Building an activewear brand for an untapped market
Brand development | Market Research | Product Development
Power Cliff is the first exclusive active wear brand for women on Udaan, India’s largest B2B e-commerce marketplace for small to medium sized retailers. I, along with my head designer worked on creating and developing the brand to cater to the requirements of fashion retailers and their direct consumers in Tier 2-3 cities in India.
PROJECT TYPE
Team project for Udaan, a B2B e-commerce start-up where I worked as one of the founding designers for the private labels women’s wear team.
MY CONTRIBUTION
Spearheaded the brand and product development alongside the guidance of head designer and cross-functional collaboration with production planners, buyers, business heads and prototype technicians.
METHODS:
Secondary research, customer interviews, stakeholder interviews, market research, trend and competitive analysis, prototype fit testing
Team project for Udaan, a B2B e-commerce start-up where I worked as one of the founding designers for the private labels women’s wear team.
MY CONTRIBUTION
Spearheaded the brand and product development alongside the guidance of head designer and cross-functional collaboration with production planners, buyers, business heads and prototype technicians.
METHODS:
Secondary research, customer interviews, stakeholder interviews, market research, trend and competitive analysis, prototype fit testing
BRAND DEVELOPMENT TEAMSneha Shetty- Lead Designer & Brand Strategist
Market research, Trend analysis, Competitve analysis, Design, Brand Identity, Technical Specifications, Prototype fit testing, Photoshoot styling Co-ordination, Style Guides
Rashmi Negi-Head Designer & Strategist
Abhilasha & Vipul Mathur- Private Labels Business Heads
TIMELINE
Sep - Jan 2021
Market research, Trend analysis, Competitve analysis, Design, Brand Identity, Technical Specifications, Prototype fit testing, Photoshoot styling Co-ordination, Style Guides
Rashmi Negi-Head Designer & Strategist
Abhilasha & Vipul Mathur- Private Labels Business Heads
TIMELINE
Sep - Jan 2021
THE RESEARCH PROCESS
As the first brand in the B2B market space and with limited experience in designing for the active wear segment, I had to quickly familiarize myself with the aesthetics and functional requirements of the segment with in-depth competitive analysis.
Market & Trend Research
I began my research by conducting market research in the B2C space to gain a deep understanding of current offerings in the international and the Indian active wear market. I analyzed trends, pricing, material requirements and customer feedback. Secondary research included analysis of trends from the crop of products available in the Indian B2C E-commerce platforms as well as international active wear brands.
Customer Feedback
Next, to understand our customer base and their needs, I contacted approximately 40+ buyers of active wear products from Udaan's customer base and collected data on their purchasing habits around cost, material and regional trends.
As the first brand in the B2B market space and with limited experience in designing for the active wear segment, I had to quickly familiarize myself with the aesthetics and functional requirements of the segment with in-depth competitive analysis.
Market & Trend Research
I began my research by conducting market research in the B2C space to gain a deep understanding of current offerings in the international and the Indian active wear market. I analyzed trends, pricing, material requirements and customer feedback. Secondary research included analysis of trends from the crop of products available in the Indian B2C E-commerce platforms as well as international active wear brands.
Customer Feedback
Next, to understand our customer base and their needs, I contacted approximately 40+ buyers of active wear products from Udaan's customer base and collected data on their purchasing habits around cost, material and regional trends.
RESEARCH INSIGHTS & OUTCOME
Trend & Trims board I analyzed all the data to curate a trend and trims board, specifying design, colors, trends and technical details for the development of Power Cliff, the India's first women's active wear brand in the B2B market.
Market Validation
According to Business Wire, The activewear segment in India is projected to reach INR 997.8 billion by 2024. This industry is experiencing rapid growth, with an expected annual increase of 30%.
Design Criteria & Core Concepts
Our research revealed that the elements that buyers were looking for boiled dow to three things: cost-effective, functional and minimal detailing. Based on our findings, we determined the design criteria.
Trend & Trims board I analyzed all the data to curate a trend and trims board, specifying design, colors, trends and technical details for the development of Power Cliff, the India's first women's active wear brand in the B2B market.
Market Validation
According to Business Wire, The activewear segment in India is projected to reach INR 997.8 billion by 2024. This industry is experiencing rapid growth, with an expected annual increase of 30%.
Design Criteria & Core Concepts
Our research revealed that the elements that buyers were looking for boiled dow to three things: cost-effective, functional and minimal detailing. Based on our findings, we determined the design criteria.
Must have:
Utility details
Low cost
Utility details
Low cost
Nice to have:
Premium quality fabrics
Enhanced stretch
Dark colors
Premium quality fabrics
Enhanced stretch
Dark colors
TREND ANALYSIS & COLOR STORY
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FINAL CONCEPTS & DESIGNS
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FINAL CONCEPTS & DESIGNS
THE OUTCOME
Power Cliff for women soon became the highest selling brand in the active wear category on the Udaan platform a month after its launch.
Power Cliff launched in february, 2021 sold over 9,089 products and retailed in 559 stores across India by the following month.
Power Cliff for women soon became the highest selling brand in the active wear category on the Udaan platform a month after its launch.
Challenges and reflections
While I, along with my design manager had previously worked on building and launching 3 successful brands for Udaan, this was the first time I led the entire research and design process. The challenging part was that this was a first of its kind endeavor, with no other active wear brand in the B2B e-commerce space in India and no predecessor to look up to. I also had limited expertise in the active wear category and had to quickly familiarize myself with its design aesthetics and functional requirements.