As per a BCG-Facebook study, the online fashion market in India is poised to reach US $14 billion by 2020, with the women shopper share increasing from 39 percent to 48 percent. The modern women’s western wear is set to increase its share to 18 percent from 14 percent of the total online fashion market.
One brand which is looking to capitalize on this growing share is Ombré Lane. Founded in July 2017, Ombré Lane is an upcoming versatile fashion brand, with an objective to create beautiful and comfortable workwear for modern working class Indian women.
In an exclusive interaction with IMAGES Retail Bureau, Shweta Sharma, Co-Founder, Ombré Lane, talks about the business proposition and future aspects of the newly launched brand.
Idea Behind the Brand
The business ideation came from a personal pain-point of not being able to find fashionable and quality work clothes for the Indian women. Emphasizing on the importance of the women’s apparel as one of the fastest growing segments of the market, we decided to use the premium quality fabrics to form the workwear for working-class women, fitting into their daily requirements of meetings, conferences and countless social engagements.
Early Difficulties & Challenges
The biggest challenge was to create the right fit for the working class. Unfortunately, most of the choices available today are not made keeping the Indian body types in mind. We did months of research on body types for the Indian women, especially on measurements and fabric, before finalizing our designs and the right fit.
The Product
Ombré Lane offers a wide and distinctive range of workwear collections with constitutes details like no gape buttons, darts, back yokes and curved hems for easy movement and better fit. We also cater in dresses that are lined and have functional pockets. The workwear not only ensures functionality but also includes feminine features like laces, pipings, and bows to celebrate the element of the modern woman. We will soon be launching the pants and the skirts collection.
We design our clothes in-house, source quality fabric and manufacture the product within the country. The garments are tailored with handpicked durable and soft feel premium fabrics that we source directly from the top manufacturers and distributors across the country that supply to luxury brands and designers. We use machine washable and durable fabrics, keeping in mind the daily and busy lifestyle of our consumers.
Product Range
Ombré Lane’s collection is based on three themes that blend with the modern lifestyle and workwear.
The Boss Lady: The category is dedicated to the female-dominated or female-oriented hierarchical management boardrooms. These female bosses are the transformational leaders, serving as role models for the modern society as well as the corporate world. The collection includes neatly tailored plain and printed shirts, blouses and dresses in cotton, silks and fine georgettes that can be styled effortlessly for formal meetings or post work hangouts. Formal attire meets lunch get-away!
Work to Wine: The category provides the perfect outfit for a smart workday as well as after work rendezvous. The luxurious collection celebrates life and versatility in the form of shirts, blouses, and dresses in silks and fine georgettes. The eye-catching florals incorporated in this collection are inspired by the bold woman of today who is not afraid to stand out and showcase her individuality.
Chic Casual: This category is for the women who prefer smart casuals and likes to add chic to her attire. The collection includes apparel that allows freedom of movement, but in classic or in-trend shapes, styles and fits. We have incorporated more casual fits and prints for these styles; however, they can still be styled for work as effortlessly as for casual getaways or weekends.
Business Development
We want Ombré Lane to be extension of our thoughts, aspirations and personalities. We plan to establish Ombré Lane as a go to destination for modern Indian women wanting to buy premium work clothing
We are a customer focused brand and look to incorporate customer feedback in everything we do – from our designs and fabrics to our website and content.
Revenue Targets
We are growing over 100 percent month-on-month and plan to continue to momentum as we scale in the coming months.
Choosing a Franchisee
We currently have no such plans.
Expansion Plans
Going forward, we plan to establish our brand as a go-to destination for modern Indian women, wanting to buy premium work clothing. We plan to scale significantly over the next one-year while staying focused on building our brand. Over the next couple of years, we’ll focus on launching more collection and categories, while focusing on digital channels. Post establishing our brand online, we do want to expand into offline stores in a few years.
Funding Plans
We are a self-funded organization for now.
Online & E-Commerce
We currently retail online via our website www.ombrelane.com
Price Range
Due to our vertically integrated business model, we offer superior quality fabrics and high on fashion designs, while still being in the premium segment. Our focus is to place the best in terms of quality, design and fit for aiding consumer choice and satisfaction. The price points for our collection starts from Rs. 1500. We offer superior quality fabrics and high on fashion designs, while still being in the premium segment.
The Competition
Women’s workwear is a fairly under-penetrated market in India. Ombré Lane is focused on providing the customers with – superior product design, quality and fit; better-categorized website experience with quality customer experience and guidance.
Work clothing across the world has moved to comfortable clothing that flaunts one’s personality and femininity, whereas in India it is still in struggling phase with lack of variety in work clothes. Their only choice remains the plain boring shirts which don’t go with their personality on most of the occasions, hereby subduing their femininity. We want to fill the gap by creating soft feminine, fashion-forward, superior quality and versatile workwear that is just in line with the modern, sophisticated and beautiful women in India.
Promotional Campaigns to Lure Consumers
We are not a discount-oriented brand. Regarding promotions, we mainly rely on digital advertising. We will continue to leverage digital advertising channels along with occasional pop-ups. We have done a couple of popup stores which were very successful, and we plan to leverage them going forward as well.
