Author: Huang Nina
Northwest Asia Weekly
Indian-American husband-and-wife duo Suresh and Sudh Iyer forayed into e-commerce and in late 2016 acquired Frill Clothing, a one-stop sorority shop best known for their Shark Tank look.
Part of the acquisition saw them move their corporate headquarters from Raleigh, North Carolina, to the greater Seattle area.
Suresh was an IT professional for about ten years before getting into the e-commerce business with Frill Clothing. Although he is the spokesperson, Sudh handles most of the business.
Frill Clothing’s business is primarily focused on the East Coast, but over the past few years, they have begun to expand into the Midwest and West Coast. Suresh said their goal is to expand nationally and eventually globally.
The company provides not only clothing but also wedding dresses for sororities, and they plan to enter the fraternity business as well.
But, like many businesses, they have suffered during the pandemic.
“We had a vision, but the pandemic hit, so we put it on hold. We wanted to expand into other business areas around the world,” Suresh said.
Some of the biggest challenges they face are on the supply chain side.
“Any company in the e-commerce space is going to have supply chain issues. The supply chain is slowing down, and that’s also slowing down the movement of all raw materials,” he said.
Also, people are starting to work from home, which means fewer people are going to college, which has slowed demand for sorority gear.
Comcast RISE grant will help Frill Clothing get back on track and beyond.
“Things slowed down in the second half of 2020 into 2021 due to COVID. We used to have a lot of orders and this grant helps us stock up on inventory and get back to where we need it to be and refocus our efforts with more marketing .”
Suresh added that they have seen a positive trend in sales, which he believes will increase further in the coming months.
“The people we approach are passionate customers who compliment our product. We go through quality checks to make sure it meets the customer’s needs, and in return we receive a lot of compliments, which is what keeps us in the business itself.”
Some of their most popular orders include the Classic and Magnolia collections, which primarily feature dresses. Pricing options start at $25 and are economical for group orders and mix and match pieces.
Many of their repeat customers request specific products, and Suresh and his wife work hard to meet their requests and maintain the quality of the merchandise.
Suresh also said that their plan is to restart their efforts to design more clothing. They used to have about 10 employees, but it’s down to about 4 now, including him and his wife.
Frill Clothing serves a broad client base, including Asian and Black sororities in the Southwest and California.
Original founders Sharon Bui and Kate Steadman founded the philosophy-focused company, and while they’re no longer tied to the business, they still play the role of influencers.
Suresh and his wife are from southern India and have lived in the United States for about 25 years. They have a high school student who loves to travel the world. They split their time between Seattle and Austin.
For more information, please visit Frilled Clothing Net.
Nina can be contacted at info@nwasianweekly.com.
