COVER STORY
the store to be more experiential ,” Siriwattanamathangkul said .
The brand ’ s ambition goes beyond its home market , though . While the majority of its customers are Thai , Gentlewoman has also gained popularity among fashion fans outside the country .
“ Fashion is universal , and we believe that in Southeast Asia , there are some similarities in terms of fashion preferences ,” Siriwattanamathangkul said .
The founder said the company ' s first focus was in Singapore due to its high income and the high traffic to Bangkok . The online market is efficient there , and its population is just the right size to be the company ’ s target market .
“ If you are successful in Thailand with a product that appeals to the region and uses the right marketing strategies for the right target group , you can achieve success ,” Siriwattanamathangkul added . “ Our approach is systematic . We intentionally defined our marketing strategy and saw sales results from that .”
He said that while he travelled outside the country , he noticed foreigners using Gentlewoman ’ s products , which made him realise the popularity of Gentlewoman beyond Thailand .
“ Thanks to strong tourism , we started marketing in Malaysia , Indonesia and the Philippines . As a result , we doubled our general sales last year ,” he explained .
While the brand is looking into expanding internationally , the company is not yet at a scale that it can open international stores on its own . The co-founder said the company is in discussions with several partners for its overseas expansion .
“ We have a customer base in countries like Singapore , Malaysia , the Philippines , Indonesia , China , and maybe Hong Kong . If we can find a good operator , we would love to expand . However , as a small team with no investors , we aren ' t able to do it on our own .”
Ami ’ s new eatery in Beijing .
12 www . insideretail . asia August 2024