Start-up Stars: We believe organic and sustainable growth is the way forward - Litmus

Adgully has been turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series – START-UP STARS. We at Adgully wholeheartedly support the ‘Vocal for Local’ movement and have been featuring numerous local/ homegrown businesses, brands, and Apps in the country launched in the last few years.

Litmus is a design and technology company which aims to enrich consumers’ lives by creating premium yet affordable lifestyle products that offer true value to its consumers. Founded by second-generation entrepreneur duo – Rohit Bachhawat and Ankit Bachhawat – Litmus’ mission is simple yet profound: making technology accessible and enjoyable for everyone in everyday use. Rohit Bachhawat, Founder & CEO, is an alumna of SP Jain School of Global Management and has worked in the retail industry across India and UAE, helping brands boost their retail presence. He heads the product design and development works along with overall brand strategy of Litmus. Ankit Bachhawat, Co-founder & COO, is an alumna of Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore & Christ University. He specialises in sales and marketing and heads the operations of Litmus.

The lifestyle consumer electronics brand offers a diverse range of technology assisted grooming products catering to both men and women, ensuring that everyone has access to top-notch tools for self-expression and self-care.

In an interaction with Adgully, Rohit Bachhawat, Co-founder, Litmus & Ankit Bachhawat, Co-founder, Litmus, speaks about being part of this Electronics and Technology industry for over a decade, evolving consumer trends, focussing on delivering superior experience and better value to consumers, and more.

What inspired the founding of your start-up, and what problem did you set out to solve?

We have been part of this Electronics and Technology industry for over a decade now and we have seen the market and consumers evolving. The current trend that we are witnessing is that a consumer is more educated and informed and they do their necessary due diligence before buying any product. The consumers are also more demanding and in a price sensitive market like India it is difficult to balance both affordability and quality control. Most brands due to pricing pressure compromise on the product quality and consumer experience.

At Litmus, our benchmark is not just customer satisfaction, but we strive to maximise customer delight. With every product development our primary aim is to deliver top of the line tech specs and best in class built quality. We pay attention to detail not only on the product itself, but also on the accessories and product packaging to deliver a wholesome customer experience.

Could you provide an overview of your product/ service and its unique features or benefits?

While we develop a product, we focus on its unique features that add value to the customer and also act as a differentiating factor vis-a-vis competition.

A few examples would be:

• Litmus Body Groomer Carbon 100: Our best selling trimmer with 0-10mm comb with 20 length settings. It comes in a hard-shell carry case specifically designed for the current generation which is looking for ease and convenience while travelling. A one-of-a-kind product in the market.
• Litmus Travel Garment Steamer TS-1166: A unique and easy to use Travel Garment Steamer which is 50% lighter and more compact in comparison to a traditional steamer. It has been designed specifically for travel purposes as it cuts down on luggage space and weight drastically while travelling and does the work of removing creases from clothes. Ideal for both business and leisure travels.
• Litmus Precision Trimmer PT-101: A single mould body compact trimmer without any external screws. IPX7 water resistance trimmer with precision blades designed in Germany. It is a premium product designed for the next generation of go-getters.

How does your start-up differentiate itself from competitors in the market?

We are a product company and the only way we can differentiate ourselves is by developing products which are focussed on delivering superior experience and better value to our consumer. So, we keep it simple by making sure we listen to our consumers and with every new product we try to bridge the gap by offering better designs, product finishes with superior technical specifications.

What milestones has your company achieved so far, and what are your future growth plans?

We started this venture with 2 SKUs and today in the Litmus portfolio we have 18 SKUs. We started with daily 5-10 orders and we are looking to sell 10,000 units in the coming quarter.

How has the start-up evolved since its inception, and what challenges have you overcome along the way?

In the whole evolution process we have realised that being just trendsetters is not enough. Today, the biggest challenge is to reach out to your target audience and be heard in all the clutter that is around. In our journey we have realised that it is very essential to have strong business fundamentals and it is important to be true to your customers.

How does your start-up contribute to the industry or community you operate in?

We have always focussed in educating our consumers and creating more awareness about how to effectively use the product. We also share product care tips to further enhance the life of the product. In the currently competitive environment, due to cost and profitability pressures brands tend to compromise on product quality. We want to stick to our business core and concentrate on delivering best in class customer experience and our aim is to be an industry benchmark for quality.

What problem does your start-up solve?

India is the fastest growing nation and there is a constant increase in middle class aspirational consumers who want to get access to the best-in-class technology and built finishes. We want to deliver affordable luxury which is also easy on the pockets. So, our motto is to deliver products which are high on technology yet affordable by the growing Indian middle class.

How much funding has the company raised, and from which investors?

We are self-funded, and we believe being bootstrapped has helped us realise the importance of generating value with every penny we spend.

Who are your target customers, and how are you acquiring them?

We are targeting the Middle and Upper middle-class population. We are currently a D2C brand and we are reaching out to our target audience though 14 marketplaces. We also believe word of mouth advertising is the best form of advertising and our customers are our best brand ambassadors. We request each and every customer to share their experience of using our product and we encourage them to reach out to us with their feedback which will help us in our future developments.

What are the major challenges the company faces currently?

There is a lot of clutter and the challenge that we face is reaching out to our target audience through the usual commercial media as they are becoming more and more expensive by the day. Reaching out to your TA via Social Media is also not very viable. Unfortunately, today a lot of brands are spending more money on marketing than on actual product development and this is a criminal waste as this money spent is finally recovered from the consumers so they end up paying more for the product.

I think reaching out to the consumers in a cost effective manner is possible only if there is differentiation in product offering which adds value to the consumer. That’s when the consumer willingly becomes your brand ambassador and the cost of marketing can be substantially reduced and the same money could be utilised for R&D of new products.

What is the company's growth plan and vision for the future?

We believe organic and sustainable growth is the way forward. We are trying to accelerate our market presence and at the same time optimise our marketing expenditure. Our vision is to keep innovating and keep bringing in new technology and design concepts to our market. This will be our key differentiator.

How does the company measure success, and what are its key performance indicators (KPIs)?

I think we have a long road ahead of us. We currently measure our growth through various KPIs like we track our ROMI (Return on Marketing Investment), we keep a close tab on the COGS (Cost of Goods Sold) to keep our business sustainable. We are trying to keep our fixed cost low and also keep our organisation lean and flexible. This has enabled us to be more agile and responsive to customer needs.

What are the exit strategies for investors?

Currently, we are bootstrapped, but if we are out there looking for investors, then we would like to collaborate with someone who would add value not just with investments, but with their expertise in helping us scale. We are looking for investors who would like to build and scale up the business to a point that we can go public. Then they can choose to be invested or exit partially or wholly.