Food MArketing & Technology In India CC for web-Low Res | Page 58

Interview
TANVI THAKUR,
OWNER KITTY
AND THE WOOF
GANG,ON HOW
SHE GOT INTO
THE PET COUTURE
BUSINESS
A
t a pretty young age, Tanvi decided
to manifest her creativity into
something that would keep up
her love and compassion for pets. With
the support of her family members, she
ventured into the pet couture domain. Her
pet project, Kitty and the Woof Gang, has
witnessed a meteoric rise in the pet fashion
segment. She envisions a pet in every house
in clothes and accessories designed by her
in the near future.
Analysing the behaviour and pet ownership
trends, Tanvi observes, “Earlier pets were
just kept as animals, but now they are
treated as family members. People are
realising their worth and they are no longer
kept as a source of entertainment or safety.”
W
hat inspired you to start this
venture?
I have 6 pets at home. I am very fond of
fashion and travelling. While travelling,
I take my pets along and I want them to
be well-dressed and presentable. I used to
search for nice clothes and accessories for
them but I was not very satisfi ed with what
I found. So, I started designing for them!
Seeing my stunning outfi ts and offb eat
designs, my family members motivated me
to start designing professionally. And that’s
what I did.
58
C
urrently, how many queries do you
handle per month? Are you satisfi ed
with the sales?
Th e fl ow is always on and we receive many
queries on the basis of which we run our
store. We also customise outfi ts on special
requests. As we are an online store, we are
selling internationally as well. I am satisfi ed
with the sales, but you know, more is always
welcome!
A
re you planning to build a brick and
mortar store as well?
We don’t have any plans for that at the
present moment, although I want my
products to be retailed from other stores.
S
ince it is an online store, how do you
ensure that the clothes and accessories
fi t the pet well?
Creature Companion | August 2019 • Vol. XII • Issue 8 • Noida
We have videos titled ‘measuring your pet’
on our website which help customers to
send in exact measurements of their pets.
Apart from that, we have diff erent sizes for
pets including cats, guinea pigs and various
breeds of dogs. I also make it a point to talk
to pet parents before sending over the fi nal
product.
T
here are a lot of categories on your
website. Which categories are the
most profi table?
Clothing has remained the favourite
category for pet owners. Th ey request
diff erent designs for their pampered
companions. Th e Indian Wear category
receives the maximum number of
orders as people want their pets to
put their best paw forward at weddings
and festivals.