What could have been a better alternative to a place where one finds access to numerous brands and options to satiate one’s taste for gadgets and technologies under a single roof. House of Technology (or simply HOT) introduced by Unique Infoways and promoted by Vipul Jain is one such place that promises a lot more than what it appears to be.
Positioning it as a unique 24x7 marketplace is what Vipul Jain, Director, Unique Infoways aims at as he continues to run this store – housed in an area of 40,000 sq. ft. at the Nehru Place Metro Station, New Delhi with the support received from almost all the topnotch brands in the industry. HOT offers a mix of IT, telecom and electronics products.
“We thought of creating a marketplace where all the brands, whatever we could think of or are present in the Indian market can be displayed under one single roof. Honestly, I have not come across any marketplace where A to Z of products and brands are available. So, I thought of creating one where all the participating brands are able to showcase their full range, under a good retail environment that is hygienic, secure and 100% genuine,” asserts Vipul.
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In terms of designing, Vipul has figured out an innovative way of placing all the brands under a roof by giving them sufficient space to showcase their products. “I am not allotting space to a brand just because they are a big brand and have deep pockets to buy themselves a large space. But we have given them sufficient space and scope to display depending on their product range they have in India. It is not based on brand reputation and volume business either. We ensure every brand has a good visibility within the store,” Vipul explains.
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Vipul Jain
Director, Unique Infoways
The store has employed more than 100 sales executives. At present, there are 250 staff on the floor to take care of customers visiting the store. There is also a good quantity of brand promoters from all the brands along with the in-house people.
A 360-degree innovative marketing plan has been worked upon which aims to make customers aware of HOT as a brand in Delhi NCR by August end. Currently, promotions are happening at a local level, only South of Delhi, but from August they are going to extend their efforts to the rest of Delhi. “This marketplace should be known to people very fast,” Vipul adds.
Expansion plans in the offing
“Definitely, we are planning to expand in course of time and which is why I suppose people start a venture. We are already a month old now, but I would recommend we need to wait and gauge the performance of the initial two quarters before we design a new store and decide on a new location for expansion,” opine Vipul.
Witnessing a footfall of 4,000 people on an average every day at the store, Vipul estimates the figure to cross 10,000 by August end. “Though the recent weather condition has affected the flow, but we are still positive to attract more. In fact, our aim is to get stabilized at 15,000 every day,” says Vipul. An average of 6,000 customers visiting the store on a particular weekend has remained the highest footfall so far.
Talking of revenue and Vipul is quite optimistic of being able to touch a target of around Rs.200 crore by the end of the year. It could be more, given the brands participating are investing heavily in terms of space, the products on display and marketing.
Planning ahead for future…
The number of brands is growing every day. With already 100 of them participating, the number is expected to grow by the end of this year. “Lots of people are approaching us to include their products and brands here. We are able to accommodate based on whatever space is available with us,” he says. “On the other hand, there are some brands which are available only in this place and not anywhere else, at least not in retail, though they might be present in other locations.”
This is a unique concept that we have cashed in on. People are always willing to go to a place where they feel comfortable spending time and talking to the staff. At times, customers get tired visiting from one location to another location and end up losing patience. But a marketplace like HOT will not only influence them to make a faster decision but also upgrade their knowledge on the latest products and technologies of different brands.” He finally sums up, “As of now, the conversion rate is 6%–7%, but I assume this to go up to 15%–16%.”
samrita@varindia.com
