BRAND NAME - The Strange Co.
FOUNDER - Satabdi Jena
STARTED IN - January 2021
USP - Quirky Everyday Tableware
What started as a side hobby offering tableware with strange illustrations, The Strange Co. has become a fan favourite brand with its collection of quirky and cute mugs, plates and more. Founded by Satabdi Jena in 2021 after a long career as a design consultant, the homegrown brand’s popularity is due to its relatable characters that take form as adorable animals, easing the mundane daily tasks with a bit of fun. Blur The Border talks to the experienced designer on her creative process and what sets her brand apart from others.
Satabdi's Picks
Who is the one influencer you wish to see using your products?
Le Carbousier if he were alive.
If you could collaborate with any Indian or international brand, who would it be?
We did a collaboration with Spin recently and I am really happy with how that has turned out.
Your last purchase from a homegrown brand was...
A book stand from Spin.
BTB: What is the story behind the name The Strange Co.?
SATABDI: Long before I even thought about starting a brand of my own, I worked with corporates doing events and product designing. In my free time, I would create fun products and take a shot at selling those at popups about once or twice a year, just to keep my mind off the corporate segment. At one such event, a customer saw the plate with the dog illustration and asked us if the plates are for dogs. We said, no these are for humans who like dogs. And she remarked, ‘Oh my God, that’s so strange!’ which was stuck in my mind for a long time. Years later, when I decided to start my own brand and was brainstorming names, the word ‘strange’ kept coming back to me. I went ahead with ‘The Strange Co.’ as I feel it strongly resonates with what we are doing.
BTB: What inspired you to start a tableware brand?
SATABDI: I have studied product and graphic designing in my undergrad and masters, so design has always been a core part of me. Back when I was creating these products to sell at popups, just for fun, I noticed these would completely sell out and soon we started getting repetitive customers who would look for us at popups to discover our latest designs. All of this was way back in 2013 or 2014 and starting my own brand was not even on my mind. Fast forward to the pandemic and lockdown when everything was shut, I remember thinking I could sit at home and sulk or I could figure out a way to turn this around. So armed with all the research I had unknowingly gathered during the popups, I thought that these products might have a market. I launched my website with a few leftover pieces I had and everything was sold out in a few days. I felt like there is something to explore here and got on to figure out all the other ends of the business – the logistics, packaging, marketing, etc. I got the branding done with getting a trademark for the name, getting a proper photoshoot for the products and created the whole story for the brand narrative.
BTB: How did your professional background help in getting your brand off the ground?
SATABDI: I am an out and out designer - I have studied product and graphic design in my undergrad and masters and have always been drawn to design. It is still the one part of the business that I enjoy the most. And working with corporates helped me build vendor relationships and get a sense of what sells and what doesn’t. So all of these things were monumental in putting the brand together.
BTB: Tell us about your products and what, according to you, sets The Strange Co. apart from competitors.
SATABDI: I think the storytelling behind each of our products and the emotional attachment we have been able to create. For example, with our Misfit range, there is a whole universe of misfits that relate to these characters. When you wake up, your tea or coffee mug is the first thing you are holding in the morning and you see these cool characters just staring back at you that sort of set the tone for the day. Our modernist range which is inspired by the architect and designer Le Corbusier has been loved by people who are into design and architecture. I feel like that is our USP, the kind of brand attachment we have been able to create with the whole range. And the intention of our brand has also been very honest – to put forward good design which resonates well with our customers.
BTB: How does your journey as a dancer translate into the brand??
SATABDI: I think it has become a part of my journey as an entrepreneur and for that I would give credit to my mum. She made me join the dance class when I was around 3 years old so she could catch a break from running after us kids for a couple of hours. Dancing creates a discipline in your life as you practise the same steps every single day and I feel that somehow it has created the base for my everyday life. That discipline has also flown into design for me. I don’t think there is a single day that goes by where I do not sketch, it has become a practice that I have to keep doing to better myself in my own craft. I think dance was a stepping stone to creating a structure for a lot of things in my life.
BTB: How do you keep up with the ever-changing landscape of marketing?
SATABDI: To be very honest, it is chaos! As a small team and a small business, there are too many things going on at once. Nobody has a defined role and everyone is contributing to everything, but I feel that the support I get from my team is amazing. Everyone shows up with a lot of ownership of the brand and that is really helpful. We are a very organic brand, we haven’t really spent any money on marketing, and that’s possible as the core of the company is very strong.
What is the show/book/song you are currently obsessing over?
Any song by Indian Ocean.
Name any other homegrown small brands you are loving right now.
Suta, Subko.
BTB: What does a typical 9-5 day look like in the life of an entrepreneur like you?
SATABDI: I think my 9-5 is more like a 7-7! I think I haven’t been able to take a break mentally since the last one and half years, but I also feel that these initial years are very crucial for building a brand. We set days for each activity of the brand like production, photoshoot, etc. At the current stage, I have to give a lot of my time to production and QC, which leaves me with less time for designing which is something I really enjoy. I am going to try and create a discipline or a system for the long term to help me manage my time better.
BTB: As an entrepreneur, do you find that it’s hard to take time out for yourself?
SATABDI: Yes absolutely, however I am trying to find balance with my work and my personal life. I am learning to play the violin and it has been a slow process, but my class has been very encouraging so I keep at it. Apart from that, I love going for a walk or a run which I try to do almost four days a week as it helps me channel my thoughts. I also love reading though I haven’t been able to do that in the last few months.
BTB: What has been an accomplishment that you are the proudest of in your journey?
SATABDI: I think it has to be our first order after we launched the website. I had quit everything else I was doing and put a lot of stake in the company, with the one single belief that it will all work out. I launched the brand in January 2021 with all my savings and it was a heightened time for me emotionally. So to get that first order, it was sort of an instant gratification moment that it is all going to work out.
BTB: How What have been some of the bestsellers from The Strange Co.?
SATABDI: The Misfits collection has definitely been a great hit and the Ms Meow mug in particular is our bestseller. Even our modernist line has done pretty well. We don’t launch too many products but whenever we do, we receive really good feedback on them.
BTB: What are some challenges you faced while launching a tableware brand? And what are your biggest takeaways?
SATABDI: Our brand is based in an urban setup and our production is in a rural setup, so one of the biggest challenges I faced was building relationships with my vendors. When I was working with corporates, the relationship was more formal and urban, but with my vendors it is more emotional and personal as these are conversations that take place through words and not papers. Building trust takes time and I had to unlearn and relearn my entire way of communicating.
My biggest takeaway was to build personal relationships with everyone I interacted with, be it my vendor or my customer.
BTB: Is there any other brand doing great work in this space that you would like to highlight?
SATABDI: I really like Ware Innovations by Yogita Agarwal. They have a very unique proposition and Yogita has designed the products by changing their shape, like a mug or a plate with a completely different shape than what we are used to seeing. I also love Good Earth – it is amazing how they have put India on the global map.
BTB: Is What do you think the next five years look like for your business?
SATABDI: Firstly, I want to build multiple product avenues that can be built into good products with great designs. Then, we want to collaborate with like minded individuals and brands to create interesting products. We also have some exciting collections coming up, so stay tuned for that. We have been conducting offline workshops - we did one with Spin and Roastery. A customer then suggested we host one in our studio, which we did and it was such a fun time. We will be conducting more of these workshops across various cities. So, yes, building the brand on these lines.
FOLLOW THE STRANGE CO.'S INSTAGRAM @thestrange_co