The primary goal of Livspace during the festive season is to boost brand visibility & recognition: Kartikeya Bhandari

The festive season is synonymous with sprucing up living spaces, and the demand for home decor and interior renovation soars as consumer sentiments are positive. A recent report from Bharat Lab shed light on this phenomenon and revealed that 87.4% of respondents are poised to invest in new home decor and 50.5% of people, spanning various income groups, are determined to embark on house renovations during this festive season. 

“Our primary goal during the festive season is not to capture immediate demand but to boost brand visibility and recognition,” said Kartikeya Bhandari, CMO, Livspace.

Bhandari explained that in contrast to many consumer brands that heavily rely on the festive season for annual sales, often accounting for nearly 60%, Livspace operates differently. A significant portion of their customer base consists of individuals moving into new apartments year-round, leading to a consistent flow of customers. As interior renovations typically span six to nine months, he mentioned that their brand doesn't face the same seasonal fluctuations as some other industries. 

“This approach provides an excellent opportunity to introduce our brand and message to a broader audience,” he added.

He mentioned that convenience, peace of mind, design, and quality assurance are four pillars that define Livspace’s brand image.

Livspace entered the market back in 2014, when college friends, now the founders, Anuj Srivastava and Ramakant Sharma, set upon their journeys to design their dream homes and realized how fragmented the industry was and how factors like identifying the right professionals, coordination of tasks, and ensuring fair price and quality were pain points faced by many. To fix this problem, they co-founded Livspace.

The market has seen many changes since then.

Bhandari said, “In the last several years, there has been a shift from unorganized to organized players in the home interior industry. When we started, the organized sector represented only about 2-3% of the market, with the rest dominated by unorganized players like carpenters and contractors. Fast forward to 2023, and the organized sector now accounts for about 15% of the market.”

Living on Social media

Livspace’s approach to reach its target audience involves a multifaceted marketing mix that emphasizes digital media as a primary advertising strategy to engage with the audience effectively. 

Bhandari said, “Typically, our marketing expenditure at Livspace ranges from 10% to 15% of our total revenue, with variations depending on the specific market.”

The brand has 410K followers on Instagram, 144K on YouTube, and more than 3.5K on X (formerly Twitter).

Bhandari mentioned that the brand collaborates with influencers and opinion leaders who share a genuine interest in home transformations and working closely with these individuals, Livspace renovates specific parts of their homes.

The brand’s social media content largely revolves around these transformations often featuring home tours to showcase its products in action.

Sharing the reason behind using these transformations as a strategy, he said, “This approach allows potential customers to witness the transformative power of our products in real-life settings.”

Livspace also shares insights into home decor and interior design, with an emphasis on tips, ideas and common mistakes.

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Livspace roped in Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma as brand ambassadors in 2022 and has collaborated with them for the second leg of the ongoing campaign #LivspaceYourSpace. Bhandari highlighted that this couple perfectly represents Livspace’s primary target audience.

Bhandari highlighted that through this campaign, Livspace intends to establish a strong brand presence and strengthen its relationship with customers across various regions. The campaign coincides with the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup and will employ a multifaceted strategy, combining digital and social media with connected television to engage with the relevant audience.

He said, “The campaign doesn't revolve around promotional offers or creating a sense of urgency for immediate action. Instead, it centers on presenting our brand, highlighting our core strengths.”

He mentioned that recognizing the importance of physical interaction and the need for customers to experience the products before making a commitment, the brand has established Experience Centers as a vital component of its business. 

He said, “Here, customers can explore our brand and the design process in a hands-on manner, making it a critical aspect of our marketing mix.”

In the future, Livspace plans to incorporate offline media into its strategy, focusing on localized and city-specific tactics such as cinema, outdoor advertising, radio, and print. This initiative is in the planning phase and will be rolled out at the city cohort level.