She Asked If It Was 100% Cotton. Then She Put It Back

She Asked If It Was 100% Cotton. Then She Put It Back
At a recent exhibition, a woman came to our stall and picked up one of our sets. She looked at it and asked me, “Is this 100% cotton?” I said yes. She immediately replied, “No, I can't take it. I have to iron it every time.” And she put it back.
I found this conversation interesting, not because she did not buy the product, but because it made me question something I had assumed about our customer.
At Yellow Bloom, we have consciously chosen 100% cotton because we believe in comfortable, breathable homewear. We spend a lot of time developing our prints and designs because we don't believe that comfort should mean compromising on how you look.
But that conversation reminded me that liking something and choosing it are two different things.
Many people like cotton. They like the feel of it, especially in our hot Indian summers. But when cotton requires a little more care, some people will choose convenience instead. And there is nothing wrong with that.
It simply means that not everyone who likes the idea of our product is our customer.
The exhibition helped me understand this better. We had different fabrics, including viscose, but the conversations around our cotton pieces were different. People touched the fabric. They asked if it was pure cotton. They wanted to know how it would feel in summer and whether it would remain comfortable through the day.
Those are the customers we want to understand better.
As a founder, I have realised that defining your customer is not about saying, “Women who like cotton.” It is about understanding what she is willing to choose because it matters to her.
For our customer, pure cotton is not just a label. The fabric, the comfort, the print and the quality all matter.
The woman who put our set back that day did not become our customer. But she gave me something valuable: a clearer understanding of who our customer is.
Sometimes, losing a sale can teach you more about your business than making one.
YELLOW BLOOM