Acquisition project | Plan B

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Acquisition project | Plan B

Elevator Pitch

Hi, we are Plan B and we make kids’ innerwear. Not grown-up underwear that’s scaled down to smaller sizes. We work with parents to design the best-fitting, best-feeling underwear for all children, supporting them through their journey from potty training to puberty and beyond. Because when it comes to comfort, the first layer is the most important layer. And when a child is comfortable, they shine with confidence every single day.

Understanding the Product

First Impressions

Ads

e9358e50c3-Screenshot_2024_06_09_at_17.19.28.png 5ed7f08898-Screenshot_2024_06_09_at_17.19.50.png Tween girl products are prominent.

Social

80a2451937-Screenshot_2024_06_09_at_17.51.25.png 3436564d07-Screenshot_2024_06_09_at_17.51.09.png

Search

Listed across marketplaces

Amazon

Brand name on Amazon shows up as yougotplanb

Reviews

Journey

Website

Icecream - 4-Pack Hipsters – Plan B.jpeg Basic D2C presence

Chatbot

Screenshot 2024-08-17 at 16.33.06.jpeg Basic WhatsApp and Instagram welcome journeys

Core Value Proposition

For millennial parents seeking thoughtfully designed innerwear for their children, Plan B is a ‘just for kids’ D2C essential clothing brand that offers the perfect blend of comfort and functionality in a wide variety of styles, fabrics and prints.

Understanding User

Here are the results of brief interviews with 5 customers:

Name	Dhanya J	Rajkumar B	Bijal S	Preeti M	Ashwini J
Top Insights	Convenience is as important as quality	Something different than what’s locally available is exciting in smaller cities	Perceived value is important	Functionality and superiority of product matters	Brand name doesn’t carry enough weight/prestige
Summary	Busy working mom, emphasis on quality and reliable performance of clothing	Dad from a non-metro city, first-time purchaser, trying something ‘fancy’ and branded	Mom who is a repeat purchaser but will only shop when she gets a great deal	Easy going mom who feels secure that Plan B is the right brand for her child	Repeat customer who wants nothing but the best for her child
Age	39	37	36	42	43
Gender	Female	Male	Female	Female	Female
City	Mumbai	Ranchi	Mumbai	Mumbai	Pune
Type of User	Repeat, Loyal	First-Time, Experimentative	Repeat, Bargain Hunter	Repeat	Repeat
Living Situation	Family, In-Laws	Family	Family, In-Laws	Family	Family
Occupation	Service, Managerial	Self Employed	Part-Time Financial Consultant	Small Business	Homemaker
Hobbies	Movies, Travel	Movies, Cricket	Cooking, Fitness, Learning new things	Movies, Travel	Movies, Dance, Travel, Socialising
Goals	Raise kids well, travel widely, save smartly, use available time wisely	Provide for family, pass on success to kids	Prioritise family and raise daughter right	Focus on happiness, find more downtime	Run the house, manage family investments and enable daughter to achieve her max
Age & Gender of Kid(s)	10y, Twin Boys	10y Boy, 7y Girl, 3y Boy	8y, Girl	7y, Girl	12y, Girl
Monthly Spending on Kids	~₹21,000 x 2	~₹20,000-₹30,000 total	~₹30,000	~₹20,000	~₹30,000-₹35,000
Spends Time Weekly On	Instagram, WhatsApp	TV, WhatsApp, Instagram Reels	WhatsApp Groups, Instagram, Books, Financial/Investment Apps	WhatsApp Groups, Instagram Reels & Influencers, YouTube	WhatsApp Groups, Instagram Reels, Books
Source of Awareness	Paid Ads	Paid Ads	Known to Founder	Paid Ads	Word of Mouth
Trigger to Purchase	Size Change, Wear & Tear	Attractive Design, something different	Value for money	Change of Size, Occassion	Age-specific needs, wear & tear
Product Experience (Parent)	Very happy, appreciates the quality, trust	Yet to receive product	Likes the focus on quality, and focus on tween girls, thinks the pricing needs to be competitive	Great quality, loves the functional design aspect, design is good for everyday clothing	Appreciates the quality of fabric, sporty styles and attention to detail, doesn’t feel the brand pull
Product Experience (Child)	Prefers Plan B to other products	Yet to receive product	Likes some of the products	Loves it	Loves it, loyal
Natural Frequency	Once a year	Ad-hoc	Sale, ~2 times a year	~2-3 times a year	~2 times a year
Notifications	No	No	Yes, Email & WhatsApp	Yes, WhatsApp	No
Other Preferred Brands	Nike, Westside	None	H&M, M&S, Decathlon	FirstCry, Westside	Nike, Gap, Zara, H&M

Observations:

While quality is important to build trust and for repeat purchases, a unique functional element or quirky design is needed to inspire the first purchase
The brand is recognised but doesn't have the X-factor
Discovery is primarily through paid ads
Can account for two purchases per customer per year until the child outgrows the offering
More research is needed to tailor the marketing pitch according to the TG

ICP

Table

Criteria	User 1	User 2	User 3	User 4	User 5
Name	Latika	Parul	Alisha	Ganesh	Shweta
Age	28-32	38-44	32-40	30-40	26-38
Demographics	Female Master's Degree Lives in a Metro/Tier 1 city Married, Young Parent Earns ₹1L+ per month, family income ₹2L+ per month Owns a business or is Senior Manager in Finance, Tech, Media, Healthcare Has a 2-5 year old child	Female Bachelor's Degree Lives in a Tier 2/Tier 3 city Married Earns above ₹50k per month Teacher, Small Business Owner, etc. Has an 8-12 year old daughter	Female Bachelor's Degree Lives in Metro/Tier 1 city Married Homemaker, Lifestyle/Family Business Family income is above ₹5L per month Has a 6-12 year old daughter	Male Bachelor's Degree Lives in a Tier 1/2/3 city Married Engineer, or Manager in a large-ish corporate setup Family income is between ₹75K to ₹1.5L per month Has a 2-8 year old son	Female Bachelor's Degree Lives in a Tier 2/3 city Married Homemaker Family income is between ₹60k to ₹1.8L Has 2 children between .5 and 8 years
Need	High-quality, aspirational everyday essential clothing for her child	Reputed, quality innerwear brand for her tween that doesn't have adult vibes	Premium functional clothing for her active/sport-oriented daughter to wear at home and while playing	Branded, high quality kids' innerwear with an aspirational feel	Needs an innerwear brand that delivers on the promise consistently without charging a premium for it
Pain Point	Availability and variety in quality innerwear and essentials,	Poor quality, fit and design of options available in the market	Lack of options in cotton, limited prints	Doesn't want to settle and buy his child what other kids are wearing	Aspirational brands are very expensive and hard to find
Solution	Asks people around, shops at international brand stores	Experiments with products till the right match is found	Shops abroad	Shops at large format stores and sometimes at category giants like Jockey	Shops mostly during Sale times, googles for coupons, go for a blend of inexpensive and moderately premium priced products
Behaviour	Wants a consistent, reliable 'branded' experience Appreciates thoughtful design and personalisation, since her use case is not common Trusts the recommendations of peers, likes to be a 'first adopter,' won't buy a brand that is 'massy' or cheap Prides quality and convenience	Wants a brand that's sensitive to her needs and that of her child Appreciates thoughtful design, wants to be heard and values intelligent interaction Willing to pay a little extra when convinced of superiority Will never compromise or force her thinking on her daughter Committed to the community of fellow moms of daughters, will refer if impressed	Not prone to shop in large format stores, likes to favour luxury/premium/boutique brands Mistrustful of synthetic fabric widely used by international sportswear brands Money is no bar when she finds the right product Not easily impressed, but will give in to daughter's choice if she's comfortable Expects special attention with requests like fast-tracked delivery	As someone who has 'made it' in his peer set, he is keen to flex his spending power Wants to give his children the kind of lifestyle he didn't have as a child Knows that a branded product is more reliable than a non-branded one, but values the tag more than the experience Expects the best quality for the price he is paying	Doesn't want to settle for a sub-standard or below-average product. Invested in the comfort and well being of her child. Believes in staying informed and on top of trends. Not loyal to brands, prioritises value. General mistrust of online shopping and will always prefer COD. Loves a bargain, and asking for discounts ("if you don't ask..")
Perceived Value of Brand	High	High	Mid	High	Mid
Marketing Pitch	Find the right everyday clothing for your child without having to scour the market	'Made-for-kids' innerwear designed, tested and approved by parents	Premium, high-quality everyday essentials for the no-compromise parent	Premium, high-quality everyday essentials for the no-compromise parent	Shop for premium everyday essentials for your child and make savings thanks to loyalty and referral benefits
Goals	Maximise CLV and ensure loyalty with a thought-through and seamless experience	Fill the whitespace that exists for tween girl essentials, cross sell and leverage expertise	Higher AOVs through packs and bundling, referrals and gifting	Maximise CLV by delighting the customer with superior performance & experience	Demonstrate value and stay on top of mind
Frequency of use case	Shops at least twice a year on account of change of size	Shops roughly twice a year	~2-3 times a year	~1-2 times a year	~2-4 times a year
Average Spend on the product	₹1200-₹2400 AOV	₹1200-₹3000 AOV (x2)	₹4000+ AOV	₹1200 AOV	₹1000 AOV
Appetite to Pay	High	High/Mid	High	Mid	Low
Value Accessibility to product	Finds it easy to shop via webstore and WhatsApp chatbot	Finds it easy to shop via webstore, WhatsApp chatbot and marketplaces, but would appreciate retail presence for trial	Okay to shop via webstore and WhatsApp chatbot, but expects high level of customer support	Okay to shop via webstore, would prefer retail presence for touch and feel	Okay to shop via webstore, would prefer retail presence for touch and fee
Value Experience of the product	Believes the quality is excellent and the child is comfortable	Strong trust in the brand	Relieved to have an option like Plan B, happy to consider shopping again	Buys for the look and the perceived value	Buys for the quality, not invested in the brand
Adoption Curve	Low	Low	Mid	Mid	Mid
TAM*	-	-	-	-	-
Distribution Potential	High	High	Mid	Low	Mid-High

ICP Prioritization

We will prioritise Latika (User 1) & Alisha (User 3).

Both have high adoption rates, appetite to pay and distribution potential.

Children are younger and have better CLV prospects.

While TAM is not the largest, it continues to grow year on year.

Reasons for overlooking...

Parul (User 2): Customer is on the way out with daughter growing up fast and not wanting to associate with a 'kids' brand

Ganesh (User 4): Fickle customer who might flit to another brand, not engaged enough

Shweta (User 5): Catering to bargain hunter will be a battle of attrition

Understanding Market

Micro Market Research

Macro Market Research

Competitor Analysis

Factors	Jockey Junior	Adira	Bodycare Kids
What is the core problem being solved by them?	Superior product quality in kids' innerwear Leveraging the popularity of their brand in the men's category	Women's innerwear is generally sexualised and not made with pubescent girls in mind	Branded experience at affordable prices
What are the products/features/services being offered?	Franchise stores across Tier 1 / Tier 2 cities Both inner and loungewear options	Specially designed products that cater to specific needs - menstruation, tween bras, etc	Knit and thermal apparel for kids - along with furnishings and upholstery...
Who are the users?	Parents buying Jockey for themselves	Mothers seeking tween-specific innerwear for their daughters	Tier 3 parents who appreciate the branding and variety at local stores and on marketplaces
GTM Strategy	Cross sell to parents who patronise Jockey for themselves (mostly to improve the ticket size), offer a wide variety of innerwear and loungewear options	Target modern moms searching for content online about feminine hygiene and comfort, focus on value	Be a mass-y Jockey, drive sales through offline retail and build presence online at marketplaces where people fish for deals
What channels do they use?	Mall presence, billboards, print ads	Instagram Influencer collabs, content marketing, founder profile	Paid ads on Meta and marketplaces, print ads in regional publications, TV ads on regional channels using celebs
What pricing model do they operate on?	Premium	Mass Premium	Mass
How have they raised funding?	Page Industries that has the license to manufacture and market Jockey in India is a listed company	Adira is one of the brands of Yashram Lifestyle a private company in Bangalore. Details are not publicly available.	Bodycare is an unlisted public company
Brand Positioning	Nothing Fits Better / Jockey Or Nothing / Strictly Mischievous (Activewear Range)	Innovative women's innerwear designed for hygiene and comfort	The perfect fit at the perfect price
UX Evaluation	Industry-standard e-commerce website, substandard product gallery, a retail brand trying to have an online presence	Subpar aesthetics and photography on the website, content overload,	Poor aesthetics, website not updated, no D2C nous
What is your product’s Right to Win?	Plan B is a made-for-kids brand, Jockey has a strong pull with middle-class Indian males (fathers) but the designs are not a hit with kids, customer service quality is higher and built for a d2c-first model	Again, Adira is not a kids'-only brand. Plan B has vastly superior product quality, better designs, more aspirational brand image, smoother customer journey, while matching the price	As a be-all brand catering to price-sensitive segments, Bodycare is not a direct competitor. Product quality and customer experience is inferior.
What can you learn from them?	Consistency, availability, brand awareness	Commitment to innovation, and leading with insights and focus on content	Nothing.

TAM, SAM, SOM

According to Statista, in 2024, the children’s apparel market in India generated $23.37 billion.

And the innerwear + nightwear market is roughly $1.26 billion.

Let's assume the innerwear is 40% of that market.

That makes TAM = $504M.

To calculate SAM let's consider the following data point: 47% of Indians continue to shop offline according to Local Circles.

Let's assume 47% of all children's innerwear sales also happen offline. That means 53% of the market is serviceable.

Which means SAM = $267M

Considering, Plan B is one of the top 3 leading brands in the D2C space, let's assume it can capture 25% of the addressable market through better acquisition, and marketplace presence.

SOM = $66.75M

Conclusion:

The market is huge and continues to grow at the rate of 3.2% every year.

Core Value Revaluate

Not needed.

Stage of the Product

Early scaling since PMF has been achieved, the company is profitable and product iterations have already happened based on customer feedback.

Channel Selection

JTBD

Job	Goal
Functional	The best fitting, high quality innerwear for the child.
Personal	All day comfort and support, no fidgeting. Help build confidence of the child.
Financial	Not cost an arm and a leg, better value in the long run.
Social	Stand out from the rest of the children whose parents are not invested in their day-to-day life. Validation from peers for attention to detail.

Framework Table

Channel Name	Cost	Flexibility	Effort	Speed	Scale	Budget

Organic	Low	Low	Low	High	Low	Medium
Paid Ads	High	High	High	High	High	High
Referral Program	Medium	Low	High	Medium	High	Low
Product Integration	Medium	Medium	High	Medium	High	Low
Content Loops	Low	Medium	High	Low	Medium	Medium

Experiments

Paid Ads

We chose these 2 ICPs - Latika and Alisha.

For both of them, Instagram is a primary source of entertainment, and staying up to date with trends and friends.

Treatment: Very aspirational imagery featuring parent and child with a strong endorsement.

Marketing Pitch for Latika

Find the perfect everyday clothing for your child without having to scour the market

Ad:

Marketing Pitch for Alisha

Thought: Premium, high-quality everyday essentials for the no-compromise parent

Ad:

Referral

Marketing automation seeks reviews and ratings from purchasers who have had time to try out the product.

There can be two primary triggers for seeking a referral.

5-star rating (Customer approval)
Customer has made 2 or more purchases (signifying buy-in)
AOV of the reviewer is > ₹1200 (typical AOV)

Incentive:

A store credit of ₹150 is given to both - the referrer and the referred, for each successful referral.

Alternatively, we can also send a free pair of underwear to both parties. (This works out cheaper.)

Both incentives are lower than CAC via paid ads.

Till a custom code can be built, we can utilise a Shopify app for this purpose like Nector

Referral Message (shared by customer on the platform of their choice)

Hey! I've shopped from Plan B for kids' essentials a couple of times, and they are amazing.👌🏼 They just asked me if they could send my friends a free sample innerwear for their child. You want to try? Here's the link with a short form: <link>

Follow up with the Referrer

Hi <Name>, just a reminder: you don't have to pay for your child's underwear! 😀 Every successful referral gets you a free undie. So, how many friends do you have to invite to Plan B to get a full year's worth of free innerwear? Refer someone today!

Partnerships

Schools play a very important role in influencing a parent's choices. They can't recommend innerwear brands (unlike uniforms, shoes and accessories) but definitely can drive education and awareness.

There are multiple ways to partner with schools. For maximum efficiency, we shall focus on chain of schools (Ryan International, Euro Kids) for better returns with lesser effort.

There are approx 2500 parents (all in our ICPs) in 1 Ryan International School. And there are 150+ schools across 40 cities. Which means 3.75L parents discover the brand and are incentivised to try out the products. Assuming we convert 2% of the parents into paying customers, we add 7500 customers into the funnel.

This is then replicated in other schools that want a share of the action.

Ways to introduce the brand to the parents without making it salesy:

Sponsorships & Presence during Events