India is championing a diverse market with the third largest startup ecosystem. Gone are the days when people looked to the West for getting inspired in fashion. The perspective for fresh fashion choices has now been navigated towards South-East Asia. This open-culture has led to the significant growth of ecommerce with a wide variety of items. Business Outreach Magazine finds it riveting to analyze the growth and scalability of Uni Seoul, a Korean lifestyle brand in India, to garner a store-level EBITDA of about 24% and a month-on-month sales of about Rs. 50 lakhs, in just about a year from inception in March 2023.
Uni Seoul provides a range of products under categories like Home & Living, Plush Toys, Travel Accessories, School Essentials Bags, Beauty & Care products and Lifestyle. These products express an aesthetic design language tailored with functionality at an inexpensive rate. Uni Seoul aligns with the growing customer mindset of choosing high quality products that drive value to their daily routines. Co-Founders Mohit Khurana and Gaurav Karmani synergized their interest for Korean culture into Uni Seoul, while delivering a fresh product portfolio to the Indian consumers.
While opening their first flagship store at Phoenix Marketcity, Viman Nagar Mall in Pune, Uni Seoul experienced a fascinating long queues of customers at the billing. This inspiring sight can motivate any emerging entrepreneur willing to provide a value for money product to the market. By July 2023, the company opened another store at Nashik’s City Center Mall.
In September 2023, the company launched their online store and it recorded more than 200 orders. Uni Seoul shares the principle that luxury and aesthetic design does not always necessarily mean expensive. Their products share high-quality material catered to connect with the Indian market and offer longevity, when it comes to product material. Uni Seoul shares that they have successfully maintained average monthly sales of about Rs. 25 lakh INR at their Pune store and about Rs. 15 lakh INR at their Nashik store. Uni Seoul’s online store has seen significant growth, with a repeat of 200 orders and an organic direct source of 27% within three months of launch.
There will always be challenges in scaling a brand but that can only shed more benchmarks of aspirations. Penetrating a market that has been already dominated by other players like Miniso, has been a piece of task for Uni Seoul. They are vocal about the fact that scaling a company along with maintaining product quality and ensuring an unparalleled supply chain demands critical thinking and effective leadership. At this juncture, Mohit and Gaurav have been doing a stellar job in offering something new and vibrant to the Indian market that magnetizes our appreciation.
It is evident from the fact that Uni Seoul has been successfully retaining customers which can be extraordinary news for any growing company. In the upcoming years, Uni Seoul is planning to open several stores in various malls and premium high streets in India. The company is strategizing to sell more than 2,000 online orders as a step to fortify their digital presence. When we asked Mohit Khurana on his take on success, he said, “Dream big, start small, and act now. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
