D2C space is ever-evolving and D2C partners are accelerating the growth journey of the D2C players by supporting them in their endeavour. Here’s how Navin Joshua, Founder/Director, GreenHonchos comprehends the ecosystem to grow in the days to follow.
GreenHonchos is a full-stack eCommerce consulting firm, offering technology, digital and operational solutions for scaling D2C brands online with a consulting framework to help them seamlessly start, exponentially grow and deliver an engaging online commerce experience. Over the last 10 years, GreenHonchos has tested and proven their 100cr transformational revenue blueprint with more than 100 D2C brands, and now their mission is to help benefit other eRetail brands in the industry. We got in touch with Navin Joshua, Founder/Director, GreenHonchos to get to know how the D2C ecosystem is growing with pace and what’s in store for the ecosystem. Here are a few insights as excerpts from the interview.
Enablers are important
Navin mentions how the ecosystem enablers and technology partners are the drivers of growth and from giving the brands access to an immensely big pool of data to helping the brands become market-ready, the ecosystem drives the play. “For brands to adapt to a journey led by enablers is an important aspect as this helps them get market-ready faster and they do not have to weigh in market aspects when planning their approach to consumers. They can be more prepared that way and can take up challenges with more strength. This prepares them to face come what way. The ecosystem should always be considered as a support system and that way the collaboration will help sow great results,” Navin comments.
Enabler ecosystem can churn out faster results by connecting each end of the retail ecosystem. They are better equipped to draw the connection out and build a stronger relationship between the retailer/brand and the consumer.
Think beyond the budget
Navin says that when signing up with an enabler it is important to keep an eye on the track record of the enabler and then sign up with the one who has proven competency in the field. So, domain expertise and results are very important aspects to consider when handpicking the right enabler. Moreover, it is also important to check on the knowledge aspect and then sign up with someone as the right knowledge exchange between the enabler and the brand can create wonders and prepare the brand for the market in a more concrete way. In the selection process budget does play a very big factor, but here’s what Navin advises “Today whoever you approach in the ecosystem, be it a leading Martech player or the most niche online logistic partner, the idea of payment has completely changed. The entire ecosystem allows for ‘pay as you use’ and you can pretty much balance your requirement as per your budget and still be able to afford some of the leading technology without breaking the bank. This sort of flexibility is helping strengthen the bond between the technology provider and the brands. It is creating a smooth pathway and asserting more faith”.
He hints that the budget sometimes exceeds beyond hope when the brand tries to do everything in-house day in and day out. This way, there is fatigue and also reaching the desired results in all aspects may not be easy. On the other hand, every enabler has their core strength and for years on they have honed their skills in their niche, so reaching out to each one of them separately for separate expertise will help the brand seek undivided attention in every department, individually.
Building the right team for support
When asked whether leveraging an in-house management layer of experts works in favour of the brands or not, Navin says, “Unlike before, today the start-up D2C ecosystem is very comfortable with the concept of exchange of ideas and most founders have their own expertise when it comes to tech enabling for their brand. However, when needed they do not shy away from consulting each other and are fairly open-minded in discussing technology and enablers. In most cases, this process is ample for them. However, if need be they do hire experts in leadership roles to accelerate the process of enabler selection and optimization. This further advances the process of plugging in the right technology where needed and in the long-run and helps the team to grow with finesse”.
But the biggest challenge he feels today is that of scaling and taking the brand from point A to Point B on its growth curve. It takes a lot of effort in traversing this road and from inventory management to data enablement to a lot of other factors together contribute to building this growth story. This is where a knowledgeable partner with previous experience comes in handy and can push the growth with ease helping tie in the loose ends.
Grow on the mark
Navin lays out some simple thought points for D2C brands across categories and how they can adapt technology to grow.
Fashion:
- Build a narrative to drive conversion through a topical content-to-commerce strategy.
- Use an integrated technology stack for scaling your brand profitably and seamlessly.
F&B:
- Build a subscriber-based business model for certain products in order to derive predictable recurring revenue and get first-hand intel about the consumption of your product range.
- Focus on community marketing and building a cult of consumers for getting the initial critical mass of customers.
Beauty & Personal Care:
- Invest in Influencer marketing which would help in disseminating the much-required knowledge about your products as well as establishing the social proof.
- B&PC is a long-tail game. Brands should focus on repeat purchases and LTV more compared to ACOS.
GreenHonchos has grown nearly 300% between 2020-2021 and they are further aggressively planning to attain another 300% growth in the coming year, by building their team and their tech/automation layer. Their growth curve is synonymous with the growth journey of the D2C ecosystem. This indicates the growth curve for the ecosystem and only points out the good times ahead.