nce a year, between December and February, brides-to-be and their families from all over the the US and Europe flock to India andto escape the cold, wintry weather, visit family and, perhaps most importantly, shop for wedding outfits.
With 2 billion users around the globe, WhatsApp for years has been ubiquitous in many parts of the world, though Americans have been slower to adopt the messaging platform as a primary means of communication. Even among second-generation South Asian Americans, WhatsApp is often seen as the platform on which their mothers and aunties receive and spread misinformation and chain mail.
But she quickly learned that customers needed a means to instantly communicate with the store. “No matter how much information you put on the website and however accessible your phone lines are, people want to converse with you, especially if they’re buying an expensive outfit, especially if it’s made to measure,” she said. So in 2018, the company integrated WhatsApp on to its platform. Since then, the brand has received 50 new inquiries a day.
“There was time difference. There were language barriers, there were connectivity issues, and then it was also Ramadan,” Khan recalled. “So, your physical and mental capacity is different when you’re fasting and when the shopkeepers are, too.”