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Abhilasha Bahl tells us, what it is to head a women's apparel section. She works for Reliance E-commerce.
Abhilasha Bahl who works for a leading e-commerce player, tells us, what it is like to head a women’s apparel section.
In this series, BriefCase, we meet women at work in different fields, different roles, to gain insight into their lives and work. With more women joining (or aspiring to) join the paid workforce, we live in exciting times, and this is an attempt to chronicle those times, one life at a time.
Abhilasha Bahl is the head of the Women’s Apparel Section at Reliance E-commerce. She has also been a part of the apparel launch team at Flipkart.
Abhilasha passed out of NIFT, Bangalore and went on to complete her MBA from ISB Hyderabad. She is also a budding entrepreneur and has a start-up named Fish-In-Water, an e-commerce site which brings easy DIY ideas and kits to your doorstep.
I would describe myself as curious. I love to explore new ideas and learn new things. Being part of a fast-evolving field like e-commerce, being curious is a must have quality because it prompts you to experiment, ask questions and try new approaches. It is an industry where processes are still developing and there are no set rules around how a certain thing needs to be done a curious mind can go a long way in building efficient processes ad finding innovative solutions.
Why did you choose this field?
Fashion and e-commerce are two things I am passionate about and I’m lucky to be spearheading the women’s wear category online at a renowned retail company. This role gives me the chance to be updated on the latest trends in fashion and also have a deep understanding of consumer behaviour. Also, being part of the fast paced e-commerce industry keeps me agile and experimenting with ideas all the time.
Describe your role so that it is understandable to someone who knows nothing about your industry.
Managing a category on a website involves in-depth understanding of the customer and the website’s positioning. The assortment of products needs to be built based on this. As a fashion category head I need to be updated on the latest trends which I need to present to the customer in the best possible way. Also, building strong understanding with all stakeholders like brands, marketing and technology teams takes you a long way in building a strong a sustainable category.
What is the most exciting part of your role and your field?
E-commerce is a fast evolving field hence it requires you to be agile. Each day has a new set of challenges and you need to be extremely flexible and open to new ideas to be able to find solutions and that for me is extremely exciting.
What is the most challenging aspect of your role?
My role requires me to be highly attentive and informed of all the new innovations that are happening and the latest trends that are coming up in the market. For this reason I need to multi-task a lot. It also involves working with a lot of people of different temperaments and understanding each one’s requirements. Although it is a challenge, yet it is also the most fun part of my job.
What is the common misconception about your field?
E-commerce seems to be the most glamorous field at this moment but it is a lot of hard work and needs a lot of agility in adapting to problems and finding innovative solutions.
If you had to change one thing about your field, what would it be?
I think the Indian consumer is already becoming quite confident in their fashion choices. They are no longer scared of experimenting and expressing their personal style through bold choices. I just want this trend to become more prominent.
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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