Landed cost surprises
Duties, freight, insurance, warehousing and channel margin can erase a healthy ex-works price. Model first, commit inventory later.
Physical products
Hardware, devices, industrial, medtech, mobility and consumer products entering India
For physical products, India is decided by landed cost, certification, channel margin and service reach - long before a distributor agreement is signed. We build the market and the landed-cost reality together.
Who we work with
Typical starting points
- Hardware and device companies selling internationally with India as an open question
- Industrial, medtech, mobility, agri and energy products facing certification and duty questions
- Companies already in distributor conversations with unproven economics
What actually goes wrong
The four failures we design against
Certification and clearance timelines
BIS, telecom, medical and safety approvals set your real launch date. They belong in the plan, not in the escalation.
The wrong distributor
The most eager partner is rarely the most capable one. Partners are scored on capability, coverage and incentive alignment.
Service and spares debt
Installation, service SLAs, spares and warranty cost decide repeat purchase. They are designed in before launch.
Measurement
How results are counted here
Success-fee base
Success fees are calculated on contribution margin, not gross revenue: revenue × contribution margin × attribution share × collection rate × fee rate. You never pay a variable fee on unprofitable gross sales.
Outcome metrics
- Landed cost per unit
- Contribution margin per unit
- Certified SKUs live
- Partner productivity
- Service coverage and repeat rate
The gated path
What has to pass before the next step starts
Every step carries a test. Failing one is information, not a reason to push harder.
Hover or tab through the diagram · click any step for detail
- Landed cost
- Duty, freight, certification and compliance decide whether the margin exists at all. Gate test: Duty, freight, certification and compliance modelled. Step 1 of 5 - nothing below it starts until this test passes. Physical gates run on landed economics and service reach, because a sold unit you cannot service is a liability.
- Channel margin
- Distributor terms take their cut before you see contribution margin. Gate test: Contribution margin holds after distributor terms. Step 2 of 5 - nothing below it starts until this test passes. Physical gates run on landed economics and service reach, because a sold unit you cannot service is a liability.
- First dispatch
- Cash against a real purchase order is the first fact worth scaling from. Gate test: Collected cash on a real purchase order. Step 3 of 5 - nothing below it starts until this test passes. Physical gates run on landed economics and service reach, because a sold unit you cannot service is a liability.
- Service & spares
- Buyers judge you on turnaround in their own city, not on the spec sheet. Gate test: Turnaround the buyer will accept, in their city. Step 4 of 5 - nothing below it starts until this test passes. Physical gates run on landed economics and service reach, because a sold unit you cannot service is a liability.
- Repeat order
- A reorder at full price is the difference between a customer and a trial. Gate test: Reorder without price concession. Step 5 of 5 - nothing below it starts until this test passes. Physical gates run on landed economics and service reach, because a sold unit you cannot service is a liability.
Field notes
What buyers say before they say yes
“Everyone sends me a deck. Nobody sends me a pilot I can run on one line, with a number I can take to my finance head.”
Plant head, industrial equipment buyerPune“Your global price list is not my problem. Show me landed cost, duty, service turnaround - then I'll talk volumes.”
Procurement lead, mid-market manufacturerChennai“I'll stock it if the first thirty units move and someone picks up the phone when a customer walks back in.”
Distributor, tier-2 retail networkIndoreStraight answers
What physical products companies ask first
The questions that decide whether an India engagement is worth starting.
- Does this work for physical products as well as software?
Yes. Digital, physical and hybrid products are all in scope, with different work: software needs pricing, procurement and pipeline; physical products add import duty, certification, logistics, channel margin, service and returns.
Because physical margin structures differ so sharply from software, physical engagements are priced and reported on contribution margin created rather than revenue.
For physical products- How does 1x2x.in charge for India market creation?
Pricing is a retainer or fixed fee plus a success fee. The fee funds the operating team and research; the success fee follows attributable revenue only after cash is collected.
Success fees never trigger on bookings or invoiced pipeline. For physical products the success fee is calculated on contribution margin, not gross sales, so nobody is rewarded for unprofitable volume. Caps and step-downs are available where they make internal approval easier.
Commercial structure- How does 1x2x.in prove the engagement paid for itself?
Every quarter five ledger lines are reported: attributable collected revenue, contribution margin created, fees paid, value multiple and payback months.
The value multiple is value created divided by fees paid, reported per phase and cumulatively. If the multiple is not moving toward the agreed target, the scope changes - the reporting exists to make that conversation unavoidable.
The value ledger- How long does it take to reach first revenue in India?
The 0→1 stage runs about four months and targets the first attributable collected revenue rather than a launch date.
Speed depends on purchase complexity: a self-serve digital product can transact in weeks, while a certified industrial product may need testing, approvals and a channel partner before the first invoice is even possible.
Programs and durations- How do you start working with 1x2x.in?
Start with a scoped request or an India Diagnostic: a short written brief on your product, target segment and time horizon, answered with a stage recommendation and an indicative fee structure.
The diagnostic exists so the first commercial decision is small. It produces a written India thesis, the evidence gaps that matter and the shortest credible path to a first order.
Start a conversation
Test whether your product has a credible India wedge
A focused 30-minute discussion about your product, your current markets and the likely India wedge. No pitch deck, no generic market-size slides.