A new wave of online fashion retailers is fundamentally changing how Indians shop for clothes by bringing the trial room directly into their living spaces. This innovative try-and-buy model, often called "living-room trial," allows customers to order multiple fashion items, try them on at home with a delivery rider waiting, and instantly return unwanted pieces.
The Try-and-Buy Experience in Action
The convenience of this approach was perfectly demonstrated by Rhea Shah, a 24-year-old Mumbai consultant who faced a fashion emergency before a client dinner. With just three hours to spare, she ordered five dress options online. A delivery rider arrived before 7 pm, waited while she tried them on, and departed with the rejected items. The entire process took roughly one hour, and Shah ended up purchasing two pieces instead of just one.
"I didn't have it in me to step out in peak traffic, so this just made more sense," Shah explained, highlighting the model's core appeal for time-pressed urban professionals.
Startups Leading the Charge
Among the early adopters revolutionizing fashion quick-commerce is Bengaluru-based Zilo, where try-and-buy accounts for roughly half of all orders. The startup has raised $4.5 million from investors including Info Edge and Chiratae Ventures.
Bhavik Jhaveri, co-founder of Zilo, frames try-and-buy as the digital equivalent of offline shopping. "If customers can try multiple sizes or variants, purchase likelihood rises. If they try only one item and dislike it, they may leave without making a purchase," he noted.
Another key player, Slikk, has raised $14.5 million from investors including Lightspeed and Nexus Venture Partners. According to founder Akshay Gulati, the average order value for try-and-buy is fundamentally higher than regular delivery, helping offset increased return costs. Both companies currently charge ₹25 for try-and-buy deliveries and restrict the service to specific inventory items to manage operational complexity.
The Returns Challenge and Economic Viability
Fashion consistently experiences the highest return rates across e-commerce, typically hovering between 30-40% for online purchases. For mature brands, this can be slightly lower at 20-25%, according to Chirag Taneja, CEO of payments platform GoKwik.
"Returns can eat into 3-8% of revenue directly, and if returns are frequent, then that becomes 10%+ of margin leakage," Taneja explained. Every return triggers reverse logistics, inspection, repackaging, and potential discounting—with losses deepening when items become unsellable.
However, not everyone is convinced about the try-and-buy model's viability. Sumit Jasoria, CEO of women's fast-fashion brand Newme, calls it "a waste of unit economics" that doesn't work in PG or shared-accommodation environments. Instead, Newme is focusing on retail expansion with stores designed to double as dark-store fulfilment hubs.
Madhur Singhal of Praxis Global Alliance believes the economics could work selectively if carefully designed. "If the feasibility is well-planned, then the higher reverse-logistics costs could pay for itself through higher AOVs," he said, estimating the model could appeal to 10 million affluent, time-poor shoppers in India.
Meanwhile, larger marketplaces like Myntra and AJIO are testing speed-led fulfilment but haven't yet embraced try-and-buy options, leaving this innovative approach to startup players for now.
