In today's rapidly evolving retail landscape, omnichannel strategies have become crucial for brands aiming to achieve both short-term growth and long-term profitability. However, adopting an omnichannel approach is more than just selling products across multiple platforms; it's about creating a seamless and unified customer experience. Leaders from Giva, Whiskers India, and HomeLane provide valuable insights into how their companies leverage omnichannel strategies to drive success.

Embracing the Omnichannel Mindset

Aditya Labroo, COO of Giva, emphasizes that omnichannel is a significant shift in mindset, and it is not just about expanding sales channels. "Omnichannel is actually a very big change in mindset for a brand. It's not only selling across the board but also unifying everything you do at the backend," Labroo explains. This includes maintaining consistent communication, color schemes, inventory management, and marketing strategies across all platforms.

Giva's journey from an online-only brand to incorporating offline channels required rethinking its approach to marketing and profitability. Labroo highlights that Giva focuses on profitability at a city level rather than a vertical P&L level. By ensuring a minimum level of performance marketing online and a physical presence in key cities, Giva creates visibility and builds customer trust. This city-level focus allows them to understand the profit and loss dynamics specific to each location, making the overall impact greater than the sum of individual efforts.

Labroo notes the importance of physical stores in India, where 90 percent of purchases still happen offline. Stores not only provide comfort to customers but also result in higher average order values, almost 1.7 to 2 times that of online orders. This integrated approach enables Giva to craft a scalable playbook that can be replicated across more cities, ensuring both growth and profitability.

Leveraging Data and Technology

Neeja Shah Goswami, CEO of Whiskers India, shares how starting with offline channels provided valuable insights when transitioning to online sales. "The data from online channels helped us understand geo-specific feedback and customer preferences," she says. By merging data from both offline and online channels, Whiskers India could tailor their strategies to cater to different markets effectively.

For instance, the South Indian market showed a strong preference for beard care products, leading to targeted offline expansions in cities like Bengaluru and Chennai. This data-driven approach also revealed surprising opportunities in Tier II and III cities, where specific products performed exceptionally well.

Whiskers India's multichannel strategy involves designing customized marketing activities for different types of stores and marketplaces. Goswami explains, "We design strategies specific to a particular chain, marketplace, or city, depending on the consumer demographics and preferences." This personalized approach ensures consistency in pricing and customer experience while adding value through tailored promotions and activations.

Simplifying Complex Purchases

In the home furnishing sector, where product customization and customer preferences play a significant role, HomeLane's omnichannel strategy focuses on simplifying the customer journey. Subodh Jain, SVP- Growth & Category, HomeLane, outlines its approach, "We have a strong omnichannel presence with 50+ experience centers across India, where customers can explore various possibilities of home interiors."

These experience centers allow customers to visualize different home interior setups without making a purchase, helping them make informed decisions. HomeLane combines this physical experience with a robust digital presence, where customers can discover the brand on social media, book orders online, and work virtually with designers.

Technology plays a pivotal role in HomeLane's strategy. Its proprietary software, Spacecraft, allows customers to visualize 3D designs and understand the cost implications of each decision in real time. This transparency empowers customers to make informed choices, bridging the knowledge gap in high-value purchases like home interiors.

Additionally, HomeLane's app provides customers with status updates, access to drawings and documents, and a platform to raise queries, ensuring a seamless and controlled project management experience.

The Role of Partnerships and Collaborations

Partnerships and collaborations are integral to the omnichannel strategies of these brands. For Giva, celebrity endorsements have played a crucial role in building brand awareness and trust. Labroo highlights that partnerships with influencers and celebrities have helped Giva gain traction quickly. "Having someone endorse your brand helps to establish trust and credibility," he says.

Whiskers India focuses on collaborations with channel partners to design targeted strategies for different consumer segments. Goswami explains that understanding the unique consumer base of each partner, whether it's a supermarket chain or an online marketplace, allows them to tailor their approach effectively.

HomeLane's partnerships extend to technology providers and channel partners, ensuring a unified customer experience. Jain notes that working with omnichannel fulfillment partners allows them to optimize logistics, ensuring fast and efficient delivery regardless of the sales channel.

Personalizing the Customer Experience

Personalization is key to creating a consistent and engaging customer experience across channels. Giva's approach includes collecting customer data such as birthdays and leveraging it to provide personalized gifting recommendations. "Jewellery is an emotional product and personal touches like birthday reminders help build a connection with the customer," Labroo explains.

Whiskers India uses data from both offline and online channels to understand customer behavior and preferences. This data-driven approach allows them to personalize marketing efforts and product offerings, ensuring a consistent and relevant experience for the customer.

HomeLane's use of technology to visualize designs and provide real-time pricing information empowers customers to make personalized decisions. Jain emphasizes that this approach not only simplifies the purchasing process but also enhances customer satisfaction and trust.

The Impact of Customer Feedback

Customer feedback is a critical component of refining omnichannel strategies. For HomeLane, feedback collected through CSATs and NPS scores helps identify areas for improvement and track performance trends. Jain explains that it uses this feedback to drive cross-functional projects aimed at enhancing the customer experience.

Whiskers India leverages feedback from beauty advisors in offline channels and online sales data to understand customer preferences and improve its offerings. Goswami notes that this feedback loop helps it stay attuned to market demands and adjust its strategies accordingly.

Giva uses customer feedback to refine its technology stack and improve the customer journey. Labroo highlights that tracking key interactions, both online and offline, allows it to provide a seamless and consistent experience.