Buddsbuddy (First Care India Pvt. Ltd.) offers an elaborate product line essentials in the domain of baby care and has now over 200 SKUs in its product range. With its main office situated in Bengaluru (Karnataka), it has been working extensively with the wide range of distributers across the nation. Krishna Sighakolli, Founder and CEO at Buddsbuddy, shares how the brand is keen on scaling up the business, the market reach and its product range in an exclusive interview with Mommy & Baby Times. Excerpts from the interview:
March 16, 2019
MBT: Please chronicle the business journey of Buddsbuddy.
Krishna Sighakolli: We started conducting meticulous research and assessment of the baby care sector in India in the year 2015. With substantial actionable intelligence attained, we ideated and introduced our brand ‘Buddsbuddy’ in the Indian market. We are a Bengaluru-based company and in January, 2017, we began with our business operations in USA. The five South Indian states were our initial markets and in 2017 itself, we forayed into the Northeastern states. Our chief purpose behind starting this brand was to bring quality products that are safe and are affordable to the consumers.
MBT: How would you describe the selling points of the products by the brand?
KS: In essence, our focus is always on the quality of our products and we strive to maintain the standard that we bring in with our products. The key aspects of safety and quality are of prominent importance to us. Our business mission is “To bring love, joy and a sense of well-being to every Mother and child” and we go all out to put that into practice. We consider every need of a mother and her child and develop quality products accordingly which are FDA and CE-certified.
“Currently available in more than 7,000 stores as of now across the nation… We have a sizeable market presence in the South Indian states and in North India; we’ve a presence in almost all the states and regions.”
MBT: Take us through the product range of Buddsbuddy.
KS: Buddsbuddy offers products in seven discrete categories, namely, Bathing & Diapering, Feeding & Nursing, Safety & Grooming, First Aid, Mother Needs, Toys for Toddlers, and Oral care. ‘Feeding & Nursing’ and ‘Safety & Grooming’ are the most extensive product categories and in principle, we are a comprehensive brand in the child care domain. With our tagline ‘Child’s best friend’, we focus sincerely to ensure than each of our product meets and goes beyond the essential quality standards.
MBT: Give us some specifics about the market presence of Buddsbuddy in India.
KS: The products by the brand are currently available in more than 7,000 stores as of now across the nation and we are striving to expand our reach systematically. We have a sizeable market presence in the South Indian states and in North India, we’ve a presence in almost all the states and regions, including Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Punjab, UP, Delhi and the NCR region. Our team is helping each and every retailer to help a parent to have a reach to our products.
MBT: Is franchising a part of your business operations or is it only through direct retailing that you sell the products?
KS: As of now, we do not give franchise rights to trade our products and it is fundamentally through our cumulative distribution network that we reach to the consumers. However, in the international market, such as Spain, Mexico, South Africa and Australia, we give franchise rights to individuals/corporations and we are aspiring to expand our reach overseas very soon.
“We are venturing to enter into the baby food segment… One latest development at hand is that we are going to come up with the ‘baby gear’ range of products pretty soon.”
MBT: Kindly brief us up on the future developments at the brand.
KS: We are making every effort to make our mark as a renowned and all-encompassing Indian baby care brand. In the near future, we are venturing to enter into the baby food segment and we are also seeking to introduce Ayurvedic and Herbal products into the existing product range. One latest development at hand is that we are going to come up with the ‘baby gear’ range of products pretty soon.
MBT: Share your insights about Mommy & Baby Fair that is going to be held in July, 2019.
KS: I believe that Mommy & Baby Fair can be an incredible platform for brands operating in the baby care domain. There are a few number of trade exhibitions for the baby care segment, however, there are plenty of exhibitions organized for the toys segment. And Delhi as a location for this exhibition is quite favourable as it’s feasible for the retailers, distributors and manufacturers in this segment to participate and attend.
