FLO Bangalore, under the leadership of Chairperson Ms. Deepa Boopesh Reddy, hosted a masterclass, “Behind the Brands with Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL)” under its FLO Bangalore Startup Cell. The session brought together FLO members and aspiring entrepreneurs for an insider view into the strategy, creativity, operations, and consumer understanding required to build successful fashion and retail brands.
The event featured senior ABFRL leaders representing key functions across the fashion retail ecosystem. Mr. Anil Kumar, Chief Business Officer at Louis Philippe, shared perspectives on business growth and the importance of creating a strong, differentiated brand proposition. Mr. Gaurav Raheja, Creative Director at Van Heusen, spoke about the relationship between creativity, consumer relevance, and brand identity.
Mr. Aveek Ghosh, Retail Head, discussed store performance, retail formats, and customer experience, while Mr. Kapil Yadav, Visual Merchandising Head, explained how store design, visual storytelling, and open façades can influence customer engagement and conversion. Mr. Rajshekhar Kolkur, Chief Supply Chain & E-commerce Officer, highlighted the importance of agile supply chains, inventory planning, replenishment, and omnichannel execution.
The masterclass demonstrated that sustainable brand building extends far beyond a compelling product or attractive campaign. Participants learned that successful brands are created through an integrated and repeatable system connecting consumer insight, product design, sourcing, pricing, merchandising, retail operations, supply chain, and customer experience. The speakers stressed the need for entrepreneurs to identify a distinct brand persona and ensure every aspect of the business consistently reflects that positioning.
Practical business learnings formed a key part of the discussion. Participants were encouraged to test ideas through smaller pilot formats before scaling, assess store-level unit economics carefully, and maintain financial discipline, including managing Cost of Goods Sold within an effective range. The session also highlighted performance indicators such as targeting 70% sell-through before End of Season Sales and maintaining efficient inventory cycles. The discussion on e-commerce and retail agility showed how brands can respond quickly to changing consumer demand while avoiding unnecessary inventory risk.
Key Takeaways
- Build a clear, consumer-centric brand persona that guides product design, communication, retail experience, and customer engagement.
- Treat fashion and retail as an integrated ecosystem where creativity, merchandising, supply chain, e-commerce, and store operations work together.
- Test new concepts through pilot stores and small-batch production before committing resources to large-scale expansion.
- Maintain strong unit economics by monitoring COGS, pricing, store productivity, sales performance, and inventory levels.
- Use retail data such as sell-through, product velocity, and inventory cycles to drive timely replenishment and minimise unsold stock.
- Invest in visual merchandising, open store façades, thoughtful layouts, and consistent storytelling to improve customer experience and conversion.
Impact
With 30 members, 30 beneficiaries, and a footprint of 30, the event provided a focused learning platform for women entrepreneurs interested in fashion, lifestyle, retail, and consumer-brand businesses. The programme reinforced the value of combining creativity with commercial rigour, data-led decision-making, and operational excellence. It also generated interest in conducting similar Behind the Brands sessions across other sectors, enabling FLO Bangalore Startup Cell to continue creating meaningful industry-learning opportunities for its members.
FLO Members Engaged: 3 • Direct Beneficiaries: 26 women trainers