Q] Pepperfry has become a household name over the years. How do you stay competitive in a market crowded with D2C brands and foreign players?
Furnishing a home is both complex and confusing. Customers often consult friends, family, spouses—sometimes even children—before making a purchase. And yet, many are still uncertain about what will truly work in their space. Therefore, one of our key mandates is assisted buying. While customers can shop independently online, they also have the option to connect with our support teams, who are trained category experts and help them make more informed purchase decisions. If doubts remain, customers can visit our studios to experience the products in person. We currently operate 130 studios across 75 to 80 cities, and this year, we plan to add another 65 studios to the mix. Mostly, in metros and Tier-1 towns. Our focus is to assist customers at every step and help them make the right choice. Although Pepperfry is known as a furniture-first brand, we are now significantly stronger in the home category. In fact, we sell almost twice as many home products as furniture. Going forward, we want to position ourselves as the fashion destination for homes. To give a sense of the scale, we offer around 2,000 table lamps, about 200 whiskey glasses, between 50 and 75 wine racks, nearly 2,500 bedsheets and more than 2,000 carpets. It is a deeply curated assortment—and we want customers to think of Pepperfry not only for furniture, but for everything related to their homes.
Q] We’ve discussed several trends in the Rewind 2025 report by Pepperfry. Which two stand out the most?
The Rewind 2025 report captures trends and observations around consumer preferences across different parts of the country. As one of India’s largest suppliers of furniture and home products—with over 20,000 furniture pieces, close to 80,000 home décor and furnishing options, and millions of customers transacting with us—we notice city-specific buying behaviours. Every city has its own set of preferences. For instance, Bengaluru tops the list for online purchases of mosquito nets. Indore, which is the cleanest Indian city, shows strong demand for cleaning products. Also, last year, customers from Indore heavily invested in organising solutions such as wardrobe and kitchen organisers. Pune, being a student-driven city, sees strong demand for bookshelves—hopefully reflecting an active reading culture. Goa has emerged as a large market for spiritual products and home mandirs, which marks a shift from how the city is usually perceived. These are only a few examples; the report contains many such insights. I would encourage anyone interested in home décor, furniture, and consumer buying patterns in India to read it in full.
Q] For a category like furniture, what role does digital marketing play?
Today, close to 70% of our traffic is organic. Over the years, we have invested in building brand recall, with the aim of encouraging customers to directly visit Pepperfry.com. That said, performance marketing continues to play a major role, particularly on platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook. Influencers create reels around home décor and styling, and many brands associated with us also promote their products on these platforms, making social media an important channel for discovery. Offline continues to be equally important, with around 50% of our transactions happening through our stores. Customers may browse online but often prefer visiting a studio to experience the products physically, with guidance from our in-store designers and architects. Digital marketing plays a strong role in discovery and awareness, but organic traffic and offline experiences remain equally important to our strategy.
Q] How does Pepperfry choose its influencers? Is it driven by follower count or engagement?
We primarily work with micro-influencers—people who have strong opinions and a good sense of taste. Our approach is not centred on celebrity influencers; instead, we prefer individuals who genuinely experience our products in their homes and can speak about them authentically. For instance, a homemaker who is passionate about décor, can be a far more credible influencer than someone with a very large following. This initiative is called Pep Homies, and the idea is simple: We believe there is no better influencer than a real customer who understands the product and uses it in their everyday life.
Q] Tier-2 cities appear to be driving a significant share of growth. Why have they become so important?
Access to content has fundamentally changed the landscape. Whether someone lives in a metro or in a smaller city like Indore, Kochi or Madurai, they are exposed to the same content through YouTube, Instagram Reels, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and television. When people watch shows or serials, they notice furniture, décor, and the way homes are styled, and this exposure has made customers across Tier-1, Tier-2, and Tier-3 cities far more discerning. Awareness and aspiration are now more uniform across the country, which is why Tier-2 cities have become strong growth-drivers for us.
Q] From a regional perspective, which parts of India are driving growth for Pepperfry?
Southern India is a major market for us. Mumbai and the southern region together account for around 45 per cent of our business, with Bengaluru being a particularly strong market, followed by Hyderabad and Chennai. We are also seeing strong growth in the Northeast and currently, operate 16 offline stores across the region, including Guwahati, Imphal, Shillong, and Siliguri. It is a prosperous market, with customers keen to experiment with new home products, which makes Pepperfry a strong fit as a fashion-for-home destination.
Q] What is the company’s outlook for the coming year?
This year, we will focus on expanding our store footprint by opening new channels and entering quick commerce. We want to scale across horizontal platforms while continuing to strengthen our own ecosystem. At the same time, we plan to tap into new customer segments—including B2B—by furnishing small hotels, restaurants, and cafés. Our mantra for the year is clear—to become India’s default fashion-for-home destination and to continue scaling aggressively from there.
PROFILE
Ashish Shah co-founded Pepperfry in January 2012. Since its inception, he has spearheaded the company’s remarkable journey in becoming India’s leading destination for home and furniture solutions. With a steadfast commitment to execution excellence and exceptional leadership skills, Ashish has firmly positioned Pepperfry as the undisputed leader in its domain in the country. An Internet industry veteran with over 25 years of experience in building both B2B and Consumer Marketplaces, Ashish has a wealth of expertise in sales operations, product management, omnichannel retail, supply chain & logistics, and business development & strategy.
ABOUT THE BRAND
As the nation’s largest omnichannel marketplace, Pepperfry has empowered thousands of regional, national, and MSME brands, providing them with a platform to reach customers across over 300 cities. The company has built unique competencies to serve the Indian consumer and bridge the existing gap in furniture and home goods market. With a robust in-house supply chain, Pepperfry ensures a seamless, end-to-end customer experience. The company boasts of a curated e-commerce platform complemented by 110 offline studios in 65 cities and bespoke assisted buying services.
FACTS
PR AGENCY: Adfactors PR
Creative agency: In-House
