Ask Sarthak Goel

New Video Is Out Now 👉🏻 https://youtu.be/G2GKYnpoSck

21 hours ago | [YT] | 117

Ask Sarthak Goel

𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐀 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭 𝐅𝐨𝐫 ₹𝟓𝟎𝟎… 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐨𝐫 ₹𝟏,𝟎𝟎𝟎


Most founders obsess over product.

- Ingredients.
- Margins.
- Operations.

All important.

But customers don’t just buy products.
They buy perception.

And perception is built by -

• Your story
• Your visuals
• Your consistency
• How your brand makes them feel

Why This Matters?

Two brands can sell the same product.

One sells at ₹100.
The other sells at ₹1,000.

What changed?

Not the formula. The positioning.

Humans judge quality visually.
If it looks premium, it feels premium.
If it feels intentional, it feels trustworthy.

That trust allows pricing power.

Where Most Startups Go Wrong

• Website says one thing
• Instagram looks different
• Packaging feels disconnected

Inconsistency kills trust.

Strong brands repeat the same message, tone, and design everywhere.

That repetition builds familiarity.
Familiarity builds conversions.

Brand Is Your Real Moat

Products can be copied. Ads can be copied.
Suppliers can be copied.

Perception built over time? Much harder.

Brand identity compounds.

And Today, There Are No Excuses

AI lets you test visuals, concepts, moods, and positioning before spending heavily.

If you ignore branding today, you’re choosing to compete on discounts tomorrow.

The product makes the first sale.
The brand allows you to charge more - again and again.

If you’re building a company, don’t just improve what you sell.

Improve how it feels to buy it.

#branding #positioning #startups #entrepreneurship #sarthakgoel

22 hours ago | [YT] | 55

Ask Sarthak Goel

𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐮𝐝 𝐈𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 “𝐋𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐝 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝”

Why Real Oud Is Called “Liquid Gold”

Most people wearing an “Oud perfume” today are not actually wearing real Oud.

Yes - you read that right.

Let’s understand why.

What is Oud?

Oud (Agarwood) comes from the Aquilaria tree. When this tree gets infected by a specific fungus, it produces a dark resin to defend itself.

Over years, this resin-rich wood becomes Oud - one of the rarest and most expensive raw materials in perfumery.

No infection → No Oud.

This is why it’s incredibly valuable.

How Oud is Produced Today

There are two ways -

• Natural infection - extremely rare, takes decades
• Artificial inoculation - trees are intentionally infected for controlled production

Even with modern methods, genuine Oud oil remains expensive.

The Industry Reality

Most commercial “Oud perfumes” use lab-created aroma molecules that recreate the smell of Oud.

Why?

Because real Oud would make perfumes unaffordable at scale.

They replicate the scent - not the ingredient.

Not All Oud Smells the Same

Different regions produce completely different profiles -

• Assamese Oud (India) - intense, animalic, leathery, bold

• Cambodian Oud - sweeter, smooth, slightly fruity

• Thai Oud - green, fresh woody, balanced

• Laotian Oud - smoky, warm, resinous

• Malaysian Oud - dark, medicinal, complex

Each origin tells a different story.

Even “Real Oud” in Perfume Is Minimal

When genuine Oud is used, it’s often just 1–2% of the formula.

Because -

- It’s extremely potent
- It makes perfumes very expensive
- Strong Oud can overwhelm beginners
- Most people develop a taste for it gradually

Oud is not just a fragrance note.

It’s craftsmanship, rarity, and cultural heritage in a bottle.

That’s why real Oud is called liquid gold.

#oud #sarthakgoel #luxuryfragrance #perfumery

4 days ago | [YT] | 519

Ask Sarthak Goel

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐋𝐢𝐞 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀 𝐃𝟐𝐂 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝.


The biggest lie people believe about starting a D2C brand.

Almost every week, someone asks me:

“What niche should I choose?”
“What product is safest?”
“Which category will grow next?”

Everyone is trying to play safe.

But here’s the truth - and almost nobody in D2C will say this publicly.

The dark truth of D2C 👇

The biggest D2C brands and the smallest D2C brands are doing the same thing.

They launch fast. They test aggressively.

They scale what gives ROAS.

I’ve personally seen large brands launch products back-to-back, run Meta ads immediately, and let performance marketing decide the future.

If ROAS looks good → influencers follow.
If ROAS drops → product is paused or repositioned.

No drama. No emotions.

There is nothing unethical about this.
We’ve used this approach ourselves.

But let’s call it what it is -

Most D2C brands are distribution-first, not product-first.

What nobody tells new founders

If you want to build a real D2C brand,
be prepared for 6 Months to 1.5 years of constant launches and experiments.

Products will stop working. Ads will fatigue.
Meta will humble you.

That’s not failure. That’s the process.

The smarter move (almost no one uses)

Before white-labelling.
Before manufacturing.

Test demand first.

- Build a solid website.
- Create strong creatives.
- Run small test ads.

Let the market react before you invest capital.

This “hack” is brutally effective because -
- A student can do it
- An employee can do it
- Risk stays low
- Learning stays fast

Yes, pick a niche you care about - non-negotiable. But don’t romanticize one idea.

Have multiple interests.
Test them one by one.

The real D2C game

When you find one product giving strong ROAS -

- Scale it aggressively
- Don’t wait for perfection

Performance will eventually dip - it always does.

But by then, you’ll have -

- Customers
- Data
- Retention
- Brand recall

That’s how brands survive relaunches.

D2C isn’t about finding the perfect product.
It’s about testing faster than your competitors.

Uncomfortable? Yes.
Realistic? Absolutely.

If you’re still waiting for certainty,
you’re already late.

#d2c #ecommerce #sarthakgoel #startups #entrepreneurship #businessstrategy

6 days ago | [YT] | 474

Ask Sarthak Goel

New Video Is Out Now 👉🏻 https://youtu.be/qoavZipbgTA

1 week ago | [YT] | 215

Ask Sarthak Goel

𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐂𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 - & 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐈𝐬 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐓𝐨 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐟𝐭 𝐀𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧


I’ve Been Watching the Fragrance Market Closely.

And I Can See the Next Shift Coming.

I’ve noticed something interesting over the years.

Perfumes were never really about “smelling good.” They’ve always been about how people want to be perceived.

The word perfume literally means through smoke.

Earlier, fragrances were used in temples and rituals - they carried meaning, not just aroma.

Then came French fragrances.

- Smooth.
- Modern.
- Sophisticated.

For a long time, people associated “French” with good taste and premium living.
That phase lasted.

Then I saw another shift.

People started talking about how Middle Eastern people smell.
Stronger perfumes.
Long-lasting.
Big presence.

Anyone coming back from Dubai would mention perfumes. Not ads - real experience.

Naturally, consumer preference moved there.

And I’ve seen many brands follow this trend:
Arabic names, oud stories, Middle Eastern cues.

There’s nothing wrong with inspiration.

But in my experience, borrowed identity has a shelf life.

What feels aspirational today becomes common tomorrow. If your brand identity is built on “we are like them,” it never becomes timeless.

And this is where I think the next shift is coming.

I genuinely feel Indian perfumery is about to rise again.

India has always had beautiful notes:
Rose, saffron, sandalwood, traditional attars.

Earlier, we didn’t value them enough.
Now, consumers - especially Gen Z - are becoming more curious, not just trend-driven.

I also see another change - Perfumes are no longer “for men” or “for women.”

People choose fragrances based on mood, personality, and how they want to feel.
Gender is slowly disappearing from the conversation.

From what I’ve seen, fragrance trends work like fashion. They don’t disappear - they rotate.

French sophistication.
Middle Eastern power.
Indian depth.

The future isn’t about copying one region.

It’s about understanding who you are and owning it confidently.

Indian perfumery isn’t new.

It’s just being rediscovered.

#fragrancemarket #brandidentity #consumertrends #perfumeindustry #sarthakgoel

1 week ago | [YT] | 697

Ask Sarthak Goel

New Video Is Out Now 👉🏻https://youtu.be/UbmqtPB6gjs (If Internet Destroyed Your Focus, Do This)

1 week ago | [YT] | 146

Ask Sarthak Goel

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭 𝐓𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐩 𝐈𝐧 𝐃𝟐𝐂. 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐈𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭.


Two years ago, when I started DADDY PERFUMES, I spent too much time trying to launch the perfect first product.

I did the research. I compared everything.
I waited till I felt “ready.”

The product worked. In fact, our first variant still sells today without any marketing.

But here’s the truth I learned later -

Figuring things out is never a one-time process.

Back then, I believed innovation was something you do once. Launch one great product, then just scale.

Today, even after building bigger products like Casanova, I still go through the same cycle -

new scent ideas, new packaging, new positioning, new bets.

The uncertainty never disappeared. The process just became faster.

Ironically, I made bigger mistakes one or two years after launching than I ever would have by starting a little early.

If you’re waiting to launch something, don’t wait for conviction.

Today you can -

- Run ads
- Test demand
- Build interest
- Validate ideas

Even before the product exists.

Cancel orders if you have to.
Learn fast. Move faster.

I’ve seen many people wait so long that the market grows without them.

They never enter the race.
And eventually, they stop seeing themselves as part of it.

#sarthakgoel #d2c #entrepreneurship #founderlife #ecommerce #indianstartups

1 week ago | [YT] | 880

Ask Sarthak Goel

New Video Is Out Now 👉🏻 https://youtu.be/8v1TSNznmJw?si=7sIMU...

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 260

Ask Sarthak Goel

New Video Is Out Now 👉🏻 https://youtu.be/EdLdxSvWIKI

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 187