In today's fashion landscape, brand Studio Lifestyle has consistently outperformed its competitors and captured the hearts of Indian Gen Z and early millennial consumers. Under the leadership of CEO Shyam Prasad, the company has made remarkable progress by leveraging technology, consumer insights and an agile supply chain to deliver fashion that resonates with its target audience.
A consumer-centric approach
Brand Studio Lifestyle's impressive growth is due to its deep commitment to understanding and serving the consumer. Shyam Prasad emphasised, “Our strategy is built around the consumer. We focus on providing on-trend fashion with in-depth research data that informs their trend preferences.” This consumer-first approach has been the driving force behind the company's success, enabling it to identify and capitalise on emerging trends with unmatched speed.
The company's ability to go from identifying a trend to delivering it to consumers in 8-12 weeks is a testament to an efficient, agile supply chain. This quick-to-market strategy is groundbreaking, keeping Brand Studio Lifestyle at the forefront in an industry where trends can change overnight.
A nationwide digital-first company
Brand Studio Lifestyle started as a digital-first company, a strategic decision that enabled it to reach out to over 20,000 postal codes across India. This approach has helped the brand reach a wide cross-section of fashion-conscious consumers, especially in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, who contribute more than 60% of the company's revenue.
“We started as a digital-first company to reach a broad base of fashion-conscious customers across India,” Prasad said. The company's focus on digital channels has paid off, with e-commerce now accounting for 95 percent of its business. As the company embarks on offline expansion, it aims to balance it with a strong brick-and-mortar presence, targeting 100 standalone stores by the end of the fiscal year.
Diverse Portfolio
The company manages a diverse portfolio of brands, each with its own identity and target audience, including popular brands such as Highlander, Tokyo Talkies, Vishudh, Locomotive and Ketch, each catering to different segments of the Gen Z and early millennial markets.
Prasad further added, “As a Gen-Z focused house of brands, all our brands cater to the everyday fashion needs of our customers. However, each brand has its own identity and caters to different product categories and gender segments.” This strategy allows the brands to maintain their unique identities and avoid overlapping target markets while contributing to the overall growth of the company.
Innovation and Technology
The company relies heavily on data-driven insights to inform decision-making, from identifying trends to managing its supply chain. “Data is the foundation of our business model,” says Prasad. This reliance on technology spans all aspects of the business, including order management, marketing and customer engagement.
The company's “test, pilot, and scale” model is a perfect example of how to leverage data to optimize product offerings. By launching a wide range of products in small batches, Brand Studio Lifestyle is able to quickly identify which items perform best and scale accordingly. This approach minimizes risk and ensures they have the right products at the right time to meet consumer demand.
Seamless integration of online and offline channels
As Brand Studio Lifestyle expands into offline retail, it is focused on creating a seamless shopping experience that integrates both online and offline channels. Although the company is still in the early stages of its offline operations, with its first store opening just six months ago, it is already working towards building strong omnichannel integration.
“Our goal is to provide a seamless, unified and enriched shopping experience to our target customers,” Prasad explained. The company is currently studying industry best practices and adding its unique understanding of customers and retail to build efficient omnichannel processes. This integration will be crucial as the company looks to expand its offline presence and create a unified brand experience across all touchpoints.
New categories and global ambitions
With a portfolio already spanning over 20 categories and subcategories across men's and women's wear, Brand Studio Lifestyle shows no signs of slowing down. The company plans to expand into adjacent categories such as sportswear, plus sizes and accessories to cater to the changing needs of its target audience.
In addition to strengthening its existing brands, the company is open to exploring new opportunities through acquisitions or launching new brands if it identifies gaps in the market that cannot be filled by its current portfolio. However, Prasad makes it clear that the focus right now is on expanding its existing portfolio, which he believes still has significant growth potential.
Marketing strategies for a new generation of consumers
Brand Studio Lifestyle's marketing strategy is finely tailored to the needs of today's digitally native consumer. With a strong focus on social media and digital platforms, the company has successfully built a community of engaged and loyal customers. “Our strategy combines content, mega-influencers, micro- and nano-influencers to drive awareness, engagement and sales,” says Prasad.
The company's marketing approach has evolved to match changing consumer expectations, moving away from traditional transactional advertising to a more organic, authentic, two-way dialogue with its audience. This has enabled Brand Studio Lifestyle to build a strong brand presence that resonates with its target consumers.
future
“Our ambition is to become India's largest intelligent fashion brand house with the widest reach across all distribution modes and models,” Prasad said. The company plans to achieve this goal by leveraging its scale, strong supply chain and synergies across multiple channels. With a focus on global expansion both online and offline, Brand Studio Lifestyle is looking to make a name for itself on the international stage.
