Date
October 2019
Project
Brand positioning, logo and brand book
Client
Frais Farms
Duration
1 month
Positioning a Farm Brand Against Retail Giants
Client Overview
Frais Farms is a hydroponic farming startup founded by Khushboo and Shashank on the outskirts of Mumbai, supplying exotic vegetables to a close-knit customer base in South Mumbai seeking freshness, quality and reliability.
About Project
Frais Farms approached Umanshi to build a clear brand foundation as they scaled beyond word-of-mouth sales. Our mandate went beyond identity design to defining positioning, understanding real competition and shaping a brand that could stand its ground against both startups and retail giants.
Challenge
Misplaced Competition Set
Frais Farms was not just competing with local farms. Their real competition included platforms like BigBasket and premium retailers such as Nature’s Basket, who owned convenience, scale and consumer trust.
Low Category Awareness
Hydroponic produce was poorly understood. Consumers did not buy vegetables for technology or health claims alone, making it risky to lead with jargon instead of everyday value.
Founder-Led Perception
Sales were driven by personal networks in South Mumbai. The brand needed to outgrow the founders without losing the trust they had built through direct relationships
Our Strategy
Ground-Up Brand Discovery
We spoke to existing Frais Farms customers and studied buying behaviour across Foodhall, Nature’s Basket and local vendors to understand what truly mattered: freshness, taste and consistency, not farming methods.
Clear Market Positioning
Positioned Frais Farms as a producer-led brand offering purity and freshness from seed to table, not as a tech-first or “farm-to-fork” clone competing on buzzwords.
Explorer Brand System
Built the brand around the Explorer archetype reflecting curiosity, innovation and independence. This informed the logo, colour palette, typography and imagery, creating a brand that felt premium yet grounded.
Built for Business Outcomes
Reduced Costly Guesswork
Helped the startup focus on the right audiences with the right pitch instead of spreading money and effort thin.
Clarified Positioning
Defined competition beyond local farms to include online platforms and premium retailers shaping sharper brand decisions.
Enabled Scale
Created a brand system that allowed growth beyond founder-led sales and South Mumbai networks.
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