Decoding Omnichannel:
Strategies for D2C Brands
In our report, Decoding Omnichannel: Strategies for D2C Brands, we delve into the intricacies of the retail revolution, drawing insights from trailblazing companies like BlueStone, Lenskart, and Mamaearth. By offering actionable strategies and insights, we aim to empower entrepreneurs and brands to navigate this dynamic landscape with confidence. Based on frameworks in this report, founders can create their own playbooks to scale their businesses successfully.
size of the Indian retail market by 2030
online shoppers, discovering new brands by 2030
D2C brands launched post covid due to ease of launching online
sales will continue to have offline touch-points in the future
Frameworks to help you decide when and how to go offline
Deciding when to go omnichannel
Early signs of a consumer franchise being built online paves the path for planning offline expansion. Brand track acts as a holy grail of testing out the awareness funnel and making informed decision on when to go offline.
How to choose the apt offline channel for your brand
Case Studies
To serve customers around the country, Lenskart, adapted a four-phase playbook for its offline channel expansion.
- Identified top performing pin codes
- Clustered pin codes to identify possible markets
- Estimated TAM of possible markets and found potentials location (malls/high street)
- Started building processes and systems to run the store, measure and improve performance
- Built systems and processes to understand and fix store performance
- Identified gaps in existing cities and open maximum number of stores
- Identified 4-6 other cities to go deep in with at least 1 store each city
- Started experiments with franchisee models
- Identified existing best markets based on footfalls, demographic mix, online order densities
- Understood distances at which stores started cannibalizing
- Scouted for look-alike markets across country
- Built successful franchisee stories
Identified all potential markets across cities in India for expansion where at least 2 of the following exist :
- Brand clusters
- Online order densities
- Non-organized competition
Bluestone pioneers an omnichannel jewellery experience, allowing online product selection with in-store checkout convenience.
Set up stores in congruence with online activity density:
- Customers browse and select jewelry online prior to a purchase. However, touch + try are critical steps to buying jewelry; Hence seamless purchase of online cart to offline checkout is enabled at stores
Leverage data across multiple nodes to optimize supply chain metrics:
- Inventory planning and demand forecasting basis online customer selection and cart addition
- Real time view on product sales across stores and inventory in-stock
Scale offline via different operating models:
- Experimentations with multiple operating models e.g., COCO/ Franchise to help identify the right mix needed to drive the highest RoE
Revenue (FY24)
Revenue CAGR (FY20 – FY 24)
Offline stores (FY 24)
Increased online search trends (2020-2024)
AgroStar is empowering 10 M+ Indian farmers via an omnichannel experience delivered by its Farmer App and retail store network
Set-up retail stores to go deeper in online demand catchments
- Nearly 70% of pin codes with online demand have at least one retail store in their catchment
- 52% customers who are transacting at retail stores, had previously consumed content on the Farmer App. They demonstrate an ARPU growth of 30% with a store opening in their vicinity
Drive new customer acquisition via retail stores
- 72% of the farmers acquired at the store consume agri-content on the Farmer App within 5 days of transacting at store
Unlock profitable growth for retail partner’s business
- 25%+ increase in retail partner’s footfall* and 50% increase in retailer margins* post collaborating with AgroStar
Net Revenue (FY24)
Retail stores
Farmers connect with the advisory center daily
Farmers connecting daily on the Farmer App
Key quotes by founders
Anurag, Founder - Pilgrim
The future is frictionless. By offering an omnichannel experience, we empower consumers to seamlessly switch between online browsing, in-store consultations, or social media interactions. Omnichannel retail ensures we're accessible however our customers choose to shop.
Gaurav, Founder - Bluestone
Embrace the digital age, but never lose sight of the human touch. Omnichannel success lies in seamlessly blending the convenience of online experiences with the warmth of offline interactions, creating a holistic journey for customers.
This philosophy has not only guided our approach at BlueStone but has also fueled our success. By adopting an omnichannel strategy, we've enhanced customer satisfaction and driven significant growth, solidifying our position as an industry leader. Looking ahead, we believe omnichannel will remain central to retail, shaping customer engagement and brand success.
Shardul, Founder - Agrostar
Although we live in a digitally connected world, building a physical presence and adding a human touch is critical to building a brand. While the adoption of digital channels amongst farmers is gaining strong traction, farmers are yet a bit apprehensive about turning to digital platforms for all their farming needs or are largely unaware of these digital channels.
The purpose of our omnichannel strategy is to give farmers faster and greater access to AgroStar’s services and provide a seamless experience to our customers across channels. In a crowded market, AgroStar’s Laal dukaan has become a trusted place of choice for farmers across the country
Srikanth, Founder - Homelane
“From day one, our core belief has been that the home interior market business would be omnichannel. Having the online is essential , but having the experience centre is equally crucial since people want to touch and feel of the product. We generate many online leads but actual conversions happen offline only. Ours is a consultative sale. We would continue to work on same business model in the future as well.”
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