BAGGIT

A PREMIUM BRAND OF BAGS AND ACCESSORIES THAT ENSURES FASHION WITH PURPOSE Indranil Roy | Business Connect

Baggit is a brand that doesn’t need any introduction; its name suffices to illustrate the quality and value the brand has created with its outstanding products.

Baggit is a ladies handbag brand whose product portfolio also includes wallets, men’s bags and ladies’ belts. Catering to the mass premium segment of the audience, they have also started making a significant contribution towards ethical fashion by adding recyclable products to their portfolio.

Also, they recently launched a value brand ‘gg’ to provide its customers with a functional line of bags that fit well in their everyday life. The brand name ‘gg’ has been derived from the brand name ‘Baggit’ because of the 3 decades old brand equity of Baggit.

Baggit bags are sold over 1000 counters, which include Large Format Stores such as Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop, Central, Pantaloons, etc. and 55 Exclusive Brand Outlets. Besides this, Baggit has a strong online presence at www.baggit.com and leading online marketplaces, which include names like Myntra, Amazon, Flipkart, Tata Cliq and many more.

Baggit: A brand that encourages Fashion with Purpose defines its uniqueness and sets it apart in the market. Choosing to be a vegan and eco-friendly product is crucial for them. Being a business with a cause was an idea 30 years ago, but today it is the driving force of the company. Their incredible vision is something that their consumers can relate with and trust them for.

And, it’s quite essential to keep driving home the point, whether it is through their products or the allied messaging they send out. As a brand, they strive to provide a

NINA LEKHI

MD & Chief Design Curator

superior quality products, but carving a niche goes beyond that. Ensuring that they are also perceived as a brand with strong core values, ethics and beliefs, is quintessential. This comes out in their messaging whether it is to reinforce their commitment to be vegan or encourage conversation on important socio-cultural narratives, so that their vision to be a brand with a cause is justified. That is what they are purely focusing on. At Baggit, it’s not about having an edge but sharing a common belief that people can resonate with them not just as a consumer but as a stakeholder.

CREATING A VALUABLE TRUST OF CLIENTS Baggit has always focused on providing the optimum product mix comprising of the latest trends to cater to all customer segments. With the launch of gg, they have developed a value line of merchandise for addressing the needs of the price conscious customers who do not want to compromise on quality too. By addressing the needs of their end user, they are also keeping up with the client’s expectations, hence it’s a win-win situation overall. Adding to this, they have also created a recyclable product range that will soon hit the stores giving both clients and end-user variety in terms of collection.

SYNCHRONIZING WITH THE LATEST NEEDS OF MARKET Change is the only constant and any brand in the accessories market is their competition. They as a brand stay relevant via in house product designs and also meaningful message driven campaigns. From 3 decades Baggit has stood for a seamless combination of style, strength and design in the fashion industry. The ‘PutItOnTheTable’ campaign last year helped to strengthen the brand image. Focusing on gender equality, the campaign captured the essence of the issue with Bollywood youth & style icon; Shraddha Kapoor is the brand ambassador.

WORK LIFE AT BAGGIT At Baggit they strongly believe in values such as Professionalism, Respect & Trust and Excellence. When they recruit professionals, they train them and help them to adjust to the working atmosphere of the organization. They have executives who are still there with them for the last 25 years. Today, they recruit professionals based on their specialized sectors, they believe in converting industries into universities where they learn, train and grow, which also helps in the growth of their employees professionally and personally. to this, they also collate regular customer feedback w.r.t. their products and overall ambience in the store with the help of POS level feedback forms which are automated through their system.

Combining inputs from R&D led activities with the creative ideas and customer insights they are able to take the product and customer experience to the next level hence contributing to the growth of the company.

ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES TO BE PRAISED FOR

At Baggit, they stringently encourage work life balance. Every year they organise camps, yoga sessions, regular vision seminars, etc. for their employees, which boosts wellness and develops a positive approach towards the company even during the challenging times.

GOING INTO THE DEPTHS OF RESEARCH R&D plays a significantly important role at Baggit as it helps them to be synchronized with the market trends and maintain a competitive edge by sizing up the business opportunity. They regularly conduct Brand Health Check and Usage and Attitude study to monitor brand performance and constantly keep tabs on the changing category behavior. Adding

2000 - First exclusive Brand Outlet launched 2005 - Nina Lekihi voted as one of the most powerful business women by Business Today. Ranked the highest selling brand in Large Format Stores - Handbags category. 2014 - Peta Vegan Fashion award - Best Brand Women’s Wallet category 2017-18 - Presence in international markets like Srilanka & GCC. 2019 - Presence across 1000+ doors PAN India including 50+ Exclusive Business Outlets

Best Performing Retailer - Fashion Accessories - Inorbit (2010) Best Brand Award - Shopper Stop (2011 - 15) PETA Proggy Award - Fashion without cruelty (2014) Make In India - Award for Excellence (2015) Best TVC of the Year - The Activation Venues Forum Awards (2018) 26th most watched TVC (2018) - Campaign India Top 50 Ads of 2018

FUTURE PLANS

In India, Baggit currently has its presence in 100+ cities including Metros and Tier II cities, with 55 Exclusive Business Outlets around 750 plus counters, including LFS and Trade. In the coming months, they have plans to open their exclusive outlets in Tier II cities and also introduce a value line of merchandise for addressing the needs of the price conscious customers who do not want to compromise on basic quality too. Apart from its presence in Sri Lanka, the brand has entered Dubai as well and is exceptionally performing well. The bigger vision is to make Baggit a global brand in other countries.

WAYS TO RELIEVE STRESS AND RELAX

Mental illness and stress can have a variety of causes such as family problems, job problems, and disputes, financial difficulties, ill health, or even the demise loss of someone close to you. It is always important to identify the causes of stress and sometimes the stress is natural. One has to take some steps to deal with the root of the problem, and then only they can tackle the symptoms.

Relax, take Pause and Breath. You deserve it, Relaxation is good for you, and this process takes less time than you think.

You never need a luxury spa or retreat dinners for relaxing. Each of our stress-relieving tips can get you from OMG to WOW in less than 15 minutes.

Try cumulative relaxation Try self-hypnosis, which is a very simple relaxation technique and can be done anywhere, you can do it even at your desk or in the car. Another very simple example of this technique is to focus on a specific ‘word’ or ‘phrase’ that has a positive meaning to you.

Cumulative Relaxation also includes normal exercise like – Start Relaxing all the way from fingers to toes (contract and relax) and then release each muscle group in the body. Start with the lower arm, upper arm, chest, back, abdominals, and the overall body. Once the whole body is relaxed, the mind will eventually relax soon. Avoid Caffeine, Alcohol, and Tobacco.

Reduce and at least avoid the intake of alcoholic as well as tobacco products, your consumption of caffeine and nicotine products can make your mind dull according to researchers. Any drinks containing caffeine and alcohol is regarded as a stress booster. Caffeine and Tobacco are stimulants and so will increase your level of stress rather than reduce it.

Alcoholic drinks are regarded as a depressant when it is taken in large quantities, it proves to be more stressful. Therefore, the usage of alcoholic drinks as a way to alleviate your stress is not very helpful.

Swap caffeinated and alcoholic drinks with the drinking of water, herbal teas, and diluted natural fruit juices, which keeps you hydrated and enable your body to cope better with stress. It also benefits your body’s metabolism and skin tone.

Indulge in Physical Activity Sometimes the targeted exercise goes a long way toward freeing your body of stress hormones and increasing your endorphin levels - responsible for feelings of happiness. Carve out your time during any busy day to indulge in exercise for both purposes - keeping your body healthy and as a result, it naturally burst out your stress.

However, the stress in the modern lifestyle is quite rarely remedied by anything and so physical exercise can be useful as a surrogate treatment to metabolize the excessive stress from your hormones and restore your body stress level and mind to a calmer healthy life which is, more relaxed.

When you feel stressed and tense with any situation of life, go for a healthy walk in the fresh air. Try to incorporate yourself with some physical activity into your daily routine on a regular basis. You can either plan it before or after work or after lunchtime simple walk. Regular physical activity such as gyming and yoga will also improve the quality of your sleep.

Get More Sleep Lack of proper sleep is a very significant cause of stress during your coming day or at the office and anywhere. Unfortunately, the stress also interrupts your way of proper sleep so it is contradictory to sleep and stress. As oceans of thoughts keep pondering through our heads, it stops your mind to work or interrupt your relaxing time to fall asleep.

Take a bubble bath or warm bath with some reading and calming, it will help you better sleep and eliminate the stress from your body. Also take a few minutes to relax your body, try to tire your eyes and mind that help you forget about the things that worry you during the day.

One should also aim to go to bed at the same specific time each day so that your mind and body get used to it and it will be your predictable bedtime routine.

Light a Candle and write your journal Using the essential oils every night or burning a scented candle may help you reduce your feelings and help you to be energetic in mood whenever you feel down. Some candles and their scents are especially soothing and made for stress relieving. Here are some of the most calming scents: • Lavender • Rose • Roman chamomile • Neroli • Sandalwood

Using this kind of scents to treat your mood is accelerating and used to be called aromatherapy. Several research and studies show that aromatherapy can decrease anxiety and improve your sleep with minoring the stress. Keeping a Stress Diary and journal may be the one best way to effectively relieve from the stress-related symptoms. The gratitude of keeping the journal best in a fancy diary and cute pens can really help you to put things in a better perspective. So pick your daily time and make your routine according to that every day, by writing down a few things that make you happy and results in stress to get out of you.

To your Dear Diary, note down the date, time and place of each stressful episode as well as the happy phase. Afterward, note down what you were doing, who you were meeting with, and how you felt about yourself both physically and emotionally. Give every stressful time a stress rating and mark improvement. Use your diary to understand what is going through your life from past episodes and what triggers your stress. Try to find out how effective you are in stressful situations. This whole writing and soothing candles interlude will help you enable yourself more and avoid stressful mechanisms.

Apart from these five proven facts, there are some other general ways by which you can easily boost yourself over the stress:- • Snack on fruit and nuts • Get yourself a dog • Smile more to less stress • Watch a Comedy movie or thing • Think of Happy Memories… and Don’t Dwell on the Past • Have a cup of tea Drink chamomile tea • Massage reduces the stress hormone cortisol • Walk in the woods Take a walk: Nature • Regular vacations • Get honest with yourself about your job and life • Do an art project – Be creative • Practice meditation and join some yoga • Solve Crossword Puzzles to energize the mind • Add Some Indoor Plants for positivity • Express Yourself by Writing • Join a religious community or go to religious temples weekly • Spend Time with Friends and Family • Chewing gum • Engage in physical intimacy • Dark Chocolate: a delicious stress reliever • Aware mindfulness • Fix your diet and supplementation • Play video games of your choice • Schedule time for emails. • Music: Listen to Soothing Music • Laugh Out Loud – Spread smiles • Reduce the use of cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs • Talk to someone – Go out with friends • Schedule time to recharge: proper sleep • Write your stresses out on paper: Journal • Indulge in some light reading- daily reading