Vineeta Singh, CEO and Co-Founder of Sugar Cosmetics, faced the challenge of opening a store on Colaba Causeway. While she was excited about the business opportunities the location brought, she was especially nervous about the street stalls as they obstructed the view of her store. Her main worry was that the stalls, particularly the fruit vendor, would significantly reduce foot traffic and sales. However, what happened after the store opened is a perfect example of how deeply rooted local businesses can positively impact sales and Revenue.
Apprehension Gives Way to Incredible Surprises
Given the concern, Vineeta made her best attempt to navigate the challenges and embrace what entrepreneurship brought her. To her surprise, over the following 12 months, she observed a significant upward custom relshopping trend in her store—sales soared, with frequent bills crossing ₹1 lakh. Intrigued by the phenomenon, Vineeta decided to dive deeper into the cause of this sales boom.
The Unexpected Trigger: Suraj, the Fruit Seller
The vendor’s stall offered an effortless solution. Suraj, the vendor, was an unexpected brand ambassador for Sugar Cosmetics. Arab women travelling to Mumbai for medical purposes would buy imported local fruits from Suraj’s stall. Eventually, Suraj learned some Arabic and started to offer them “Kahaal Al Hindi” (Indian kajal) while gesturing towards the Sugar shop.
That small word-of-mouth marketing sparked an influx of Arab women seeking Indian cosmetics tailored to their warm undertones. Many of them would buy 15–20 pieces of their best-loved shades in a single trip, which regularly resulted in tremendous sales and an ever-expanding consumer base for the shop.
A Two-Way Street: Collaboration and Community
The relationship evolved further. Megha, who operates the Sugar store, sent clientele to Suraj’s stall and even hosted tea sessions for him and his father during slower periods of the day. These sessions became learning opportunities for Megha and the team to internalise relevant Arabic phrases, especially those relating to makeup, making them more useful to foreign patrons. In exchange, Megha would recommend Indian fruits to shoppers, thus enriching her newly acquired Arabic and establishing a mutually beneficial ecosystem.
A Lesson in Organic Marketing
As a part of the Story of India Marketing, Mehta and Megha Sharabrathad exhibited, Vineeta Singh uses the story of the Mehta and Sharabrathad to commemorate India’s organic, strategic opportunity, aiming to encourage an ex-capitalist country to praise and recognise their effort. Some Themes with Deep impacts are: Concluding with, “India is truly a land of entrepreneurs, and while we must have processes and systems, in my limited retail experience, it is the people that make the biggest difference-sometimes, people who don’t even belong to the system,” reflects how deeply embedded entrepreneurial spirit is in the nation.
The Takeaway
The sales surge at Sugar’s Colaba store, which is hugely resonant with the core marketing ethos in India, shows that local relationships and authentic human interactions have a greater impact than any marketing tactic. Often, some of the best promoters are not employed but present in the neighbourhoods, transforming mundane interactions into remarkable business moments through effortless conversations.
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