Doodlage: Research, Analysis and Marketing Strategies
- Manasi Paradkar
- Jun 21, 2021
- 10 min read
Updated: Jun 25, 2021
ABOUT:
In this article I will present my detailed research regarding a sustainable fashion brand named ‘Doodlage’. Using this research and various marketing tools like SWOT analysis, customer profiling, consumer survey, brand identity prism and brand archetype, I will pinpoint the gaps in their current marketing strategy, and come up with new and improved marketing plans that will help them increase their brand reach.
Doodlage is a sustainable fashion brand based in Delhi, India. What comes to your mind when you first think of fashion? Is it Trends, style, or the glamour maybe? For Kriti Tula, the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Doodlage, Fashion always represented the pollution, wastage, and the huge textile waste landfills. Kriti started Doodlage in 2012 with the single vision of reducing fabric waste from the textile landfills. Fashion is the 2nd largest polluting industry in the world. 92 million tonnes of textile waste is created by the fashion industry each year! (Dean C, 2019). Doodlage uses discarded industry fabrics to make their collections. They don’t order, or produce any “new” fabrics for any of their collections. By doing this they end up recycling upto 600kgs of fabric every month. Since all the products are made from recycled and upcycled fabrics, each of their pieces’ end up becoming unique, thus giving their customers a sense of urgency. This is their USP. If you like any of the Doodlage pieces’, you have to buy it before someone snatches it up, because the exact same piece would never be made again. “We always thought why someone didn’t do something about the problem . Then we realised we were that someone” (doodlage.in) This is the quote that inspired the founder of Doodlage to start a brand that was entirely based on the upcycling process.
Brand Archetype: 70% Innocent + 30% Creator -Their highest virtue is sustainability. -They are not afraid to challenge the ways of the industry, if that’s what it means to stand up for their beliefs. -They are creative and innovative while still being true to themselves and their customers. -They want to be leaders of positive change in the society. -Their brand isn’t just about the products, it’s also about the process. -They like to create the most unique experience for their clients.
Doodlage has three main product categories- Apparel, Homeware and Stationary. The biggest share is taken by apparel, hence followed by homeware, and then stationary. They try to keep their production process as clean and circular as possible. The process starts from procurement of discarded fabrics from large production industries. This fabric is then cleaned and prepared to be used for garments. The scraps need to be sewed together to create big panels. The garment outlines are then cut from these panels, and the garment is stitched. Whatever scrap fabric remains after the stitching of garments, is then used for making the homeware collections and then finally, the remaining scrap is shredded and turned into paper which is used for their stationary collections, and as packaging for their products.
CURRENT MARKETING REACH:
-Doodlage does most of their brand marketing through their social media channels. They have their accounts on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube giving them a total of around 89 thousand followers combining all of their accounts. -They do most of their selling through their own website @ doodlage.in. Their website has a very simple and easy to navigate layout, with soothing natural shades like beiges and ochres on their main page. They also have a separate section labelled ‘Journal’ which hosts their interviews, fashion shows, sustainability videos and so on. Browsing through this section would help a potential customer in understanding the brand a bit better. -They do not have their own flagship store yet. Apart from e-commerce, their products are retailed by over 40 multi-designer stores all around the world. -They have participated, and also received considerable appreciation for their 3 Lakme Fashion Week collections. They have also had quite a few Bollywood celebrities appreciate their proud purchases from Doodlage. -Doodlage has been the recipient of Grazia Young Fashion award back in 2016. Kriti Tula has also had her interviews published multiple times in Vogue and Elle India magazines. -She was also spotted in the Apple twitter series of #behindthemac, where apple had created small reels of inspiring individuals using their devices. -Apart from this, Doodlage has been a part of multiple events and exhibitions including the prestigious ‘Kala Ghoda’ exhibition in Mumbai, as well as Comicon, India. -Kriti Tula has participated in interviews with the global summit ‘Sankalp’ back in 2019. She was also on one of the episodes with ‘Leaders of Tomorrow’ and ‘Eco-india’. -Doodlage has hosted small pop-up events in order to educate and promote people about sustainability and the upcycling process. Some of them include “Swap till U Drop” where people were invited to exchange their unused clothes with each other, and “REFASH” where Doodlage upcycled peoples’ old sarees into trendy new outfits. -They collaborate with brands on a per-collection basis, in order to help these brands take care of their textile wastes. Some of their notable collaborations were with famous brands like FabIndia, TATA Cliq Luxury, Penguin India, Deutsche Welle, Kompanero and Warwicks. Most of Doodlage’s marketing efforts have always been about educating people about the dangers of the current fashion production processes, and how they as consumers, can choose sustainable fashion to discourage fashion brands from following such careless methods.
SWOT ANALYSIS:
COMPETITOR ANALYSIS:
Doodlage’s biggest competitors in the market right now are brands like Nicobar, FabIndia, No Nasties and Ka Sha. Brands like Nicobar and FabIndia have a very good marketing strategy in place, which has been quite well received by the Indian audience. Nicobar mostly focuses on social media strategies, whereas FabIndia being a more traditional brand, focuses more on TV and print advertisements. In terms of the price points, Doodlage is quite well positioned in comparison to it’s competitors. In terms of product categories and variety, Nicobar, Fabindia and No Nasties surpass Doodlage. Doodlage has a very limited product category and a very limited variety in those existing categories. Nicobar and Ka-Sha are quite well known in the Indian market for their unique trends and style. Overall, Doodlage needs to improve on its marketing strategies and put more thought into their product categories, overall style and trend quotient of the brand.
PRIMARY RESEARCH: CUSTOMER SURVEY
I curated several survey questions in order to help me understand the gaps in the current marketing strategies of Doodlage. This survey was sent to an Indian audience, as Doodlage isn’t that well known outside India as of now. My goal was to know if people in India understand what sustainability means, What age group usually shops at sustainable brands?, Have people in India have ever heard of Doodlage, and where?, and if people know what upcycling in fashion means. The results that my survey produced are as such.
According to the results produced by this survey, I came up with the following conclusions:
Most people in India still don’t know what sustainability in fashion, and hence by conclusion what upcyling means.
Even out of the people who have said they like sustainable fashion, almost 60% of them don’t really know what it means and where to look for it.
Even though 74% people said they liked sustainable fashion, they weren’t able to put down a name of any sustainable brand they liked. People think liking sustainable brands is in trend right now but, only a few of these people actually care about it.
There are a lot of misconceptions about the upcycling and recycling processes in India. Most people might end up not purchasing such products because they feel these products are “unclean” and “pre-used”, as compared to products that are made from “new” fabrics.
More than 80% people between the age of 30-50 have never heard of Doodlage. Almost 75% of people who have heard of Doodlage, have only come across it through social media channels. These are the people between the ages of 18-25 who are quite active on social media platforms. This means Doodlage has very little media presence outside of Instagram and Facebook.
The most common answer given for names’ of sustainable brands is ‘FabIndia’. India is a country that reacts better to TV and print advertisements, as compared to just social media advertisement. FabIndia has a better overall media presence in India.
MARKETING STRATEGIES:
The primary marketing strategy for Doodlage has always been ‘Cause Marketing’ i.e. marketing efforts that are linked to uplifting a social or environmental cause. This is usually a strategy used by non-profit organisations and NGO’s (Yodiz team, 2016). Doodlage has always felt it’s their responsibility to educate more and more people about sustainable ways of using and producing fashion. I have come up with 6 different marketing strategies that are in sync with Doodlage principles. All of these strategies have different focus areas, and will produce varied results, that in conclusion will help take the brand and their purpose forward.
1. In urban Indian households, women of the house play a huge role in determining the buying decisions of the house. These are the women between the ages of 30-50. In order to specifically target these woman, Doodlage can approach the various woman networking groups on Facebook. PWN i.e ‘Powai Woman Networking’, is one such networking group. This group has a whooping 26.6 thousand members including woman entrepreneurs and small business owners. This group is extremely active on Facebook and they keep having discussions and seminars relating to social and environmental issues. Having an interview or a Q&A session about the brand and it’s process, will be very beneficial for Doodlage in terms of widening their customer base and educating more homes about upcycling.
2. As I mentioned in the customer profile earlier, collaboration of Doodlage with another sustainable brand is going to be beneficial for both the brands. The number of sustainable brands are increasing day by day, and it’s always going to be a good idea to help each other get the message of sustainability out to a wider audience. One such brand that Doodlage can collaborate with is an Indian skincare brand called Ilana organics. Ilana organics was started in 2018 and it has already managed to attract and educate a lot of customers. They have a strong social media strategy and have around 37 thousand followers on their Instagram account. Ilana organics uses all natural and organic ingredients to make their range of skincare products. Doodlage x Ilana collaboration could have a launch of a limited time period collection featuring garments, and accessories printed with natural dyes. These products could have catchy quotes like “I am a Natural” and “Ethical AF” printed on them. This collaboration could be advertised on the Instagram and Facebook accounts of both the brands, and they could also arrange to have small funky pop-up stores to invite people to see the new collection.
3. India has had a long standing tradition of recycling products and hand-me-downs. This can be used to create an advertisement to make the customer get emotionally attached to the brand. Doodlage already does this thing called “REFASH”, where they invite people to send their old sarees that can be converted to new garments. This exact segment can be used to create a TV and print advertisement, where a girl is using her elder sister’s or mother’s old saree that she likes, and creating a new trendy outfit out of it. #upcyclewithdoodlage
4. Doodlage gets most of their sales through their website. In order to make the shopping experience more personal and easy for their customers, Doodlage needs to launch their own mobile shopping app. This mobile app. should be more interactive. Every time a consumer clicks on a product, there can be a small tab at the bottom that says “How was I made?”, which will take the consumer to a video that shows how the garment was upcycled. The app can also have a “Recycled Fabric Calculator” at the top. Every time a purchase is made, the numbers on this calculator will increase. This will engage the consumers and show them exactly how much they have contributed in ridding the earth of textile waste.
LONG TERM STRATEGIES:
1. Once the effects of the pandemic wear down, people are going to want to step into malls and stores to get that experience of in-person shopping again. This will be the perfect time for Doodlage to start their own flagship store in one of the metro cities of India like Delhi, Mumbai or Bangalore. This store can have a workshop at the back where the customers will be able to see how the production process happens. This will also be a place where people could get their old outfits to be upcycled. A place with a truly unique vibe, just like all the Doodlage products have.
2. Online shopping sector has developed tremendously over the pandemic period, thus giving smaller local brands the opportunity to go global. It would be beneficial for Doodlage to expand their global market, and in order to do so they can take the help of international influencers. Influencers like @celinecelines, @consciouschic and @marielle.elizabeth are supporters of sustainable fashion. Collaborating with them will help the brand gain the right audience, and the right customer base in a more international market.
Doodlage has a very successfully circular and sustainable business model, that a lot of brands strive hard to achieve. Specially during the current period where the world is moving towards such brands, Doodlage can go leaps and bounds with the right marketing tricks.
References:
-Doodlage, At: https://doodlage.in Accessed (07/01/2021)
- Gandhi, S. (2019) ‘Ever wondered what happens to your clothes after you throw them away?’ In:
Vogue India At: https://www.vogue.in/con- tent/ethical-fashion-what-happens-clothes-discard
(Accessed 11/01/2021)
- Homegrown (2017) ‘Artist Of The Week| Kriti Tula’ At: https://homegrown.co.in/article/800470/
artist-of-the-week-kriti-tula (Accessed 18/01/2021)
- Menon, A .(2017) ‘Say hello to fashion, bye-bye to textile waste with upcycled label Doodlage’
In: YourStory At: https://yourstory.com/2017/12/- say-hello-to-fashion-bye-bye-to-textile-wastewith-
upcycled-label-doodlage (Accessed 10/01/2021)
- Raine, J .(2017) ‘Meet Doodlage, The Ethical Fashion Brand Reversing The Design Process To
Fulfill Their Zero Waste Mission’ In: cause.artist At: https://www.causeartist.com/meet-doodlagethe-
ethical-fashion-brand-reversing-the-design-process/ (Accessed 10/01/2021)
- Style Scout .(2019) At: https://so.city/delhi/article/breezy-dresses-exquisite-offbeat-designsplus-
recycled-fabrics-meet-doodlage (Accessed 10/01/2021)
- Shiware, S (2016) ‘Grazia Young Fashion Awards 2016’ In: Grazia India At: https://
www.grazia.co.in/fashion/news/grazia-young-fash- ion-awards-2016_-654.html (Accessed
11/01/2021)
- Solomon, M. Marshall, G. Stuart, E. (2018) Marketing: Real People, Real Choices (Global
Edition) (9th edition) Pearson Education, Limited. At: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/
ucreative-ebooks/detail.action?docID=5185948 (Accessed 05/01/2021)
- Vaidya, R. (2016) ‘These are the new age labels to watch out for’ In: Vogue India At: https://
www.vogue.in/galleries/designers-and-muse (Accessed 10/01/2021)
- Yodiz Team (2016) ‘8 Types of Marketing Strategies and Definition’ At: https://www.yodiz.com/
blog/8-types-of-marketing-strate- gies-and-definition/ (Accessed 02/01/2021)
Online Video References:
- Changing India: Doodlage - Stitching Together Waste (2018) [Online Video] At: https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMu2e7cxiTc&feature=em- b_logo (Accessed 05/01/2021)
- Doodlage - #mystartupstory (2018) [Online Video] At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=AB4y7Iro3PQ&feature=emb_logo (Accessed 05/01/2021)
- Eco India: The Delhi-based fashion studio that believes in 'no new clothes’ (2019) [Online
Video] At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEk- Skvt9BLs&feature=emb_logo (Accessed
05/01/2021)
-GREEN CHIC OR MEAN TRICK? (2020) [Online Video] At: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=obzFjLh4ADI&feature=emb_logo (Accessed 05/01/2021)
- Kriti Tula, Doodlage & Urvashi, Intellecap (2020) [Online Video] At: https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=YKiQYCqr6nw&feature=emb_logo (Accessed 05/01/2021)
- Leaders of Tomorrow: Season 7- Treebo and Doodlage (2019) [Online Video] At: https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBQxdSqfadg&fea- ture=emb_logo (Accessed 05/01/2021)
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