Has GenNext of the Indian textiles-apparel industry changed the way business is done?
I strongly believe the newer generation of India’s fashion/apparel industry has changed the industry narrative in many ways.
For instance, we have embraced the online business model in a much wholehearted way from the start. Traditionally, the apparel industry (along with other sectors of retail such as groceries) prioritised the offline mode and organic growth. The internet changed this and brought about a very visible change not only in the way a business could be established and scaled, but also in the demands that were placed on a business from a customer service/engagement perspective.
From my perspective, at Campus Sutra we envisioned our business as an online-first model and worked with marketplaces such as Amazon, Flipkart, and used our own website and mobile site to establish ourselves. Rather than starting with offline retail, we started online, penetrated MBOs and opened our own stores somewhat recently and have flipped conventional business wisdom on its head. We have also embraced the multichannel way of doing business in a much more robust manner with our social media handles being an important channel for visibility as well as sales.
One other aspect which is different is the asset-light manner in which we built our business. Although we don’t own the manufacturing assets (Campus Sutra apparel and accessories are manufactured in facilities in India, Vietnam and Bangladesh), we have ensured very tight backward integration with our supply chain to ensure full control over costs, quality and delivery.
In addition, we have discarded traditional sourcing methods at Campus Sutra and created an ecosystem of innovation for #fastfashion. This has helped Campus Sutra achieve a 95 per cent sell-through rate, one of the biggest online catalogues in the country with 30,000 SKUs, an inventory churn of 10 per cent per cent per month and inventory throughput of two months—all of which are well above industry standards. We have crunched time from design to availability to three weeks.
Last, we have been profitable from year one unlike traditional retail which takes years of investment to turn a profit. We have tapped into the market opportunity across cities including in tier 1, 2, 3 and 4 cities thanks to slashing of distribution costs with the advent of e-tail.
How much do you think India's GenNext is geared up to changing things in the global context?
Rather than blindly copying global designs or practices in the trade, there are several measures that we have taken to establish the “India story” when it comes to apparel and fashion. For example, rather than adopt Western messaging, colours, designs, Campus Sutra apparel and accessories are created against the backdrop of India. Our products are available in the Middle East via MBOs and we are expanding to Southeast Asian markets shortly demonstrating that the appetite for our fashion spans across borders.
Our influence is not only restricted to product availability, even in areas such as design, India is serving as an inspiration for the West. The quality of merchandise we produce has also been widely appreciated. While we are collaborating with suppliers across the world for the latest technology and designs in segments such as athleisure, we are also in a position to share best practices when it comes to sourcing and supply chain operations.
