American Swan logs on to hybrid retail for growth

American Swan is a premium global fashion and lifestyle brand is the first to offer the largest range of products online. The brand is a part of Four Cross Media which is in turn backed by Astro All Asia Networks. After having launched its own e-commerce

website early this year, the company is betting big on growing through a perfect combination of an online and offline business model.

“We have received seed funding of Rs 40 crores and will look for strategic and financial investment in the business as we progress. By A/W '13 we will have a pan-India retail presence through distribution in more than 200 A-grade MBOs across the country,” explains Anurag Rajpal, Director and CEO, The American Swan Lifestyle Company.

Retail growth the way ahead

Since its launch in January 2013, the company has kept its focus on both channels of retail viz. online and retail distribution to get maximum visibility and exposure for the brand. “American Swan is based on a hybrid model, combining the best of retail and online to be able to offer our customers an experience that delivers more,” explains Rajpal adding “we have strived to combine a retail presence alongside an online presence through top online aggregators as well as our own portal Americanswan.com. We are using multiple channels not only to position the product/service but also to identify, engage and acquire the right audience.”

American Swan has positioned itself as a premium global fashion and lifestyle brand that offers a range of authentic, smart casual wear. To make the most of both mediums, the brand is expanding its offering on its website, increasing its assortment on online aggregators as well as expanding its distribution network.

Elaborating on their marketing strategy Rajpal says, “Other aspects that differentiate our brand is our approach to marketing to the community, content and commerce. The American Swan marketing strategy is to build a customer base through a strong digital marketing and activation approach. We are focused on our target audience, which is the 20-30 year old urban and semi-urban youth, who is digitally savvy and connected. Online retail has seen a heavy overlap with social networking and search due to aggressive marketing and strong inclination towards social commerce. This insight has been the driving force behind American Swan opting for digital marketing as the primary channel to build the brand as well as drive trials and purchase.”

Turning e-commerce profitable

Though the e-commerce market in India is showing encouraging growth, the consumer is yet to move into a mature lifecycle like in China and in the west. According to Rajpal, India is still in a nascent stage where the medium is growing and patterns are evolving. “The biggest challenges that e-commerce businesses are facing today are: high customer acquisition costs, issues pertaining to COD as a preferred payment option, the ‘deals & discount’ mindset of the audience, high media spends required to achieve visibility and customers, fairly low loyalty of customers, high fulfillment costs, etc,” he says.

Secondly, customers today primarily seek online shopping to get discounts and deals. “We have been clear right from the start that akin to any retail brand, we will offer discounts only during the end of season sale,” he says. The company is working on innovative methods and promotions to woo customers through not just products but service-level offerings. The brand’s distinctive range includes men’s and women’s apparel, accessories, footwear, beauty and fragrance and home products. For autumn/winter 2013, the brand has three collections: New England Edition and Fashion Country, inspired from international fashion trends.

“We are targeting the mid to premium segment of the apparel market and 80 percent of our products fall in the price range of Rs 500 to Rs 2,500,” he concludes.
American Swan, is a premium global online fashion & lifestyle brand that offers preppy fashion in a range of authentic smart casuals to people who seek an aspirational, glamorous yet restrained lifestyle. The brand combines classic, iconic 'Americana' styles with a quintessential European fashion, its refinement, tailoring and sensibility.