₹20L+ REVENUE · SIMPLY GRAIN✳3× PITCH COMPETITION WINNER✳🎾 INTERNATIONAL TENNIS PLAYER✳TOP-RANKED WOMEN’S TENNIS, INDIA✳SPORTS SECRETARY · MESA ’26–27✳MENTOR · MESA SUMMER SCHOOL✳NOW EXPLORING: MENOPAUSE WELLNESS✳

RAINA BAFNA · MESA SCHOOL OF BUSINESS ’29 · FOUNDER

SCROLL ↓

HELLO, INTERNET.

I SERVE, I SELL & I SHIP.

I’m Raina. I played international tennis for India, then took the same competitiveness into business. I’m building Simply Grain, a lactose-free pea protein granola bar brand, and exploring the menopause space next.

hi, i’m raina!
₹20L+REVENUE
TOPRANKED, INDIA
700KCREATOR FOR ₹2K
50CREATORS / WEEK

I played tennis for India.
Now I build brands people actually buy,
and the teams that sell them.

SCROLL OR DRAG TO SEE MORE

Raina presenting Simply Grain

I BUILD
BRANDS

Simply Grain: lactose-free protein bars I run end to end, from sourcing to wholesale deals.

Raina with the Dreamspan sleep device

I GROW WITH
CREATORS

At Dreamspan I signed a 700K Instagram creator for ₹2K and onboarded 50 creators in one week.

Raina pitching on stage at Mesa

I PITCH
TO WIN

Pitched to the founders of BigBasket, Mamaearth, Yogabar and GO DESi, and won on stage at Mesa.

Raina hitting a forehand at the S. M. Krishna Tennis Stadium

I COMPETE

International tennis player for India, top-ranked in women’s tennis in India.

Raina wearing her Sports Secretary 2026–27 sash at Mesa, with the House Ambassador and Clubs Secretary

I LEAD

Sports Secretary at Mesa, and mentor to three startups at the Mesa Summer School.

Raina in a film-style selfie

I CREATE

Brand and UGC content for the brands I work with, and my own content on Instagram.

BY THE NUMBERS

BY THE NUMBERS.
REAL RESULTS.

₹20L+Revenue at Simply Grain, and still building
TOPRanked in women’s tennis in India, and represented India internationally
3×Pitching competitions won with Simply Grain
50Creators onboarded in a single week at Dreamspan

A FEW THINGS I’VE DONE

THE SHORT
VERSION.

Each one opens a fuller story in the other tabs.

FOUNDER · BENGALURU · 2026 → STILL BUILDING

SIMPLY
GRAIN.

Lactose-free pea protein granola bars for Gen Z and young millennials. I started it at Mesa and I run everything myself, from operations and finance to marketing and sales. And I’m still building.

Simply Grain protein bars in Berry & Almond and Choco Standard flavours10GPLANT PROTEINNo whey · No bloating · 100% vegan
₹20L+Revenue across D2C and B2B
10K+Units sold
D2CStalls, events and online, now adding wholesale
3×Pitching competitions won
Raina and her co-founder pitching Simply Grain to Hari Menon, co-founder of BigBasket, at their stall
100%VEGAN

THE PRODUCT · FOUNDER · 2026

PROTEIN, MINUS THE LACTOSE

Most protein snacks are built on whey. Simply Grain bars use pea protein, so people who avoid dairy can eat them too. We sell at stalls, events and online, and to wholesale buyers.

D2C salesB2BOperationsFinanceBrandingPricing

HOW IT’S GOING

FROM A STALL
TO WHOLESALE.

  1. 01

    The idea

    A protein bar Gen Z would pick for taste, made without lactose.

  2. 02

    First sales

    Sold at stalls and flea markets, one conversation at a time, then online.

  3. ₹

    Pitch wins

    ILS Demo Day Round 1 (Mar ’26), then Venture Building Winner (Apr ’26).

  4. B2B

    Wholesale

    Started selling to wholesale buyers alongside D2C.

  5. NOW

    Still building

    New channels and more wholesale buyers in progress.

0GLACTOSE.
ZERO WHEY.

PITCH COMPETITIONS

THREE PITCHES.
THREE WINS.

Tap a photo to see it full size.

Raina and her co-founder with the ₹20,000 Venture Building Winner cheque
MESA · APRIL 2026

VENTURE
BUILDING

WINNER · ₹20,000
The team with the ₹15,000 ILS Demo Day Round 1 cheque
MESA · MARCH 2026

ILS DEMO
DAY R1

WINNER · ₹15,000
Raina presenting the Simply Grain pitch
PITCHING

THIRD
PITCH WIN

WINNER

FOUNDER CONVERSATIONS

I INTERVIEWED THEM.
THEN I PITCHED.

I interviewed some of India’s best-known consumer founders on stage at Mesa, and pitched Simply Grain to each of them.

🎙️ In conversation with Vinay Kothari, GO DESi
Hari MenonCo-founder & CEO, BigBasketINTERVIEW + PITCH
Ghazal AlaghCo-founder, MamaearthINTERVIEW + PITCH
Anindita SampathCo-founder, YogabarINTERVIEW + PITCH
Vinay KothariFounder, GO DESiINTERVIEW + PITCH
Raina interviewing Vinay Kothari, founder of GO DESi, at Mesa
Interviewing Vinay Kothari · GO DESi
Raina and her co-founder pitching Simply Grain to Hari Menon at their stall
Pitching Hari Menon · BigBasket
Raina and her co-founder pitching Simply Grain to Ghazal Alagh at their stall
Pitching Ghazal Alagh · Mamaearth

STILL BUILDING.

Simply Grain is live and growing. If you’re a retailer, café, gym or corporate buyer, or you want to invest, I’d love to talk.

EXPERIENCE · PROJECTS · TOOLKIT

THE
WORK.

GTM, influencer marketing, growth and operations at consumer brands, plus the products I built at Mesa.

EXPERIENCE

WHERE I’VE
WORKED.

DreamspanGTM & Content Intern · D2C sleep tech · Bengaluru2026+
Raina with the Dreamspan sleep device

I run the GTM and content function for a ₹2.5 lakh sleep product, one of the most expensive D2C products in India.

  • Signed a 700K-follower Instagram creator for just ₹2K.
  • Onboarded 50 creators in a single week.
  • Built the go-to-market plan and own execution across channels.
  • Run influencer marketing end to end: sourcing, briefing, collaborations and campaign tracking.
  • Create brand and UGC content for social media, plus email marketing for new customers.
  • Set up WhatsApp and email automations for customer engagement.
Simply GrainFounder · Bengaluru2026 → NOW+

Started and run a consumer food brand.

  • ₹20L+ in revenue and 10,000+ units sold across D2C and B2B channels.
  • Started selling wholesale alongside direct-to-consumer.
  • Own operations, finance, marketing and sales end to end.
Everaw NutritionFounder’s Office Intern · Bengaluru2026+
  • Onboarded and listed the brand on Plum and CRED, opening partnership-led distribution.
  • Launched the products in the US through Amazon and TikTok Shop: listings, catalogue setup and launch.
  • Owned customer experience: queries, feedback and post-purchase communication to improve retention and reviews.
MiomiMarket Research & Competitor Analysis · Bengaluru2025+
  • Worked on a built-in-bra brand from day one to launch.
  • Ran a 4-month market and competitor analysis across pricing, positioning and features.
  • Found market gaps that shaped product development and early positioning.
Thrift StoreSocial Media Manager2025+
  • Grew the brand across social platforms with content, posting schedules and consistent brand voice.
  • Ran creative campaigns, managed daily posts and tracked reach, engagement and follower growth.
  • Averaged 3K–10K views per post.
Shop ZiddiLaunch & Collection Intern · Delhi2023+
  • Led operations for the Zar 2.0 and Zar 3.0 launches.
  • Coordinated vendors, models, inventory and marketing timelines.
  • Delivered both launches with zero delays.

MESA PROJECTS

THINGS I BUILT
AT MESA.

Two Mesa programmes asked us to build a real business and a real product from scratch. These are mine.

Raina at the Postify poster stall in a Mesa polo
₹1L+MONTHLY REVENUE

BUILD YOUR OWN BUSINESS · CO-FOUNDER

POSTIFY

An e-commerce poster brand built from scratch that reached ₹1L+ in monthly revenue through product curation and marketing.

E-commerceSourcingPricingLogisticsMarketing
Behind the build +

We handled sourcing, pricing, logistics, fulfilment and customer experience ourselves, which taught me how thin margins get once delivery and returns come in.

Invoicy voice-assisted invoicing app on a phone
<1 MINPER INVOICE

BUILD YOUR OWN PRODUCT · CO-FOUNDER

INVOICY

A voice-assistant invoicing app. You say the basic details and it builds the invoice in under a minute.

ProductVoice AIUser researchMVP
Behind the build +

Built for freelancers and small businesses who lose time on paperwork. We went from problem interviews to a working prototype.

MORE BUILDS

AI notes toolSummarises YouTube videos from a link, so long content takes minutesAI
MicroMatchAI marketplace MVP matching freelance gigs to free weekly time slotsMVP
n8n automationsWorkflows with API integrations that replace repetitive manual workAUTOMATION
AI chatbotsLLM-powered bots for task execution and answering questionsAI

COLLATERALS

PLANS &
RESEARCH.

Strategy work I’ve written for real brands. Open any one to read the full document.

DREAMSPAN · GTM PLANTHE LUCID PRO
PLAYBOOK
Four playbooks and one funnel for a ₹2.5L smart bed

Dreamspan GTM plan

GTM plan · 4 pages
4 buyer personas4 playbooks, 1 funnel₹25L budget, 6 sprints

How to sell a ₹2.5L sleep system without leaning on ads: Sleep Lab pop-ups in four cities, a “Founding 8” of advocates, selling through longevity clinics, hotels and architects, and a free 2-minute Sleep Audit that feeds every channel.

EVERAW · US MARKET RESEARCHEVERAW
GLOBAL
Mapping the US market before the launch

Everaw US competitor research

Research · 10 pages
20+ US brands mapped2 categories$/serving by channel

Before Everaw launched in the US, I mapped the smoothie and freeze-dried fruit competitors it would sit next to: format, pricing per serving on every channel, and where each one sells, from Amazon and TikTok Shop to Target, Costco and Whole Foods.

MIOMI · CUSTOMER & MARKET RESEARCHBUILT-IN
BRA TOPS
83 women, 30+ brands, 40+ manufacturers

Miomi research database

Research · survey + database
83 women surveyed81% would buy40+ manufacturers mapped

The research behind Miomi’s bra tops: a customer survey on discomforts, use cases and price, a map of 30+ competing brands, and a database of manufacturers, designers and an industry founder interview.

TOOLKIT

WHAT I WORK WITH.
GO ON, THROW IT.

They fall. You play.
Grab a skill and toss it around.

DRAG · DROP · REPEAT
LEARNING BY BUILDING. ALWAYS.KEYBOARD: TAB TO A SKILL, ENTER TO TOSS ↗

INSTAGRAM · @RAINABAFNA · ON CAMERA

ON
CAMERA.

I make content about founder life, pitching and sport, and I create UGC for the brands I work with. Tap a reel to watch it.

🎙️ Interviewing Vinay Kothari, GO DESi

BRAND · UGC

Content for Dreamspan.

I create brand and UGC content for Dreamspan’s social media, for a ₹2.5 lakh sleep-tech product aimed at founders, executives and couples who care about recovery.

Raina with the Dreamspan sleep device

TENNIS · LEADERSHIP · MENTORING · WHAT’S NEXT

BEYOND
WORK.

Before business there was tennis. It still shapes how I train, compete, lead and mentor.

THE TENNIS STORY

ONE RACKET.
ONE FLAG.

  1. 01

    The start

    Picked up a racket as a kid and kept going.

  2. 02

    Karnataka

    Represented the state at SGFI U17 and U19, and won the SGFI Games in Delhi two years running.

  3. #

    Top-ranked in India

    One of the top-ranked players in the women’s category nationally.

  4. 🇮🇳

    Team India

    Represented India on the international circuit.

  5. NOW

    Still competing

    Won Mesa’s tennis and pickleball tournaments in 2025 and 2026, and lead sports at Mesa.

🇮🇳REPRESENTED INDIA
INTERNATIONALLY.
Raina hitting a forehand at the S. M. Krishna Tennis Stadium, Bengaluru
📍 S. M. Krishna Tennis Stadium
Raina’s tennis trophies, including a UTR tournament winner’s cup
🏆 The trophy shelf

LEADERSHIP AT MESA

RUNNING THE
SPORTS SIDE.

I organise inter-college and international tournaments and manage Mesa’s sports teams.

2026–2027

SPORTS
SECRETARY

MESA
2025–2026

SPORTS
CLUB HEAD

MESA
2025 · 2026

TENNIS &
PICKLEBALL

TOURNAMENT WINNER

MORE WINS

Mad Ad Competition · WinnerMade an ad for Dettol aimed at gamers and streamersMESA
Go-Rally Pickleball · WinnerPickleball tournament win2025
British Council Head · SchoolRepresented my school in international exchanges; ran cultural and sports sessionsSCHOOL

MESA SUMMER SCHOOL · 14 DAYS

I MENTORED
THREE STARTUPS.

No one saw the hundreds of rejections. They only saw the Demo Day awards.

Raina with three of her summer school students in front of the Mesa sign
📍 Mesa, Bengaluru

NUTCASE

Expensive inventory made selling hard, so they did magic tricks outside the stall to pull crowds. We moved to B2B, fixed pricing and closed four partnerships. ₹20K in week one became ₹1.7L in 10 days, the highest revenue in the cohort.

GO NUTTI

A team of 8th and 9th graders who couldn’t sell a single packet at first. We split roles and added a bakery SKU. They sold out, made ₹25K and won Runner-Up for Best Pitch.

PUFFECT

Creative but camera-shy. We posted a reel every single day, including the awkward ones. They sold out at both flea markets and won Most Creative Video and Best Influencer Team.

“Every team needs a different version of you. Sometimes you’re a mentor. Sometimes you’re a friend. Sometimes you’re just the person who reminds them they can do it.”

What 14 days of mentoring taught me about leadership
Summer school cohort at the Future Founders stage
Future Founders mentor
Mentors and students at the Student Flea Market
Student Flea Market
Students on stage with their trophies
Demo Day awards
Students holding their awards at Mesa
Award winners

WHAT’S NEXT

WHAT KEEPS ME
CURIOUS.

Where my head is when I’m not selling granola bars.

MENOPAUSE WELLNESS

Millions of women go through menopause with very few products built for them. I’m researching the space and talking to women to find what’s missing.

Women’s healthResearchNext venture

CONTENT CREATION

I’m creating content on Instagram too: founder life, pitching, sport and the things I’m learning.

InstagramReels@rainabafna
Follow along ↗

SPORT & THE MIND

Courses in sport psychology, mental performance and sports management, because the mental game matters in sport and in startups.

TennisPickleballSport psychology

CERTIFICATIONS

Sport & performanceMental Training for Athletes · Sport Psychology for Athletes · Applied Sport Psychology · Sports Management: Strategy and Performance4 CERTIFICATES
BusinessJ.P. Morgan Investment Banking (Forage) · Digital Marketing (HubSpot)2 CERTIFICATES

EDUCATION

MESA SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Undergraduate Programme in Business Management & Entrepreneurship · Bengaluru

2025 – 2029

CONNECT

LET’S BUILD
SOMETHING.

Talk to me about Simply Grain orders and partnerships, GTM and influencer marketing roles, women’s health, or a game of tennis.

RAINABAFNA12@GMAIL.COM

Tap the address to copy it

CASE STUDY · FOUNDER · 2026 → NOW

PROTEIN BARS,
MINUS THE LACTOSE.

Most protein bars in India are built on whey, so a lot of people who avoid dairy skip them. Simply Grain makes plant-powered pea protein granola bars for Gen Z and young millennials, and I run the whole business.

Simply Grain · Bengaluru · Founder, end to end

Simply Grain Berry & Almond and Choco Standard protein bars
₹20L+revenue
10K+units sold
3×pitch competition wins

The question

Can a plant-protein bar win on taste, so people pick it because they want it and not only because it’s healthy?

The product

Two flavours to start, Berry & Almond and Choco Standard. Each bar has 10g of plant protein and is made from rolled oats, quinoa, dry fruits, berries, dates and monk fruit. It is 100% vegan, with no whey and no lactose.

How we sold it

  • Face to face at stalls and flea markets, one conversation at a time.
  • Direct to consumer online.
  • Pitched to founders including Hari Menon (BigBasket), Ghazal Alagh (Mamaearth) and Vinay Kothari (GO DESi).
  • Started selling wholesale, our next channel after D2C.

What I own

Everything: sourcing and production, pricing, finance, packaging, social media, stall sales and the B2B deal.

Pitch wins

  • Venture Building Winner, Mesa · April 2026 · ₹20,000
  • ILS Demo Day Round 1, Mesa · March 2026 · ₹15,000
  • A third pitching competition win

What’s next

We’re still building, adding new channels and more wholesale buyers. Retailers, cafés, gyms, corporate buyers and investors can reach me below.

Raina presenting the Simply Grain deck
Pitching Simply Grain to Ghazal Alagh at the stall
Venture Building Winner cheque
Talk to me about Simply Grain ↗
CASE STUDY · GTM & CONTENT INTERN · 2026

A ₹3 LAKH PRODUCT,
SOLD THROUGH CREATORS.

Dreamspan is a D2C sleep-tech brand with one of the most expensive D2C products in India. I run its go-to-market and content, with influencer marketing as the main engine.

Dreamspan · Bengaluru · GTM, influencer marketing, content, automation

Raina with the Dreamspan sleep device
700Kfollower creator signed
₹2Kwhat that deal cost
50creators onboarded in a week
₹2.5Lproduct price point

The question

How do you get people to trust a ₹2.5 lakh sleep product they’ve never heard of?

Creators first

Trust comes from people audiences already follow. I source creators, brief them, negotiate and track every campaign. I signed a 700K-follower Instagram creator for ₹2K and onboarded 50 creators in a single week.

Content

I create brand and UGC content for Dreamspan’s social media myself, and build marketing assets like emails for new customers.

Automation

I set up WhatsApp and email automations so new and existing customers keep hearing from the brand without manual follow-ups.

THE GTM PLAN I WROTE: THE LUCID PRO PLAYBOOK

Four buyers

  • The Exited Founder optimises his body like a P&L and converts off a technical thread, never an ad.
  • The Biohacker Executive already pays for biomarker panels and closes fastest once her clinic vouches for us.
  • The Design-Led Spouse worries it will look like a hospital bed in her bedroom.
  • The Skeptical Engineer wants a teardown, converts slowest and becomes the loudest advocate.

Four playbooks

  • The Sleep Lab: pop-ups in four cities on bartered venues, with a 24-minute experience ending in a home consult or a close.
  • The Founding 8 and the Sleep Index: turn early advocates into a programme, and anonymised data into the authority on how India sleeps.
  • Sell where trust lives: longevity clinics, hotel wellness suites and the architects furnishing HNI homes.
  • The Design Edition: a numbered run capped at 50 units with an Indian designer.

One funnel

A free 2-minute Sleep Audit is the single door into every playbook. Visitors get a Sleep Score and three things hurting their recovery. Dreamspan gets their words for ad copy, a lead for a 14-day WhatsApp and email sequence, and a data point for the Sleep Index.

Budget

₹25L across six 15-day sprints. The biggest line is ₹8L for the Sleep Labs, because they’re the only thing a buyer can touch. Performance media points only at Sleep Audit sign-ups, with no awareness spend.

Talk to me about GTM ↗
CASE STUDY · MENTOR · MESA SUMMER SCHOOL · 14 DAYS

THREE TEAMS.
THREE VERSIONS OF ME.

No one saw the hundreds of rejections. They only saw the Demo Day awards. For two weeks I mentored three startups and watched three very different groups of students become entrepreneurs.

Mesa School of Business · Summer School · Mentor to three startups

Raina with her summer school students
₹1.7LNutCase revenue in 10 days
4B2B partnerships
2teams sold out
3awards won

NutCase

My “best friend” team: ambitious and full of ideas, but stuck with expensive inventory. Instead of waiting for customers they did magic tricks outside the stall to pull crowds. We moved to B2B, fixed pricing and closed four partnerships. ₹20K in week one became ₹1.7L in 10 days, the highest revenue in the cohort.

Go Nutti

A team of 8th and 9th graders who couldn’t sell a single packet at first. Customers kept saying no. We split roles across customer conversations, demos and payments, and added a bakery SKU. They sold out, made ₹25K and won Runner-Up for Best Pitch.

Puffect

Creative but hesitant, and most had never filmed content. We posted a reel every single day, including the awkward ones. Consistency beat perfection: they sold out at both flea markets and won Most Creative Video and Best Influencer Team.

What I learned

Every team needs a different version of you. Sometimes you’re a mentor, sometimes a friend, and sometimes the person staying on calls until 1 AM because your team needs someone in their corner.

Summer school cohort
Student Flea Market
Students with their awards
CASE STUDY · BUILD YOUR OWN BUSINESS · MESA

POSTERS,
₹1 LAKH A MONTH.

Postify was an e-commerce poster brand we built from scratch as part of Mesa’s Build Your Own Business programme.

Postify · Co-founder · Curation, pricing, logistics, marketing

Raina at the Postify poster stall
₹1L+monthly revenue
0→1built from scratch

What we did

Curated the poster range, set prices, and ran sourcing, logistics, fulfilment and customer experience ourselves.

What it taught me

How thin margins get once delivery and returns come in, and why curation and marketing decide whether a simple product sells.

CASE STUDY · BUILD YOUR OWN PRODUCT · MESA

SAY IT.
INVOICE SENT.

Invoicy is a voice-assisted invoicing app for freelancers and small businesses. You say the basic details and it builds the invoice in under a minute, with no typing.

Invoicy · Co-founder · Product, user research, MVP

Invoicy app on a phone
<1 MINto build an invoice
LIVEworking MVP

The question

Why do freelancers and small businesses still spend so long on invoices?

What we built

We went from problem interviews to a working prototype. You create, manage and send invoices by speaking: client, items, quantity and price.

Live MVP · sign-up needed ↗
CASE STUDY · FOUNDER’S OFFICE INTERN · EVERAW NUTRITION

THREE LAUNCHES.
ONE INTERNSHIP.

I joined Everaw Nutrition in the founder’s office and ended up helping launch the brand in the US, onboarding it onto Amazon, CRED and Plum, and owning customer experience, all at the same time.

Everaw Nutrition · Bengaluru · Founder’s office

Everaw’s founders Lucky Soni, Kanika Kishnani and Yash Soni on Shark Tank India
Everaw’s founders on Shark Tank India
USlaunch on Amazon & TikTok Shop
3platforms onboarded: Amazon, CRED, Plum
CXcustomer experience, owned end to end

The brand

Everaw is a kid-first, clean-label nutrition brand, the #nothingtohide brand behind India’s first fruit-infused nut butters, freeze-dried fruit snacks and super smoothies. It’s founded by Lucky Soni, Yash Soni and Kanika Kishnani, and recently appeared on Shark Tank India. Watching the brand I work for pitch on national television was surreal.

What I did

  • US launch: listings, catalogue setup and launch execution on Amazon and TikTok Shop.
  • New channels: onboarded the brand onto Amazon, CRED and Plum, three very different partners at once.
  • Customer experience: queries, feedback and post-purchase communication.

The messy part

It wasn’t all smooth, and some things didn’t go to plan. What helped was founders who would think a problem through with me instead of handing me the answer. Chill, sharp and always willing to help.

What I learned

  • Talk to customers like a real person, not from a script.
  • How to win back a customer after a bad experience.
  • How much time and clarity a business gains from well-built AI systems. Everaw uses automation in ways most Indian F&B brands don’t yet.

THE RESEARCH: MAPPING THE US MARKET

Who we’d target

Health-forward 20 to 40 year olds, leading with vegan, no added sugar and high fibre. The data backed it: most Americans fall short of their daily fibre intake, and over half replace meals with snacks and smoothies.

What I mapped

20+ US brands across two categories, smoothies and freeze-dried fruit, including Kencko, Daily Harvest, NOKA, AG1, Bloom, Crispy Green and Brothers All Natural. For each one: format, price per serving on every channel, and where it sells.

What stood out

  • Kencko is the closest format to Everaw’s smoothie mix, and sells only direct and on Amazon.
  • The most omnichannel brands sit in Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Costco and Kroger at once.
  • Bloom shows TikTok Shop can be a meaningful channel for this category.

How it was used

The research fed into the US launch on Amazon and TikTok Shop: pricing, listings and which channels to start with.

CASE STUDY · CUSTOMER RESEARCH · MIOMI · 2025

I ASKED STRANGERS
THEIR BRA SIZE.

Miomi is a startup building bra tops. My job description was simple: talk to customers and get interviews. For a month, that meant walking up to women and asking very personal questions.

Miomi · Bengaluru · Customer interviews, market and competitor research

Miomi logo
83women surveyed, 44 of them by me
1 MONTHof customer interviews
4 MONTHSof market and competitor analysis
DAY 1to launch, on a brand built from scratch

What I asked

  • What do you hate about the bras you already own?
  • What would you change about your current bra?
  • What bra do you wear, and which brand do you buy?
  • What size do you wear?

The awkward part

Some people looked at me like main pagal hoon. Some ignored me. Some clearly wondered why I was asking. I felt awkward too. I kept asking.

The real question

We weren’t interviewing women to make another bra. We wanted to know what freedom actually means when it comes to what you wear.

Once I asked it that way, women opened up about discomfort, restriction, confidence, movement and, most of all, how they wanted to feel.

What I learned

The best ideas don’t always come from brainstorming in a room. People might not know how to describe the product they need, but they almost always know how to describe the problem they live with. So have the conversation, even if it’s awkward.

Alongside the interviews I ran a 4-month analysis of pricing, positioning and features across competitors, and the gaps we found shaped Miomi’s early product and positioning.

THE RESEARCH: WHAT 83 WOMEN TOLD US

81%would definitely or probably buy a well-designed built-in bra top
87%had heard of built-in bra tops, and half had tried one
83%said comfort and support reviews would make them trust a new brand

The biggest frustrations

  • Straps that dig in or slip
  • Visible lines and a poor fit
  • Sweat and heat through the day
  • Underwire

When they want one

Travel days came first, then daily work wear, social outings and quick errands. Most respondents were students and young working women aged 17 to 25, and most would pay under ₹1,500.

The market map

I mapped 30+ brands across lifestyle, lingerie, athleisure and fast fashion, from Uniqlo, H&M and Zivame to BlissClub and Enamor, with their materials, prices, size ranges and channels. I also traced who manufactures for the big innerwear brands.

Building the supply side

I listed 40+ bra and innerwear manufacturers across India with their MOQs, capacity and fabrics, compared designers for tech packs, and interviewed the founder of activewear brand STRCH about sizing, returns and demand planning.

DREAMSPAN · THE LUCID PRO PLAYBOOK · 4 PAGES
Dreamspan GTM plan: The Lucid Pro Playbook, page 1Dreamspan GTM plan: The Lucid Pro Playbook, page 2Dreamspan GTM plan: The Lucid Pro Playbook, page 3Dreamspan GTM plan: The Lucid Pro Playbook, page 4
EVERAW GLOBAL · US COMPETITOR RESEARCH · 10 PAGES
Everaw US competitor research, page 1Everaw US competitor research, page 2Everaw US competitor research, page 3Everaw US competitor research, page 4Everaw US competitor research, page 5Everaw US competitor research, page 6Everaw US competitor research, page 7Everaw US competitor research, page 8Everaw US competitor research, page 9Everaw US competitor research, page 10
INSTAGRAM · @RAINABAFNA
MIOMI · BUILT-IN BRA TOPS RESEARCH DATABASE
BRANDSSKUs sampled (approx)MATERIALIGPRICEAverage sale (approx)Size range (sampled)NOTES
Lifestyle
Uniqlo10 (sample)Shell: 97% Cotton, 3% Elastane/ Lining: 95% Cotton, 5% Elastane365k1990₹5,322size xs - xl / 2xlHalter Neck, AIRism, Ribbed Bra Top, bra dress
H&M~8-12Polyester 75%, Elastane 25%38.4M1300-1800~₹1,500-₹2,300size xs - 2xlIntegral-bra sports top with SoftMove
ALAMODE~2Cotton blend1.1M1350- 1900~ ₹2,750size xs- xlNino Tank Tops with Inbuilt Bra
Closethues:~10Cotton Polyester Blend872k900-1700~ ₹800-₹1,000XS-LHalter Neck, AIRism, Ribbed Bra Top, bra dress
TWIRL AROUND THE WORLD~6Soft Cotton-Spandex Blend225k1500- 2500~ ₹600-₹1,200one size for few products , some m-xxlnightsuit, dress, tops , cardiagns
kryn & moey~20 (from “Women’s Leggings” section) Silvertraq+2Silvertraq+2100% cotton42.9k1500-3000~ ₹1,300-2,500 (mid-segment)size xs - 2xleverything
Shyaway~8Polyester Spandex405k900-1800~ ₹900-₹1,400size m-xltank top, dress
Athleisure
CAVA ATHLEISURE~10Nylon-Spandex Blend.116k1300-1900~ ₹800-₹1,500size xs - 2xlTank Top, cropped tank , square neck
Bird Eye
Pace active
Bliss club
Puma~5Lining: 94% polyester, 6% elastane13 M2600 - 5266~ ₹1,100size xxs -3xlSHAPELUXE 2-in-1 Women's Training Tank Top
Hunnit90% Poly, 10% Spandex11.7k₹1200- 1,399size xs - 4xlzen halo top with in-built bra
Lingerie
Enamor~20 SKUs from “Women Tops” page. Strch Indiacotton rib153k949~ ₹2,000-₹3,500size s - 2xlRib In-Built Shelf Bra Crop Top
Zivame~13 SKUs from “Women Track Pants” page. Strch IndiaPolyamide Elastane586k945~ ₹3,000-₹4,000size s - 3xlBra Top With Inbuilt Cups, buildin corsets
Jockey~346% recycled polyester/46% polyester/8% spandex286 k1684.07~ ₹1,650size xs - 3xlTank Top
4

Survey names and phone numbers are removed. Swipe tables sideways to see every column.