BUSINESS

Rising Star: Disha Singh of Zouk works with over 800 artisans across India

By Arzoo Dina

20 September, 2023

After raising US$3 million earlier this year, the co-founder of the accessories label shares how Zouk has grown by leaps and bounds since its last funding in 2021

Thirty-three-year-old Disha Singh, the co-founder of Zouk, is a woman on a mission. Her goal? To bring traditional Indian craftsmanship to the forefront, paired with modern design and functionality. That is what she had in mind when she thought of launching Zouk along with her co-founder and husband Pradeep Krishnakumar, back in 2017. The direct-to-consumer (D2C) fashion label offers handmade, vegan and cruelty-free leather products ranging from laptop bags, handbags and wallets to footwear and other accessories.

fashion

At a time when funding in the D2C market has somewhat slowed down, Zouk has secured funding led by Stellaris Venture Partners in a fresh round of capital infusion for US$3 million earlier this year, along with other investors such as Sharrp Ventures—the family office of Harsh Mariwala—Deutsche India CEO, Dilip Khandelwal, Atomberg Technologies founder and CEO, Manoj Meena, among others

It all started when Singh was pursuing an MBA degree at IIM-Ahmedabad. While on a trip to Kutch, Gujarat, she noticed her batchmates admire the local handicrafts but not purchase anything. Upon asking why, she learned that while the products (bags and wallets) were beautifully made, they didn’t appeal to the modern and functional aesthetic that most of her peers were looking for. That set the wheels in motion and planted the idea in her head for a brand that would bring together traditional Indian prints with modern design and a refined aesthetic. “I did some research and looked at all the brands present in the market at the time. Most of them were offering designs inspired by the West for handbags and laptop bags and looked very similar to each other. I thought to myself, there is some scope here to showcase ethnic Indian craft forms but for the working woman. So, it had to be something functional.”

In fact, Singh was almost ready to give up her placements and pursue this full-time but for her family who convinced her to gain some corporate experience first. “I come from a service background. My family has been in the army, and dabbling in business was something we hadn’t actively pursued before.”

Today, Zouk has notched up market share in the increasingly cluttered D2C space in India, expanding its footprint online and now offline as well, starting with two exclusive retail stores in Mumbai. At a time when funding in the D2C market has somewhat slowed down, the company has secured funding led by Stellaris Venture Partners in a fresh round of capital infusion for US$3 million earlier this year, along with other investors such as Sharrp Ventures—the family office of Harsh Mariwala—Deutsche India CEO, Dilip Khandelwal, Atomberg Technologies founder and CEO, Manoj Meena, among others. This year, they also signed on Bollywood actor Sara Ali Khan as brand ambassador. 

Thirty-three-year-old Disha Singh, the co-founder of Zouk, is on a mission to bring traditional Indian craftsmanship to the forefront, paired with modern design and functionality

Things fell in place for Zouk when Singh asked a friend who was exhibiting at ‘The Lil Flea’ market in Mumbai, to showcase some of her bags

According to a report by KPMG, the Indian D2C market value was worth approximately US$12 billion in 2022. The same is projected to surpass the mark of US$60 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 40 per cent. Singh is hopeful of charting a successful growth plan and eventually taking the brand overseas as well. 

Edited excerpts from the conversation with Singh:

Tell us a little about Zouk and the brand’s journey so far? 

After completing my MBA, I worked for a healthcare start-up for a short period before deciding to take the plunge with Zouk. I moved to Mumbai and for the first month or so, I’d visit Dharavi to find a local manufacturer who could make a prototype bag for me. At first, it was tough convincing them to work with non-animal leather, only because they hadn’t used it before. They were also unsure if I could provide sufficient business to them, as a woman entrepreneur. 

Things fell in place when I asked a friend who was exhibiting at ‘The Lil Flea’ market in Mumbai, to showcase some of my bags alongside her footwear brand. We were completely sold out at the end of the exhibit and that gave me the confidence that there was a user base for a brand like ours. We spent our first year only doing exhibitions—over 50 around the country, gathering data on what consumers wanted, pain points, colour palettes,and so forth. From then to now, we’ve had over six lakh customers, and launched a range of products, starting with the OG laptop bag to casual and evening handbags, wallets, travel backpacks and now footwear. We also started our offline foray this year.

Zouk has now six lakh customers, and launched a range of products, starting with the OG laptop bag to casual and evening handbags, wallets, travel

This year, they also signed on Bollywood actor Sara Ali Khan as brand ambassador

D2C has seen a big push in the Indian context in the last couple of years. How much has changed since the time you started Zouk? 

There has definitely been an evolution. Typically, brands first start retailing on a marketplace and then their own website or retail channel. We did the opposite. Even now, our website is the biggest revenue driver for us. From the consumer point of view, there is a lot more trust in buying directly from brands, while from the retailers’ side there is more maturity in optimising D2C. 

How many artisans does Zouk employ and what are some of the different styles of Indian craftsmanship/prints you use?

While there is some amount of automation involved, our products are majorly handcrafted. We directly and indirectly work with more than 800 artisans, helping them upskill, and lead the way for better wages and working conditions. We definitely want to spotlight more indigenous craft forms from around the country and are working towards kicking this off soon. There are so many Indian craft forms which haven’t even been highlighted or showcased on a national level, while there are some that are over-exploited.

What were some of your biggest learnings or challenges along the way?

Getting my first karigar on board was a challenge in itself. It’s important to realise that production and manufacturing is not the most woman-friendly space. There are questions raised on whether women can lead manufacturing, not be fooled by costs and sustain the business. Today, nearly 50 per cent of my corporate team comprises women. I tell them that people will keep doubting you, be it your age, experience or even gender. What helps is just drowning out the noise and forging on–that’s what worked for me too.

Having said that, I didn’t face as many issues when it came to raising funds.We raised our first round in late 2020 and we’ve been blessed with a team of investors who believe in what we do and understand the D2C space really well. In fact, they value that if a woman is making products geared towards other women, they will have the right insights into understanding the market. 

What are some of the other product lines that you're planning to tap, going forward? How does Zouk plan on differentiating itself from other players?  

One of our key target audiences is the working woman. So, we want to expand our offerings that cater to this segment. We want to add more bags to our portfolio and we have recently launched all-new black vegan leather products. The travel segment is something we are actively exploring with products like backpacks. In footwear, we plan on adding categories such as heels, going forward. 

Speaking of competition, it’s heartening to see more players promote ethnic Indian craft forms. Being a proudly Indian brand is so close to our hearts. We aren’t afraid of others imitating what we do, rather, the focus is to constantly innovate and shape up the market. 

Zouk's key target audiences is the working woman

"More and more Indians are taking pride in how they associate with homegrown brands and we want to take the ‘Made in India’ stamp to the world," says Singh

How will the funds raised be used for expansion?

We’ll be using the funds to scale up, grow our distribution, expand product categories, invest in R&D and launch more collections. While we are still very focused on online sales, by March of next year, we should have an additional 4-5 stores across cities like Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Chennai and Ahmedabad are also worthy opportunities for us. We also want to expand via multi-brand outlets (MBOs). Going forward, we expect offline [sales] to make up a chunk of our revenues as well.

What’s next for Zouk? 

We eventually want to take the brand overseas. Markets like the United States and the Middle East are interesting propositions for us. Apart from that, the upcoming festive season is going to be a key period in terms of growth. We want to be viewed as a lifestyle choice. More and more Indians are taking pride in how they associate with homegrown brands and we want to take the ‘Made in India’ stamp to the world, and give back to our community of artisans as well. 

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