We intend to bring latest fashion, best boutiques and labels to customers
Shopotox is an e-commerce portal highlighting hidden creativity by promoting creative designers, labels, boutiques and entrepreneurs from every part of the world. In conversation with Fibre2Fashion, Jimmy Kaul, managing director & co-founder of Shopotox, speaks about her venture and what sets it apart.
What inspired you to set up Shopotox?
Fashion has had a great impact on my personal and professional life. For me, it is a kind of art and an expression of myself. I have travelled almost half the world and I was really impressed with the uniqueness of every place in terms of people, cultures, tastes, fashions and styles. That is where my odyssey commenced with Shopotox. We intend to bring the latest fashion, best boutiques and labels from across the globe to customers. We like to look at everything as an art form and style is undeniably one of those attributes.
What do you plan to achieve?
We aim to establish Shopotox as one of the finest online shopping destinations for today's fashionable and stylish people. We want to get the two ends together by giving people a reason to come out of their comfort fashion areas and explore designers and artists worldwide. We want to help designers and artists spread across globe to break free from their geographical bonds and reach the world with their innovative thoughts and work. We want to create an aspirational quotient for Shopotox with our classy and unique offerings.
Please tell us about your partner Prashant Jain's background.
Shopotox is promoted by me with Prashant Jain. He has an MBA in Marketing along with a Master's degree in Logistics Trade and Finance from Cass Business School, London. He is the managing director of Paras Power & Coal Beneficiation Ltd., the parent company of Shopotox.
What is the USP of Shopotox?
We promote hidden talent in designing, art and craft from small villages, town and cities and bring their creativity to a wider audience. Shopotox primarily caters to the premium segment of customers inclined towards fashion and lifestyle and those who want to look chic and classy.
What challenges did you face while setting up Shopotox?
Our biggest challenge was to make ourselves different from the thousands of existing online shopping marketplaces. E-commerce is a growing industry and there are so many established as well as start-up platforms around us. Hence, there is a lot of competition, since everyone is here to grow.
What are your marketing strategies?
We have been using social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. We are also investing in SEO and digital marketing and other methods.
What are the short-term and long-term plans to ensure the company grows?
Our short-term objective is to make sales and marketing a priority. We want to pay attention and listen to the changing needs of customers and simplify day-to-day activities and workflows to improve productivity, collaborate with the team to brainstorm ideas to establish Shopotox in the industry and focus on building customer relationships and to attract and retain our talented employees. In the long run, we want our key focus to be revenue generation by increasing website traffic, building a loyal customer base to build our brand faster and be an ingrained player.
At what rate are you expecting Shopotox to grow in the next couple of years? What is your target for the next fiscal?
We see Shopotox as the leading fashion and lifestyle destination in the next five years.
What measures should the government adopt to boost the e-commerce sector of India?
I think the government can do a lot more to encourage the e-commerce sector by regularising the existing taxation system and laws. As we have to approach multiple states for business, we believe there should be a uniform law as it would ease our operating difficulties and formalities. The need of the hour is a universal policy with a central agency to create a favourable environment for the e-commerce sector to thrive and flourish.
How will Goods and Services Tax (GST) affect e-commerce?
GST should bring up a less complex tax structure. The 'one tax, one market' concept on which GST is based is expected to be a big welcome step and promising standardisation for online marketplaces to make e-commerce convenient. I believe once GST comes into full effect, e-commerce sector would be structured well and the way forward will be easier.
Published on: 12/05/2017
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
