Discover how RIGO founder Anubhav built an online fashion brand, manages thousands of daily orders, uses AI for product videos, and plans offline expansion.
Introduction: From a Small Start to Thousands of Daily Orders
Building a successful e-commerce business takes more than listing products online. It requires product research, manufacturing, marketing, inventory management, customer service, and a long-term growth strategy.
The journey of RIGO, an Indian fashion brand founded by Anubhav, offers useful insights into these challenges. According to the interview, the company has spent around 12 years developing its business and now sells through major e-commerce marketplaces as well as its own website, RIGO.in.
During the interview, Anubhav discussed the company’s growth, its manufacturing process, product selection, returns, advertising, artificial intelligence (AI), quick-commerce platforms, and offline expansion.
How Did Anubhav Start the RIGO E-Commerce Business?
From Computer Science Engineering to Entrepreneurship
Anubhav studied computer science engineering and wanted to build his own business rather than follow a traditional job path. In 2012, he began exploring business opportunities and noticed the growing potential of e-commerce.
Online shopping was still developing in India. Many consumers were unfamiliar with buying clothes online, and convincing people that garments could be purchased without trying them first was a major challenge.
However, Anubhav believed that the Indian market would gradually adopt online shopping, as consumers in other countries had already begun purchasing products online.
Instead of waiting for the market to mature completely, he decided to start small and build customer trust over time.
How Marketplaces Helped the Brand Grow
RIGO initially had a small website, but according to Anubhav, an important breakthrough came through Snapdeal. The marketplace helped him understand how third-party platforms could connect sellers with customers.
As the business developed, RIGO expanded to other marketplaces, including Myntra, Flipkart, and AJIO, while continuing to operate its own website.
The key lesson is that entrepreneurs can begin with a limited setup, learn how online marketplaces operate, and expand their presence as they understand customer demand.
RIGO’s Revenue and Business Scale
What Revenue Did the Founder Report?
During the interview, Anubhav stated that RIGO’s combined monthly sales across platforms were approximately ₹2 crore to ₹3 crore.
He also said the company fulfilled more than 3,000 orders daily and had a broad product catalogue, with approximately 1,900–2,000 listings live at a given time.
The interview included a screen demonstration of one Flipkart account. The presenter pointed out gross sales of approximately ₹56.92 lakh and net sales of around ₹30 lakh after cancellations and returns. This was described as one account rather than the company’s total business.
When asked about profitability, Anubhav said profits were generally reinvested into the business and mentioned a profit range of approximately 15–20%.
These are figures reported during the interview. They should not be treated as independently audited financial statements, and actual business results can vary.
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Why Did RIGO Choose the Fashion Industry?
A Category With Room for Product Development
Anubhav explained that the team researched multiple product categories before choosing fashion. He considered the category suitable because it could be started with comparatively limited capital, while his personal interest in trends and technical skills could also be used.
RIGO sells clothing for men and women, including shirts, T-shirts, and dresses. During the interview, the founder also mentioned plans to explore children’s clothing.
The company reported average product prices of approximately ₹800–₹900.
However, fashion is a competitive category. Trends change quickly, and a product that sells well today may lose demand later. This makes research, testing, and inventory decisions particularly important.
How RIGO Manages Manufacturing and Product Development
In-House Design and Production
According to Anubhav, RIGO handles its manufacturing in-house. The company has its own design and sampling teams, sources raw materials, and works with local vendors.
He described the products as Made in India and said the business does not rely on imported or Chinese products for its manufacturing process.
An in-house approach can help a fashion business coordinate design, sampling, production, and product availability. However, it also requires careful management of staff, materials, quality, and production capacity.
How the Team Identifies New Fashion Trends
RIGO’s design team monitors social media, international fashion brands, and trend websites to identify styles that may become popular in the coming weeks or months.
The process described in the interview includes:
- Researching fashion trends and potential demand.
- Selecting designs for sampling.
- Procuring suitable fabric.
- Preparing samples and finalising designs.
- Sending approved products into production.
- Preparing photographs, product descriptions, and listings.
- Making the product listing live as production progresses.
The founder said the company launches new products regularly because fashion trends continue to change, particularly through social media.
How E-Commerce Product Listings Are Prepared
Product Photography and AI-Generated Videos
Product presentation is an important part of online clothing sales. Customers cannot physically touch the fabric or try on a garment before purchasing, so photographs and product details help them make decisions.
RIGO’s listing team prepares product images and details such as fabric type, neckline, and garment length. The founder also explained that the company is experimenting with AI tools to reduce the time required to create product visuals.
One example discussed was converting a product photograph into a video that shows the garment from different angles.
According to Anubhav, these experiments could allow the team to create videos for more than 100 garments in a day. He also acknowledged that AI may reduce demand for some basic fashion photography tasks.
The broader lesson is that businesses can explore AI to improve content production, but they should still check that generated images accurately represent the actual product.
How RIGO Sells Through Multiple E-Commerce Platforms
Marketplaces and Its Own Website
RIGO sells through multiple marketplaces, with Myntra, Flipkart, and AJIO identified as important platforms in the interview. The company also operates its own website.
Anubhav explained that marketplaces have their own advertising systems, promotional tools, and customer bases. The business allocates advertising budgets according to platform performance and previous revenue.
He also highlighted a common challenge: marketplaces charge fees, but running an independent website requires marketing expenditure as well.
Therefore, the decision should not be based only on marketplace commissions. Entrepreneurs need to compare the total cost of selling through each channel, including advertising, shipping, returns, customer acquisition, and operational expenses.
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How RIGO Uses Data to Choose Products
Tracking Sales Instead of Guessing
According to Anubhav, the company uses in-house software to monitor product performance. The team tracks how often each product sells and how frequently it needs to be manufactured.
When the data suggests that a design’s selling life has declined, the company may discontinue it and introduce new products.
This approach is important because keeping too much slow-moving stock can tie up capital and increase storage costs.
New entrepreneurs can apply the same principle on a smaller scale. They can record product views, orders, returns, selling prices, and costs in a spreadsheet before investing heavily in inventory.
Quick Commerce: Why RIGO Selects Products Carefully
Not Every Fashion Product Fits a 10–15 Minute Delivery Model
RIGO also works with quick-commerce platforms. During the interview, Anubhav mentioned operations with Zepto in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, as well as collaborations with smaller platforms focused on fashion.
He explained that quick commerce requires inventory to be positioned in advance, so businesses cannot necessarily list their entire catalogue.
For Zepto, the company reportedly analysed historical sales and stronger PIN-code areas before selecting a smaller collection of approximately 200 styles.
The product selection strategy depends on what customers are likely to need quickly. Basic polo T-shirts and round-neck T-shirts may fit this use case better than specialised clothing that requires more consideration.
This illustrates an important business principle: the best product range depends on the platform, the location, and the customer’s reason for purchasing.
The Challenge of E-Commerce Returns
Why Returns Affect Profitability
Fashion businesses must account for cancellations, returns, shipping costs, and products that arrive back in unusable condition.
During the interview, Anubhav estimated that the broader industry return rate was around 25–30%. This was his stated estimate, not a verified industry-wide statistic.
He also described cases in which customers return a different or damaged item instead of the original product.
To address such issues, RIGO reportedly has a dedicated returns team that opens and checks returned packages under camera, verifies products, and takes action when discrepancies are found.
The founder said these losses must be considered when calculating the economics of each product.
How to Calculate Product Profit Correctly
A common mistake made by new sellers is to subtract only manufacturing costs and marketplace fees from the selling price.
In reality, a seller may also need to account for:
- Manufacturing and packaging costs
- Marketplace and payment fees
- Advertising expenditure
- Forward and reverse logistics
- Cancellations and returned products
- Damaged or unsellable inventory
- Storage, staffing, and other operating expenses
- Applicable taxes
Amazon’s official seller fee guide explains that fees vary according to factors such as category, selling price, and fulfilment method.
Before launching a product, sellers should calculate the expected contribution after these expenses rather than assuming the remaining amount is profit.
Is It Too Late to Start an E-Commerce Business?
Competition Has Changed, but Research Still Matters
Anubhav said that starting an e-commerce business has become more challenging, but he does not believe the opportunity has disappeared.
He contrasted the challenges of earlier years, when businesses needed to convince customers to shop online, with today’s challenge of convincing customers to choose one seller over many competitors.
That means a new business needs a clear reason for customers to choose its products. It may compete through product design, quality, pricing, customer experience, a specific niche, or better fulfilment.
His advice was to research marketplaces and identify product categories and price ranges where competition may be more manageable before building a sourcing and sales strategy.
He also mentioned home décor and home furnishings as categories that he finds interesting because consumers increasingly pay attention to how their homes look.
RIGO’s Expansion Into Offline Stores
Building an Omnichannel Brand
After developing its online business, RIGO began expanding into physical retail. Anubhav said the company had opened two stores in the previous year and planned to open three or four more during the year discussed in the interview.
He explained that physical stores allow customers to touch products, experience their quality, and develop a stronger connection with the brand.
RIGO also introduced a franchise model to involve business partners in its offline expansion. During the interview, the founder mentioned an investment range of approximately ₹12 lakh to ₹14 lakh for a potential franchise partner.
He said the company intended to support franchisees with established processes and digital marketing. The brand would use its existing customer data to inform local customers about newly opened stores.
Anyone considering a franchise should independently verify the current investment, agreement terms, operating costs, expected responsibilities, and financial risks before committing money.
Why RIGO Has Continued Without Outside Funding
When asked about Shark Tank and external investment, Anubhav said the company had remained bootstrapped. He explained that the business had been built using its own funds and that earnings were reinvested into growth.
For the next phase of expansion, the company chose to explore business partners through its franchise model rather than relying solely on outside capital.
This demonstrates one possible approach to expansion, but bootstrapping is not the only route. The right financing strategy depends on a business’s cash flow, growth plans, capital requirements, and risk tolerance.
Also Read: How Arunabh Sinha Built a 900+ Store Laundry Business From an Underrated Idea
The Biggest Lesson From RIGO’s Journey
Build for the Long Term
The founder’s closing message was that business is a long journey, not a quick way to get results. He advised entrepreneurs not to become discouraged if a new e-commerce brand does not produce the expected results within six months.
RIGO’s story, as described in the interview, highlights several practical lessons:
- Research the market before choosing a product.
- Understand the full cost of every sale.
- Use sales data to manage inventory.
- Prepare for returns and cancellations.
- Adapt product selection to each sales platform.
- Explore technology that can improve operations.
- Build customer trust through quality and consistency.
- Treat growth as a long-term process.
The company name RIGO was also explained by Anubhav as a name chosen after research, inspired by a South American name that he associated with the meaning “best friend.”
Conclusion
RIGO’s e-commerce journey offers a useful look at what happens behind an online clothing listing. Product research, manufacturing, photography, marketplace advertising, returns management, inventory planning, and customer trust all contribute to the operation.
The reported revenue figures are impressive, but the more useful takeaway for aspiring entrepreneurs is the system behind the business: study demand, test products, track costs, and keep improving.
Starting an online business does not guarantee profit. A realistic plan, careful financial calculations, and patience are essential before investing in inventory or advertising.
Disclaimer: This article is based on an interview transcript. Revenue, profit, order volume, return rates, and franchise investment figures are attributed to statements made during the interview and have not been independently audited. Business outcomes vary, and no income or profit is guaranteed.