2022 has been touted as a tough year for startups. What were some of the challenges your company faced and how did you tackle these?

The year 2022 was a paradox in many respects for startups, with the expectation of a post-pandemic recovery at the beginning of the year later tapering to sustaining business and consumer needs in an unstable economic environment. Within the sleep and home solutions category, however, the demand for affordable yet high-quality offerings has enabled Wakefit to optimally cater to our customers’ needs.

We have invested in long-term growth levers this year to create efficiencies in operations and delight in customer experience. We launched India’s largest manufacturing unit, which has the potential to furnish 1 lakh Indian homes every month. The 6 lakh sq. ft. wide unit allows us to expand our production capabilities exponentially and address the growing demand in the market. An addition of categories and new segments like home decor, lighting, furnishings, and more paves the way for us to achieve our vision of becoming the most loved home solutions brand in the country.

Please share more on how 2022 panned out for your company in terms of revenue targets?

In FY 2022, we clocked in a revenue of Rs 636 crore, which was a 54 per cent jump in revenue since FY 2021. Given the demand after we expanded into the home solutions segment in 2020, we also recently opened India’s largest furniture manufacturing unit to cater to the demands of the Indian consumers.

What are your expectations from 2023? Will some of the growth drivers kick in again or will it continue to be a cautious year as well?

In FY 2023, we aim to cross the Rs 1,000 crore revenue target that we have set for ourselves, while also becoming a household name and one-stop shop in India for all things home. At Wakefit, we believe that an immersive customer experience and sustainability will be some of the major growth drivers in the industry, and we aim to continue our efforts in that direction. We also expect to continue our expansion into newer home categories and reach deeper pockets of the country in the year to come.

What are some of your plans for 2023 and the areas of interest/ investment in the year ahead?

We have set ambitious targets for the company and aim to cross the Rs 1,000 crore revenue target. We have expanded into the offline retail space and opened 10 stores across the country. Given the demand that we are seeing from Tier-2 and 3 cities, we plan on ramping up the store count to a total of 25 by the end of this fiscal year.

Name and Designation: Ankit Garg, CEO & Co-founder, Wakefit

Company: Wakefit Innovations

Age : 34

Sector: Home and sleep solutions industry