The D2C apparel space has grown multi-fold over the years. However, the concept of sustainable, gender-fluid clothing is still in its infancy. This is the need gap that The Pot Plant Clothing wanted to traverse with their unique offering
At the time when Founders Resham Karmchandani and Sanya Suri started The Pot Plant, gender-neutral clothing was a very new concept and the market was still coming to terms with understanding what true inclusivity meant in terms of clothing and fashion. Now with more brands taking up the cause and the awareness that the customers now enjoy, gender-fluid, sustainable clothing is making its mark.
The Pot Plant is about clothing that is fuss-free, inclusive and craft-led. “We have constantly made an effort to not just craft collections that are inclusive but also spread awareness about the gender-agnosticism of clothing. We do not craft any special collections that are gender-fluid. That for us is the key message. We design collections and then the wearer decides what they are comfortable adorning. Fashion is their voice. They choose to translate our clothing into a voice of their own. That has been our biggest achievement,” Resham notes.
Creating a strong voice
The brand’s USP is their unique work with Bandhani. They have constantly worked towards the innovation of craft and their bandhani patterns are one-of-a-kind. “There is increased awareness in the consumer about how the clothing is made. Especially in a post-crisis world, these are the questions that the audience is asking and it has pushed brands to change their practices and be accountable. There is increased inclusivity and sustainability in what brands are rolling out now be it young designers or industry behemoths.,” Sanya notes.
‘The Pot Plant’ is about finding the freedom of expression in clothing that is fuss-free and comfort-driven. The brand belief lies in the designers’ zeal to push the boundaries when it comes to textile engineering and design. The Pot Plant upholds eco-living by touching base with various aspects of sustainability from craft.
to repurposing to try and minimize the carbon footprint and bring eco-fashion back into routine life. “For a lot of customers initially, the concept of gender fluid or gender agnostic clothing meant shapeless garbs. Changing this narrative was one of our key challenges. Besides this, we produce consciously. 80% of our business is on a made-to-order module and people have to wait 6-7 days for their piece of clothing in an age where e-commerce is pushing for rapid deliveries was a hurdle. But, we have built that customer base over the years and have considerable presence in tier 2 and 3 cities as well,” Resham further explained.
Presenting authenticity
The key advantage of being a D2C brand is that the customers can reach you directly across touchpoints, the founders admit. Allowing that ease to them instead of a faceless CRM system in place is key to understanding their requirement. The pandemic pushed The Pot Plant team to focus more on their online reach because people are spending more time online now. There’s increased attention to logistics and seamless operations. Besides this, via social media, the team makes sure that they are accessible and that there’s proper CRM in place.
“Authenticity is crucial. The customer is not looking for just a product to buy. They are looking for a story, a journey that they can cherish. We try and keep our communications along those lines. From a socio-economic perspective, we work with artisans and we have tried to take the craft of bandhani to a modern aesthetics without compromising the authenticity. We are a bootstrapped company. We have grown and been cash-positive since the early months of our inception. We are looking for opportunities and investors who understand the brand philosophy and help us reach a wider audience,” Sanya highlights when talking about the brand’s focus.
BROWNIE POINTS
- The brand was Launched by GEN NEXT LAKME FASHION WEEK
- The Founders won the GRAZIA YOUNG FASHION AWARD.
- The brand opened its first flagship store in Delhi in 2022, October to mark the beginning of its offline foray.
- The brand not only ships all across India but also has a considerable presence in New York and the Middle East via its online footprint.
