It took the U.S.-based designer Deepti and her husband H. S. Bassi eight years before finally launching their internationally recognised brand Waterlily LA, that deals with high-end leather handbags in India.
It was a happy homecoming for the couple, who after making their presence felt in the markets of the U.S., Singapore and Japan, opened their first flagship store at Galaxy Mall in Gurgaon recently.
On entering the store, Delhiites — predominantly women from India and abroad — were greeted with colourful elegant handbags from the Wanderlust Fall 2014 collection. Handbags of all shapes and sizes made with the superior quality of leather which is claimed to be a hallmark of an international brand were vying for attention.
Designed for cosmopolitan Indian women, who use handbags and purses as an important accessory to flaunt their style at either workplace or in cocktail parties, these fancy fashionable accessory are priced between Rs.7,000 and 15,000.
To make the experience a memorable one for a select bunch of invitees, a musical evening by Tanya Nambiar and her rock and roll band Gravy Train, was hosted. And a video featuring the couple’s daughter as a model was screened to showcase the class of leather bags.
With Indians becoming more fashion-conscious in terms of dressing up for occasions and otherwise, the couple was compelled to change the business plans of concentrating only on North America and the Far East.
Noting that the couple’s first venture in India is a harbinger for interesting products, Deepti, creative head of the handbag brand, has come out with a novel strategy to woo prospective buyers. “Every six to eight weeks, we will change the entire décor and a new story will be narrated by a musician who will make the whole affair of shopping an unforgettable experience. The idea behind this interaction is to get feedback from prospective buyers and incorporate their suggestions in their products.
“We want to pamper women and make them feel that they have arrived with women of other countries, continents. I will see to it that all purses are elegant and there is no compromise as far quality is concerned. These purses are for above 26-year-old women, who are independent minded, economically self reliant and feels themselves as global women.”
According to Bassi, since the brand was launched in the U.S., they decided to keep the name Waterlily LA, which stands for the American city of Los Angeles. “It took us so long to arrive in India because we wanted to come here only when the market was conducive to our kind of luxury purses. With Indians increasingly looking out for clothes and accessories which match our price, we decided to set foot here.”
Bassi says Waterlily LA has good presence in major departmental stores and swanky malls due to its pricing, styling and superior leather quality.
Interestingly, while the collection has derived inspiration from the Californian landscape, the leather has been procured from Indian cities of Chennai and Kolkata.
