Excluzen Featured On Business Line - 'Discounts Drive Even Luxury Sales'

Do luxury goods need discounts to create pull? One wouldn't have thought so. But here comes an online lifestyle player, trying to attract luxury consumers with discounts ranging from 20 per cent to 40 per cent.

Excluzen, a new online luxury destination, that offer products ranging from travel, nightlife, gadgets, party-hosting services and even golf coaching, claims to have caught the attention of luxury shopper.

Ms Urvashi Bhaguna Sahay, founder and CEO of Excluzen, says "We launched our operations in Janvuary 2012 and have already crossed 300 transactions in four weeks, mostly under the vertical of travel, electronics and fashion. "

                                                 

The Web site provides offers from brands like Apple, Bang & Olufsen, Tag Heuer, Omega and Satya Paul at discounts ranging from 20 per cent to 40 per cent depending on the category of the product.

"We already have 100 partners in brands that we deliver and are looking to increase them to not more than 250 by the end of next fiscal. Eighty per cent of the brand are Indian," says Ms Sahay. But by next year, she hopes to change the ratio of Indian to foreign brands to 60:40. The company on an average has been adding 5-7 partners every week.

Going forward, the company plans to partner with individual mehndiwallas (heena decorators), musicians and even women who make jewellery at home."Luxury can not be compartmentalised. What we are providing is a holistic experience," she says. Major locations targeted are Mumbai, Delhi, Punjab, Bangalore, Gujarat and Hyderabad.

To drive sales, Excluzen has been doing the below-the-line activities like arranging wine-tasting events as well as running online contests and offers on its Facebook pages.

The Marketing and ad spend for the company is 30-35 per cent of its investment cost. "We are also looking at magazine advertising Online advertising is a geared towards a user base outside India. We are targeting 50,000 transactions by end of next fiscal," she says.

The company is not following any advertising model but function on profit sharing with their partners where they charge 10-20 per cent of the product value as commission. They also have an 'exclusive' offering every month where a select partner can promote a limited edition product at a premium price and for this service, they charge higher margins.

Mr Deepak Tulsian, VP, Retail (Strategy) at Geetanjali Gems, says, "The purpose of tying up with these sites is that they cater to a very high-end segment and the aspirational bracket. So it helps our brand to gain visibility amongst this clientele and position along with similar luxury brands. Also these multi-brand Web sites have muc higher traffic then ours."    

At present Ms Sahay says, Excluzen's clientele is 65 per cent Indians and 35 per cent expats. "The target customers for our offerings are high net worth Indians and expats who are in their thirties, are earning well and wants to enjoy life. it is an international site and the goods are shipped around the world, " she says.

Source - Business Line, March 2  -  http://tinyurl.com/75f3c5j