1. Brandlooms – Delivering Trust
By
Piyush Mohan
This case study won the best management case study (SME sector) in an international
case study contest
The Birth of Brandlooms
Typically when a woman opens up her wardrobe, every weave has a story; these stories form precious
nostalgic pieces such as fondly recalling the sari the mother gifted her at her wedding, the first saree she ever
wore, to that of the saree she wore on her first award function and it goes on. Brandlooms is less about
sarees and more about weaving these stories that every weave has a story, form a part of every woman’s
being. Natural fabric is the medium to craft these invaluable experiences for customers. This is captured in
the tag line of the brand ….Brands, Stories and more…More here stands for experiences that last a lifetime.
With the inception of adding stories and maximizing the experience, Brandlooms was officially launched on
August 28, 2015.
About the Entrepreneur:
Mrs. Smitha S Ranganathan is a lady who leads by example. She has over 16 years of industry experience
working as a key account influencer and brand communication specialist. She is a Professor of Marketing
Management and Retailing Strategy at IBS Business School from July 2012 and present. She has contributed
in Editorials to top business publications. She has a realistic and practical teaching methodology, with real-
life case studies, keeping the students up-to-date with the latest techniques and approaches. She is a gifted
singer as well. Fuelled by passion for healthcare communication, she is in the last leg of completing her PhD
in healthcare communications. She has also made major contributions to some of the popular media
publications as a columnist in a national business dailies such as the Economic Times, Hindustan Times and
the Brand Equity. She is the program director with the Center for Public Health Awareness (CPHA) which is
the outcome of a meticulous field - based research conducted pan India that lay down perspectives of key
stakeholders – doctors, patients, pharmaceutical bodies and communication agencies on community health.
As the program director of this initiative, she facilitate partnership among key stakeholders in the healthcare
community to ensure education and dissemination of credible scientific information.
Why fabrics were chosen as the medium of experience at Brandlooms
The entrepreneur herself an advertising professional has been designing her own handloom weaves over the
last decade, for she feels clothes are a key marker of one’s personality. Since every personality is unique,
expression through one’s style of dressing must be as unique. During this phase of customisation, Smitha
worked with over 49 weavers across Tamil Nadu. This opened up the realities of weavers’ lives wherein
wages were poor and absolute lack of interest in keeping the art and craft alive among the gen next. Thus,
Brandlooms has adopted 49 weaver families in southern part of Tamil Nadu especially in the Sivagangai
district wherein they are actively engaged in making unique pieces for Brandlooms.
2. Brandlooms works with weavers on the following aspects –
1. Design of the saree weave based on traditional yet dying motif patterns.
2. Help identify resplendent market friendly colours as per seasonal demands.
3. Create self help groups for co-operative buying of yarns.
4. Soft skills programs for weavers to negotiate and communicate better with prospective buyers.
5. Motivation programs for next generation weavers.
6. Tie ups with handloom training institutes in Tamil Nadu to convert their skill into a certified professional
certification.
Vision and Mission of Brandlooms:
Vision of Brandlooms – Create unique experiences for customers expressed through fabrics that last a life
time.
Mission of Brandlooms – Revive and Revitalise traditional designs and bring authentic handloom weaves
directly from the weaver to the wearer.
Market Strategy:
Brandlooms operates through Facebook as part of social media marketing. Brandlooms uses the power of
social media to target the right customer segment across the world. Demographic, behavioural and interest
based targeting is the key strategy used by this start up to rope in the right customers.
The web page is the representative of Brandlooms. The company operates across India and in Singapore,
USA, Canada, UK, and Dubai. With over 500 shipments in 3 months. The success of the targeting is evident
by the fact that the average time from Facebook based launch to the sale of the product is less than 2 hours.
Besides, the inventory turnover rate is pretty impressive as well. The essence of the company is the quality
of product and services which the clients. Brandlooms is in the business of creating stories and experience
with its clients much like with its fabrics. The word of mouth advertising is another key enabler for the
company’s success. Another factor is the number of repeat customers and the growing number of referrals
from existing customers. Moreover gaining customer trust is another important factor in contributing to the
brand. The availability of the right product for the right people being the essence. The insight to connect
with the colour preferences of the customers and delivering the product on time, and every time is what give
the customer a sense of trust with Brandlooms.
The operations of Brandlooms is tight knit. The weavers make the sarees with the design patterns given by
the entrepreneur. Which are then packaged and are then shipped to respective customers. The popularity of
3. the company is a deeming example of the power of social media marketing. With growing number of clients
every day the company is estimated to grow twice in customer order in the next 3 months.
The clients select the designs from the variety of traditional patterns available on the web page. Then the
order is placed through the contact details provided at the web page. Once the transaction amount has been
deposited the order is delivered to the customer within 9 days without any delay.
The image of the company is reflected by the testimonials given by the clients and a few of many are shared
in Exhibit 1:
Exhibit 1:
4. USP of Brandlooms
1. High on heritage design weaves (Annexure 1, 2)
2. Emphasis on unique customer experience – a personalised Brandlooms card goes with every saree
(Annexure 4), Care cards (Annexure 5)
3. 24x7 customer support using WhatsApp and Facebook messenger. (Annexure 6)
Brandlooms – Scripting for Success
A careful assessment of the entrepreneur’s business model and vision clearly differentiates Brandlooms’
offerings. What is interesting is the level of customisation and personalisation of the entire saree buying
experience. Since the emphasis is on experience, this start up is currently working towards creating unique
experiences in even accessing their weave of choice. With governmental support and weavers embracing
this unique opportunity to progress, Brandlooms is poised to script a truly unique success story in the virtual
e-commerce space*.
*Brandlooms currently has a Facebook store only and its dedicated website is currently in the alpha state of
testing and development.
Things to ponder on from a case perspective –
1. What may be key scale up challenges Brandlooms might face?
2. How can Brandlooms work towards creating unique personalised experiences for its customers?
2. Should Brandlooms continue to be a B2C brand or should it consider moving to B2B space as well?
Future for Brandlooms:
The growth of the brand is an example of its own to indicate the expected growth of the company. Moreover
the exclusivity of the brand and the dynamic nature of the content (that is the product and services provided)
are the strengths of the company. Brandlooms is emerging from a modern marketing perception which is
more or less coming up in the country, where as the countries where social marketing is booming have
shown a very positive response to the products. The product demand is expected to grow and the need for a
5. more aggressive strategy might be required at a later point of time. Needless to say the social benefit that the
company is providing to the families of the weavers is more than what many multinationals fail to do.
The future for Brandlooms in the next five years looks promising with the increase in sales and demand
growing with the increasing reach of the company. The target market age group range for Brandlooms is
increasing. As more and more of women are finding their choice of colours and patterns in one place.
Points to Ponder On:
1. How would the exclusivity created by social media marketing benefit the company?
2. What are the other factors affecting the growth of the company?
3. What are the KPI’s (key performance indicators) of Brandlooms?
4. What according to you are the key areas of importance for Brandlooms?
5. What could be the future requirements if Brandlooms needs to expand?
Acknowledgement:
The complete assignment would not have been possible without the help and guidance of Mrs Smitha S
Ranganathan. I owe a thank you to the lady to grant me a chance to understand the workings of her company
and making this study a possibility. I was grateful to have a wonderful mentor like you ma’am. I would like
to thank her team for making the company a success with the resources available. I am grateful and humbled
by the example Mrs Smitha has shown me, one that defines the heart of the company and the lady herself.
This experience has taught me many things which I am sure I will make use of in my life.