Did you know the Indian lingerie market is expected to reach $8.2 billion by 2028. That’s a 10.9% growth rate. With numbers like these, scaling should be easy.
It wasn’t for Clovia. When Neha Kant started Clovia, intimate wear was a big taboo in India. She traveled to Sri Lanka, China, and Bangladesh looking for manufacturers. None of the factories entertained her. Manufacturing didn’t exist in India. Advertising was nearly impossible.
Today, Clovia has made its mark. They’re now shipping a piece every second. How did they scale the impossible? Let’s find out.
Why Big Taboo Means Impossible Scale
Being in a taboo category created a complete scaling lockdown:
Scaling Challenges Clovia Faced
No Advertising – TV and print media wouldn’t run intimate wear ads
No Manufacturing – Factories abroad refused orders & production didn’t exist in India
No Word-of-Mouth Marketing – Women couldn’t openly discuss intimate wear
No Investment – Funding companies wouldn’t invest in taboo businesses
Despite all these challenges, Clovia realized that big taboo also meant zero competition for whoever cracked the code.
The question became: how do you scale when every traditional scaling playbook fails?
How Clovia Cracked the Code with Data
While others stayed away from intimate wear, Clovia tackled the main challenge head-on. The biggest barrier wasn’t cultural, it was mathematical.
The Problem: High return rates made online scaling unprofitable.
The Solution: 140 million data points to fix the sizing problem.
How Smart Data Boosted Clovia’s Online Sales
140 Million Data Points – Built algorithm helping women find the right fit without trying on
5% Return Rates – Achieved accuracy at predicting what fits
Profitable Online Scale – Discovered Low returns made faster growth viable
85% Customers Shop In-Store – Realized Physical stores were necessary to scale
They discovered that online shopping was only 7% of total sales. To achieve real scale, they needed to win where 85% of customers shop, in physical stores.
Clovia used their data insights across all channels, expanded into sleepwear and activewear, and discovered men’s categories scale much faster.
The result? They went from solving intimate wear problems to a 100-crore men’s brand in under two years.
The Clovia Scaling Playbook
Clovia’s journey shows how to scale in tough categories:
1. Fix the Core Problem First – Used 140M data points to solve sizing issues and got 5% return rates
2. Create Content, Not Ads – Entertained customers into buying instead of educating
3. Build Offline Presence – Catered to 85% of customers who still shop in stores, not just online
4. Perfect Every Touchpoint – Made sizing, shipping, and payments work flawlessly
Most importantly, service is also one big part of product. Every interaction must build trust, especially payments.
When Payment Success Determines Cultural Breakthrough
As Clovia scaled rapidly, they learned that seamless payments become even more critical in taboo categories.
“The success rate of your gateway really matters because failed payments create annoyance for customers,” Neha points out. Payment failures destroy trust.
At PayU, we help businesses like Clovia to offer smooth, seamless payment experiences with:
Payment gateway – Accept secure and seamless payments with 150+ payment modes.
International Payments – Accept payments in 135+ currencies.
PayU UPI Stack – Offer seamless UPI experiences for higher speed and conversions.
Priority settlements – Access funds within 15 minutes. Keep the cash flow going without worrying about any cash crunch.
“Seamless payments, higher success rate—PayU being an aggregator, getting all options under one gateway makes the experience seamless” – Neha Kant, Clovia CEO
When customers trust your payment process completely, they become advocates who help break cultural barriers. This brings in more sales and helps you grow your business faster.
Scale Through Perfect Execution
Clovia’s transformation proves that in impossible categories, your payment infrastructure can’t be an afterthought. While you focus on breaking barriers and building categories, PayU makes sure to build trust with every transaction.
PayU makes sure your payments never become your scaling bottleneck. PayU takes care of all your payment needs so you can focus on growth.
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