d’hybrid is a newly launched immersive digital platform, born as a result of the current exigency of exclusive informative and mobile-commerce platform for urban consumers.
Founded by Kapil Batus, ex-fashion & creative director of Man’s World and Rolling Stone India, d’hybrid is a well-curated platform offering 360 information on fashion, lifestyle and mobile commerce integrated on men’s grooming segment exclusively. Through this new venture, Kapil aims at building a fine and valuable content led discovery platform on fashion and grooming. As a new age discovery platform, d’hybrid offers unique short format content and videos, supported with AI tech for personalising feeds and creating segment-based community clusters.
The app is available for download on Android as well as iOS via the link: http://bit.ly/dhybridapp
Passionate in Marketing caught up with Mr. Kapil Batus to know more about d’hybrid and how they are getting ready for the future.
What is d’hybrid?
d’hybrid is a homegrown platform that aims at revolutionising the way urban and emerging India consumes fashion and grooming.
d’hybrid is a new age content-led discovery platform born with the idea of providing the urban audiences curated content around fashion, grooming and lifestyle, while also helping them discover and connect with their favourite brands. A progressive digital hub for an audience that is generally held to be more interested in connoisseurship than in passing fads, the app will primarily cater to the 18 to 35-year-old urban and emerging India consumers.
d’hybrid is designed around the new age consumers and their everyday habits of content consumption in ephemeral format. Through this Innovative and engaging platform, the app aims to simplify discovery of brands and influence consumers’ fashion and grooming habits everyday. A friendly designed app with minimally designed UI/UX is contemporary and offers an immersive personalised experience through unique feeds. This new age platform is supported with AI tech for personalising feeds and creating segment based community clusters. d’hybrid not only serves as a guide and inspiration for its users but also offers informative and engaging content, ranging from a style directory of essentials that every urban and aspirational consumer needs. The app is customised around the user browse pattern where every user will experience a personalised feed and curated content suggestions.
Can you tell us something about yourself Kapil
I dived into the world of publishing and content creation in early 2000, with an eye for fashion and lifestyle. I was the creative and fashion director for Rolling Stone and MW in India and worked with several global menswear brands, creating content and advertorials for Ermenegildo Zegna, Gucci and Calvin Klein, to name a few. I was also the art director for Emirates Airlines magazine, working at their HQ in Dubai from 2006 to 2008.
In 2016, I started a niche creative studio, helping fashion houses create commercial campaigns. Some of my clients included top India fashion retailers like FILA, Selected Homme, Park Avenue, Parx and Pepe Jeans India.
Off the grid, I’m an avid reader and am always looking to learn new softwares. I love connecting with creative people around the world and am addicted to podcasts on social media. I like to unwind by listening to my favourite hip-hop tunes and playing football with my daughter.
What was your mission behind launching d’hybrid?
With over 20 years of experience and having attended major fashion events around the world, while engaging with creative individuals in Milan, London, Paris and NYC, I have an understanding of the menswear market. One that’s always been of keen interest to me. Seeing it’s evolution and the shift in consumption, I tapped into the void of how menswear is under-serviced digitally. So, I decided to launch a digital venture called d’hybrid – a new-age and content-led discovery fashion tech platform for urban audiences in India.
D’hybrid is a new app that focuses on men’s fashion, grooming & lifestyle can you give us 3 words that describes it best?
Discover | Influence | Create are d’hybrid’s brand pillars
Who are your strongest competitors in the Indian market?
d’hybrid’s current universe, currently offering content around fashion, grooming and lifestyle, is planned to organically expand into the space of social commerce. Market in this space is currently in a naive state and very unorganized. With better technological adoption and cultural shift in shopping patterns, the segment will see competition coming up in a few years from now.
How do you differentiate yourself from the existing players?
While the existing players either operate in offering repurposed content or e-commerce solutions, d’hybrid’s USP is in offering curated content, focusing on discovery and thereby creating a community.
What will be your strategy to help increase brand awareness and visibility for the brand in India?
We have always believed in community building and hence the product underwent an elaborate Beta testing phase before it was launched in May 2021. Our current strategy is to reach out to the relevant users by integrating the product in their current lifestyle, have them discover it and we are confident that the product in due course will organically start driving brand advocacy. Social commerce in future will further aid in completing the customer journey on the app.
How do you foresee it the sustainability of the app?
There are multiple ways in which any app or business can sustain. You can choose to adapt or evolve, or keep disrupting. We aim to use agility and disruption as our key drivers to not just sustain but remain relevant.
