Identify yourself the Identiti way

Rattan Joneja of Identiti has taken the home décor sector a step forward by designing, manufacturing and retailing designer nameplates to customers who want to embellish their homes with a personal stamp of their own. Subhro Prakash Ghosh unravels the nuances of this obscure yet fascinating business.

Branding

Apart from your home exterior, ever wondered what else makes a lasting impression on a visitor? The nameplate, of course! Till now a backend small garage industry, the business of nameplates has come a long way. No more the stark, stolid work on brass or wood, nameplates today have become designer and chic, carving a niche for themselves. Mr Rattan Joneja was quick to realise the potential of this business and created ‘Identiti’ to design, manufacture and retail the nameplates of customers to add that dash of panache to their homes. According to Mr Joneja, Identiti’s merchandise line reverberates its undertone ‘identity’ that gives a stamp of individuality to customers and creates a sense of their own space at home. Identiti’s arty nameplates not only add unique facets to the beautification of the homes with excellent calligraphy in different styles and sizes, but also cater to corporate organisations and business centres with fashionable and traditional designed nameplates. Widening the brand to the accessories, the store has developed creative ways of letting visitors know who you are, if they have missed your nameplate at the door. Thus, it also houses plenty of designer personalised products like desk-plates, key chains, bag tags, visiting card holders and paperweights.

Identiti’s classy designer nameplates are usually formulated with an artistic fusion of plain wood, sculptured metal, frosted glass and natural stones. Generally, the ceramic nameplates cost between Rs 500 and Rs 2,000, depending on the number of alphabets used, the apartment and villa plates range from Rs 2,000 to Rs 20,000 and the accessories cost between Rs 850 and Rs 1,200. It also has a wonderful array of kids’ rooms’ nameplates which usually cost Rs 600.

The network

The parent company, The Pampered Home Pvt. Ltd, was founded by Ms Seema Joneja in 2004 in association with Mr Rattan Joneja, who reasoned that offering a culture of individualism to the customer through retailing was essential, which led him to launch a new format in the name of Identiti in 2006. However, from experience, he concludes ‘women’ are the top buyers. Presently, Identiti has four exclusive outlets in Mumbai, and six shop-in-shops formats in Bengaluru, Pune, Noida, Lucknow, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. The store with an average carpet area of 200 sq.ft is distinctively designed with effective visual merchandising. The brand has recently started seeking franchisees; however, at least one exclusive outlet in each city is essential to make the model very successful. Franchisees who have an inclination towards design and art, would need to invest around Rs 15 lakh. The brand is looking forward to having minimum 40 EBOs or franchised stores with five overseas outlets in the next five years. That’s branding, Identiti style!