These Founders Took A Leap to Transform the Indian Luggage Industry, Built Rs 85 Crores Worth Company in Just Five Years

Launched in Oct 2019, Mohit Garg and Aditya Khanna, Assembly is a homegrown luggage brand that offers premium luggage, trolley bags, suitcases, and backpacks that are a perfect blend of both aesthetics and functionality.

Coming from a family background in luggage manufacturing, Mohit Garg, Co-founder and CEO of Assembly Luggage had since forever been immersed in the discussions about the industry from an early age. 

However, amidst these conversations, he observed that there was a notable gap. Luggage had always been treated merely as any other commodity and he felt that it deserved more - the opportunity to add to the style statement of modern-day travellers. 

Aditya Khanna - Co-founder of Assembly

With an immense passion to bring innovation in the luggage industry, he, alongwith his co-founder, Aditya Khanna launched Assembly in late 2019. Aditya, a Kellogg MBA graduate, previously co-founded the Kara record label. It focuses on necessities made of leather. In addition, he co-founded the internet advertising network Tyroo Media.

"Business partnership is like a marriage itself. You have to be committed and think about how we both add value to the overall business. We realised that both of us were often talking about how to bring innovation in the luggage industry," said Mohit while talking about how their friendship turned into a business partnership.

Talking about what innovation they wanted to do in the luggage industry, Mohit said that all the luggage brands focus on the looks and facade of the bags they manufacture. They wanted to incorporate some practical features into the bags while assuring durability and aesthetics at the same time.  

Mohit Garg - Co-founder & CEO of Assembly.

Assembly Bags Technical Features 

To dive into the Assembly bags' innovations, Mohit talked about the features of a few bags. 

• Assembly's Stark Pro bag has three to four exciting features: 100% polycarbonate, an aluminium trolley, wheels, and a laptop compartment outside the luggage. This combination of soft and hard luggage makes it practical for travellers. The Stark Pro also includes a trolley ticket, shoe bag, and packing cube, which can be used as a laundry bag. It also has a USB port for accessing a power bank from outside.
• Assembly's Jetson trolley backpack is designed with a padded laptop compartment, an outside pocket, and a shoulder strap for easy carrying. This backpack is designed to be lightweight and not heavy, making it suitable for daily commutes or office trips. The backpack is 100% polycarbonate, making it safe and visually appealing.
• Assembly's Duffel bag is another product with one or two compartments opening 180 degrees. This allows for easy organisation and segregation during long journeys. The duffel bag has two compartments, three to four pockets inside and one outside pocket, making it ideal for road trips.

Assembly's Duffel bag & Trolley

"We prioritise consumer feedback and research, focusing on the needs of travellers and office goers. We also try to iterate our products according to the needs of the travellers”, said Mohit. 

Assembly's bags are versatile, stylish and durable. The brand also attaches a paper tag in the bags where all the things that people tend to forget to pack are listed. 

Made In India Luggage Brand

More than 90% of Assembly's travel products are made in India which is rare in the luggage manufacturing industry where importing from China is a norm. Materials to manufacture the Assembly luggage are imported from different parts of India, such as wheels from Nashik, PVC beading from Nagpur, lining cloth from Surat, Zipper from Jaipur, zip from Meerut, and others. 

Assembly's Trolley Backpack

"You can find the best of the best materials for your products, but your final product is based on how you assemble those materials. That is why we chose Assembly for our brand name," said Mohit.  

Designing occurs at Assembly's workshop and manufacturing at Mohit's family business factory. That is how Assembly bags are manufactured every single day. 

Journey of Assembly

With an initial investment of Rs 1.5 crore, the duo friends launched Assembly with two SKUs- an overnighter and a laptop backpack. They mostly invested in sourcing materials, manufacturing multiple bags for testing, building the website and some working capital. 

In March 2020, five months after Assembly launch, the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic hit, and their business was affected as the brand's target audience was travellers and office goers. Visiting offices and travelling were restricted during the peak of the pandemic.

However, they managed to survive by launching three more SKUs, a tech accessory bag, backpack and gadget organiser, which were apt for consumers during the pandemic. Now, Assembly has about 12 SKUs. 

When the brand first launched, there were about six employees, including a designer, a stitching master and a customer care executive.

Assembly Team

now employs 45 people who are dedicated to growing the Gurgaon-based company.

Assembly's bestseller is StarkPro, the  most practical and versatile cabin luggage. 

The Gurgaon based startup majorly generates sales through three channels- 45% from the official website, 45% from E-commerce marketplaces and 10% from corporate orders across India.   

"Leveraging the Ecommerce marketplaces shot up Assembly's sales nearly 45%," confirmed Mohit.  

Assembly - Funding Journey

In 2022, the luggage brand secured Rs 2.5 crore funding from different angel investors. Now, they are on the verge of closing Rs 15-17 crore funding round.

Assembly’s Shark Tank S3 Feature 

Assembly’s Shark Tank S3 Feature

The brand recently appeared on the acclaimed TV show Shark Tank India season 3 for funding. The co-founders asked for Rs 85 lakh for 1% equity of the business. Shark Anupam made an offer of Rs. 85 lakh post-money equity for 1 percent aligned with Assembly's initial request. 

However, a condition of a 1 percent royalty on net sales was attached to it , until the shark recovered their investment, which prompted Assembly to decline the deal. This decision was rooted in fairness to current investors and the company's growth stage.

Assembly's journey on Shark Tank India marked a pivotal moment in its growth trajectory. The brand continues to thrive, learning from experiences, revamping its identity, and staying true to its mission of redefining luggage for the modern Indian traveller. 

Future Plans and Vision

The co-founders of Assembly- Mohit and Aditya, aim high when it comes to the growth of the brand. They aim to achieve Rs 50 crore in revenue in the next fiscal year, 2024-25, more than double the current year's revenue. 

Talking about strategies to achieve the ambitious goal, Mohit said, "Currently, we have around 12 SKUs, but we are in the process of launching 6-7 more SKUs. Moreover, we have an effective marketing plan to boost sales." The duo aim to revolutionise the luggage brand into a lifestyle brand for the Indian travellers.

FAQs 

What is Assembly? 

Assembly is a premium Luggage Brand  based in Gurgaon, Haryana. Apart from being aesthetic and lightweight, the bags are innovative as they have consumer-friendly technical features.  

Who are the founders of Assembly? 

Mohit Garg and Aditya Khanna are the co-founders of Premium Luggage Brand Assembly

Where is the Assembly brand located? 

Assembly is located in Gurgaon. 

Where can I find Assembly bags? 

Assembly bags are on their official website and in e-commerce marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart, and Myntra. 

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