From Applied Mathematics to MBA
Nike started as an e-commerce platform for beauty and wellness products. Now it also has a specialty fashion division, Nyika Fashion, headed by Advaita as CEO. By December 2022, the company has increased its number of stores to 141. Including three new fashion stores, there are stores in 56 cities covering a total area of 1.4 lakh square feet. As of March 31, 2022, Nike Fashion has 1,553 brands and more than 4.3 million stocks.
“I studied applied mathematics for my graduate degree at Yale University and found it challenging. I love the way that study made me think about problem structuring. It’s still helpful today,” says Advaita.
Prior to starting Nike Fashion, Advaita was responsible for driving the business of the beauty segment and growing the brand into new stores from day one with Nike. Meanwhile, Advaita also earned an MBA from Harvard University.
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Building a new brand
Initially the aim was to start the website and make the brands successful first. Nike Fash started with five or ten employees and now has more than 3000 employees. Advaita admits that Naika’s journey has not been smooth, given the early rejections from investors. For the first few years, it was difficult for the business to click. Slowly the brand grew. Thus Nyika has been able to grow into one of the best cosmetics business in India. For Advaita, this period was a crash course into business leadership. Advaita says that during this time he was enjoying every minute of his work.
Meanwhile, Advaita focused on marketing and the e-commerce side of the business. and spearheaded the launch of Nike’s first private label co-brand. Advaita also found a strategy to bring the brand to the physical store, including creating concepts of luxury and on-trend. Thus Advaita started Nike’s first brand business. In 2018 Nike Fashion started. Launching a fashion brand in India is a difficult task. They were sure that the business could not shine that quickly.
A popular global store
The Nike team studied the market closely and understood the need for a premium, fashion forward, trendy platform. They wanted to find a niche in the market with fashion and trends rather than price. Nike now carries more than 2,000 national and international brands through its Global Store property. The company launched a brand in India called Revolve and Nykaa Fashion also has its own brands like Nykd by Nykaa, 20 Dresses, RSVP, Mixt, Likha, Pipa Bella.
Nike has created a curation called Hidden Gems for budding entrepreneurs across the country. It gives India’s talent a chance to shine. It is a broad platform. It is a platform that stands out for its consistency, curation and trendiness.
A brand that grows with the customer
As Nike expanded its journey into fashion and beauty, Nike’s customer base grew along with it. Nike has always been trying to introduce brands and products that are interesting and desirable to consumers. Consumers have grown with the brand, and the brand with consumers has grown to a level where people who only used kajal 11 years ago are now using serums, masks and concealers.
Role of Social Media in Brand Growth
Advaita also says that with the advent of new media, the brand has been enhanced through influencers on social media. Today it is common for consumers to look for reviews before buying anything. The launch of the Global Store in 2021 will provide Nike Fashion’s customers with many opportunities to choose from global brands. The partnership with the Revolve brand was the beginning of bringing some American brands to the country. Nike also has some of the best Turkish brands. Also looking for British, Australian, Korean brands. The global store is a big part of Nike’s business.
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Nike is growing well
The speed of Naika’s business growth is also worth mentioning. Nike fashion is growing in a great way. Advaita is confident about the type of brands brought to the country and the culture created within the company. Advaita says that she got all the courage and confidence to take risks from her mother.
In the third quarter of FY2022-23, Nike Fashion’s GMV grew by 50% year-on-year to Rs 724.4 crore. Its monthly average visitors grew 18% year-over-year to 19.4 million. Annual customer transactions grew 50% year-on-year to 2.4 million. Orders increased 31% year over year to 1.7 million while order conversion rose 1.2%.
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