Storia uses D2C channel to communicate with consumers amid pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic had created an atmosphere where the usual way of living got altered, and the adoption of newer ways of living happened worldwide. All the sectors were greatly impacted by the existence of the pandemic. BW HOTELIER spoke with Vishal Shah, Founder and Managing Director, Storia Foods & Beverages, to understand the impact that the pandemic had on his business and his future plans.

Everything fell into place

While commenting on the effect of the pandemic on his business, Shah said, "Coming from a value system of serving wellness, convenience and sustainability to our consumers, the pandemic has fostered growth. It has also fast-tracked our launches of pipeline products that were to be served in the coming years to the immediate year, as the need of the hour. We were quickly able to pivot and value add to our existing product range to meet the fortification needs of the consumers in the pandemic." 

"We've been able to pivot very quickly in terms of our distribution as well and mark our presence in medical and grocery outlets that were not in our ecosystems before to prevent any revenue drops in the retail markets," Shah continued.

Calling e-commerce as the silver lining for the online traction, he stated, "While traditional BTL activities have taken a back seat, we've become digitally stronger in terms of brand building we are seeking newer associations in distribution to maximize out footprints in the domestic and global markets as well."

R&D forward and product-centric brand

With changing times, brands are also changing their strategies to stay relevant to the consumers. Elaborating his new approach, Shah stated that since wellness has been a top priority for the new-age customers, demand for value-added products has witnessed a surge.  He further said, "Being a brand that has always been more R&D forward and product-centric, we've been able to cater to the fundamental needs of the consumers when it comes to the product offering."

These days, as the consumers stay indoors, the brand is primarily dependent on Ecommerce and D2C to deliver their products. To remain relevant to the consumers, he said, "We have also launched new products in last quarter with health and immunity at the core and innovation in terms of consumer offerings."

"In addition to this, with safety being a key concern, we have invested in technology with QR codes on our products for the consumers to be able to see the journey from the farm to the bottle and be transparent about our production facility so our consumers can trust us completely and indulge in our products without safety concerns during the pandemic. This is being digitally integrated on social media platforms and our D2C websites," he added.

Status: shifting online 

Explaining his D2C strategy, Shah underscored that since the retail's future is increasingly shifting towards online, launching their D2C channel has allowed them to engage with consumers directly. This step has enabled them to learn from consumers and use these learning's to continuously optimize everything from the shopping experience to the products themselves. Shah said, "The initiative has been launched as a pilot in Mumbai and Delhi and will be replicated in other cities as well across the country in coming months."

"Our social media campaigns, along with continued investment on other e-Commerce platforms, have helped us reach the target audience. As a comparatively new brand, it's expensive to get discovered without a solid marketplace, but as the brand scales, you need to build your D2C channel to start conversing directly with fans of your brand. During such unprecedented time, we have ensured to communicate with our consumers on quality, reliability, and durability," he further explained.

Healthy alternatives are in the pipeline

Considering the changed eating habits in the country that took place due to the pandemic, Storia has come up with a plethora of healthy alternatives. Talking about the same, Shah commented, "While being relevant to the current times and keeping in mind the future trends, we've got an exciting range of value-added products ranging from immunity boosting to plant-based alternatives and gut health. We're looking at innovations with our packaging as well to add more value to our consumer experience and add convenience with the advent in lifestyle and technology available at most households." 

Work in progress: building nutritionally stronger India

When asked about the brand's plans, he said, "We would continue to remain very dedicated towards our mission of building a nutritionally stronger India and be more relevant with the current times. Apart from an exciting range of category introductions, we would continue to offer healthier alternatives to the 'so-called health and refreshing segments' and more value to our consumers."

He further added that the brand plans to scale up operations and increase footprints in the domestic and global markets. "We are also looking to strengthen our brand proposition with our consumers and build a much larger ecosystem around Storia," he concluded.