Store Review: Flames
When in 2003 the first Flames store was opened in the city of Vishakhapatnam, the concept was certainly very premature for the customers of Visakhapatnam. “We faced several criticisms from various customer segment walk-ins to our store on the kind of bold display in-store as well as the show window display themes. Some have even threatened to lodge complaint to the women organisation NGOs if we do not stop our show window display boldness!,” informed Dr. Sridhar Garuda.
He further added, “Surprisingly, even in 2013 when we started our 2nd store in a semi-commercial locality, we had confronted similar situation, wherein we were asked to be submissive on our show window display & poster or visual ads outside the store, as the area was surrounded with residences. Overall, looking at our experiences, we would tag Visakhapatnam as a conservative, conventional & traditional place, that’s slowly changing to take on the bold face of the changing trends in the life style of the people here & the global influence on the city chosen as one of he smart cities of India.”
Now with the advent of the next generation & the rapid changing fashion trends, the approach & concept adapted by Flames is widely appreciated & respected by all walks of life.
Understanding women
“Over the years, women have become more conscious of their style from inside, unlike before where they were only focussed on outer wear. Proportionately, the hygienic awareness & need to wear proper lingerie is also observed to have grown, ” explains Mrs. Manjusha Garuda, the managing director of Flames.
Understanding the women psyche has allowed for a better built up over the years and the stores have been thereby styled with Feminine touches making the same extremely comfortable for the women who walks in to buy lingerie as per her preference.
The stores are well tuned for self help and one can shop on their own too in case they don’t want anyone to intrude or prefer their own privacy. To maintain the feminine touch the stores are styled with soft & pastel hues and the story behind each store traces itself back to the tenderness and the represents the motif of a woman. “The Passion to do something different in the organised business sector, with a concept, had driven us to start FLAMES. And that was how, we named her as a fire to emit light always & enhance a positive desire in every being. And this passion got ignited after our decade long journey as authorised distributors for lingerie for various brands,” explains Mrs. Manjusha Garuda.
Being an exclusive only for women store, the footfall of men is relatively very less and women are given complete privacy and their own space when they walk into the Flames outlet. Jockey, Enamor & Daisy Dee are the most preferred brands of Vishakhapatnam today, the city which has grown conscious of brands and their significance over the years, slow and steady. The owners are also very confident about their existence and do want to expand to other regions in India when the time and opportunity permits.
The store
Having 2 stand-alone stores & 2 shop-in-shop sales points in the city. Both the stand-alone stores are 800 sq ft. each. Flames opened shutters to their first store at a prime commercial locality & the 2nd store in 2013 in a semi-residential locality. Each store has 2 fitting rooms & the arrangement goes brand wise in an organised system.
Well equipped with 6 sales girls and one sales manager every Flames store in the city maintains uniformity in terms of staff strength and only employs women staff to fulfill the basic principles attached to their concept . Also the uniformity in the concept is well reflected through the attires of the staff, who are always in their Flames uniform.
The Flames stores are quite unique in their outlook and are completely different as compared to many similar stores in the lingerie category. Flames is a complete woman’s store. Mainly educating the lady to her exact needs & not just to push sell anything and everything. Display & presentation of each product and availability of range from the basic to the premium variety is taken care of in a very sensitive way and with utmost care to a lady’s perspective and needs. Hygienic exchange policy, Reward points on every purchase are some of the added attractions that Flames has adapted to extend a privilege to their buyers. Apart from this the stores extend a free ‘wifi’ connection to shoppers, during their time spent at the Flames outlets.
However the brand truly wants to stay away from commercial chaos and thus completely restricts selfies & photography within the store premises or photography of the products is strictly prohibited.
The collections at the store and the decor keeps changing on the basis of seasonal and promotional requirements. Bra, Panty, Camisoles & Sets specific to different requirements like day long / sports / fancy / bridal etc or specific range for beginners and maternity use are available in galore at Flames. Body shapers, Thongs and Beach wear too form a big section of the collection available at the stores. Minimal range of lingerie for men & kids is also an inclusion. “We also merchandise mix n match kurti & leggings, bathrobes, housecoats, bedroom wear, maternity wear, swim wear, stockings, hand bags in fancy & jute, fancy belts, disposables, beauty accessories & cosmetics,” added Mrs. Manjusha Garuda, Founder and owner at Flames.
Other than the seasonal variety and the regular stocks the store also retails brands like Triumph; Jockey; Enamor; Trylo; Sonari; Laavian; Sherry; Little Lacy; Body care; Daisy Dee in lingerie. And Lovable; Enamor; Sand Dune; Sonari; Cute Little Fashion; Velvet; Honey Dew; Sweet Heart; Little Pink In Nightwear / Leisure wear.
Matters of the heart
Mrs. Manjusha Garuda, the managing director of the organisation is a women of prowess who is both a home maker & mother of 2 sons – Ujwal (graduate in BBM) & Uttej (pursuing 1st year graduation).
Married in 1994 to Dr. Sridhar Garuda, whose family was back then involved in garment retailing & distribution of lingerie (VIP; Jockey; Daisy Dee; Hanes; Bonjour etc.) for coastal Andhra, Mrs. Manjusha was inclined towards the textiles and garments business. The story of Flames started when she lost her mother in 2001, ailing from Cancer. With an intention to come out of her depression & keep herself more occupied in a constructive mode & serve the women category better with more understanding and bridge the gap that was already prevailing in the lingerie trade, she was determined to start her own lingerie retail store in 2003, with the help of multiple inputs from her husband.
Post the store opening, for 5yrs., she had put both her sons to a local boarding school & had dedicated herself to her goal on Flames – a passionate creation for the passionate female, spreading out the punch line ‘we care for your bare essentials’. “Meeting the needs of our customers & satisfying them with our service is our main motto. Taking our customers from beginners, pregnant women, elderly women, women exposed to surgeries & the other more prominent breed of lingerie unaware segment to upcoming celebrities. We walk them through a complete preview of the products, educating & counselling them at each step. Over the years the same has been possible only through the continued effort of our trained & skilled girls, who have supported us as a team to make us reach the position we hold today.
The sweet taste of competition
The changes within the lingerie industry is truly dynamic and has been marked with many ‘new’. But Flames was born out of passion and compassion so the owners Mrs. Manjusha Garuda and Dr. Sridhar Garuda are far too confident of Flames and the changing faces of the online and offline business does not put a sign of worry on their minds, rather they speak confidently in unison, “Its always a sweet competition that is very essential for any one to grow. Yet any store point in this trade can be strong with their service as USP.”
Walking through the evolving times, they have stuck to the evolution and has taken Flames far beyond the stores and is today going to places wherever opportunity taps! Organising seminars in women clubs, housing societies, old age homes, college goers etc. Organising stalls in appropriate places & occasions. Putting a smile on every women’s face is what we count as business of the day!
When asked regarding the competition that the brick and mortar stores are facing today owing to the growing prominence of ecommerce, they cited on a very hopeful tone that the offline stores will definitely grow to prominence in the time to come, as people still want to feel before they buy.
” With the fast growing & changing trend in outer fashion, the demand & challenge for providing a co-ordinate lingerie has been the urge within us that motivates to update ourselves day to day. Our sincere gratitude to all the women for being our motivators in giving us an experience of the change everyday. We believe that, giving satisfaction & happiness to one women is our investment on positive advertising to 10 other women & their families.” reminisced a confident Mrs. Manjusha Garuda, Founder of Flames.
