Selling brands both online, offline will be key to profitability: Zivame

Emerging from an investor-led leadership change, online lingerie retailer Zivame aims to become profitable in the first quarter of fiscal 2018-19, thus expecting a boost from its ambitious plan to open at least three dozen stores across India. Zivame's strategy to sell its brands both online and in brick-and-mortar stores will be key to achieving profitability , say chief operating officer Shaleen Sinha .

The company aims to be a women's wear brand and will launch new categories like active wear among others in coming months. The company wants to break even by June 2018.

Sinha adds the company's decision last year to transform from an online marketplace to an online brand will help it reduce cash burn by 60-70 percent over the next 18 months. The cost of customer acquisition will come down due to multiple channels and Zivame will also revive marketing through TV commercials over the next month, Sinha informs.

As per filings with the Registrar of Companies, Zivame registered an 84 percent increase in losses to Rs 54 crores on revenue of Rs 62 crores. It had an inventory of Rs. 40 crores. After raising US Technology Fund and Khazanah Nasional Berhad in 2015, Zivame, which used to sell other brands as well through online retail, liquidated most of its inventory and turned focus to retailing only its own labels. It also opted to sell offline through company-owned and franchisee stores.