Brands
“The Indian smartwatch industry is making great waves”: Pebble’s Komal Agarwal
Mumbai: Pebble is a lifestyle technology brand that endeavours to provide a smooth experience with a perfect blend of technology and design in each of the products. It is one of fastest growing home-grown smart wearable brands in the country having its presence across 10000+ retail points and all leading ecommerce platforms.
Komal Agarwal co-founded the brand Pebble in the year 2013. She is an electronic engineer from NTU, Singapore, and an IIM Calcutta post-graduate. She has worked with corporate houses like JP Morgan & Mckinsey before finally starting up her own venture. Being a millennial herself, she understood the latent need for good quality affordable charging solutions back then and launched Pebble with a range of chargers and power banks. The portfolio in eight years has grown to more than 100+ SKUs in various categories including headphones, speakers, and most recently Smart Wearables. She is instrumental in growing Pebble into one of the most sought-after lifestyle accessories brands in India. She now personally leads the New Tech & Ecosystem development for Pebble.
Indiantelevision.com caught up in an email interaction with Agarwal, where she provides some vital information about the smartwatch industry…
Edited excerpts
On innovations emerging in the smartwatch industry and Pebble capitalising on them
The trend in the smartwatch industry has remained inclined of late towards advancement in technology. For instance, smartwatches with advanced display, such as AMOLED are creating quite an impact among the consumers. Besides, the style quotient is also among the dominating trends in the industry. There is increased demand for interchangeable silicon, leather and metallic straps while one smartwatch with multiple dial options is also in great demand. This is in addition to the consistent trend of consumers focusing on advanced Bluetooth calling, health suite and utility features.
The other most decisive trend seen in the market is that of affordability, for consumers seek spec-rich smartwatches in a pocket-friendly price point. Counterpoint report the Indian smartwatch market for Q1 2023 suggests that a decline has been seen in high-price and high-performance HLOS smartwatches while demand has surged for affordable products with a certain performance level.
We at Pebble are consistently diversifying our product portfolio on the basis of the growing demands and needs among consumers, and are leading the way for homegrown smartwatch players by being ahead of the trends.
On the collaboration with Warner Bros and the benefits behind it as a brand
Pebble has recently joined forces with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products, and have unveiled a trio of Game Of Throne inspired smartwatches, crafted with a vision to offer an immersive ‘Fire and Ice’ experience when it comes to unboxing. The smartwatch range captivates the watch faces that have been inspired by the fire of GOT characters and houses namely the fiery House Targaryen, the wintry House Stark and White Walkers with ice-like resemblance. With thematic UI experiences, the GOT inspired smartwatches provides an immersive and unique experience for GOT fans.
With this collaboration, it gives us great joy to have evolved from being a domestic wearable player to an entity making a substantial impact on the global smartwatch market. Collaborating with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products to provide an unmatched experience to Game of Thrones fans in India is a significant step forward for us and demonstrates our commitment to excellence and addressing the different ambitions of young Indians. This collaboration is the first step towards our goal of becoming a global brand which resonates with consumers across the world and will surely help Pebble create a niche.
On Pebble’s market share evolving over the years, and the factors having influenced these changes
Being a homegrown brand, Pebble has always had the edge in rightly ascertaining the most intrinsic needs as well as aspirations of Indian consumers. Over the past decade, wearables have evolved from being mere fitness trackers to gadgets laced with multiple high-end features. And for the past nearly 5-6 years, Pebble has remained an instrumental part of the growth journey of the Indian wearable space. As one of the fastest growing smartwatch brands in the country, Pebble currently stands among the top 5 brands in the segment. It is the factor of design combined with cutting-edge features and specs that has led to such widespread acceptance of Pebble as a formidable wearable brand.
On the future of the Indian smartwatch industry, and new trends can we expect in the next five years
The Indian smartwatch industry is making great waves and has surpassed even China and the US, which were traditionally the largest producers till now. The significance of this growth can be seen in the fact that while the global smartwatch industry has seen a contraction in the past two quarters, the Indian market has registered a phenomenal 167% YoY growth, thereby ensuring that the global shrinkage can be contained to just 1.5%. The Indian smartwatch industry is dominating the global market at present, and the future is expected to be even better and bigger. As for the innovations, we expect that in the near future, there may be increased IOT and AI integration in smartwatches, 4G Calling watches becoming mainstream and other smart wearables such as Smart Rings gaining traction.
Brands
33 per cent of women believe the salary scale is rigged: Naukri report
Voices @ Work study finds rising calls for equal pay audits and lingering bias
MUMBAI: Progress may be visible in India’s workplaces, but many women still feel the need to tread carefully. A new report by Naukri reveals that one in two women hesitate to disclose marriage or maternity plans during job interviews, worried that such information could influence hiring decisions.
The findings come from the second edition of Naukri’s annual Voices @ Work International Women’s Day report, titled “What Women Professionals Want.” Drawing insights from more than 50,000 women across over 50 industries, the survey sheds light on evolving workplace aspirations alongside the biases that continue to hold women back.
One of the report’s most striking insights is the growing demand for equal pay audits. The share of women calling for regular pay parity checks has climbed to 27 per cent this year, up from 19 per cent a year ago. The demand now stands alongside menstrual leave as the most sought after workplace policy.
Interestingly, the call for pay transparency grows louder higher up the income ladder. Nearly half of women earning between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 1 crore annually say equal pay audits are a priority, suggesting that pay gaps become more visible as women move up the career ladder.
At the same time, confidence and ambition appear to be rising. About 83 per cent of women say they feel encouraged to pursue leadership roles, a significant jump from 66 per cent last year. Cities in southern India appear particularly supportive, with Hyderabad leading the way as 86 per cent of respondents there reported encouragement to step into leadership positions. The education sector recorded the highest sense of encouragement at 87 per cent.
Yet the report also highlights a growing trust deficit around pay equity. Nearly one in three women, or 33 per cent, say they do not believe men and women are paid equally at their workplace. That figure has risen from 25 per cent last year, pointing to widening perceptions of disparity as careers progress.
Bias in hiring and promotions continues to be the biggest hurdle. About 42 per cent of respondents say workplace bias is the main challenge for women from diverse backgrounds. The concern is consistent across major metros, with Chennai and Delhi NCR reporting similar levels.
Reluctance to discuss personal milestones during hiring processes is also widespread. While 34 per cent overall said they hesitate to share marriage or maternity plans in interviews, the anxiety increases with experience. Among professionals with 10 to 15 years of work experience, the figure rises to 40 per cent.
Info Edge group CMO Sumeet Singh, said the data reflects both progress and unfinished work. “Behind every data point in this report is a woman who is ambitious. The fact that 83 per cent feel encouraged to lead is something to celebrate. However, the fact that one in two still hide their marriage or maternity plans in interviews tells us the work is far from done. As India’s leading career platform, it felt not just important but necessary for us to shine a light on these gaps through the second edition of our report,” he said.
The report suggests that while ambition among women professionals is growing, structural changes around pay transparency, fair hiring and supportive policies will be key if workplaces hope to keep pace.
