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Futuristic Technologies Provide Better Health Tracking, Work & Social Life Balance: Archit Agarwal, Crossbeats

In an interview with BW Disrupt, Archit Agarwal, Co-founder, Crossbeats, spoke about company, challenges and more

The market is already flooded with many other wearable and other gadgets, how are you different from the existing competitors?
While it is true that the market is already flooded with many other audio or wearable brands, Crossbeats is a differentiator as it is a holistic consumer technology company. We try to create unique experiences in the intersection between lifestyle and tech that enrich lives and each of our offering is inspired by current movements in fashion, art and music. Besides, the products are design-centric, with clean aesthetics, user-friendly features and advanced technology. Appealing designs in competitive pricing along with frequent product launches make us stand out of the clutter.

What is the funding status and monetization model?

We have always been a bootstrapped company. As mentioned earlier, we are a product driven brand and hence our monetization model is omni-channel, with a strong push towards reaching the end consumers directly.

What makes Crossbeats a make in India brand? Are the products manufactured indigenously?
Crossbeats is very much an Indian brand founded and based in Bangalore. The products are exclusively designed and crafted by engineers in Bangalore office. At the moment the manufacturing is done in China but the anticipation is to move it to India to support the governments Made in India initiatives.  

How are you implementing the PLI incentive scheme?
Promoting home grown brands and incentivising them to setup and run manufacturing units in the country will strongly compliment to the government initiatives such as “Digital India” and “Make in India” campaigns. We are positive to achieve this target in the next 4 to 5 years, if the government supports small or mid ranged businesses by creating more opportunities.

What challenges are you facing in running your business?
Most recent and probably the biggest challenge that we faced as a business was the pandemic, which brought supply chain to a screeching halt and severely impacted delivery of products.  We were, however, quick to improvise and adapt, thanks to our reliance on own website sales and e-commerce focus since inception. We have off late upgraded products with not just new features, but futuristic technologies to provide better health tracking, work and social life balance.

What are your marketing plans?
Instead of taking an all-out marketing approach, we have always banked on striking strategic communication with our end consumers. However, we do intend to increase our marketing activities to create a clear value proposition for our end consumers. Digital being the buzzword, our marketing initiatives can be expected to be more focused online.

What market share do you hold currently in the wearable and audio segment?
As per the latest report, we are currently one of the top leaders in the mid premium segment of the wearable and audio segment.

What is the market size and opportunity?
The consumer lifestyle technology market is rapidly growing, currently representing a $2 billion opportunity. The opportunity in the space is definitely even bigger with increasing buying power and evolved preferences of millennial and gen Z population, who spend much of their time on their smartphones or other online platforms. The opportunity is remarkable also owing to the fact that there is an increased preference for made-in-India products in the market. The latest IDC and Counterpoint research reports too suggest that the Indian wearable in particular is currently is driven solely by home-grown brands that reportedly hold two-third of the market.

How did you manage your services during lockdown?

As stated previously, we changed with the time and swiftly adapted ourselves to the new normal post the outbreak of the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown that followed. Apart from it, we made provisions for work from home for our associates, ensured all safety precautions for our operations team and partnered with the right logistics company for last-mile delivery. Our associates attended a vaccination drive so that they can stay safe.

Have you witnessed any major changes in the business/sector in the post Covid scenario?
There has been an increase in demand for products that promote an active lifestyle. That was the reason why we too upgraded our products to equip people with key health related features like SpO2, HR, BP and Sleep monitoring. In addition to the physiological health factors, there is also increased focus on entertainment, explaining the surge in demand for products like TWS Earbuds, packed with features that aid the overall lifestyle.


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