The burgeoning e-commerce industry is soon to welcome another conglomerate onto its map in Pakistan. With websites like Azmalo and Daraz catering to the masses, we have a new niche market lifestyle e-store going live soon; it will cater to clients within the country but mainly to those abroad. Brand Central is a new concept online store that will house not just clothes, shoes and accessories but also branches into an entire range of luxury home accessories and beauty products.
“We want to provide our clients everything at just a click away,” says Zainab Malik of Brand Central. “We have been working on this project for a year now and we feel that our software is exactly where it should be to handle such a venture.”
Focused on Pakistanis residing in Canada, Europe, USA, UK and the Scandinavian countries, Brand Central is trying to bring the taste of home with just a click away. “We have done extensive market research in these areas and have figured out what people are looking for and that is what we want to cater to.”
A wide range of designers and retail conglomerates are on board including Threads & Motifs, Cross Stitch, Needles, Koel, Rabia- Slate, Deepak Perwani, Shamael, Layla Chatoor, Feeha Jamshed, Maheen Karim, Ayesha Hashwani, Farida Hasan, Ayesha Somaya, Amna Aqeel, Ayesha Khurram, Nasreen Shaikh, Ali Xeeshan and Rana Nauman for clothes and Arammish and Tony&Guy for beauty products.
“People have been so kind to us,” continues Malik, “Deepak Perwani just said are you [catering to a] niche? Where do I sign? The response has been great as far as our stockers go.”
Brand Central will not only be housing local designers but have also reached out across the border to widen their range by adding seven Indian designers to their roster including Mini Bindra, Arjum Kapoor, Rakesh Agarwal, Vikram Fundus to name a few.
“What we have in store for the website is state of the art,” continues Malik. “Since we deal in the business of fashion and have a successful magazine, we know how people want fashion presented. Each outfit will have a ramp walk so that the client can see how the outfit will look on a real person and get a sense of the flow of the material. Along with this, we will be adding specific descriptions to the outfits.”
This new venture can be best described as the local Net a Porter. To ensure credibility and to assure the client that there will be no credit card tampering or theft, all transactions will be made from Dubai. “We have an entire IT unit set there that’ll be taking care of the transactions and payments,” she adds.
From choosing every outfit they stock to utilising their contacts in the fashion industry, Brand Central will provide services such as making appointments for their clients with designers they desire to see regarding bridal options. This full service e-store is set to raise the bar for online shopping from Pakistan. “Our primary focus is to attract Pakistanis residing outside Pakistan so they can not only keep up with trends, but also know what is en vogue in Pakistan as far as lifestyle goes,” she says.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 7th, 2013.
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