07 April 2023, Mumbai 

Aditya Birla Group's fashion and lifestyle venture, TMRW, is set to offer stock options to its top executives as part of its efforts to retain and attract senior talent.

The direct-to-consumer platform, founded by Aryaman Vikram Birla, is also planning to recruit senior executives from startups and consumer firms. The move is aimed at driving aggressive growth and creating a 'House of Brands' by investing in online-born brands that draw a large part of their sales through the internet.

What all you need to know

The move comes after rival Tata Digital announced similar efforts to attract senior talent with long-term incentives, including stock options. TMRW has also been on an acquisition spree, acquiring a controlling stake in Bewakoof Brands and infusing ₹200 crores to fuel the growth of the D2C brand.

Within a year of launch, TMRW owns eight brands, including Berrylush, Bewakoof, Juneberry, Natilene, Nauti Nati, Nobero, Urbano, and Veirdo.

TMRW's equity plan was designed with the help of senior Aditya Birla executives who met with industry experts for six to eight months.

The company aims to create the largest portfolio of disruptor brands in fashion and lifestyle and be part of India's D2C growth story, estimated to be at $100 billion by 2025.

TMRW plans to acquire and incubate 30-plus innovative, customer-obsessed brands.

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17 March 2023, Mumbai 

Zouk, a direct-to-customer accessories and lifestyle brand, has successfully raised $3 million in a strategic funding round led by Stellaris Venture Partners, one of its existing investors.

The funding will be utilized to expand its product range and offline operations. Zouk aims to improve its supply chain to expand its retail presence throughout India. This year, Zouk plans to open five exclusive brand outlets in India Furthermore, Zouk is investing significantly in team expansion and strengthening its supply chain. The company intends to hire personnel across all departments, including leadership and marketing roles.

Zouk launched in 2016 with Rs 20 lakh investment and a line of cruelty-free and vegan handbags. The brand has since added footwear and accessories such as wallets to its product range.

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03 March 2023, Mumbai 

Tata Cliq Luxury has some big plans in store.

The company wants to expand its product categories and strengthen its assortment in areas like fashion, beauty, home, and fitness. They also plan to continue bringing international luxury brands to India.

Some of the key categories performing well on Tata Cliq Luxury's platform are apparel, footwear, and handbags. They've also seen high digital adoption for over 1 lakh luxury watches, which is boosting the category's growth. The sneakers and athleisure categories are also attracting new customers, and they anticipate beauty, home, and jewellery as the growth categories for the platform.

To reach even more customers, Tata Cliq Luxury plans to expand beyond metro and Tier 1 cities into Tier 2 and 3 markets. They've noticed an increasing demand for branded fashion and luxury items in non-metro areas, in line with the rising middle class and increased penetration of e-commerce.

Tata Cliq Luxury plans to continue expanding their various categories and introducing initiatives to elevate their luxury shopping experience further. They've also recently launched 13 international brands on the platform, including Baldinini, BCBG, Aspinal of London, Liu Jo, Loci, Pollini, Mulberry, and Twinset, among others.

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05 April 2023, Mumbai

Ajio Street, the new marketplace from Ajio, is expected to offer a wide range of affordable fashion items including clothing, footwear, and accessories for men, women, and children.

The platform will reportedly follow a zero-commission model, which means that the sellers won't be charged any fees for listing their products or making sales through the platform. This move is likely to attract more sellers to the platform, thereby increasing its product offerings and giving consumers a wider choice.

The launch of Ajio Street is part of Reliance Industries' broader strategy to expand its e-commerce presence in India. The company has been aggressively investing in this space and has acquired a number of start-ups and established players to strengthen its position.

With the launch of Ajio Street, the company aims to capture a larger share of the online fashion market, which is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years.

One of the key advantages of Ajio Street is that it will be targeted at consumers in tier II-tier IV cities and towns, where there is a largely untapped market for online fashion.

By offering affordable prices and a wide selection of products, the platform is expected to attract new consumers who may not have shopped online before. This could lead to an increase in the platform's user base, which will in turn drive sales and revenue growth.

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16 March 2023, Mumbai 

Chumbak, the popular lifestyle and accessories D2C brand, has made a significant move towards sustainability by partnering with circular technology product Relove.

The new initiative will allow Chumbak's customers to resell their pre-loved products on the brand's e-commerce store, further promoting the idea of sustainability. This launch is in line with the brand's core values of embracing sustainability and reducing wastage.

Chumbak was launched in Bengaluru in 2010. The brand's mission is to make contemporary Indian design accessible to everyone through homeware and lifestyle accessories. By manufacturing their products locally, the brand is positively impacting community livelihoods across India.

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03 March 2023, Mumbai 

ENGN, a D2C brand specializing in women's performance wear, plans to expand its offline presence by opening 5-6 stores by the end of the year.

The move is aimed at establishing an omnichannel approach and building consumer trust through a seamless purchase and return cycle. At present, the brand has one brick-and-mortar store in Mumbai, which contributes to 20 per cent of its sales while the online segment makes up the remaining 80 per cent. ENGN hopes to increase the contribution of offline stores to 30 per cent of its overall business. Film actress Esha Deol, who is also the brand ambassador, leads the brand's growth through online channels and social commerce.

ENGN plans to introduce an athleisure category within a year and expand its product lines, keeping the Indian body type in mind. The brand believes that the performance wear market in India is worth Rs 1.6 billion and sees a significant opportunity in fulfilling the gap of good quality performance wear at affordable pricing.

ENGN manufactures its entire product line in India, mostly in Surat and South India. The brand also invests in female athletes, providing them with salaries based on their requirements and seeking their feedback to develop better products.

ENGN is working on educating young girls for more participation in sports to spread brand awareness.

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29 March 2023, Mumbai 

Fashinza, a B2B e-commerce startup focused on global fashion supply chains, has secured USD 30 million in debt funding from Mars Growth Capital, a subsidiary of Liquidity Group, according to an announcement made by the company.

The Gurugram-based firm aims to use the funds to fuel its ongoing transition into a global business, with significant operations in the USA, Gulf, and Europe.

Fashinza is transforming the global fashion supply chain with its unique approach to e-commerce. With a strong founding team, existing global network of manufacturers and customers, and impressive performance since its inception.

This latest funding round marks a significant milestone for Fashinza as it strives to establish a foothold in international markets and revolutionize the fashion industry's supply chain. With the backing of Liquidity Group and Mars Growth Capital, Fashinza is poised for continued growth and success.

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09 March 2023, Mumbai 

Off Duty, a premium apparel and fashion brand, has raised Rs 4 crore in funding from Velocity, the country's largest revenue-based financier.

Funding from Velocity is expected to enable Off Duty to reach new heights and inspire emerging D2C apparel brands with their growth. The investment will be used to increase the brand's inventory to meet rising demand. Off Duty has a strong presence across e-commerce platforms and is expected to close the current financial year with revenue of Rs 15 crore.

Off Duty was founded in 2019 by Madina S Khan and Shahbaaz Khan, with the aim of bridging the gap between fashion trends in India and international markets. The brand's core products include everyday wear, comfortable denim, pants & trousers, and men's denim.

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22 February 2023, Mumbai

Amazon Fashion’s The Plus Shop is a newly curated store offering plus-size apparels from top brands in India.

The store has gone live from February 22 to February 26, 2023, offering across sizes 2XL to 8XL over six lakh products across 450 brands.

In launching The Plus Shop Amazon Fashion’s aim is to bring an inclusive approach to fashion and cater to the needs of its diverse consumer base. The plus-size segment is evolving at a fast pace in India.

The market for plus size apparel has been boosted by a number of factors, including celebrity endorsements and a positive public impression of persons who are plus sizes. The casual wear category dominates the plus size clothing market due to increased acceptance and acceptability of casual wear among consumers for social occasions. The mid-priced segment dominates the plus size clothing market.

In response to the rising demand for plus size clothing, retailers are focusing on launching plus size apparel in order to attract more customers. Non-apparel-centric retailers have also spotted the opportunity and started to invest in their inclusive-sizing. E-commerce contributes to the growth of plus-size fashion primarily because of the ease of access, size availability, and convenience that it provides.

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20 March 2023, Mumbai 

XINT, a fashion and lifestyle brand is launched by Macrowagon exclusively on Ajio.

XINT is known for its premium quality fabric and 100% EU-tailored garments made from sustainable stored raw materials. Marcowagon plans to scale up high this brand in the next five years. XINT also has plans to expand into accessories, footwear, handbags, watches, and sunglasses categories.

XINT's current collection leans towards catering to millennials rather than Gen Z, with plans to become the face of the brand through collaborations with celebrities. The SS23 collection is expected to go live on the platform in March and is anticipated to catch the consumer's eye with its premium trends and price points.

Marcowagon Retail Pvt. Ltd. is a licensee for global fashion and lifestyle brands.

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04 March 2023, Mumbai 

Flipkart, one of India's leading e-commerce giants, has acquired around 20 per cent of its new customers through its vernacular interface, demonstrating the importance of regional languages in improving the consumer shopping experience. Flipkart currently offers its customers the option to browse and shop in 11 different languages, with a particular focus on tier 2, 3, and 4 markets.

To tap into these markets, Flipkart has partnered with regional influencers and saw engagement with vernacular creators grow by 30 per cent year-on-year, making it a critical part of the company's influencer marketing approach. Additionally, fashion is the first category that one out of two customers tries on Flipkart, with one out of every four new-to-e-commerce and new-to-Flipkart consumers being from the GenZ cohort, which is under 25 years old.

Moreover, Flipkart has witnessed higher growth in tier 2, 3, and 4 markets than in metros, highlighting the significance of small towns in the company's growth. Flipkart acts as an equalizer by providing consumers access to brands and labels that are not present in an offline format in small towns. Flipkart's focus on tier 3 and tier 4 markets is expected to be crucial for its future growth.

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22 February 2023, Mumbai 

Taavi has opened a store in Mumbai.

Launched by Myntra, this is a sustainable homegrown brand. The company sells apparel for men and women with traditional Indian embroidery like Kolkata’s kantha and Orissa’s sambalpuri ikkat.

Since 2019, Taavi has been working directly with local artisans and through NGOs to make Indian textile and embroidery mainstream.

In 2021, the fashion brand made its foray into the personal care products category. Its products have been developed in collaboration with the Khadi industry and small-scale enterprises that work with rural women and local communities in India.

Apart from Mumbai Taavi has stores in Goa, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, and Noida.

E-commerce fashion company Myntra houses a range of private labels that contribute up to 35 percent to its revenue. The e-tailer’s private label brand portfolio includes Roadster, Anouk, All About You, HRX, Mast & Harbour, DressBerry, and Kook N Keech.

With a mix of large global brands and small domestic boutiques, Myntra’s range offers value for money and quality to shoppers in India. Myntra is transitioning from a catalogue-heavy browsing experience to a content-heavy online experience.

Through content-driven activities, it is looking to double the engagement and time spent on its app over the next three to four years. It is constantly working on making its product catalogue video-heavy and this has helped in increasing the engagement on the app.

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