This Matrix-backed men's clothing company wants to triple its revenue in the following year

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In terms of the apparel industry, women have traditionally dominated the roost. However, as more companies focus on men's grooming and wardrobe demands, guys are finally coming into their own. According to Statista, the men's apparel market is expected to expand from Rs 1,564.96 billion in 2018 to Rs 3,268.69 billion in 2028. Anurag Saboo enjoyed shopping online, but he often struggled to discover what he was looking for. 

Anurag teamed up with Gaurav Pushkar, an IIT-Delhi classmate, and long-time friend, to launch DaMENSCH, a men's clothing startup based in Bengaluru. The co-founders previously worked together at the eCommerce portal Snapdeal and beauty behemoth Nykaa. Working for these internet companies provided them with the confidence to establish their own company. 

Damensch Apparel Pvt. Ltd., which was founded in 2018, began selling men's innerwear with five stock-keeping units (SKUs) because the industry had "not advanced much from an innovation aspect." The brand currently sells 18 SKUs of innerwear and casual wear. Damensch has introduced odourless soft-fabric underwear, cotton boxers, and jackets made of environmentally friendly bamboo fabric.

 

The company began by selling on their website and marketplaces such as Flipkart, Amazon, and Myntra, using a digital-first strategy. Damensch has grown from 50 orders per day in 2018 to 5,000 deliveries per day in 2019. Anurag estimates that their client retention rate is over 40%, and he attributes the company's rise to high-quality items and social media marketing.

Men are also considerably more loyal customers. If people like a brand's product, they are likely to remain a customer for a long time. 

Many internet businesses were discovered as a result of pandemic-related lockdowns, which compelled most individuals to stay at home. Because of the restrictions, internet purchasing became a need rather than a choice, prompting investors to seek out direct-to-consumer (D2C) firms.

While MyGlamm, a cosmetics firm, became a unicorn and was acquired by The Good Glam Group, Mamaearth and SUGAR Cosmetics went on to raise larger rounds at higher values. Damensch, which now employs 150 people, secured Rs 50 crore from Matrix Partners India in November 2020, after receiving Rs 137.5 million in two seed rounds, according to Crunchbase statistics. The company also claims to be profitable, having grown threefold since the lockdown. 

The quality of the product - if it is too nice, securing repeat orders from the same customer may be difficult, as people may only need new innerwear once a year. Damensch intends to spend the next year focusing on product expansion in the casual wear and athleisure areas. Damensch is currently up against Page Industries' Jockey, Van Heusen, and DSG Consumer-backed XYXX Apparels, an omnichannel men's inner and casual wear brand. 

The D2C firm plans to triple its annual revenue in the next 12 months, reaching Rs 300 crore by October of next year. For the time being, they are concentrating on expanding our product portfolio and increasing our revenue run rate.

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