Brand Positioning Tactics

Hrithik Roshan and Virat Kohli both launched fashion brands. One made ₹1000 crore. The other lost 29% of revenue.  Here's what separated them. HRX by Hrithik Roshan launched in 2013 with Hrithik Roshan and Afsar Zaidi. In its first year alone, it clocked ₹350 crore. Today, it has crossed ₹1000 crore with five-fold growth. [Hindustantimes] WROGN, Virat Kohli's fashion brand, saw its revenue drop from ₹344 crore to ₹243 crore in FY24. Its ROCE stands at negative 72%. [Inc 42] [Entrackr] Both had massive star appeal. Both targeted young Indians. Yet their trajectories couldn't be more different. Here's what set them apart: 📌 HRX built around Hrithik's genuine fitness transformation journey 📌 WROGN positioned itself as "buy Virat's style and look cool." 📍 HRX created an ecosystem. From activewear to smart wearables, everything is connected to personal transformation. Their #KeepGoing campaign turned customers into a community. 📍 WROGN relied heavily on celebrity association without evolving its products or message. Industry experts call it a classic case of burning investor money. 📌 The pricing strategy was equally telling. HRX found the sweet spot at ₹800-1200 per piece: premium enough to feel valuable but accessible enough for college students. 📌 WROGN's pricing strategy focused on competing directly with premium brands by pricing at ₹1200-2500 per piece, missing the accessibility factor. HRX understood Indian wallets better and this shows why HRX became a successful brand while WROGN remained just another celebrity brand. Working in retail and sourcing across markets, I've seen this pattern repeatedly. Brands that understand their customers' real needs outlast those banking on glamour alone. Successful brands solve real problems. They create movements, not just merchandise. Today's consumers invest in authentic stories that inspire action. Which resonates more with you when choosing brands?

This is the cheat code that got me to 150,000 followers on LinkedIn. The 7x4 rule. Trying to build your personal brand online is bloody hard. Harder still when you have so many different people telling you different things. So I’ve tried to distil it down into a 4-step framework that is easy to follow, day in and day down. 1. Post 7 times a week.  2. Commenting 7 different posts.  3. Contribute to 7 different articles.  4. Send 7 new connection requests. 1. Post 7 times a week. When you’re building your personal brand, you need volume AND quality content - it’s AND, not or. Ask yourself: Who do I need to attract, and what do I need to talk about to attract them? Make a list of the top 20 most important things to your ideal audience, and create 5 subtopics each - you now have 100 pieces of content. See the pinned post on my profile page if you want more details on this system. 2. Comment on 7 different posts per day. A huge part of accelerating your brand is to talk WITH people, not at them. I engage with people from all kinds of industries for the sole purpose of getting my thoughts out there and hopefully engaging them - and their followers in a conversation. Find 7 people and leave 7 comments on new posts each day. The way LinkedIn particularly works is that when you engage in a post, it pulls it into your feed. But when the poster replies, it pulls it into THEIR feed - instant access to a new audience. 3. Contribute to 7 different articles per week. Collaborative articles are a new feature I am obsessed with (I go into more detail on this in this week’s newsletter). Contributing multiple times to a niche topic not only gets you in front of 2nd and 3rd degree connections, it can help you earn a Gold Top Voice badge if you do it enough. You’re welcome. 4. Send 7 new connection requests per week. Don’t just rely on people finding you - you’ve got to go out and introduce yourself. A great way to find new connections is to see who your favourite thought leaders are following and also take a look at the “People Also Viewed” sidebar on the LinkedIn profile page to get some ideas for other cool people in the space. Connect, converse - arrange a coffee. Your personal brand isn’t just something that you manage online; it’s an extension of your reputation. And if your reputation is one of helping people, forming friendships and just generally being an awesome person, it will 100x any effort or tactic you’ll ever use on social media to grow your brand. I’ve been following this process for nearly 4 years and now have a 100% inbound business model and 200,000 followers on social media. I’ve laid it out for you - what’s your excuse not to execute? 💜 ___________ If you liked this post, share it with your network and follow me Amelia Sordell 🔥 for daily content about personal branding.

Love this campaign by Stella. "Worth it" ✨ Playing off a familiar scene we all know. That claustrophobic bar. Enter "Claustrobar" You're crammed shoulder to shoulder... Getting bumped left and right. Then you get your first sip. Makes it all worth it. 👀 Or does it...? We're seeing the OPPOSITE trend for B2B events. Marketers want smaller more niche events. Think dinners with 15 to 25 people. ONLY the exact ICP they want. We just did our Q1 retro at The Alliance 🧵 NEW Q1 EVENT DATA FOR YOU: Dinners under 25 people drove 3.4 times higher average pipeline per attendee than 200+ person field events Sponsor satisfaction scores were 27 points higher for private dinners vs traditional happy hours Events with personalized pre invite cadences had a 35 percent average acceptance rate among ICP targets Renewal rates on sponsor programs anchored around curated dinners hit 82 percent, compared to 58 percent for "open bar" events Thats why we're doubling down on niche events. Dinners and intimate VIP exeperiences. Why they worked so well: Step 1: ICP first targeting Every attendee list starts with sponsor aligned ICP firmographic filters: Company size, role seniority, industry fit, existing buying intent. Step 2: Personalized outreach Dedicated in house teams send direct invites framed around relevance. We track weekly acceptance rates and optimize touchpoints if we fall below 30 percent. Step 3: Pre event intel Sponsors get attendee insights two weeks before the dinner. They know which companies and titles are coming so they can plan the content PRECISELY for that audience to make it hyper relevant. Step 4: Structured conversations No loud music. No random crowds. Strategic seating charts and guided conversation topics aligned to the topics attendees and sponsors care about. This makes the experiences great for BOTH the company sponsoring and the attendees. Ends in a win win for everyone. Example for you: At our Austin dinner for a sponsor in Jan - 17 handpicked senior leaders attended - 76 percent of attendees booked follow up demos within 21 days - The sponsor sourced $3.2 million in net new pipeline which was 3.1 times their original goal TLDR Invest in more dinners ✌️ 

While global fashion giants 𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 and digital campaigns, one Indian brand quietly built a 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲. Zudio, owned by Tata's Trent Ltd, has rewritten the fast fashion playbook with a radical simplicity strategy. With 545 stores across India and revenues crossing $1 billion in FY25, this value fashion retailer has achieved what many premium brands struggle with - profitable growth without the marketing noise. The secret lies in their contrarian approach. While competitors chase metro cities, Zudio targets Tier 2 and 3 markets like Surat, Kanpur, and Bhubaneswar - cities with growing disposable incomes but underserved by premium retailers. No celebrity campaigns, no e-commerce push, no premium positioning. Instead, Zudio made pricing their brand identity. Their stores average 9,500 square feet compared to competitors' 21,000 square feet, yet generate ₹16,300 revenue per square foot - double the industry average. In fiscal 2024 alone, they opened 203 new stores and entered 46 new cities, proving that operational efficiency trumps marketing flash. Trent's consolidated revenue hit ₹4,656 crore in Q3 FY25, with Zudio driving the majority of this growth through their disciplined expansion strategy. 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀: 1. 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝘇𝗲 - Tier 2/3 cities offered higher growth potential than saturated metros 2. 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱 - Superior store productivity created sustainable competitive advantage 3. 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 - Clear value proposition resonated better than complex brand narratives 4. 𝗟𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 - Strategic placement became their primary customer acquisition tool 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲: 𝗜𝘀 𝗭𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼'𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶-𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹, 𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮? Share your thoughts in the comments below! #FastFashionIndia #IndianBusiness #BrandingDebate

The rebrand everyone should study. Stanley turned $70M into $750M. By 2019, Stanley was fading. The heritage thermos brand was being pulled from shelves and competitors like YETI held 16% market share. A 100-year-old company looked destined for decline.   Then came an insight. A lifestyle blog, "The Buy Guide", featured Stanley. Their audience, mostly women, bought out inventory every time. Stanley made a bold shift: Instead of clinging to the rugged, male audience, they repositioned around millennial and Gen Z women. The strategy: → Keep the heritage of durability and quality → Redesign for modern lifestyles (cupholder fit, straws, dishwasher-safe) → Launch in trendy colors and seasonal drops → Partner with influencers and retail collabs → Build a collector culture with limited editions The result: Revenue grew from $70M to $750M in four years. From being pulled from shelves… to customers camping out for launches. Lessons for every brand: 1. Do not assume your legacy audience is your only audience. 2. Customer insights, even small ones, can spark entire transformations. 3. Rebranding does not always mean abandoning heritage. It can mean reinterpreting it. 4. Speed matters. But if you move too fast without brand integrity, you lose trust. If this resonated, repost to your network ♻️ and follow me Holly Rae Felicetta for more.

Modern Trade (MT) vs. General Trade (GT): Two Different Games, Two Winning Strategies 1- Winning in MT: Success in MT is about planogram excellence, offering the right formats and prices as per brand value proposition, securing prime shelf and off shelf space, and in-store activations. Promo bursts (BOGO, % discounts, Giraffes, Premiums, Bundling), seasonal offers and loyalty programs drive shopper engagement. Strong JBPs, ability to negotiate rebates, trade spend and credit terms are critical as MT retailers will push to squeeze out margins, maximize spend and ask for extended credit. Stock management with JIT replenishment & sell-through analytics ensures efficiency, preventing expiries and returns. 2- Winning in GT: GT success is built on maximizing coverage, ensuring availability and visibility—because what is available and visible sells! a- Optimized Reach: Balancing Direct Reach through a distributor (van sales & pre-sell for high-weighted retailers) and Indirect Reach through wholesale (for lower-tier penetration) is key to achieve the targeted weighted coverage with the optimal cost-to-serve. Wholesalers focus on SKUs with high rotation and ensure reach to lower end of the trade if given the right incentives (trade deals, margins, loyalty programs, etc). Direct reach pushes a wider range of SKUs scaling growth through trade incentives, margins, volume based deals and product education drives. b- Strategic Distributor Partnerships: Choosing the right distributor with strong capabilities and one with a portfolio that complements your portfolio is key to success. A good GT distributor requires a portfolio that encompasses a mix of fast-moving Hero SKUs (to drive volume and upselling) and high-margin SKUs (to cover distribution costs). Having exclusive distributors in GT for your business does not guarantee success and can limit penetration especially if your portfolio does not combine a mix of high volume hero SKUs and high margin SKUs. c- Disciplined Execution & Performance Tracking: Setting clear KPIs on volumes, reach, availability, and execution to drive distributor accountability is key. Regular business reviews focused on growth plans is a must. Two channels, two different approaches—but both require precision, execution excellence, and strategic management to win. The right channel strategy must be supported with differentiated format offerings for each channel, supported by the right tools (POSM, Chillers, Trays, etc) and coupled with strong brand building plans driving demand generation and salience on the path to purchase. #Nestlé #ModernGeneralTrade #RouteToMarket #ExecutionMatters #RetailStrategy

How Rose Boulangerie created visual magic with painted bread and the just right amount of imperfection Just stumbled upon Rose Boulangeries new branding and can't stop thinking about it. While most bakeries rely on predictable visuals, Superstudio literally painted bread and used its texture as a foundation for the brand identity. This isn't just beautiful design, it captures the essence of the artisanal baking in Sainte-Flore village. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡 lies in its perfect alignment with the brand story. Rose Boulangerie celebrates ancestral techniques and hyper-local ingredients, and their branding literally transforms their product into art - creating a visual language as authentic as their baking process. 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬: • It creates immediate differentiation in a category saturated with wheat illustrations and heritage typography • The textural elements establish a sensory connection even in digital formats - you can almost feel the crust • By using the actual product as design medium, it authentically showcases craftsmanship rather than merely claiming it • The approach mirrors the brand philosophy: transforming simple, local ingredients into something extraordinary The most powerful aspect is those discoverable details - the textures, the painted surfaces, the imperfections that become perfect. These elements reward closer inspection, creating those magical micro-moments where customers feel they've discovered something special rather than being told what to appreciate. 𝑲𝒆𝒚 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕: The most memorable brand experiences don't announce themselves loudly - they invite exploration and discovery. By embedding their core product directly into their visual identity, Rose Boulangerie creates a brand experience that unfolds gradually with each interaction. This approach demonstrates that in an era of AI-generated perfection, there's profound power in embracing the beautifully imperfect, tactile aspects of craftsmanship. For more great ads visit Unreasonable

We’re Spending $50,000/Day on AppLovin—Here’s What We’re Seeing. We’re currently scaling an e-commerce client on AppLovin, spending $50,000 per day, and the results are impressive. Here’s what’s happening and what you need to know about this untapped channel: Consistent ROAS, Even at Scale We’re seeing a consistent 2.5-3 ROAS on AppLovin. As we scale, we double the budget every 48-72 hours. Yes, there’s a temporary dip in ROAS for 24-48 hours, but that’s normal. The performance corrects itself and stabilizes. Cross-Channel Lift One of the most exciting effects is the massive cross-channel lift we’re seeing on organic search and Google paid ads. We measure this using northbeam, and the data shows a clear correlation: scaling AppLovin boosts visibility and performance across other channels. Why This Lift Happens AppLovin runs ads on many Google-owned apps, which seems to feed valuable retargeting data back into Google’s ecosystem. This synergy between platforms amplifies overall results. 78% New Customer Rate AppLovin is helping us reach an untapped audience. About 78% of purchases are coming from new customers—people who aren’t active on Meta platforms but spend time on apps like games, tools, or hobbies. For example, my wife uses a drawing app and got hit with our ad. This proves we’re reaching people we couldn’t engage otherwise. Creative Strategy We’re finding that the same UGC creatives that perform on TikTok and Meta are working on AppLovin too. When combined with strong end cards that drive clicks, the engagement and conversions are incredible. Getting Started on AppLovin Right now, AppLovin is invite-only for brands spending $600,000+/month on Meta. If you meet this threshold, they’ll onboard you, provide ad credits, and manage the setup with weekly support. Self-serve is coming next year, so more brands will have access soon. Is It Worth It? Absolutely. AppLovin delivers consistent ROAS, drives a high new customer rate, and boosts performance across your marketing ecosystem. It’s not just an ad channel—it’s a growth driver for your entire business. If you’re thinking about AppLovin or have questions about scaling on this channel, let me know in the comments or send me a message.

Amazon and Flipkart own the traffic, but we own 10 lakh+ customers. That's a ₹750cr+ goldmine they'll never have. India has 800+ D2C brands in a ₹7 lakh crore market, but most of them don’t realise that while building on marketplaces, they own nothing - no data, no relationship, and no control. Whereas, even though your own channels cost more upfront, they build your loyalty and grow lifetime value. That's where real business happens. For me, D2C means owning the entire customer relationship - online and offline. For most brands, the relationship ends at delivery. For us, that's where it begins. We know who bought what - preferences, purchase frequency, touchpoints across 172+ stores. That's why 85% of our ₹750 crore revenue comes from owned channels - stores and websites combined. Here's the math: Our Channels Breakdown: 📍70% from 150+ physical stores (our largest owned asset) Our Omnichannel Advantage: 📌 Customers discover online, buy offline (and vice versa) 📌 Orders fulfilled from nearest store within few hours 📌 To build a meaningful relationship, we remember your purchase history and recommend what you'll actually needs The data backs it up. While other brands race to get listed on more marketplaces, we're focused on owning more of the customer journey. Because Amazon and Flipkart can give you reach, but they can't send one DM and activate your customers tomorrow morning. That's the difference between building a brand and renting shelf space.

The attention economy has everyone chasing 15-second wins. But if you're building a brand for the long haul, that's not enough. You can grab someone's attention with a flashy reel or a trending hook, but that doesn't mean they'll remember you tomorrow, especially when the attention span on social media is decreasing everyday. Most brands are stuck in this cycle: spend money to get noticed, make a sale, then start over. The shift that actually works is when brands stop renting attention and start earning permission. Permission to email consumers. Permission to show up in their feed without being scrolled past. Permission to be part of their routine instead of an interruption. At Honasa Consumer Ltd., I've seen this play out with our brands. The content that builds loyalty isn't the loudest or the most polished. It's the stuff that's consistently useful, honest, or genuinely interesting. Small touchpoints that add up over time. Think of it like compound interest for brand building. One good interaction doesn't change much. But dozens of them, over months? That's when people shift from consumers to advocates. The D2C brands winning in 2025 aren't just visible - they're invited. They've built communities that actually want to hear from them, not audiences they have to keep convincing. Attention is rented. Permission is owned. And in a world where everyone's fighting for the same scroll, being invited in is the only sustainable advantage. #Entrepreneurship #Brandbuilding #StartUp #D2C