Mark Street

(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

CASE STUDY
Swishy fish- Online Fish Shop

INTRODUCTION

In May 2013, just 6 months after launching his first

online fish store, Swishy Fish, in the Northern Indian
state of Punjab, Abdul faced a difficult decision. Swishy
Fish was a unit of Abdul's company, Rema Marine
Industries. He had given his brick-and-mortar retail
business a new online presence that allowed individuals
to order fish online and receive same day delivery.
However, unexpectedly, restaurants had also expressed
interest in ordering through this channel. Abdul now
wondered whether he should continue to target
individual customer or shift his focus to the restaurant
business. He felt that he lacked the resources to serve
the both segments. While individual consumer valued
variety in the fish available online, restaurants were
more concerned about price. For Abdul's, serving
individual consumers required a greater distribution
efforts for smaller quantities than serving restaurants,
where a larger quantity could be packed and delivered.
He was unsure whether it was better to target the

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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

restaurant business, which placed larger orders at a

lower price, or individual consumers whose orders were
smaller but who were relatively less price-sensitive.

INDIA- FISH PRODUCTION AND

CONSUMPTION

Fish was a seasonal food that could be grown in diverse

production environments. Northern states and inland
areas in other states typically consumed varieties of
freshwater fish, which were available throughout the
year. Fish-eating communities in Indian states, such as
Punjab, typically comprised saltwater fish eaters.
Saltwater fish varieties were available only during
specific months because the government had imposed
bans on fishing in coastal states, such as Punjab and
Haryana, during breeding season to ensure fish
propagation and during the monsoon season to ensure
the safety of fishermen. Typically, the fishing season
began in early September and ended in May, with
September to December being the peak season and
January to May, the off-peak season.
Fish had high nutritional value and was a good source of
lean protein. In India, fish consumption was expected to
grow to 8.46 million tonnes by 2020. 35% of the Indian
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

population consumed fish regularly. In 2010, the annual

per capita fish consumption (of the fish eating
population) was approximately 16.8 kg and was
expected to rise to 18.5 kg in2020. Of the total fresh fish
consumed, at-home consumption was estimated at
about 66% and the rest was consumed at restaurants.
Fish consumers placed a high value on freshness of the
fish, indicated through bright, colourful; scales, firmness
of the flesh as well as clear, dark eyes and bright red
gills.

The Fish Industry in Punjab and Jalandhar

Punjab was a North Indian state whose per-capita fish

availability was 6.8kg per year. 26 cities in Karnataka
had a population of more than 0.1 million and together
comprised 16 million households with an average
household size of 5 people. About 56% of these
households consumed fish twice a week. Jalandhar, one
of the major districts of Punjab, was the state’s main
fishing and marketing centre. Mackerel and oil sardines
accounted for 70% of the total marine fish production in
Jalandhar. Jalandhar had approximately 75,000
households, with an average of four members per
household. About 65% of the households consumed fish
once a week, averaging about 2 or 3 kilograms per
households per week. Most consumed only fresh
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

saltwater fish, which represented in daily catch from

purse seine boats. These boats returned to shore with
their catch every day, unlike the large mechanized deep-
sea travellers that preserved their catch in freezers for a
few days before returning to shore.

Fish retailing in Jalandhar

Fish markets in India were local congregations, mostly

on the roadside, of fisherfolk selling fish to end
consumers. The sellers were highly unorganized, and
most failed to maintain quality or hygiene standards or
have fish-dressing platforms. These markets were often
overcrowded with sellers. Fish retail outlets, on the other
hand, were shops operated by either government bodies
or private individuals at consumer-friendly locations.
These retail outlets were cleaner and more hygienic
than local fish markets. Organized retail chains from
India’s leading business groups such a Reliance, Aditya
Birla and RPG provided fish at their outlets with value-
added services.
State-funded fisheries development corporations in
Rohtak, Punjab and Haryana had also entered the fish
retailing industry. These retail outlets purchased fish
directly from fishers or from fishers’ cooperative
societies and sold them to customers at reasonable

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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

prices under modern hygienic conditions. These outlets

were equipped with a display freezer for showcasing
fishes to the shoppers, a space for cutting and cleaning
fish, an electronic balance and storage space. To attract
customers, daily fish prices in these outlets were lower
than in traditional outdoor fish markets. Live freshwater
fish such as murrel were also sold at these outlets.
Customers could also get their fish dressed among other
services.

As of 2012, Punjab Fisheries Development Corporation

(PFDC) operated 12 retail outlets in Punjab, which sold
a total of 200 to 300 kg of fish each day. It opened 10
more outlets in 2013. It had also invested INR12 million
in refurbishing its outlet in Bangalore, the commercial
centre of the state.
The Jalandhar outlet had a footfall of 90 on weekdays
and 150 on weekends. It earned about INR30,000 a
day. Fresh fish reached the Jalandhar outlet within 2
hours of landing. It was then cut, cleaned and packed for
sale.

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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Fish Retailing Challenges

Most of the traditional fish markets were overcrowded

and congested. They were old, dark and not well
maintained. There were also no convenient form of
transportation to most of the markets, with the result that
transportation charges were high. Traders had no
training of handling fish hygienically, and in general,
hygiene and sanitary conditions were poor. Most
markets did not have an adequate supply of ice or clean
water. The drainage system was also poor. Fish were
displayed on the bare ground and very few traders sold
them in the containers. There was very little by way of
storage facilities.
The owners of small retail fish outlets travelled long
distances to collect or purchase fish. They also suffered
from numerous problems, including lack of mechanisms
for fish disposal and lack of simple dressing implements.
It was difficult for them to obtain bank loans. They often
incurred losses on the fish they purchased from
wholesale markets because of suspected overcharging
by wholesalers.
Organized retail outlets faced a different set of
problems. Large private outlets were required to pay a
commission to municipal authorities and were subject to
high taxes. They lacked containers to store live fish and
had difficulty obtaining sufficient quantities of ice. Large,
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

modern outlets, which had high expenditures for labour,

rent and electricity charged higher prices for fish. At the
state-run PFDC outlets, where prices were fixed,
salespeople did not have the discretion to vary the
prices. Thus, these outlets saw a dip In business
towards the end of the day, when private retailers had
the flexibility to reduce the prices. This situation led to
PFDC outlets having reduced profits and even loss due
to spoilage.

Swishy fish

Swishy Fish, founded in 1985, started as a fish-

processing venture and had since expanded to process
more than 400 metric tonnes daily and employ 150
employees on 2013. Abdul, the founder of Swishy Fish,
regularly attended trade fairs in different cities. At one
such fair, he met a Mumbai based entrepreneur who
sold fish online. The idea appealed to him, and he
decided to replicate the model in Jalandhar, which had a
sizeable fish eating population. He believed that the idea
of buying fish online would appeal to customers looking
to avoid the filth and pungent smells of local fish
markets. He joined hands with Vishwanath, a young
entrepreneur in fish processing from Alipur, a town near
Jalandhar, and launched Swishy Fish on October 20,
2013. They started their venture with an initial
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

investment of INR0.5 million, financed partly from their

savings and partly through a PFDC subsidy. This money
was used to by an insulated box, table and chair for the
office, 2 computers to handle online orders, an air
conditioner, a freezer and a refrigerated fish display unit
worth INR0.15 million.
Swishy Fish listed 4 categories of fish- ocean fish, shell,
freshwater and frozen fish- and provided information on
their availability and price. Online orders placed before 3
pm were delivered on the same day, and late evening
orders were delivered the following day. Employees
hygienically cleaned and packed fish before delivery,
normally within 30 minutes of order placement. In the
first year of operation, Abdul had decided to service
online consumers residing within a 20 km radius of his
brick and mortar outlet, Aravali Fresh Fish.
Swishy Fish became popular among Jalandhar’s
working families who did not have the time or
opportunity to visit the fish markets in the morning.
Online fish sales were also boosted by two important
festivals that followed the launch- Diwali and Christmas.
Most families prepared elaborate feasts to celebrate
these festivals, which also coincided with long holiday
breaks for schools and offices. Among fish-consuming
households, these occasions involves many fish
preparations as part of their celebrations.

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Mark Street
(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Organization and Order Processing

Swishy Fish had 7 full time employees and 2 part time

employees. A 2 member marketing team looked after
website promotion and earned a salary of INR15,000
per month. They had developed a promotional plan to
tap customers in Jalandhar. As soon as Swishy Fish
was launched, they began distributing pamphlets tucked
into local daily newspapers, at various fish selling
operations and locations that were home to sizeable
number of professional families. The team also got in
touch with restaurants for market survey. The purpose of
the survey was also to understand their requirements
and end consumer preferances. A 1 member
procurement team was engaged in sourcing fish from
Jalandhar based fishermen. The team members earned
a monthly salary of INR10,000. Abdul personally trained
them to identify the different fish varieties and gauge
their freshness, a skill that he had picked up from his
father.
Swishy Fish had a dedicated employee to process
online orders. His job was to check the portal every 10
minutes to check for any new orders. He was paid a
monthly salary of INR10,000. Once a consumer placed
an order, he called the consumer to ensure it was a
genuine order and ask how the consumer wanted the
fish to be cut. The fish was cleaned and cut accordingly

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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

to the customer’s preferences. Customers who wanted

the fish dressed were charged an extra INR100.
Customers could track the status of their online orders.
The site had not activated payment gateway option,
thus, the only payment option available to consumers
was cash on delivery.
Swishy Fish had 2 employees to clean and package the
fish. Each of them had the capacity to pick, clean, dress
and pack 36kg of fish. The business operated six days a
week. Abdul had appointed one person to deliver the
fish locally. He planned to expand his team slowly
depending on how the business performed.
Fish was a highly perishable item and needed to be
packed with great care. If fish was not packed properly,
a whole consignment would go to waste. Swishy Fish
preserved fresh fish at its outlet by either storing them in
packages chilled with ice blocks or through refrigeration.
A block of ice cost between INR75 and 100. Abdul had
purchased a refrigerated box for INR30,000. While
refrigeration maintenance costs were low, electricity
costs were relatively high. Swishy Fish incurred about
INR5,000 in daily operating costs.

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Mark Street
(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Customers

Swishy Fish had approximately 20 to 30 loyal

customers, most of whom were professional workers.
They normally bought fish once a week, typically on
Sundays and preferred sea fish over river fish. Initially,
daily sales were approximately INR10,000 on weekdays
and INR 15000 on weekends. By June 2014, these
sales had reached INR18,000. On average, 5 loyal
customers and 25 infrequent customers bought from
Swishy Fish daily. Net profit margins varied, depending
on fish prices (See Exhibit 1). Swishy Fish stored data
about frequent buyers, and when these buyers logged
in, they were offered a 10-15%ndiscount based on their
order quantity. Customers could also post their feedback
on Swishy Fish. Constructive feedback was rewarded
with a gift coupon that customers could redeem on their
next purchase.
Swishy Fish was in process of hiring an agency to
design a web application to help identify frequent
buyers. It would allow the items that a customer had
recently or frequently purchased, and the current
availability of those items and their prices. Abdul
believed that this information would help him to develop
a stronger relationship with customers by showing them
that they were special and that the company was
tracking their choices. He intended to send e-mail alerts

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Mark Street
(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

to regular buyers, preferably every Sunday, informing

them of the availability of their preferred products.

Threats

Fresh fish prices (see exhibit 2 and 3) fluctuated during

the day and throughout the season because of the
product’s perishability. Fish prices could double on
special occasions such as New Year, particularly for
premium fish such as seer and pomfret. On January 1
2014, the piece of both these varieties reached INR500-
600 per kg. On the other hand, when the catch was
good, prices would drop by as much as 10%. Swishy
fish wanted to compete with sellers in the fish market on
price. However, Abdul was not sure whether he could
match the dynamic pricing of his competitors over the
course of the day. Such pricing fluctuations could also
affect his profit margin.
Moreover, during seasons when fishing bans were in
effect, Haneef had to rely on supplies from Andhra
Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. These states primarily
supplied river fish rather than sea fish. Jalandhar,
however, had little demand for river fish. As a result,
during these periods, Abdul’s daily sales drop to INR-
5,000.

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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Another potential threat to Abdul’s business came from

recent government efforts to build modern fish markets.
These markets were likely to attract customers who
shunned traditional fish markets on account of their poor
infrastructure and poor hygiene conditions. In 2013, the
PCDA and National Fisheries Development Corporation
set up a fish market with a built-up area of 6,000 sq. ft.
near Jalandhar. It was the second of its kind in Northern
India. Each fish seller had a granite slab and space for
an icebox. In addition, PCDA provided iceboxes worth
INR2,000 each, baskets, gloves, uniforms, aprons and
slippers to fishers. Unlike traditional fish markets, the
modern markets also provided clean restrooms,
cupboards and television sets, as well as a separate
area for fish auctioning. Approximately 60 sellers were
accommodated within the building. PCDA has also
begun construction on 9 similar markets in towns near
Jalandhar. Abdul realized that future buyers might buy
their fish from these new, modern markets.
The growth of modern private fish outlets was another
concern. For example, Fish Bazaar, a new outlet in
Jalandhar, sold approximately 100 kg of export-quality
fish each week. Its customers were price sensitive and
were willing to pay a premium for quality and variety.
Aunchan, a French based hypermarket, also posed a
threat to the business. Auchan sold dry goods along with
meat and both fresh and frozen river and sea fish.
Auchan’s main advantage was its pan-India network for

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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

sourcing fish. If fish prices were high in Jalandhar,

Auchan could source fish at reasonable prices from its
strong supply network. Many customers preferred to buy
fish at Auchan because of its convenient mall location
and its value proposition.
Also posing a potential threat were incumbent local,
regional and national online fish retailers and online
retailers that also sold fish in addition to other fresh
groceries. Swishy Fish faced competition from other
similar online fish retailers, such as freshfishindia.com
and mumbaifish.com, fishvish.com and banglalive.com
in Kolkata, which, in future, could potentially extend their
services across the country. Moreover, online fresh food
retailers were also prominent national and regional
players in India, such as naturebasket.com,
chennaiseafood.com, supremeseafood.com,
sagarfoods.in, naturefeast.in, seatohome.com,
oceanaa.com and freshfishindia.com.
Mumbai based Freshfishindia.com for example was an
online fresh fish retailer similar to Fishbay.in and
delivered fresh fish to individuals in Mumbai. This e-
commerce company not only sold fresh fish but the
entire range of sea food. This company required a
minimum order of INR500 for freedelivery within
Mumbai. They were specific in mentioning a 45 min. to 4
hour delivery window for individual orders. Consumers
could specify the cut and form in which fish was to be
delivered. The company offered a replacement if
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

consumers were not happy with the cut and form. Their
prices did not vary within the day.

Expansion Plans and the Restaurant Business

Shortly after Swishy Fish went online, Abdul started

receiving calls from hotels and restaurants, mainly from
nearby tourist spots in Punjab. Abdul initially responded
to queries from restaurants in locations less than 150 km
from Jalandhar as they were easy to travel to. His first
clients were homestays for tourists. By January 2014, he
had supplied to 3 homestays. Each order amounted to
between INR8,000 and 10,000 and the quantity varied
from 15 to 20 kgs per order. The clients normally placed
an order once every 3 days, and Swishy Fish had no
formal agreement with these homestay businesses. He
extended them a credit period of 2 days and found them
to be trustworthy and prompt in their payments. He
offered them fish at a lower price than the competing
online fish suppliers. A major advantage for Abdul was
that the transportation costs to these destinations were
low, as were the chances of spoilage in transit. Swishy
Fish paid INR1.2 per kg in transportation charges, which
was relatively low as a proportion of the final price. As a
result, Abdul concluded that transportation costs would
not significantly imact his business even if he supplied to
restaurants more than 150 km from Jalandhar.
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Abdul also realised that huge business potential existed

outside Jalandhar market and foresaw an expansion of
his online business in the immediate future. Jalandhar
was well connected by road, rail and air to India’s
southern and western states, which had a sizeable fish
eating population. Thus, he reasoned that larger cities in
these states might be an easier target. The seafood
restaurant market comprised small, medium and large
players. Abdul could provide them with fish at a lower
price than their current offline suppliers. Abdul began
seriously thinking about catering to this market where
large orders would be an advantage.
He also felt that he could easily target major cities in
Punjab such as Chandigarh and Ludhiana as well as the
smaller towns, which were closer to Jalandhar.
Another prospective market in the vicinity was Punjab’s
tourist destinations. Some smaller towns near Jalandhar
also had 5-10 seafood restaurants, which meant a
substantial demand for seafood, especially fish, in the
out-of-home consumption market. Swishy Fish had an
opportunity to target these restaurants for fresh fish
sales.

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Mark Street
(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Basa Fish Threat in Restaurant Business

While the restaurant market appeared to have

considerable potential, Swishy Fish could not ignore the
growing demand for basa fish, a catfish native to
Vietnam’s Mekong river delta and Thailand’s Chao
Phraya basin. Basa fish was being consumed in many
restaurants across India as an alternative to varieties
such as river sole in North India, bhetki in East India and
pomfret in West India. Basa had several advantages
over indigenous fish varieties. Its low oxygen demands
and quick breeding ability were a boon for fish farmers.
It did not have a pungent smell of some types of fish,
making it attractive to many fish consumers. Premium
imported basa was an unblemished white in colour,
giving the impression that it was of good quality for
restaurants to use in fish-based dishes. These savings
and benefits were passes on to the consumer.
The Indian seafood consumer market was facing a
serious supply crunch as a result of low catches from
both inland and sea-based fishing in recent years, which
had led to a rise in domestic fish prices. Seafood
restaurants were finding it increasingly difficult to provide
fish to consumers at a reasonable price, which
represented another reason for the rise in imports of
white boneless basa. Basa fillets cost approximately
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

INR300 per kg, while local varieties, such as pomfret,

snapper and seer fish, cost approximately INR400 per
kg during the off season. During the peak season, local
fish prices would range from INR800 to INR1,000 per
kg. There was a high demand for basa fish in Mumbai ,
Delhi and other metropolitan cities. In 2010, monthly
basa imports, mainly from Vietnam, totalled more than
5,000 tonne. In 2013, however, farmers in Andhra
Pradesh started farming basa on a larger scale. Basa
could be farmed easily in large pons with soya cake as
its main food. In just 6 months, each fish could attain a
weight of 2 or 3 kg.

The Dilemma

Abdul’s original plan for Swishy Fish was to cater

primarily to individual fish buyers. His target consumers
were those who were dissatisfied with the existing
shopping options and saw online shopping as a simple
and quick way to purchase fish. However, with
restaurants expressing an interest in placing orders on
Swishy Fish, he needed to think carefully about his
future direction; should he stick to the original plan or
cater to this new business opportunity? While individual
fish buyers ordered smaller quantities of fish but were
not very price sensitive, restaurants placed larger orders
but at negotiated prices. Abdul was quite sure that he
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

did not want to pursue both consumer segments at the

same time, as he did not have adequate resources to do
so. He had to choose one segment over the other. On
what basis should he decide the best option for his
business?

EXHIBIT1: SWISHY FISH MARGINS

Fish Price/Kg Margin for Margin for
(in INR) Retail Restaurants
Customers
1-50 35% 30%
50-100 30% 25%
100-200 25% 20%
>200 20% 15%

Source : Company Records

EXHIBIT2: SALES OF SWISHY FISH AND KARAVALI

FISH, 2013
Fish Avg. Price- Swishy Fish Karavali
same for Avg. Fresh
both Sales(in Fish(in
channels Kg/day) Kg/day)
INR per Kg
White 1000 2 4
Pomfret
Seer 650 2 5
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(Marketing Society)
Department of Management Studies,
NSUT

Black 490 3 7
Pomfret
Prawn 260 2 5
Mackerel 180 20 15
Sardine 65 20 15

Source: Company Records

EXHIBIT3: COMPARITIVE FISH PRICES

FISH PFDC Retail Fish Market
outlet (kg) Outlets (kg) (kg)
Black Pomfret 515 490 550
Mackerel(10/12 160 180 100
counts)
Pomfret 900 1000 850
Prawns(tiger 370 260 350
prawns)
Sardines 40 65 50
Seer 820 650 550
Source: Company Records

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