THE PROBLEM

A ₹350Cr Sri Lankan furniture brand was losing money in India despite rapid showroom expansion, aggressive marketing, and strong brand equity. Existing customers loved the brand and kept buying. But new customers weren't walking in. Sales were declining. Losses were mounting.

THE INSIGHT

This was a textbook leaky funnel problem. High repeat purchase meant strong product-market fit with existing customers. But zero trial-sized SKUs created a massive entry barrier for new buyers.

Furniture is high-involvement, high-ticket. First-time buyers wanted to test the brand with smaller purchases. The product range forced them into big commitments before they trusted the brand.

Plus, shoppers were searching online before visiting stores. No eCommerce presence meant losing discovery entirely.

THE WORK

Ran mystery shopper studies. Confirmed the leaky funnel hypothesis. Existing customers were happy. New customers faced too much friction.

Relocated 2 old stores to upcoming localities through developer partnerships. Better locations meant better foot traffic from the right demographic.

Introduced low-value, high-involvement home decor in pilot stores. This gave walk-ins a reason to engage with the brand without committing to furniture purchases. Trial without cannibalizing furniture margins.

Piloted the new approach in 3 Kolkata stores. Redesigned displays. Trained staff on the trial product strategy. Ran local activation to drive awareness.

Designed eCommerce business structure with clear SKU roadmap for phased online launch.

THE OUTCOME

Revenue tripled in 2 months across the 3 pilot stores. The trial product strategy worked exactly as designed.

eCommerce foundation was set for full launch. New stores opened with 5X walk-ins and 2X revenue versus old stores.