Asmita Kulshreshtha Email & Phone Number

Gurgaon, India

A labour of love which started as an outcome of my MA dissertation during my masters in Fashion Entrepreneurship & Innovation at The London College of Fashion, The Slow Studio is a mindful jewellery label, imagined and handcrafted in India. As the names suggests, the brand is proudly slow, homegrown and basic, but by no means ordinary; Quite the contrary. We consciously eschew the 'faster, cheaper, more' consumption philosophy, in favour of more fulfilling, handcrafted classic pieces… Show more A labour of love which started as an outcome of my MA dissertation during my masters in Fashion Entrepreneurship & Innovation at The London College of Fashion, The Slow Studio is a mindful jewellery label, imagined and handcrafted in India. As the names suggests, the brand is proudly slow, homegrown and basic, but by no means ordinary; Quite the contrary. We consciously eschew the 'faster, cheaper, more' consumption philosophy, in favour of more fulfilling, handcrafted classic pieces that transcend the boundaries of trends, time, generations and geography. As such, the design process focuses on smaller, thoughtfully crafted capsule collections consisting of versatile, timeless pieces, that are made by individuals, not factories.Launched while I was still working at NIMAI, with the knowledge of the CEO of the company, I juggled entrepreneurship with a job for about an year, to help bootstrap my business and gain experience in running one. I started full-time work on my brand in April 2019. At present, I am the sole proprietor helming all the functions of the business, with the help of my trusted bunch of karigars (craftspersons) and a few specialists who work with me on a freelance basis. Show less

New Delhi Area, India

NIMAI is India's FIRST multi-designer jewellery label that houses the work of more than 100 independent designers across the country. In 2017, I joined them at a crucial juncture as a Head of Design, for the creation and launch of their own private label. My primary responsibilities and core areas of work are as follows:• Understanding the brand DNA: In order to flesh out a strong identity for the private label, I spent the first few months at NIMAI, understanding the then 4-year old… Show more NIMAI is India's FIRST multi-designer jewellery label that houses the work of more than 100 independent designers across the country. In 2017, I joined them at a crucial juncture as a Head of Design, for the creation and launch of their own private label. My primary responsibilities and core areas of work are as follows:• Understanding the brand DNA: In order to flesh out a strong identity for the private label, I spent the first few months at NIMAI, understanding the then 4-year old brand inside and out. I read extensive literature both from inside the firm as well as reviews and customer feedbacks, along with conducting one-on-one meetings with the prominent designers and customers associated with the brand. This gave me the depth of insight needed to draw the essence of the NIMAI private label from.• Understanding the market: Consumer research and analysis on the macro-environment in the cosmopolitan of New Delhi - the ecosystem that the brand functioned within. I also studied consumer profiles of NIMAI's customers from Tier-2 and Tier-3 Indian cities, as well as diaspora Indians and those ordering from far flung places like the USA and Australia. This exercise helped me identify buying patterns, likes, dislikes, behaviours, gaps and consumer perceptions and expectations of the brand, as well as jewellery as a product. • Establishing the Private label: After a detailed research of about 6 months, the identity and direction of the brand was established, post-which I began work on our first few design collections based on our findings.• Design, Innovation and New Product Development: During my 2 years at NIMAI, I single-handedly, along with the CEO took crucial design decisions for the private label. The two of us together chalked out a detailed design development and product launch roadmap which included costs, quantum as well as marketing activities and timelines of the launches. I was responsible for end-to-end product development and vendor management. Show less

London, United Kingdom

As a Brand Strategy consultant for COOPS, a contemporary London-based e-commerce jewellery label with a patent design under its' name, I undertook the following responsibilities:• Understanding the brand: History of the brand, sales, past customers and potential target segments of the market.• Understanding the market: Research and analysis on the macro-environment the brand functions within. Studying aspects like market trends, patterns, target consumer groups, buying… Show more As a Brand Strategy consultant for COOPS, a contemporary London-based e-commerce jewellery label with a patent design under its' name, I undertook the following responsibilities:• Understanding the brand: History of the brand, sales, past customers and potential target segments of the market.• Understanding the market: Research and analysis on the macro-environment the brand functions within. Studying aspects like market trends, patterns, target consumer groups, buying behaviours/preferences and competitive positioning.• Creating & Implementing innovative strategies: Creating branding & marketing strategies that are tailor-fitted to the requirements and budget of the brand. Coordinating with internal as well external associates of the brand for the effective implementation of the same. • Social Media & PR: Assisting the brand in creating strategies and content for the official website, social media and publications, along with an external PR agency hired by the brand. Chalking out the road map for future marketing activities, factoring the timelines, consumer responses and budgets available. Show less

New Delhi Area, India

Joined as a Jewellery Designer for the firm after previously interning with the company twice. My role entailed the following responsibilities:• Trend Research: Researching on national and international fashion and jewellery trends in order to propose ideas and directions for upcoming collections.• Market Research: Keeping trends in mind, study the Indian market and target consumers for each collection; Their buying preferences, attitudes, purchasing powers etc. in order to… Show more Joined as a Jewellery Designer for the firm after previously interning with the company twice. My role entailed the following responsibilities:• Trend Research: Researching on national and international fashion and jewellery trends in order to propose ideas and directions for upcoming collections.• Market Research: Keeping trends in mind, study the Indian market and target consumers for each collection; Their buying preferences, attitudes, purchasing powers etc. in order to develop a suitable range plan for each collection. This process included frequent market visits, observation as well as consumer focus group discussions. • Concept & Design: Taking the design process forward from the range plan by brainstorming on concepts, sketching out product possibilities and iterating the promising concepts to fit the design brief and range plan.• Technical Detailing:Finalising the precise dimensions of the product and making technical illustrations on software, to be put in the final specification sheet used for production.• Vendor Management: Once all specification sheets of the collection have been prepared, allocating designs to the available vendor base, based on vendor capabilities, expertise, costs and timelines. Reaching out to these vendors in person to explain and load the designs for production.• Product Development: Following up and coordinating with the vendors through subsequent visits and meetings during the production stage. This process included travelling to the vendor location, supervising and approving/ iterating the progress and giving the go-ahead for further development, up till the realization of the final product.In addition to the above roles, I represented the company and the Design team at numerous events, design fests, award ceremonies and trade fairs. Owing to my excellent communication skills, I often wrote content and designed layouts for presentations and digital communications that were published on behalf of the design team. Show less

Puducherry Area, India

Hidesign is a leading leather accessories brand in India, known for its clean, minimal European aesthetics and superior product quality. I joined the company as the sole Product designer for their new India-inspired segment called “Holii”. My responsibilities included:• Trend Research: A lot of study on ongoing national and international trends was undertaken as Holii was the first of its kind of labels in India. The brand incorporated western minimalism along side ornate Indian leather… Show more Hidesign is a leading leather accessories brand in India, known for its clean, minimal European aesthetics and superior product quality. I joined the company as the sole Product designer for their new India-inspired segment called “Holii”. My responsibilities included:• Trend Research: A lot of study on ongoing national and international trends was undertaken as Holii was the first of its kind of labels in India. The brand incorporated western minimalism along side ornate Indian leather craftsmanship and hence keeping updated on fusion trends was an important part of my role.• Market Research: Since this was a disruptive category in the Indian leather accessory market, an intensive market research was undertaken which included travelling across the country to conduct focus group interviews on prospective consumers, as well as interacting with present Hidesign users and followers on social media, in order to define the market gap better for Holii to fit into. • Branding: Extensive research on brand expansion and the branding approaches to new labels, within a larger parent company was undertaken by me. On the basis of these, I created a comprehensive 'Branding toolkit' for the label consisting of concepts for the Logo, language, tone of communication, vision & mission, colour schemes, product range, packaging, social media strategies etc.• Organising Processes: Organised processes for product development and material acquisition. Since Holii was a very different brand as compared to its parent company, the In-house production capacities were inadequate. I single-handedly contacted vendors for fabric & embellishments, compared prices, negotiated and placed orders as per the design requirements. • Design & Product Development: Created and established the design language of the brand, designed to fit the same and got first samples developed, coordinating between in-house as well as external vendors, amidst tight timelines and uncertainty of a new venture. Show less

Bengaluru Area, India

As a Design and Production intern at the corporate office of the largest jewellery retailer in India, my Graduation project revolved around developing a range of ethno-contemporary jewellery for a very traditional target market The design process leading to it included:• Market & Consumer research: Extensive market research was undertaken in order to identify and address the very specific tastes and choices of the traditional market of Tamil Nadu, a south Indian state. The Tamil Nadu… Show more As a Design and Production intern at the corporate office of the largest jewellery retailer in India, my Graduation project revolved around developing a range of ethno-contemporary jewellery for a very traditional target market The design process leading to it included:• Market & Consumer research: Extensive market research was undertaken in order to identify and address the very specific tastes and choices of the traditional market of Tamil Nadu, a south Indian state. The Tamil Nadu market posed special challenges because of its resistance to organised jewellery retail and contemporary design aesthetics. Most Tamil customers till date prefer to buy from smaller local jewellers as opposed to big national chains. Owing to this, Tanishq, otherwise a successful and well-accepted brand across the country, faced its worst sales in the state. This collection was strategically aimed at user-centred design, fitting the design sensibilities of a modern brand to the tastes of a traditional customer. For this purpose, an in-depth exploration of the culture, history and lifestyle within the region was conducted through focus group interviews, surveys, observation, local trend research and competitor analysis.• Range planning and Design: Following the market research, the initial design brief was modified in order to incorporate important findings of the research. The final brief was inspired by 'Kolam' a traditional form of floor painting, native to Tamil Nadu. Research showed that no other jeweller has thus far explored Kolam, an important cultural aspect of the state, in its design inspiration. Kolam was chosen as the final inspiration and I produced concepts around the theme, designing a total of 50 out of the 130 products produced in the collection, by a team of 10 members. For my extensive research and major contribution in design, within a short span of 6 months, my Graduation project was awarded the "Most Commercially Viable Design Collection" by my university. Show less

Ma Fashion Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Fashion Business, Distinction(A) Awarded

My full-time Research-based Masters course specialised in the knowledge & skills related to innovation management at its core. The course.

B.Design, Fashion And Lifestyle Accessories, Final Graduation Project Gpa: 10/10. Average Gpa: 7.5/10

Activities and Societies: Active member of the College Cultural Club. As a part of this club, I undertook the following activities: •.