Interview with Shyam S Prasad

Shyam S Prasad
Co-founder & CEO
Brand Studio Lifestyle

UAE represents a high-growth, fast fashion market

Founded in 2015 in Bengaluru by six passionate entrepreneurs, Brand Studio Lifestyle has rapidly grown into one of India’s largest and fastest-expanding houses of fashion brands. With a mission to make trend-led fashion accessible, the company has built a strong identity among Gen Z, Millennials, and Gen Alpha through agility, data-driven design, and an efficient supply chain network. Backed by a 700+ member team, 400 supply partners, and state-of-the-art warehousing, it delivers over 80,000 units daily while consistently curating youth-driven, affordable styles.

Now, as it embarks on its international journey with its first stores in the UAE, the company is gearing up to strengthen its global presence with a phygital-first approach. Speaking to Fibre2Fashion, Co-founder & CEO Shyam S Prasad shares insights on the brand’s Middle East entry strategy, competitive positioning, supply chain strengths, and future outlook.

What were the key factors that led Brand Studio Lifestyle to choose the UAE for its first international stores?

UAE represents a high-growth, fast fashion market that aligns seamlessly with our brand ethos. Its youthful, style-savvy, and digitally native population resonates strongly with our product offering and digital-first approach. Additionally, the geographical proximity to India provides strategic advantages in terms of ease of logistics and supply chain efficiency. This allows us to optimise inventory management, reduce lead times, and operate with greater agility.

How does the partnership with Rapheal Lifestyle enhance your entry strategy and help navigate the Middle East retail ecosystem?

Raphel Lifestyle has established a robust distribution network and strong foothold in the UAE market. Its deep understanding of local retail dynamics is well-aligned with our strategic goals. From the beginning, we have sought a partner who possesses not only market expertise and vision but also the financial capacity to scale operations effectively backed by a team of seasoned retail professionals. Raphel Lifestyle embodies all these qualities, making it an ideal partner for long-term growth and success.

How do you see Highlander and Tokyo Talkies positioning themselves within the competitive fast-fashion segment in the GCC, especially against established global players like H&M, Zara, and Max Fashion?

Highlander and Tokyo Talkies are well-known brands in India, and we expect them to also resonate with the vast Indian diaspora. The market leaders are legacy brands and have their own unique offering. Highlander and Tokyo Talkies stand differentiated in their pricing positioning above Max and below the European fast fashion giants. Further, the styles we have curated specially for the UAE are handpicked to give the consumer an experience of the fashion and quality that the brands are famous for. Of course, it will demand a continuous engagement with our customers and the audience at large to position the brands in the minds of the consumer as the right choice for fashion and trends. The market, as I said earlier, is growing rapidly and there is significant headroom for new brands like us to garner market share.

Highlander and Tokyo Talkies have built a strong identity in India through trend-first and youth-driven designs. What core brand philosophy drives this consistency across categories?

We consistently uphold the core brand philosophy of empowering self-expression through trend-led, affordable fashion. Our digitally native positioning and agility remain our greatest strengths, driving consistency across categories.

With over 800 new styles launched monthly, how do you balance speed, design relevance, and quality without diluting brand value?

The brands stand at the centre of all our design efforts. Our unique fashion supply chain is led by data driven trend research from multiple sources. Our core skill lies in adapting these trends into the brand’s language and making them accessible to our consumers. This is a very essential part of our design process to ensure that we provide the widest trend representation which is at the same time aligned with the brand ethos. The supply chain system built and honed over the last decade and complemented by over 100+ years of combined management experience ensures that we are able to deliver trends at speed, without compromising on quality and the right value to the customer.

With your supply chain rooted in India, what logistical or inventory strategies have you adopted to support demand and speed in the UAE retail model?

We established a seamless supply chain by developing a local warehousing and fulfilment infrastructure. This strategically designed warehouse caters to the diverse needs of offline retail, D2C, and e-commerce businesses.

You have highlighted plans for seven more stores by March 2026. Will these be in the UAE or extend to other Gulf markets?

The current plan is specific to MENA region, and we would like to first focus on this territory before moving on to any other expansion.

Can you elaborate on your upcoming phygital retail concept? What does online personalisation look like for your store customers in practice?

This is an ongoing project that we want to build that will help us blend the D2C and Physical store concepts seamlessly. There are multiple facets of building a unified customer experience beyond classic omni channel models that we are exploring. The key piece for this will be a high degree of personalisation which today is a challenge in the offline space while relatively easier online. Our phygital model aims to bridge this gap through the use of AI and technology.

How important is it for Indian fashion players to build omnichannel models from the ground up, especially when competing with global giants?

The future of retail is omnichannel and phygital. These are not just trends—they are becoming foundational elements of business distribution. Companies that seamlessly blend physical and digital experiences will lead in customer engagement, loyalty, and revenue growth in future. However, one has to be careful before implementing it as it requires a robust automation, technology and supply chain adaptability and it needs to be forayed with utmost control.

How do you view the changing role of physical retail in an era dominated by quick commerce and social commerce?

In the future, brands will be built in a phygital way, with a strong focus on the distribution matrix to reach consumers—whether offline, online, or through a hybrid model.

What role does technology—AI, data analytics, or automation—play in modernising fast-fashion operations?

Fashion design is increasingly being guided by AI and advanced design tools, with a large part of inputs generated quickly through data analytics. The winning formula lies in combining a designer’s aesthetics with AI technology to create a unique niche.

From a business standpoint, what metrics will define the success of this Middle East foray in the next 12–18 months—store-level performance, brand recall, omnichannel sales, or something else?

It is not any one factor, but it is a balanced mix of quantitative and qualitative metrics across performance, brand positioning, and market adaptability. Customer acquisition and retention will be the key focus area.

What is next for Brand Studio Lifestyle in terms of investor relations, sustainability commitments, or potential brand acquisitions—especially as you scale internationally?

While its predictable at the moment, we remain open to new ideas—grounded in our core belief in staying agile amidst market dynamics, without compromising our brand values, ethics, or essential growth.

How do you view the evolution of Indian fashion exports—are we seeing a shift from manufacturing-led growth to brand-led global recognition?

I do not have much insight into exports, but I believe the business will continue to grow in a demand-led manner.

What advice would you offer to emerging Indian fashion entrepreneurs looking to scale D2C brands beyond domestic markets?

My simple advice is to keep the business agile to change, focus on trend research, and continuously work on process efficiency.

Published on: 29/08/2025

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.