Direct-to-consumer Direct-to-reader
Dear reader,
Every crisis is also an opportunity for new learnings, for new affirmations, for new beginnings. The Hindenberg Research report on the Adani Group erupted into one such crisis with ripple effects in the spheres of business and finance. While the world awaits the denouement of this saga, we bring to you well-researched reports and opinion on what could have gone wrong in this otherwise mesmerizing story of one of the fastest growing business empires of the day. A special package in this issue brings to you voices from different domains of the financial sector that dissect the imbroglio and prescribe lessons for the future.
The growing concerns in the technology sector are evidence enough that even if a new equilibrium is higher than its predecessor, the act of balancing requires a slump. Even so, some sectors of the Indian economy have been braving the odds and ploughing on through many travails. In this edition of BW Businessworld we focus on the steadily evolving direct-to-consumer (D2C) market that impacts our daily lives, but seldom grabs headlines. A Modor Intelligence report assesses the total addressable D2C market in India at $33.1 billion in 2020 and predicts that it will grow to $100 billion in 2025.
Many D2C players have gone beyond online to mark their presence offline too, and this is shaping the future of ecommerce as a connect-to-consumer proposition. It opens up new vistas in business and commerce, entrepreneurship and of course, employment opportunities for thousands. The D2C sector will continue to attract attention and investments and it must be celebrated on all counts, as must the initiatives of the young entrepreneurs who have been able to carve a niche for themselves in it. Among them are boAT Co-founders, Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta and Co-founder of the Good Glamm Group, Darpan Sanghvi. Our cover features in this issue are the stories of these young and successful enterprises.
Do also read an interesting interview with ace investor Kanwaljit Singh of Fireside Ventures. He says that the inherent opportunity for new-age disruptive brands is still nascent. I agree with his thoughts completely and also with his observation that increasingly consumers are evaluating brands on the scale of how they impact the planet and society. One such entrepreneur featured in this issue is actor Alia Bhatt who prioritised sustainability for her children’s clothing brand, Ed-a-Mamma, and the market showed that there was a place for it. In 10 months, the company registered 10X growth to become a Rs 150 crore brand. Of course, we also bring to you all our regular features and columns.
Happy reading!
