“The biggest challenge today is – LONG credit periods, offered by established brands to dealers – thus making it an industry standard. As a manufacturer and marketer of a brand we burn the candle from two ends thus a lot of cash flow is stuck in working capital, Rnd, New developments, Marketing and Infrastructural Growth. This makes cash flow management a bigger challenge with increased credit period demanded by the markets. There are also major cases of defaulters and bad debts. Since the first year we have kept the burn-rate to the lowest and got an R.O.I. of 12-15% y-o-y, we can proudly say that PDD Falcon is a profitable venture. But to sustain that and grow in the volatile markets is a big challenge” says Sneha Visaria, Director, PDD Falcon.

1)    What role does the online shopping platform play in reaching out to customers?

Today’s consumer looks out for any product first on the web and then elsewhere, they make a buying decision based on the reviews and ratings. Searching for alternatives and substitutes have become far easier than ever. If the brands not on the Web, it “Doesn’t exist”. For us Online and offline both sales hold equal weightage as Online gives us brand visibility and range awareness which indirectly registers in the customers brains. When they might visit a store nearby, they recognize the brand faster and helping in their buying decision. However, steel cannot be absolutely judges by images. it’s better to buy good quality steel by touch and feel. Pdd Falcon steel Stands apart due to its quality as it is certified Steel with premium polish and heavy gauge – putting this over to consumer online is sometimes difficult.

2)     What are your plans for future collaborations to increase sales?

Post our appearance on popular show Shark Tank India Season 1, we have opened many new avenues. Firstly, we have started pilot lots of Exports in Malaysia, Germany, and Nepal. Talks for exports to UAE are in pipeline. In terms of domestic sales, we have appointed 15 new distributors adding up the final count of distributor network to 45 active distributors which touch almost 5000 dealer points. By the end of this financial year, we shall close this number to 6000 dealer points. We are also now available on Myntra, Big basket and Wonder chefs along with Amazon, FirstCry, Flipkart and many more e-commerce platforms.

Sales not only comes from new markets but also new products. Since the inception PDD Falcon Has Disrupted The Steel Kitchen Storage And Drinkare Industry by virtue of bringing products that synergize the advantages of plasticware and have benefits of steel. We are one the mission to add more and more new products into our catalogue. Our aim is to make kitchen storage and drinkware Steel Safe.

3)  What challenges did you face as a new company in this competitive market, and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge is LONG credit periods offered by established brands to dealers – thus making it an industry standard. As a manufacturer and marketer of a brand we must burn the candle from two ends. A lot of cash flow is stuck in working capital, Rend, new developments, Marketing and infares. Growth. This makes cash flow management and bigger challenge with increased credit period demanded by the markets. There are also major cases of defaulters and bad debts. Since the first year we have kept the burn rate to lowest and got and ROI of 12-15% y-o-y, we can proudly say the Pdd Falcon is a profitable venture. But to sustain that and grow in the volatile markets is a big challenge.

We are thus going one step at a time, as they say “Kadam Phook phook ke rakhna…!”. We are very selective about our channel partners. We spend least on overheads and fixed costs. We believe more in organic marketing then impulsive one. Having a control over input costs is another way to keep the cash crunch at bay. Our group Director – Mr. Chirag Visaria, holds the crown towards tackling the challenge of finance and growth for the company.

4) PDD Falcon recently collaborated with Wonderchef. How will it affect the market and the product?

Wonderchef is a leader in cookware and kitchen appliances that enable our customers to cook healthy, tasty food with convenience. They ensure that they infuse classical design sensibilities into every piece of their crafted range of kitchenware. They are a huge dynamic team and have vision to support growing startups like ours through strategic partnership. As they hold a huge network of more than 10000 + retail dealer points, service more than 2000 pin codes via their online stores and have a daily website visit crossing 10 k visitors. Added to that they hold a huge network in corporate gifting, export tie ups and super stores. With them supporting Pdd Falcon (curated by Wonderchef) we hope to reach new avenues of sales.

5) What is your roadmap for 2022?

As I have mentioned earlier: 1. Total distributor network of 60 distributors reaching around 6000 dealer points. 2. Entering new markets with full swing viz. UAE, Malaysia, Germany etc. 3. Increasing product offerings. We are also trying to tap E-commerce giants like Nykaa, tatacliq, Mee mee, Jio mart directly to list and sell pdd falcon range of products on these highly growing portals.