Vendor Management & Ethnic wear Trend Analysis

Transcription

1 Graduation Research Project Vendor Management & Ethnic wear Trend Analysis Submitted By AYUSHI SHARMA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE POST GRADUATE DEGREE MASTER OF FASHION MANAGEMENT (MFM) Submitted To Department of Fashion Management Studies (FMS) National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) Plot no. 15, Sector 4, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra Ph Web: May, 2018

2 DECLARATION I, Ms. AYUSHI SHARMA, hereby declare that the Graduation Research Project (GRP) entitled VENDOR On-BOARDING & MANAGEMENT is the result of my own research work carried out by me during the period from 9 th Jan 2018 to 20 th April 2018 except as cited in the references. This report has not been submitted to any other University or Institution for award of any degree/ diploma etc. AYUSHI SHARMA ii

3 Certificate from FLYROBE iii

4 CERTIFICATE This is to certify that Ms. AYUSHI SHARMA of National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Mumbai has successfully completed her GRP work titled VENDOR ON-BOARDING & MANAGEMENT AT FLYROBE in partial fulfillment of requirement for the completion of 2 Years Post Graduate Programme Master of Fashion Management (MFM) as prescribed by the Department of Fashion Management Studies (FMS), National Institute of Fashion Technology. This Graduation Research Project report is the record of authentic work carried out by her during the period from 9 th Jan 2018 to 20 th April 2018 under my mentorship. TANMAY KANDEKAR FACULTY MENTOR Assistant Professor, MFM iv

5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to extend my sincere thanks to many individuals that have helped me in making of this project. It would not have been possible without their kind support and help. I am highly obliged to Ms. Niharika Dahake for her guidance and constant supervision as well as for providing necessary information regarding the project & also for her support in completing it. I would like to express my gratitude towards members of FLYROBE for their kind co-operation and encouragement which helped me in completion of this project and a note of thanks to industry persons for giving me such attention and time. My thanks and appreciations also go to my project mentor Mr. Tanmay Kandekar in developing the project and constant help and support. Lastly, I would like to thank my parents and friends who have willingly helped me out in making of this project report with their abilities. AYUSHI SHARMA v

6 TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER TITLE PAGE NO COMPANY INTRODUCTION- Flyrobe Brands at Flyrobe What Flyrobe Offers 5 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 11 PROJECT OBJECTIVES 13 PROJECT -1 Vendor-On-boarding & Management About the Project Business Development at Flyrobe (i) Business Formats in B2C Module Process of vendor on-boarding Key elements of the proposal Visit to designer exhibitions 22 PROJECT FINDINGS & ANALYSIS 5.1 Sales generated by Flyrobe from Jan-Apr Total No. of outfits inbounded 24 6 PROJECT 2 Ethnic wear Trend Analysis 7 8 CHALLENGES FACED LEARNING OUTCOME 41 CONTACTS MADE DURING 9 INTERNSHIP 10 BIBLIOGRAPHY 42 vi

7 CHAPTER 1 COMPANY INTRODUCTION FLYROBE About the company- Flyrobe is an online rental company which provides ethnic wear on rent in men s and women s category started by three IIT Mumbai alumni Shreya Mishra, Pranay Surana & Tushar Saxena. It was started as an android app in September 2015 followed by a website and offline stores throughout India. The company also has 6 offline stores in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune. The Idea- In 2012, Shreya had the opportunity to visit AirBnB s office as a part of an entrepreneurship summit at Stanford University. At that point in time, the idea of asset utilization and the rental economy caught her fancy. That s when the three of them found themselves thinking what are the items in our daily lives that see very little utilization and aren't worth owning? The answer was quite obvious fashion. The trio thus came up with the idea of creating an on-demand online wardrobe, which people can access whenever they want without the burden of owning it. They surveyed the idea with over 200 women and over 80% women gave a strong positive response. Flyrobe is currently a strong team across engineering, marketing, business development, product, and operations. 1

8 The platform earlier started by providing western and ethnic wear on rent in men s and women s category however has now discontinued the western wear category due to losses and is now dealing only in ethnic wear. The number of app downloads on android is approximately 75,000 and has a 4.6 rating on the Google PlayStore. Flyrobe has partnered with designer labels like Outhouse, Masaba Gupta, Ritu Kumar, and supplies ethnic wear on-demand with a 4, 6 & 8 days delivery timeline. It has a bandwidth of 150 orders per day off season and 300 orders per day in peak season. They charge 20 per cent of MRP as security deposit on ethnic wear. Flyrobe even sends a fit expert to customers' homes to ensure that the garment is fitted to specification. This service is only available for ethnic wear garments. Reception - Through Flyrobe, shoppers can obtain clothing for 12-15% of the MRP. They may then keep the clothing for 4, 6 or 8 days before returning it. The company crossed the benchmark of 15 orders per day post 15 weeks of its launch. So far, many celebrities like Sunny Leone, Sonakshi Sinha, Parineeti Chopra have used the portal. Competitors- Stage 3, Rent a Closet, The Clothing Rental 2

9 Website- App 3

10 1.1 BRANDS AT FLYROBE There are more than 250 brands at Flyrobe in womenswear category, the top amongst that are- Ritu Deora Mahima Mahajan Malvika Talwar Sanna Mehan Label D by Dimple Shroff Pratyusha Garimella Divya Reddy Daddy s Princess Trinesha Barely Pinck by Sneh Arsheen Sabherwal Harshita Singhvi Label Jade by Monica & Karishma Roora by Ritam Seema Mehta Shruti Seth Couture Urmil by Ritika & Prerna Pallavi Jaipur There are 2 in house brands of Flyrobe- Niyoosh Zayah 4

11 1.2 WHAT FLYROBE OFFERS WOMENSWEAR Lahengas 1. Moderately Heavy Occasion Wedding & Sangeet For Relatives & Friends of Bride/Groom Anarkalis Gowns Dra pe sarees 5

12 2. Heavy Occasion Wedding For Brides Anarkalis Occasion Wedding & Sangeet For Relatives & Friends Gowns 6

13 1. Heavy Gowns Occasion Reception / Sangeet For Brides 2. Light Gowns Occasion Reception / Sangeet For Relatives / Friends 7

14 3. Western Gowns Occasion Cocktail Party Sarees 8

15 1.2.2 MENSWEAR Suits & Tuxedos 9

16 Kurta Payjama Sets Sherwanis 10

17 CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE FASHION RENTAL E-COMMERCE IN INDIA The online fashion rental market in India, pegged at $3-4 billion, has been exploding with mushrooming start-ups and existing players even attracting seed funding. Obviously the fashionistas no longer believe in buying expensive designer wear when they can rent it at a fraction of the cost. The allure of 'no ownership' is now moving beyond housing and cars. High end fashion is now one of the biggest rental industries on the rise. It makes perfect sense for people who can't afford luxury brands but do appreciate the quality. The new generation raves multiple experiences and desires to be fashionable and trendy, without the pressure of permanent ownership. While the international market is huge for wardrobe rental services, with successful ventures like rent the Runway, Lending Luxury, Girl Meets Dress, etc, in India this trend is still in its early days. In India, Offering similar deals are a number of online fashion rentals, including Flyrobe, Rent a Closet, The Clothing Rental, Swishlist, Liberent, Stage3, etc. Renting outfits has become common for those once-in-a-lifetime events (wedding, mehendi, sangeet, bridal showers, and bachelorette parties) that require a level of luxury that's not necessarily worth the long-term investment. Flyrobe raised Rs 11.3 crore (around $1.7 million) in seed funding led by Sequoia Capital. Its customer set encompasses women 22 to 35 years of age and beyond, and has been growing at more than 60 per cent month-on-month. Online clothing rental market would register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.6 per cent, reaching $1,856 million by 2023, predicts Alliance Market Research survey. A rapidly growing market, online clothing rental is said to be gaining popularity in developing economies in Asia Pacific, due to the need for an economic option. Increasing popularity of e-commerce attracts many start-ups to this business. 11

18 Online rental services are expected to be utilised by those who are fashion conscious, but lack finances to procure clothing items. Rental services are considered cost effective especially for women. Ethnic wear is an item of particular interest in the market. Ethnic wear rental market is expected to expand given increasing incidence of festivals and other events and high costs associated with them. North America and Europe hold the highest market share. Asia Pacific is third with a projected CAGR at 11.4 per cent. Online rentals are expected to catch on in developing Asia Pacific economies including India and China due to increasing purchasing power complemented by dearth of economical fashionable options. Increased social acceptance for rentals and flourishing e-commerce facilitated by a technology boom also helped the market. While North America is the market leader, Asia Pacific is soon purported to catch up through demand driven growth fuelled by India and China. While women's market share comes up to 58 per cent, number of male consumers is projected to increase. Ethnic wear along with the western wear segment is further expected to increase market share. The market can trigger a no ownership fashion culture. The rise of start-ups Start-ups have been mushrooming in India's online fashion rental space, with the existing ones attracting seed funding. Increasing preference for high-end fashion goods alongside a lack of affordable options, have made room for major ventures including Flyrobe, Swishlist and Klozee. Often charging a security deposit along with the rental fee, the order is delivered anywhere between 3 hours and 2 days. Often selling major brands and designer wear, the start-ups are booming when Indians get smarter about their fashion expenses. Further consumers exhibit a decreasing propensity to spend on luxury one-time events like festivals or bachelorette party. Societal pressure to appear fashionable might potentially end financial culture structured around long-term investments, to one that provides a cheaper, yet larger array of options. While renting is pocket-friendly for consumers, it is capital-intensive. Most start-ups purchase the items they wish to list on their websites. Then they spend on storage and maintenance. 12

19 CHAPTER 3 PROJECT OBJECTIVES This project was undertaken in order to fulfill the below objectives: To prepare a database of designers for women s wear. To negotiate with designers for collaborating with Flyrobe and inbound specified number of outfits per week, To assist the business development & cataloguing team in on-boarding of converted vendors. To conduct the Trend analysis 2018 with respect to women s ethnic wear at Flyrobe. 13

20 CHAPTER 4 PROJECT VENDOR ON-BOARDING & VENDOR MANAGEMENT AT FLYROBE About the Project- I worked on this project with the business development team at Flyrobe under B2C women s wear category. This project entails how new business is brought into the company and how that business is managed later on. As part of the project I prepared a database of around 500 designers from small scale to mid-level designers PAN India. My core task was to pitch the proposal of collaboration to these designers and inbound 40pcs per week. Along with this, I closely worked with the cataloging team at Flyrobe for doing the data entry at the backend for these designers and preparing catalogues to be uploaded on online website of Flyrobe. To find new leads of designers another job was to visit the fashion exhibitions at various occasions and see what designers were selling in the market. To summarize, this project as an Business Development Intern was given to bring in more business to Flyrobe in terms of designers as well as number of outfits. 14

21 4.1.2 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AT FLYROBE WOMEN S WEAR Business development team at Flyrobe works for men s and women s category. They have 2 different modules of operations B2C Module and C2C Module. BUSINESS MODULES C2C Flyrobe has a project named Earn With Us which they popularly call as Make Money Off Your Closet wherein people who have ethnic wear lying around at their place which they don t want to wear again can put it on rent through Flyrobe and make money out of it. They have to fill out an application form which is available on the website.. Once the application is selected, Flyrobe logistics team schedules a pick up from customers place and sends it to the warehouse for quality check. C2C vendors have separate credentials to login for Flyrobe s merchant dashboard to check the status of their garments. 15

22 B2C Another business module is B2C wherein the BD team requests the fashion designers PAN India to collaborate with them and provide their designs to be rented on company s platform. The leads are found through social media platforms, exhibitions, store visits, etc. Once the leads are found, the BD team executive negotiates with the designers and convinces them to collaborate with Flyrobe. An Agreement is signed between both the parties to seal the deal. Once the designers are on-boarded, they are reflected on the website with brand name under menswear and womenswear respectively. 16

23 4.1.2(i) BUSINESS FORMATS IN B2C MODULE- There are 2 formats of business in B2C module. Consignment Basis PUFM basis (Pickup From Merchant) B2C CONSIGNMENT PUFM (Pickup from Merchant) Designers PAN India are pitched this format. They have to clock in pcs with Flyrobe. Outfits are kept with Flyrobe for a period of 6 months. Rental Charged on the website is 13-15% Designers from Delhi, Mumbai & Bangalore are pitched this format. They have to clock in pcs with Flyrobe. Designers have the liberty of keeping the outfits at their own place. Rental charged is 20%. 17

24 4.1.3 PROCESS OF VENDOR ON-BOARDING Approaching the designer and pitching the proposal 1 Day Selection of images through whatsapp/ by the merchandising team is done. 2-3 Days If selected, signing the agreement between both parties (Vendor & Flyrobe) If images are not selected, the collaboration is rejected. 4-6 Days Scheduling the pickup date and time from vendor place. 1 Day Meanwhile, data entry has to be done of the selected designs by the BD team & Cataloguing team in a Data Entry sheet and pictures are uploaded in the shared drive. 1-2 Days The outfits are sent to Delhi/Mumbai warehouse for QC and bar coding before inbounding. If QC fail, outfits are returned to the vendor. 2 Days Outfits are lined up for photo shoot. 2 Days Outfits are made live on website after cataloguing is complete. 18

25 While collaborating with designers (B2C module), below is the detailed process followed- 1. CONSIGNMENT BASIS In this business format, designers PAN India can be connected to collaborate with Flyrobe. The outfits of these designers are selected by the merchandising team through whatsapp/ or by personally visiting their stores. Criteria for selecting outfits: The designs should be trendy Styles Flyrobe does not prefer sarees or dhoti pants or short gowns as these styles do not do so well with them. Embroidery Mirror Work, foil prints etc. are rejected. Once the outfits are selected, the logistics team schedules the pickup date and time from the vendors place and Flyrobe bears the cost of pickup. The outfits once picked up are sent to the warehouse for quality check either at Delhi or Mumbai warehouse. This takes 4-6 days. Those outfits which are failed in quality check are returned to the vendors. The cataloging team prepares the catalogues for the selected designs which are then shared with the business development team for data entry on shared drive. The styling team lines up the outfits for photo shoot at the studio. Once the photo shoot is done, the tech team and cataloging team work together to make these outfits live under designer s brand name. This whole process takes almost days. 19

26 2. PICKUP FROM MERCHANT BASIS This business format is only for Delhi, Mumbai & Bangalore based designers. Criteria for selection of outfits and procedure of quality check remain the same in this format as well. The pickup of outfits is done from vendor s place and is kept with Flyrobe of 4-5 days while the photo shoot and bar coding of outfits is done. Once it s done, the outfits are returned to the vendor. Vendor has the liberty of keeping the outfits at their place and whenever there is an order placed through Flyrobe s website, the delivery team picks up the outfit from vendor s place, serves it to the customer and returns it to the vendor once the delivery order is complete. 20

27 4.1.4 KEY ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL Below are the terms of negotiations taken into account while collaborating with designers- The revenue shared between Flyrobe and Designers is 50-50% of the rental value. Flyrobe charges 12-15% of MRP as the rental value on its website in consignment business format and 20% of MRP in PUFM business format. Designer has to clock in outfits with Flyrobe if working on consignment basis and outfits with Flyrobe if working on PUFM business module. The designs are kept with Flyrobe for a period of 6 months. If there is any minor damage caused to the garment, Flyrobe mends it on its own end however if there is any major damage then vendor is given back the unrecovered MRP. Flyrobe does the thorough marketing of designers from time to time through social media. RETURNS If any designer wants their garments back at any time, they have to provide a 30 days notice to Flyrobe. PAYMENTS The payments are done on a monthly basis whenever the outfit goes on rent and amount is transferred to designer s account through bank transfer. Designers are provided with their own merchant dashboard with their own credentials to track the garments online. 21

28 4.1.5 VISIT TO DESIGNER EXHIBITIONS Exhibitions that I visited from Jan- Apr Pink Almari (Worli 7 th March) Crescent Moon (Four Seasons 11 th March) Designers Caravan (Juhu 20 th Feb) Festive Soiree (Mahalaxmi 2 nd Feb) Pernia s Pop Up (Mahalaxmi 22 nd March) Trousseau Trunk (Worli 10 th April) Jalsa 2018 (16 th March) Objective of visiting the exhibitions was to bring more business to Flyrobe by finding more designers to bring on-board. To analyze what is selling more in the market in women s ethnic wear category. Below is the criteria listed for selecting the designer through exhibitions- The merchandise on display should be trendy and in alignment with what works well with Flyrobe. The quality of the garments. The price points MRP should be more than Rs Styles Lehengas, Anarkalis, Gowns, Crop top-skirt sets are preferred. I collected the visiting cards from the designers and they were contacted later. This helped in knowing what is trending in market and designers are selling. 22

29 CHAPTER 5 PROJECT FINDINGS & ANALYSIS 5.1 SALES GENERATED BY FLYROBE FROM JAN APR 2018 Total Sales Revenue generated Rs. 3,00,17,730 Women s Wear Men s Wear Rs. 1,10,32,251 Rs. 1,89,85,479 B2C C2C Rs. 59,70,422 Rs.50,61,829 Women s wear sales per month- Module/ Month Jan Feb Mar Apr Total B2C Sales (in Rs.) 12,30,560 22,09,731 15,29,900 10,00,231 59,70,422 C2C Sales (in Rs.) 11,33,714 12,02,514 15,16,212 12,09,389 50,61,829 Total Sales (in Rs.) 23,64,274 34,12,245 30,46,112 22,09,620 1,10,32,251 Table 1: Depicting the women s wear sales per month from Jan-Apr 2018 at Flyrobe 23

30 5.2 TOTAL OUTFITS INBOUNDED- Week 1 & 2 (22nd Jan - 2nd Feb) Week 3 & 4 (5thFeb - 17th Feb) Week 7 & 8 (5th Mar - 17th Mar) Week 9 & 10 (19th Mar - 31st Mar) Week 11 & 12 (2nd Apr - 15th Apr) Total Vendors Contacted Vendors Converted Total No. of Outfits Inbounded (Target - 40 pcs per week, Total pcs) Conversion Rate (in %) 31.25% 50% 40.00% 35.00% 33.33% 31.13% Table 2: Depicting Targets Achieved during this project in terms of total no. of outfits inbounded weekly Total No. of Outfits Inbounded (Target - 40 pcs per week, Total pcs) Week 1 & 2 (22nd Jan - 2nd Feb) Week 3 & 4 (5thFeb - 17th Feb) Week 7 & 8 (5th Mar - 17th Mar) Week 9 & 10 (19th Mar - 31st Mar) Week 11 & 12 (2nd Apr - 15th Apr) Total No. of Outfits Inbounded (Target - 40 pcs per week, Total pcs) Figure1: Total No. of Outfits Inbounded from Jan-Apr 2018 during this project 24

31 CHAPTER 6 PROJECT -2 ETHNIC WEAR TREND ANALYSIS Attribute What's Trending Colors Category Prints Silhouettes Patterns/ Styles Details Light & Pastel Colors - pink, blue, ivory, champagne Saree Gowns, Crop top - skirt sets, Indo westerns Floral prints Flared, draped Off shoulders- cold shoulders, Cape/ elongated sleeves, Long jackets with Palazzos/ lehengas Layering, tassels, feather work, Ruffles 25

32 COLORS Light colors, pastels colors are trending this season of spring summer Shades of pinks and blues have become the first choice of customers as well as designers while selecting any ethnic outfit for a wedding or festivals. Pastels are standard in interior and fashion design as they have the unique ability to mesh beautifully with a broad range of color palettes and design trends. From minimalist accents and effortless pairings with natural materials to being the epitome of glamour and luxury, pastels have proven they really can do it all. When it comes to color, we will see pushback in 2018 with a rise in modern pastel palettes sandy Scandi pinks, mint and sage green tints, taupes and stormy blues will be replacing generic grey and breaking up the white surplus. 26

33 Pastels- 27

34 CATEGORY- As per the analysis, the best selling category at Flyrobe are the cocktail gowns & croptop skirt sets for parties/ weddings. Crop tops have now replaced the traditional choli or traditional blouse designs and looks fab with the lehenga skirts. Another successful fusion of traditional and modern look is the saree gown. Available for all body shapes and size and can be prepared with different fabrics; this style surely makes you look immensely beautiful and trendy. This fabulous piece of work looks ravishing paired with silhouettes. Inspired from the western wedding attire, ruffled gown is the customized Indo western look which is getting popular among the brides. Available in soft pastel colors with beautiful gold thread work looks stylish and classy. Crop Top-Skirts 28

35 Saree Gowns 29

36 Indo Westerns 30

37 31

38 SILHOUETTES- Most popular silhouettes are flared lehengas/ skirts and draped gowns/ saree gown. Due to summer weather customers are more attracted to flowy and flared garments. Elegance and stylish are the two words that perfectly describe the flowy lehengas. The flowy lehengas have extra volume added with numerous pleats to give a fuller flare at the bottom and make you look breathtakingly amazing. 32

39 PRINTS- Floral lehengas have sparked a fresh and refreshing look which is a delight to your eyes. This season ditch your heavy lehengas and go for this light and carefree look. Match up your floral lehenga with crop top or high neck sleeveless blouse or with a cape or long jacket any of these styles will surely make you look alluring and eye-popping. 33

40 PATTERNS/ STYLES- Styles like off shoulder, cold shoulder, cape, elongated sleeves or long jackets will be trending in spring-summer 18. The long jacket with lehengas is yet another popular choice to go for this year. Long slit lehenga jacket either at the front or on the side will definitely shoot up your persona this wedding season. Cape is the biggest successful trend which took the fashion industry altogether to a new level. Cape blends with any ethnic outfit you can think of. These styles are as shown: Elongated Sleeves- 34

41 Capes 35

42 Off Shoulders- 36

43 Long Jackets 37

44 DETAILS- Layering is another trend becoming popular this season. Details like ruffles, tassels, feather work is in high demand. 38

45 CHAPTER 7 CHALLENGES FACED Below were the challenges faced by me while working on this project- Finding Leads After a certain point of time, finding leads through Instagram and Facebook becomes stagnant. How I overcame One objective of this internship was to visit the exhibitions so I could find new leads through the fashion exhibitions that I visited and also took help from my seniors. Negotiating With Designers While collaborating with the designers, the negotiating terms played an important role and it became difficult to convince the designer sometimes. How I overcame I talked about the growth of rental business in Indian scenario and also lured the designers by offering to promote their label through Flyrobe s social media handles. Targets achievement during wedding seasons It was difficult to get designers onboard during peak wedding seasons as they were putting their outfits on exhibitions or selling them off. How I overcame I covered up this loss in upcoming weeks by doubling my efforts of connecting the designers. 39

46 CHAPTER 8 LEARNING OUTCOME During my 4 months internship with Flyrobe, I got the experience of working with an e- commerce startup which provides a fashion rental service. I understood the working style and the various departments that are operated in the company, especially the business development team which I worked with. While collaborating with the designers and being a part of vendor meetings, I learned a great deal of how the negotiations is done in a deal and how different business formats help a business in growing and expanding. During the trend analysis, I got to know what styles and designs are in demand in the market, which styles were bestseller at Flyrobe and why. I also visited the exhibitions and saw what exhibitors are selling. Through my time at Flyrobe, it taught me about having a good professional career in an e-commerce startup, it also taught me a lot about how important it is to be balanced in life and appreciate the work and opportunity given to you at any particular time. 40

47 CONTACTS MADE DURING INTERNSHIP NAME DESIGNATION CONTACT Niharika Dahake Business Development Manager Womenswear Yashna D souza HR Head Khushal Sharma Key Accounts Manager Heli Mehta Business Development Executive Nitika Nupur Senior Procurement nitikanupur@flyrobe.com Manager Mahima Bhatia Head Stylist mahimabhatia@flyrobe.com 41

48 BIBLIOGRAPHY