Fashion portals introduce personal stylists to be one step ahead

With too many players fighting to grab a pie of the growing e-commerce market

in India, players are introducing several exclusive features to attract customers. One among them is the introduction of personal stylists for the style-conscious but time-pressed consumers and to bridge the gap between physical and online shopping experience. Startups like Voonik, Stylecracker and 20dresses have launched a personalised product selection and style advice by building an expert curation algorithm into their platform.

Chennai-based Voonik, set up by former Indian School of Business alumnus Ali and Navaneetha Krishnan, offers handpicked outfits for customers, based on their body type and style preferences from across the web. The portal offers over 5,000 women's products from different online retailers including Zovi, Fashionara, Jabong and Myntra. Voonik receives a 10-15 percent commission from these fashion portals for each product they direct to the website and the company expects to generate Rs 12 crores revenue next year. Voonik has also received Rs 2.5 crore investment from Seedfund.

Even Mumbai-based StyleCracker, started by investment banker Dhimaan Shah and former vogue stylist Archana Walavalkar in May 2013, offers a personalised styling platform where people can get their fashion related queries answered with advice tailored for them. The platform shows women how to wear what they already own in several different ways and also picks merchandise from online retailers like Myntra, Jabong and Koovs as well as offline retailers like Shoppers Stop to create a stylish outfit according to consumer’s choice. With an undisclosed angel investment of about Rs 1 crore, the company also expects to earn Rs 12 crores in two years.

Unlike Voonik and StyleCracker, 20dresses.com styles customers with its own private label collection earning extra points in terms of margins of at least 55-60 percent per sale. Such platforms, that can add value to the existing e-tailing portals, also become acquisition targets and hold immense potential in today’s marketplace.