TexBazaar isn’t just a marketplace; it’s a lively community driven by innovation, transparency, and efficiency. This startup goes beyond the norm, reshaping how the textile industry conducts business. Its mission is to empower businesses by unleashing their full potential. Through TexBazaar, the textile industry can access a transformative platform aimed at liberating capital, fostering global connections, and providing essential tools for fabric and yarn professionals to excel in a dynamic market.
In an exclusive interaction with The Interview World, Koushik Heda, Founder and CEO of TexBazaar, discussed their operational strategies, how they tackle challenges like dead inventory in textile business, and their plans to integrate emerging technologies into their platform. He also shared his long-term vision for the company. Here are the key insights from his interview.
Q: What are the specific activities and operations carried out by TexBazaar?
A: We operate as a marketplace specializing in yarn and fabric. Textile traders utilize our platform to sell their dead stock and surplus inventory, while also procuring fresh yarn and fabric. Additionally, we offer valuable market insights, including trends analysis such as upward and downward trends in yarn. Our daily alerts on yarn prices, along with updates on MCX cotton prices and researched tips for predicting market sentiments, ensure businesses stay abreast of the latest developments.
Furthermore, we provide an array of tools to assist textile businesses. Among these are fabric cost calculators and sizing calculators. To clarify, GSM (grams per square meter) denotes the weight of the fabric per unit area, while GLM (grams per linear/running meter) indicates weight per unit length, adjusted for the fabric’s width. These measurements aid in determining the relative weight of different fabrics.
Our suite of tools also includes miscellaneous conversions and calculators, all tailored to empower textile businesses in making well-informed decisions.
Q: How are you currently addressing the issue of dead inventory of textile businesses within your platform?
A: Unused or surplus fabric, termed as dead inventory, accumulates when original manufacturers or retailers fail to sell or utilize it. This surplus arises from various factors such as overproduction, inaccurate market forecasts, cancelled orders, manufacturing errors, or shifts in fashion trends.
Often, another party acquires this dead inventory and resells it freshly. Connecting the dead inventory to potential buyers proves advantageous. Buyers are then inclined to purchase at reduced prices, typically at a discount of 10-15%. This benefits the seller immensely, preventing their warehouse from being clogged with unsold goods.
This arrangement fosters a win-win scenario for both parties involved. Buyers obtain the fabric at a more affordable rate while sellers rejoice in the clearance of their inventory.
Q: What strategies are you considering to develop new technology layers that complement the existing marketplace infrastructure?
A: At TexBazaar, we are dedicated to advancing innovation. Our platform leverages cutting-edge technology to deliver a seamless and intuitive experience for textile businesses. Innovation permeates every facet of TexBazaar, from swift transactions to advanced tools. Currently, all necessary features are incorporated into our app. Moving ahead, we will actively gather feedback from our customers and integrate any additional requirements into our platform. Presently, our operations are exclusively app-based, with plans to introduce a dashboard or web interface in the future.
Q: What is your vision for the future of your business?
A: In five years, we aim to achieve a revenue milestone of Rs. 500-600 crore. Currently, our primary market is centered in Maharashtra. However, we aspire to broaden our reach to other regions. Despite being a bootstrap organization at present, we anticipate seeking seed funding within the next year to facilitate our growth trajectory. Engaging extensively with merchant exporters within India presently, we envision expanding our operations to encompass various geographical locations in the future.
