customers expect as default: fast shipping, easy returns, the right kind of offers, and frictionless checkout? Are we taking advantage of the possibilities of a digital store today?
