He is a banker and she is an actress, but husband-wife duo — Rohit Reddy and Anita Hassanandani — have found a way to work together. No, he is not trying his hand at acting, nor is she switching professions. The couple is all set to launch an online bag shop called TheBagTalk. What makes it unique is its exclusive range of designer bags from celebrities like Anita, Ekta Kapoor and Rannvijay Singha. Even former international cricketer Jonty Rhodes has just been signed on by the portal that will launch on February 24. We spoke to Rohit about the idea behind the online store and working with his wife..
What was the idea behind launching an online retail shop for bags?
There are a couple of reasons behind it. My partner Tushar Jain has been into manufacturing bags for the last 20 years. He manufactures bulk orders for corporates, government, and others. In the last five-seven years he opened the retail arm of it. When we met, we realised that in the e-commerce market there are generic websites like Amazon and Flipkart that are selling everything, but there is nothing specifically for bags. Also, the bag collection these websites boast of is available offline also. So, there’s no novelty. Also, their entire focus is on mobiles and electronics, and the bag collection is minimal. We decided we should have a high-fashion format where-in the customers can experience the bag in terms of the detailing — the size, the zipper, etc.
But you are a banker, how did you get into e-commerce?
Even as a banker I was heading the digital initiatives and have lot of experience in the field. From bank I have moved to bags, but the technology is the same.
Was it also a way of getting to work with Anita?
Absolutely. While I was in banking we would hardly get time during the day to speak, leave aside meet. With TheBagTalk, we get an opportunity to bounce off various ideas, deliberate and argue sometimes about the plan of action, but it does result in a lot of communication, which enhances our relationship.
How much is she involved in your business?
There is a lot of input from her on the design and fashion aspect. We know how to build the platform, but creative inputs come from her, at least, as far as the women’s bags are concerned.
How will your online retail be different from other portals?
Like others we will have all the brands like Wildcraft, VIP, Lavie, etc, but if we don’t differentiate there will be me-toos. That’s why we have decided to build a selection that has never seen before. We will have celebrity-endorsed designer collections exclusively on our portal. We have Rannvijay who is known to be adventurous, Anita whose bags will be more youth oriented and for girls aged between 18-24, Jonty Rhodes’ bags will be about sports and fitness and later in the year we will have bags by Ekta Kapoor for professional women. Every year we will have four-five celebrity ranges. They will promote their ranges on their Facebook and Twitter, which will in turn bring a lot of traffic to our portal.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Anita-Rohit")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}