Fair Express Vol 18 NO.5

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76 80 84 88 120 124 136 144 152 156 184 196 200 202 210 212 216

CONTENTS 37 38 40 44 52 64 72

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fASHION SCOPE LFW Winter/Festive 2018 to hold 38th edition of Plus Size Fashion Show Lakmé Fashion Week (LFW) Winter/Festive 2018 will hold the 38th edition of plus size fashion show for designer Narendra Kumar. Around 29 new plus size models will walk the ramp at the show, to be held from August 22, 2018 in Mumbai. The designer collaborated with All, the plus size store for showcasing the ‘All Primero’ collection at the event. The 29 new models were selected from over 300 participants that took part in plus-size model auditions hosted by LFW and All in Mumbai.

The auditions were judged by actress Zareen Khan, Narendra Kumar, fashion choreographer Lubna Adam; HetalKotak- CEO, aLL and JaspreetChandok - Vice President and Head of Fashion, IMG Reliance.

Commenting on the models, Kumar says, “Judging this event in particular was very overwhelming, because of the contestant’s confidence, perseverance and spirit.

I am sure these models will carry the line with great panache.”

The fashion line by Narendra Kumar will cater to the needs of plus-size customers and be available in stores post the event. The 38th edition of the Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive will be starting from August 22 at St Regis in Mumbai.

FDCI to host India Couture Week 2018 in New Delhi The Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), in collaboration with Hindustan Times and Sunil Sethi Design Alliance, will host the India Couture Week 2018 from July 25-29, 2018 at the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi. The five-day event will be attended by India’s top designers like Anju Modi, Pallavi Jaikishan, Rahul Mishra, ReynuTaandon, Rohit Bal, Shyamal & Bhumika, Suneet Varma, TarunTahiliani, Amit Aggarwal and Falguni & Shane will be showcasing at the five day fashion event.

Commenting on ICW 2018, Sunil Sethi, President, FDCI says, “This is going to be the 11th Edition of India Couture Week and it is undoubtedly the best fashion event in the country. Our tie-up with the main presenting partner will take this fashion extravaganza to the next level of importance and unprecedented showcasing of the event.”

Speaking on the association, Rajeev Beotra, CEO Hindustan Times says, “Hindustan Times is happy to be presenting the FDCI India Couture Week with Sunil Sethi Design Alliance. Such marquee events are a great platform to showcase Indian design talent before the world.”

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38 FASHION & LIFESTYLE Baggit targets 25 per cent revenue growth in FY19

Baggit, a homegrown bag and accessories brand, is looking to increase its revenue by 25 per cent in FY19. The brand will increase expenditure on marketing from 5 per cent this year to 8 per cent next year. The vegan brand has emphasised on fashion coupled with durability as well as functionality since its inception.

However, with e-commerce coming in and

Bombay Dyeing expanding its retail reach

In financial year 2018, Bombay Dyeing’s net sales grew 55 per cent. Real estate followed by polyester were the major drivers of growth and contributors to the topline. The company raked in revenues at 40 to 50 per cent of MRP on its books. It is expanding its retail reach. Currently, it has 27 company-owned stores, 400 franchise stores and is available in 3000 multibrand retail stores and 920 modern trade doors besides all the major e-commerce platforms.

The company is expanding into Tier II and III as there is demand coming from these towns online. Bombay Dyeing is reinventing itself as a pure-play bed and bath linen. It is looking at both organic and inorganic growth options.

Over the last three years, revenues from Bombay Dyeing’s retail unit have nearly halved. Retail now accounts for less than a tenth of the overall revenues of the company as compared to nearly a quarter of the overall revenues in financial year 2015.

Earlier this year, the company entered into the menswear segment with formal, semi formal and casual shirts, which it is test marketing in Tamil Nadu. The retailer has also launched a new campaign for customized bed sheets.

opening a lot of options to a variety of audiences unlike seven or eight years ago, the brand’s target group has also changed with time. Today, to stay ahead of the competition and target young consumers, Baggit has evolved its styles, feel and functionality.

The brand established large format stores across Mumbai and Delhi in 2000. Today, it has a panIndia presence thanks to its omnichannel strategy. Currently, it has 52 exclusive Baggit stores and is present in more than 1,000 retail outlets through large format stores as well as multi-brand outlets across the country. It is also available on e-commerce platforms like Myntra, Amazon, Paytm Mall, etc. However, its focus now is on Tier II and III cities.

Italian luxury watch brand Meccaniche Veneziane enters India

Glassic Eyewear launches first offline retail store Online fashion eyewear brand Glassic has forayed into the offline segment with a flagship store in Bengaluru. It is planning to expand to other cities. Owned and operated by Glassic Eyewear, the brand aims to make high-quality designer eyewear affordable to masses. The brand identifies latest trends and with its impeccable attention to detail coupled with in-house manufacturing, it strives to offer the best quality, great-looking eyewear at a reasonable price.

Its first store will be an extension of our mission to delight customers with durable

fashion and affordability in eyewear segment. The founders are offering oneyear warranty to Glassic products owing to the quality promise. Moreover, Glassic’s store acquired 1,400 sq ft area and has an array of more than 200 designs to enable people to explore and try out its latest. The store design follows the same principles of the Glassic brand - minimal, clean and fun. It follows an open, no-counter design where customers are free to walk around and try on the eyewear at ease. After spreading themselves in Bengaluru, the brand plans to cover cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Pune.

Italian luxury watch brand Meccaniche Veneziane has entered the Indian market through an exclusive marketing and distribution partnership with Excedo Luxuria.

This association establishes Excedo Luxuria as the exclusive retail store and online partner for the Meccaniche Veneziane brand and its range of vintage inspired timepieces across the India subcontinent.

Rahul Kapoor, Co-Founder, Excedo Luxuria stated Meccaniche Veneziane delivers style and functionality combined with passionate Italian design. It is a niche brand positioned as an affordable luxury lifestyle product and will appeal to the new generation of watch enthusiasts.

Meccaniche Veneziane offers highprecision mechanical watches with Swiss movements that are designed and manufactured in Italy with the utmost attention to detail by skilled craftsmen. In the Indian market, the brand introduces its complete range which consists of the series: Nereide, Redentore and Arsenale models. Plans are afoot to retail Meccaniche Veneziane watches in select multi brand luxury watch outlets in key metros across India.

Meccaniche Veneziane is an innovative Italian startup incepted in May 2017 on crowd funding platform Kickstarter. The brand is the successful outcome of the partnership between two ambitious brothers, Alessandro Morelli and Alberto Morelli. The firm currently retails in over 50 countries, such as the USA, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Japan, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and will now be available for discerning watch lovers in the Indian subcontinent.

40 Indian Entry Ikea’s first store spread over 4 lac sq ft coming to Hyderabad

Swedish furniture major Ikea will be open its much anticipated first Indian store in the city of Hyderabad on the 10th of July according to a senior official from the state government of Telangana.

The Hyderabad store is spread over 13 acres with built up space of 4,00,000 square feet, it will feature over 7,000 Ikea products and also house Ikea’s largest restaurant at the store with a capacity of 1,000 people.

Ikea had opened its first experiential centre ‘Ikea Hej (Hello in Swedish) Home’ in Hyderabad in November last year. Ikea has invested a total of Rs 1000 crore (approx $150 million) in its Hyderabad store and expected to create 800 jobs in the city.

After its Hyderabad store inauguration Ikea is expected to open two flagship stores next year in Mumbai and Bengaluru.

GIII to relaunch DKNY in India

Maiden store of Love Moschino opens

US-based GIII-Apparel Group, which had acquired DKNY from French luxury group LVMH plans to re-launch the brand in India. DKNY was first launched in India in 2009 when it was owned by LVMH. It was launched in partnership with DLF Brands, the real estate business DLF’s retail arm.

DKNY stores were opened in Mumbai and Kolkata but the stores shut before the brand totally exited India.

Now the business will no longer be involved with DKNY in India. GIII is therefore, looking for another partner to launch DKNY in India for the second time. The company is also expected to launch another premium brand from its portfolio, the US-based footwear brand GH Bass, in India in the near future.

GIII Apparel Group has already started launching brands in India and recently opened Harley-Davidson brand stores in the Northeast India. The business has a number of fashion brands in its portfolio including Tommy Hilfiger, Levi’s, and Calvin Klein. It carries out designing, marketing and manufacturing for these brands.

Love Moschino, Italian luxury fashion brand, recently opened its gates in India with the launch of its flagship store at the Palladium Mall in Mumbai.

The brand enters the fashion scene in Mumbai, on June 1with its quirky and edgy merchandise, launching its first ever boutique, in partnership with Bangalorebased brand house, Samar Lifestyle.

This newest fashion stop boasts a whole bunch of playful accessories from bags and wallets to clutches and fanny bags as well as key chains amongst others. The store will retail Love Moschino’s Autumn

Winter 2018 collection along with some of its bestselling products like quilted bags and backpacks with iconic Love Moschino prints.

The company will soon launch its footwear collection.

Love Moschino was introduced in 1987 under the label “Moschino Jeans”. The collection reflects the philosophy and motifs that have characterized the Maison. Its different lines of accessories that complete its ready-to-wear collections include bags, shoes, charms, eyewear, watches and small leather goods.

India is brand destination and sourcing hub for Tom Tailor German fashion brand Tom Tailor will design and manufacture some lines in India that will be retailed globally.

These are Tom Tailor Contemporary, in line with Indian motifs on western silhouettes, and Tom Tailor Polo, focused on premium pique polo for men.

The brand works with multiple manufacturers across the globe. Some of the countries are Indonesia, China, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Turkey and Bangladesh.

Tom Tailor is present in 35 countries with over 1,400 company stores and more than 11,600 other points of sale. It has seven exclusive brand outlets and more than 50 shop-in-shop counters in India. The plan is to open 55 stores in three years. It will look at opening more stores in the four metros to create a stronger presence and will also aggressively expand in Tier I and Tier II cities.

The brand came to India in April 2017 and managed to close the last fiscal with a top line of over Rs 15 crores in the first year of operation.

Ten per cent of the total sales are through the e-marketplace while the majority comes from retail.

Tom Tailor focuses on the industry’s best practices resulting in sustainable procurement and sourcing operations.

Inceptra Lifestyle owns the exclusive rights of the brand in India.

42 Indian Entry American Eagle Outfitters comes to India

American Eagle Outfitters, has launched its exclusive store in Noida, India. The brand is planning to open 13 more stores by end of current fiscal through EBO format.

The company has signed a multi-year license agreement with the Aditya Birla Group, a leading Indian conglomerate with an extensive retail portfolio, as well as strong digital and omni-channel

Berleigh launches signature label, Heel & Buckle London

capabilities.

Spread across 2200 sqft, the store is located at Delhi-NCR’s biggest mall, DLF Mall of India, Noida.

The store design follows a smart store concept with a combination of wood and metal in the store fixtures, the GC work of the store has been executed by Mumbai-based Details and lighting fixtures have been supplied by Bangalorebased Gardler lighting.

American Eagle Outfitters is a leading global specialty retailer offering high-quality, on-trend clothing, accessories and personal care products at affordable. The company operates more than 1,000 stores and ships to 82 countries worldwide through its websites.

American Eagle Outfitters and Aerie merchandise also is available at more than 190 international locations operated by licensees in 24 countries.

patina leather, burnished leather and suede, the collection has been created keeping in mind finer details of shoe making.

Elitify expanding products to make luxury available in India

After successfully housing both casual and formal footwear from some of the most top international brands, Berleigh is now extending operations into manufacturing with the launch of their first line of men’s footwear, Heel & Buckle London.

Conceptualized and designed by the team at Berleigh, the signature label exudes sartorial elegance, coupled with superlative quality, contemporary styles, sleek design elements and unparalleled comfort. Catering to the quintessentially stylish man who is trend conscious, Heel & Buckle London boasts of timeless classic additions that are a must feature in every gentleman’s wardrobe. Marrying superior craftsmanship with comfort fit, it is assured to evoke a sense of savoir faire.

Design highlights such as buff soles, perforated texture detailing and toe cap panel design feature on a medley of styles ranging from derby’s, monkstraps, moccasins and penny loafers. Made from the finest quality

From a discounted luxury website to becoming an exclusive portal with a brand mix, categories, catalogue depth, and overall shopping experience, Gurgaonbased fashion website Elitify is bringing in a host of international brands, some which will retail exclusively from its site in India, and will focus more on luxury than discounting moving forward. Elitify is overhauling its product range to make luxury accessible in India. It is now planning to introduce few India exclusive global brands like Banana Republic, Express Clothing, Lucky Brand, Loft, New York and Company, White House

Black Market among others.

CEO Ritesh Srivastava says luxury is about the purpose, price and pleasure of possessing a product. It is not possible for a retailer to give discounts on certain products and has got rid of fake discounts and products.

Elitify, launched in 2012 as a discount luxury fashion website, is currently expanding its range of international fashion brands with some exclusive launches. As part of this strategy, brand Loft was launched as an ‘Elitify online exclusive’ recently.

Replay seals deal with Reliance Brands to enter India

Reliance Brands will have exclusive distribution rights for Replay brand in India.

The first two flagship stores are to open in Delhi and Mumbai in 2019. The agreement signed with Reliance Brands for the distribution of Replay apparel, footwear and accessories will start with a Spring/Summer 2019 collection.

Matteo Sinigaglia, CEO and owner of Fashion Box stated in the brand’s ongoing internationalization process, India represents a strategic country, and joining forces with Reliance Brands, leader in the fashion and casualwear segments, will allow them to take a premium positioning in the Indian market. Darshan Mehta, President and CEO, Reliance Brands says denim is the most multipurpose garment and Replay has been synonym for highest standards in denim for more than 30 years. The increased purchasing power is perfect catalysts for Replay’s growth in India.

Replay is known for its innovative flair, characteristic Italian design and superb quality of denim. It currently has 121 mono-brand stores and 131 shop-in-shops internationally.

44 brand Watch U.S. Polo to digitize in-store communication

U.S. Polo Assn. brand, and Arvind Lifestyle Brands, a subsidiary of Arvind Mills, are looking to digitize their entire in-store communication by changing the static interfaces to digital screens, from August this year piloted at US Polo’s premium outlet at Indiranagar, Bangalore.

The store, spanning across 4000 sq ft, will has around 10 digital touchpoints.

After the trial rollout, the brand will include the same experience, in top 25 stores, where the number of screens will vary according to store sizes. Bangalorebased Creative Sourcz is executing the

Retailers and brands add plus sizes to their basket to boost sales

work by sourcing the digital elements for the brand mostly from China. U.S. Polo currently has 300 EBO doors across India.

Arvind Brands has been the exclusive manager and authorized supplier of the U.S. Polo Assn. brand in India since 2007 it has recently revived its unique fusion brand for men, True Blue. The brand’s communications, campaigns and promotions will soon be showcased via digital screens. With three stores in Bangalore, Mumbai and Chandigarh, True Blue will add 7-8 new doors this year, along with expanding its MBO presence through Shoppers Stop and Iconic.

Fila collaborates with Superkicks to celebrate new line

that drives conversion and repeat purchases, while keeping return rates low.

Back home, many Indian retailers and brands have added plus size to their basket.

For example, Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop, Westside etc, private labels and shop in shops of plus size brands that are doing well. aLL and many other plus size brands are now opening EBOs and selling online to tap this lucrative market.

Splash launches sustainable anti-bacterial activewear Driven by declining same-store sales retailers/brands have been prompted to seek out new opportunities to boost sales, many have been paying more attention to plus and extended sizes. This had led to the plus-size apparel market growing 3.6 times faster than straight sizes in recent years.

For example, intimates brand ThirdLove recently added 24 new sizes to its range, which now spans band sizes of 28 through 48 and cup sizes from AA to H. The brand recently signed up 1.3 million customers for the waitlist for these expanded sizes.

Similarly, Universal Standard has expanded its range to span sizes 6 to 32. The brand’s vision has always been to enable women to shop together and access the same. The brand also practices ‘micrograding,’ or fitting each size on a live model. The brand focuses on a particular fit

CEO, Splash says active wear has always been an integral element in a person’s life and in time it walks hand in hand with demerits such as bacterial accumulation and hence it is important to innovate. The primary cause for the malodor for active wear garments is the bacterial growth on the fabric surface. Textile materials do not have any inherent antimicrobial properties.

The natural properties of textile fibres provide room for the growth of microorganisms due to sweat. Humid and warm environments further aggravate the problem. Staining and the loss of performance of textile substrates is a result of the microbial attack.

N9 Pure Silver is sustainable, non-leaching, zero VOC and has low silver loading properties that make this technology the ideal solution for garment treatments. The technology is compatible with multiple substrates and processes that provide long-lasting freshness and malodor control.

Splash in association with Resil Chemicals has launched sustainable anti-bacterial activewear. Splash’s sports and activewear brands have introduced N9 Pure Silver Antibacterial technology to fight the odour-causing bacteria. The N9 Pure Silver finish on textiles protects the wearer from sweat malodour and the textile substrate from degradation.

Raza Beig, Director, Landmark Group and

To celebrate several new product launches in India, Fila have collaborated with Superkicks for Fila Week, a week-long event that will run from July 7 to 15. Superkicks is a Mumbai multi-brand sneaker store.

Fila Week, which will be based in and around Superkicks in Mumbai, will celebrate Fila’s new heritage line. The week will include contests, an array of giveaways, and activities that customers will be encouraged to engage in. On Friday, July 13, Fila will take over the entire Superkicks store.

Product launches that will take place during the week include a re-launch of the Fila Mindblower, a shoe that the brand sold in the 1990s. The shoe, modernised for the Indian market, will retail for Rs 7,999. Also launching is the Fila Disruptor II Premium, priced at Rs 6,999. The Fila Mindblower will officially launch on July 13 at the Superkicks store takeover. Fila, which was founded in Italy in 1911, retails at a mixture of flagship stores and multi-brand retail outlets across India as well as online on platforms such as Myntra, Flipkart, and Amazon.The brand is one of the world’s largest sportswear manufacturing companies. Fila encapsulates class and style with a cool 70s retro nostalgia. It is known for polos, track tops and T-shirts.

46 brand Watch Adidas launches Samba campaign featuring Ranveer Singh

Adidas Originals announces the latest drop of the brand’s iconic and influential silhouette – the Samba. A shoe specifically dedicated to those who ignore hype and fads in favour of timeless design, Samba’s iconic suede T-toe detailing and classic gum sole transcends its terrace origins to become a modern street-wear staple. Bollywood star and Adidas brand ambassador Ranveer Singh has been roped in to be the face of the campaign.

Staying true to Samba’s statement monochrome personality, the campaign is shot against urban textures, using bold monochromatic backdrops to give contrast

Kanvin forays into activewear

Kanvin has forayed into the active-wear segment which offers an amalgamation of fashion and fitness. Kanvin has established itself as a brand trusted for its excellence in quality and eminence. The brand offers products for men, women and children, and the range includes thermal wear, fleecewear, sleepwear, sportswear, loungewear, track-suits, tops, and t-shirts. The brand is committed to provide highest levels of product safety. Their efforts

extend beyond their designs to materials that make their products, manufacturing practices, testing and quality control procedures, and the ecological footprint.

The brand uses stretchable fabrics to offer perfect fit and comfort to everyone. These fabrics are treated with care and have antimicrobial, anti odour, moisture management technology. These properties enhance the

to both the footwear and the protagonist.

This is for the first time an Indian brand ambassador has been shot as the face of one of adidas Originals’ most significant campaigns. Samba is a timeless silhouette that draws its inspiration from football.

Singh, who is unarguably the country’s top street-style icon, is most definitely an ideal fit as the protagonist of this campaign, for both his bold fashion statements as well as his strong connect with the beautiful game of football. The campaign is another addition to adidas Originals’ growing commitment in targeting India as one of the key target markets. Samba’s statement black and white colours and timeless silhouette have become synonymous with the defiant attitude of those that wear it.

fitness experience, keeping the consumers happy, confident and fresh at all times during the workout.

Woodland looks to boost exports and online sales

Woodland, the country’s leading outdoor apparel and shoe brand is looking to boost exports and increase online sales in the next 3-4 years. Aero Club, which makes and markets the Woodland brand of shoes, plans an investment of Rs 60 crore towards network expansion and capacity addition.

It plans to increase exports business by supporting its occurrence in markets such as the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Russia, China and the Middle East. It is also gearing up to push online sales. New stores are being opened in Odisha’s Jajpur, Berhampur, and Puri. At present, Woodland has five stores in Odisha, and the total turnover is about Rs 25-30 crore in the state. Harkirat Singh, Managing Director of Woodland says, last year, turnover was around Rs 1,100 crore and its growing at 10-15 per cent year on year.

On the e-commerce front, Wooldand has seen 10-12 per cent growth.

Reliance collaborates to launch ‘The Earth Tee’

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has collaborated with fashion designer Anita Dongre to launch a special eco-friendly t-shirt called ‘The Earth Tee’ on the occasion of World Environment Day. The special t-shirt has been created by using processed and recycled pet bottles which were disposed of at the last edition of IMG Reliance’s Lakme Fashion Week. The Earth Tee, designed by Anita Dongre, depicts the new paradigm of environmentally responsible fashion.

The fabric of the Tee is made from predyed fibres that doesn’t require much water.

Whatever little water is required, 90 per cent of it is recycled. Reliance with its ‘Fashion for Earth’ program wishes to drive awareness pertaining to sustainable fabrics, fashion and living. The limited edition t-shirt has also been presented to celebrities, selected by IMG Reliance & Anita Dongre, urging them to join the ‘Fashion for Earth’ movement.

Patanjali building apparel team to start retail operations

Patanjali is working aggressively towards apparel retail. It is creating a team and infrastructure for sourcing apparel. Recently, the company opened a sourcing office in Noida spread over 6,000 sq. ft. with a strong 60-member team. As the scale of sourcing is high, sourcing office has separate teams for different product categories, like kids’ wear, women’s wear or men’s wear. The aims is to source nearly 11 lakh pieces before the launch, which is expected during the festive season. Top export houses across India are in touch with the company. Small and big

manufacturers that fit into the company’s business parameters are moving in to supply merchandise. How and from where the products will be sold is uncertain but all options of retail will be explored. Patanjali Ayurved has an exclusive retail tie-up with Future Group for its products sold at Big Bazaar outlets. The company aims to hit the ambitious target of Rs 5000 crore in sales in the first year of operation.

48 brANd WATCH Louis Philippe redefines its brand experience service, a facility that will allow customers to create personalized ensembles. It recently unveiled a brand-new retail design concept which is more premium. LP has already executed the design concept at three stores – one each in Delhi, Mumbai and Pune, while the upcoming stores will follow the same store design depending on locations, store sizes etc.

As per the brand, the store has become a benchmark in the branded apparel industry and has received rave reviews from its partners and competitive brands.

Within three months of launch, the store has become one of its best in the country in terms of turnover. Customer loyalty being measured through the Louis Philippe CRM program has improved from 20 to 30 per cent with repeat sales from loyalty program members.

Madura Fashion & Lifestyle’s premium menswear brand Louis Philippe recently unveiled its new retail identity store, As per the brand, the space was designed as a lifestyle store rather than just an apparel store. It is different from their previous concept. The store offers made to measure

Chota Bheem emerges India’s strongest brand merchandising character

Chota Bheem has become the first Indian cartoon character to sell merchandise worth Rs 200 crores. A large portfolio of products at different price points has helped steady growth of Chota Bheem merchandise sales year-after-year. Green Gold Animation, the owner of Chota Bheem, has been licensing the intellectual property to different manufacturers and has been associating with retailers since 2010. It started with comic books and CDs and later demand came in for licensing the character for a wide range of products, including apparels, toys, back-to-school range and office stationery. Green Gold has licensed the brand to over 100 partners, including Godrej, Unilever, Cello and Toyzone, who produce different products using the IP. It is also associated with over 100 offline retailers and some e-commerce players.

Products are available through the general

retail-to-refining conglomerate is looking to tap the online market after spending as much as Rs 2.5 lakh crores in setting up a mobile and fiber broadband infrastructure.

The convergence strategy will be across homes, enterprise and e-commerce on its fiber network. The platform will use augmented reality, holographs and virtual reality to create an immersive shopping experience. The service will be available to small merchants as well, enabling them to do everything that large enterprises and large e-commerce players are able to do.

The e-commerce venture will leverage 350 million footfalls in Reliance Retail stores, 215 million Jio subscribers, and the target of 50 million fiber broadband homes and 30 million small merchants. The carrier may look to gain fiber broadband subscribers by offering lower prices and some free services, a strategy that worked for Jio’s phone services. Global retail powerhouses like Amazon and Walmart have been investing in India’s retail industry, where e-commerce sales may more than double from 2018 to 2022.

Shoppers Stop concentrates on private labels to revive growth

trade, e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart and Myntra and organised retail chains like Big Bazaar and Shoppers Stop.

Toonz Retail recently tied up with Green Gold. Toonz would use the IP for its own apparel brands like Wowmom and Super Young and retail through the general trade as well as its stores. Toonz will also sell toys and office stationery products. Toonz expects the character merchandise to account for ten per cent of apparel sales this year.

Reliance to enter in e-com space, step-up competition for big players

Reliance plans to create a platform in India’s retail industry that combines online and conventional shopping. The effort will involve the group’s Reliance Retail and Reliance Jio Infocomm businesses.

The latter will also introduce a fiber-based broadband service.

Reliance sees its biggest growth opportunity in creating a hybrid, onlineto-offline new commerce platform. The

Shoppers Stop, has decided to double its contribution from higher margin private labels, exclusively launch international and celebrity brands, renovate several stores, and strengthen management team, as the company looks to revive growth and boost its profitability.

In a major rejig last month, Shoppers Stop promoter Chandru Raheja announced his retirement as chairman of the company, and non-executive vice chairman BS Nagesh took his role. Also, Govind Shrikhande, who served as its MD for eight years, resigned, to be replaced by Rajiv Suri who joined the company in January as CEO. Shoppers Stop’s operating margins for last fiscal, at around 4 per cent, was one third of Tata Trent’s margins and nearly half of Future Lifestyle. Analysts feel Shoppers Stop can leverage its beauty segment to improve profitability. The retailer exclusively retails some top beauty brands including Estee Lauder, MAC, Clinique and Bobby Brown in India, and the segment accounts for nearly 10 per cent of its sales from over 100 stores.

50 brand Watch Reliance partners Proline for line of sports tees R Elan has entered into a partnership with Proline a sports apparel brand. R Elan is an umbrella brand from Reliance, encompassing a range of New Age fabrics. The co-branding exercise will

give Reliance a strong foothold in the Rs 2,500-crore Indian sports apparel industry.

The partnership will help Proline make garments with special odor-free and quick dry properties. The apparels will provide a unique experience to customers to beat the tropical Indian climate, as the garments dry quickly thus lowering the body temperature. The R Elan technologies would help consumers

PrettySecrets collaborates with Myntra for brand accelerator program

Stylish, sassy and comfortable homegrown brand PrettySecretswill now be available on Myntra, Flipkart and Jabong. The brand has tied up with Myntra to be a part of Myntra’s Brand Accelerator Program.

PrettySecrets has seen a month on month growth of over 80 per cent on Myntra as compared to last year’s EORS on Myntra.

This year,PrettySecrets has grown by 110 per cent. It has done a sale worth Rs 4 crore in the month of June on Myntra alone.

PrettySecrets and Myntra came onboard together as PrettySecrets is India’s fastest selling lingerie brand. PrettySecrets’ growth chart over the past one year has had a very

have a pleasant and comfortable user experience. Kooltex is a performance fabric, capable of moisture management in apparel.

As per the partnership deal, R Elan will get visibility in the form of hangtags on garments as well as instore display at points of sale. On its part, Reliance will ensure that superior quality, highperformance R Elan fabrics are supplied exclusively to Proline for sports apparel applications.

The products are being retailed through Proline’s 450 large formats, five EBOs and about 1000 small MBOs. To reach out to customers, co-branding promotion initiatives will be carried out at major sporting events and in-store call outs and display of demonstration kits at point of sales.

positive influence over Myntra which in turn is one of the biggest fashion ecommerce brand.

The Myntra Accelerator Program has helped the brand get increased visibility through complimentary access to Myntra’s visibility tools such as banners and brand days etc, which is promoted to over 50 million unique customers. Myntra and PrettySecrets’ collaborated machine learning tools will help strengthen the customer analytics capabilities and increase sell through rates for PrettySecretsonMyntra’s platform which will help build PrettySecrets’ brand positioning.

Pretty Secrets has created a niche in Indian lingerie market through its brand and product offering by building a product which fills the gap in Indian lingerie space – a combination of functional attributes coupled with stylish and trendy designs in high quality and affordable price points. The brand positioning and values of PrettySecretsechos the value of today’s Indian woman who is looking for something that is value for money, great quality, extremely functional and yet uncompromising on fashion and style.

Cricketer KL Rahul’s new brand Gully on Koovs Young Indian cricket superstar KL Rahul has launched exclusive lines of his new athleisure brand Gully on Koovs as he prepares with a target audience of 700

million viewers in India. KL Rahul is a prolific young batsman with a reputation for his casual athletic style. Gully is a cult brand inspired by street sport, rap and hip hop, with an emphasis on comfort, quality, and affordability, aimed at the youth of India and according to Rahul ‘is rooted in culture, music and fashion.

Zeko is responsible for retailing and marketing the brand on e-commerce firms.

Gully is already being sold online on Myntra and Jabong. Koovs, with a strong customer base in the UK, is now looking to win the e-fashion market in India and associations like these are expected to help the e-commerce major acquire new customers in the country. On the other hand it is a winwin for Gully which will benefit from both sets of customers.

Jacqueline Fernandez to launch own brand Just F on Amazon

Actress Jacqueline Fernandez’s active wear brand ‘Just F’ is all set to hit Indian markets as it will go online exclusively on Amazon Fashion during its flagship event Prime Day. Just F will have a range of athleisure outfits that includes sports bras, tops, shorts, skirts, tights, tracks, dresses, sweatshirts and jackets. The actress has collaborated with Mojostar for the fitness fashion brand.

ArunSirdeshmukh, Head Amazon Fashion, says the company is happy to launch the much awaited Just F by Jacqueline Fernandez exclusively on Amazon Fashion for our Prime members across the country.

Amazon India is expected to launch more than 200 exclusive products during the 36 hours long shopping event Prime Day which begins at 12 pm on July 16.

52 brand retail Park Avenue to have 200 EBOs in next two years Park Avenue, apparel maker Raymond’s flagship brand aims to double the number of EBOs and push the number up to 200 exclusive stores in the next two years. It will also open its maiden international store in Sharjah in Novemeber. Currently the brand is retailed through 30 Raymond Stores in West Asia, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Park Avenue is planning to open 10 exclusive stores in the international market. This would help it double revenue from international markets to 10 per cent of its top line over the next two years.

Park Avenue is also exploring the South and East African markets for expansion.

Park Avenue, which accounted for close to 40 per cent of overall revenues of Raymond’s apparel business in fiscal ’18, has been growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 15 per cent for the past five years. Its footwear and accessories verticals together contribute to around ten per cent of its revenues.

Celio adds store in South India at Kochi

Celio, the French menswear brand has further strengthened its position in South India with the addition of a new store at the renowned Lulu Mall in Kochi.

The new Celio Store at LuLu Mall is spread over an area of 800 square feet and will offer the latest international range of casual wear, denim wear and smart work wear including shoes and accessories.

The brand receives great traction from the Southern region as it has almost 55 percent

Apart from the apparel, footwear and accessories segments, the 30-yearold brand will also be entering the customisation space this year. It has come up with a software called DIY (do it yourself) which will allow customers to customise outfits according to their preference. It is currently running as a pilot and will be rolled out in 35 stores by the end of the year.

of its retail presence there and looking to further boost it by adding an additional 300 touch points over the next two years.

Commenting on the launch of the store, Abhishek Shetty, Head- Marketing, PR & Loyalty, Celio is keen on focusing its energies on the South market as it showcases great potential and acceptance of the Celio Style.

Through this one of its kind concept store the company aims to bring the best of men’s French Fashion to its male patrons in Kochi.

Celio is a European menswear brand and is present across 1,000 stores in 60 countries. Currently Celio retails in India through its exclusive 40 standalone stores and 128 shops in leading departmental stores.

The brand is also available on major e-commerce channels like Myntra, Amazon, Jabong and Flipkart.

H&M rapid expansion continues, to add new store in Chennai Swedish clothing brand H&M’s store count is on the increase, even after surpassing rival Zara in terms of sales. It will open a store in Chennai store on July 19. The brand has already crossed Rs 700 crore in sales. Even though a late entrant in India’s fashion market, H&M has rapidly expanded its presence across the country gaining a dominant market share in the process and surpassing Spanish rival Zara which currently has 20 stores.

H&M has announced giving away a gift card of up to Rs 10,000 to first three in line before inauguration of the Chennai store while next 100 in line will get a gift card worth Rs 500 each. Additionally, those who adorn themselves in their favourite floral outfit may get additional gift cards worth Rs 3,000.

H&M India particularly has on-average opened one outlet every month, which has helped it gain a quick traction. Remarkably, it has achieved almost a 19 per cent increase in sales to Rs 535 crore in the first six-months (December-May) this year, as compared to Rs 450 crore during the same period a year ago. H&M currently operates 27 stores.

Lifestyle to open new stores in current fiscal Lifestyle, owned by the Landmark Group, will invest about Rs 140 crore in the current fiscal for opening around 12 to 14 stores.

The retailer will invest around Rs 8 to Rs 10 crore for each store. The funds for opening the new stores would be met from internal accruals. The company will open stores at Kota in Rajasthan and Bengaluru. This would be followed by stores in New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai and Odisha. The retail chain is looking at an average growth of 20 per cent year-on-year basis this fiscal. Of the four regions, South leads in sales, followed by the West, North and East. The retailer recently opened its fifth store in Chennai.

The new store, spread across three floors and 75,000 sq. ft, offers a variety of national and international brands such as Ginger and Global Desi, Melange, Vero Moda, Code, Jack and Jones, Van Heusen, Forca, and others.

54 brand Retail Mandhana Retail to expand operations both in India and aborad

Premium lifestyle brand Shaze’s opens largest store in Delhi Premium lifestyle brand Shaze, known for offering elite creations, opened its largest store in Delhi’s Worldmark, Aerocity. Samrat Zaveri, Owner and Managing Director, Shaze says the Shaze store at Delhi is spread across a sprawling 2,400 sq. ft. area. It offers a range of premium lifestyle products and is equipped with the latest technology lending customers a shopping experience like never before. The luxurious copper finished interiors and glass exteriors of the store offer not only a luxe accent but also provide a befitting space for the finely crafted home decor pieces to statement making lifestyle accessories and leaving customers spoilt for choices.

To stay relevant to the custom the brand is looking at introducing latest technology and offering comfortable and welcoming environment. The store has a huge center

Shoppers Stop to expand retail in smaller cities

table which is used to create drama during product launches. From having installation to extravagant displays, this table acts as the central focus of the store.

The store also has a lounge area for relaxing while browsing through the collection. Going ahead, Shaze plans to create all stores as experience stores.

The brand aims to provide superlative experience to the customers when they choose to shop from Shaze.

V2 Retail to open 1,000 stores in five years

Rising incomes, increasing awareness and high aspirations in rural areas is encouraging several retailers to make a beeline for Tier II and III towns. Shoppers Stop is one of the. It is planning to open five new stores in 2018-19 and will enter four new locations of Calicut, Nashik, Guwahati and Bhubaneswar. The retailer has earmarked Rs 120 crore for opening five department stores, 12 beauty stores and technology upgradation.

Currently, Shoppers Stop has 83 stores operational in 38 cities spanning across

V2 Retail plans to open 1000 retail stores over the next five years in India. By end of June 2018, it already opened 63 stores and plans to open the next 37 stores by end of March 2019. The retail chain recently opened its 63rd ‘V2 Retail’ store in Lucknow, its 14th store in Uttar Pradesh. The stores are mainly spread across 17 states and 57 cities.

With the total retail area spread across 1.1 million sq.ft., the company expects to generate a revenue worth Rs 900 crore in FY19. For FY18, it achieved a growth of 18.5 per cent in its top-line at Rs. 559 crore.

It’s operating profit increased by 29.2 per cent YoY. The EBITDA margin for the year stood at 8.8 per cent. However, PAT in FY18 was down by 20.4 per cent YoY on account of higher depreciation costs and higher tax payments. The PAT margin stood at 5.6 per cent in FY18.

Mandhana Retail Ventures, operational in 15 countries, will increase its retail footprint to other countries such as the US, UK, Far East and Sri Lanka. The company will also debut in Canada where it will showcase its collection through a pop up at HoltsCanada’s leading departmental store. The company was first launched in France and later ventured into Middle East, Nepal, Mauritius, Nepal and Fiji. It already has a global footprint of 500 point of sales in more than 15 countries.

Along with international expansions, Mandhana is planning India expansion as well. Its brand, Being Human, will now be available in Tier II, III markets across the country. The plans are to tap new markets such as the Northeast, known for its fashiondriven consumers. It will also open stores in Jamshedpur, Bhubaneshwar, Srinagar, Vapi, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Delhi, Guwahati, Noida, Lucknow, Dehradun, Jammu, Raipu etc, this year.

Salman Khan launched the Being Human Foundation (BHF) in 2007. Textile and garment manufacturing company Mandhana Industries, which was planning to venture into retail, approached Salman Khan for the creation of the ‘Being Human’ brand. In January 2011, Mandhana entered into an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement to design, manufacture, retail, market and distribute all Being Human retail merchandise.

56 brand Retail Luxury menswear label SS Homme opens new store in Mumbai

India-based luxury menswear brand SS Homme launched a new 3,500 sq. ft. concept store in Mumbai, to offer ready-towear and bespoke designs. The company has shifted from a 900 sq. ft. studio to a 3,500 sq. ft. studio. The new SS Homme flagship studio has been designed by the luxury label’s owners, Sarah and Sandeep Gonsalves, themselves. The space has been designed in an elegant yet sturdy way which enhances the tailormade offerings of the brand and gives a luxurious shopping experience to the customers

Chumbak aims to have 50 stores by FY19 end Chumbak, the lifestyle retailer aims to reach 50 flagship stores by the end of the 2019 financial year (FY) as it moves to an omni-channel format. Co-Founder and CEO, Vivek Prabhakar says Chumbak, which has 22 stores across India, aims to more than double the number of stores in FY 2019. The focus will be Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai markets as they continue to grow deeper in these cities along with Tier I cities.

The company recently implemented ERP that now allows them to build omnichannel presence to connect stores thus reducing loss of sale and helping push online store more aggressively across the network. Chumbak was founded in 2009

by Prabhakar and wife Shubhra Chadda.

Prabhakar worked at Sun Microsystems, Motorola, Fabmart and Titan, while wife Chadda worked for Nortel Networks and NetApp. The mixture retailer sells its merchandise on its website as well as

The studio depicts geometric inspirations on the walls behind every product and the interiors describe the structure of a suit. One of the highlights of the store is the exclusive Groom’s Lounge dedicated to all the up-to-date wedding collections for the groom and groomsmen that aims to provide the best luxurious wedding shopping experience. The new studio has two floors, where the first one stocks luxury apparel products specifically for men. While the second floor houses the Groom’s Lounge that stocks handcrafted heavy-embroidered sherwanis, custommade shawls and much more, making it the one-stop shop for all the necessary wedding-related purchases for men.

Meanwhile Myntra launched India’s first store featuring zero assistance from store staff and self-checkouts within 30 seconds.

The e-tailer introduced elements of a Retail 2.0 customer experience with digital fashion kiosks that enable product discovery without support, and a self checkout in 30 seconds, with no time wasted in scanning individual products or removing security tags.

The 1,900 sq ft store called ‘Roadster Go’— The Speed Shopping Store opened in Bengaluru, is 100 per cent RFID-enabled (Radio-frequency identification) and offers customers a fusion of an online-offline shopping experience. Shoppers can place RFID-tagged garments on the digital fashion kiosks and instantly see all product features including size, price, fabric, washes, color, etc on the RFID-enabled digital screen and also see how it looks on models (studio images) wearing them.

V Mart looks at 300 stores

at 18 exclusive stores across 11 cities besides, pop-up stores in malls across the country.

Myntra opens first zero assistance store, plans 100 offline stores Encouraged by the impact of its first offline store, online fashion portal Myntra plans to launch 100 offline stores across cities in the next two years.

The Flipkart-owned company expects to generate at $1.9 billion gross merchandise value run rate in the current fiscal year. This is an increase from $1.2 billion for FY18, riding on the back of private labels and offline expansion.

Myntra is in the process of integrating warehouse inventory with store inventory for its in-house brands as well as other brands to provide customers a seamless online-to-offline experience and boost sales. Of the 100 stores planned across the country in the next two years, 50 will be Roadster stores, followed by HRX and Mango, among others. Myntra has been focusing on its umbrella of private labels over the last few years and looks like its strategic focus helped the company reduce losses.

V-Mart plans to have around 300 stores across India in the next three years. At present, it has 178 stores operational in the country. This is a multi-brand value retail chain. It will continue to expand in Tier II, III and IV cities. Net profit was up 147 per cent for the quarter ended March 2018 while revenue increased 18 per cent.

About 80 per cent to 85 per cent of the group’s sales comes from apparels, ten per cent to 12 per cent from non-apparel, whereas only five per cent to seven per cent is from the FMCG segment. For the last few years, sales have been growing at 22 per cent to 25 per cent and the hope is to continue growing at this rate in fiscal year ’19.

The company has passed on the benefits of GST to consumers and had reduced prices by around three per cent to four per cent, which helped with better volumes in the last couple of quarters. V-Mart faces some pressure on raw material costs as prices of cotton and polyester have gone up but rather than increasing prices in the immediate future the company will work on improving efficiency in the supply chain or increased volumes.

58 brand retail Arrow launches first concept store in Mumbai

Arrow, the American menswear brand marketed by Arvind Fashions Ltd, has launched its first concept store in Mumbai. The new store, spread across 1,000 sq ft, is located at High Street Phoenix and will house the complete range from Arrow’s latest collections.

Arrow is planning massive expansion across the country and will add 55 EBOs during the current financial year. The

HRX to open exclusive stores this year

Hrithik Roshan’s fashion and lifestyle brand HRX will launch exclusive stores this year.

These will come up in malls at Bangalore, Pune, Delhi and Mumbai. Along with it, the company plans to roll out several new product categories. Right now HRX is exclusively with Myntra in the e-commerce space. Besides clothing, HRX also has a signature workout called the HRX Workout and a meal plan called HRX Athlete Meal pack sold under the Curefit umbrella. HRX also offers a fitness tracker called the Mi Band HRX Edition, which is available on the Mi online and offline stores and all major e-commerce portals in India.

HRX licenses out various products and verticals to partners who are capable of managing the product and distribution.

Fashion, fitness and technology are the main pillars of HRX and for each vertical it has licensed out categories to business partners including Myntra for fashion and accessories, Curefit for fitness content and clean eating and Xiaomi for tech wearables. Each partnership is structurally different from the others and the financial models are created with mutual agreement. Curefit is an equity partnership.

Xiaomi is a pure play licensing arrangement in lieu of royalty payout to the brand.

retailer will also open in 250 shop-inshops. It expects a 20 percent growth on the back of its expansion over the next five years. Arrow currently has over 250 Arrow EBOs in India’s leading metros and 1,000 shopin-shops in multibrand outlets like Shoppers Stop.

Arvind Fashions also owns the licences for brands like Gant, Nautica, Izod, US Polo Association, Elle, Ed Hardy, Hanes, Cherokee, and Geoffrey Beene besides Arrow.

Promod to launch online store The leading French brand Promod, is all set to tap the online retail in India soon.

Promod online store will offer the full range of items that the brand currently offers in its stores in India and at the same prices.

Promod’s online shopping portal will let the shoppers to order worldwide styles on a click of a button and collect it in stores or vice versa. Customers in India will be able to pick up their orders at the store of their choice or opt for home delivery. The e-reservation service will start later this year.

In addition to the launch of Promod e-commerce, it will be launching new stores making the brand available across cities even tier II and III cities.

The company plans to be the top fashion brand, with more than 100 retail doors widely spread across India by 2025.

Promod has been promoting accessible fashion clothing, in unpretentious natural styles, creating a French fashion spirit in more than 50 countries. With more than 30 years dynamic experience in women’s ready-to-wear retailing, Promod at present is one of France’s biggest fashion store chains and the brand enjoys huge international success.

Valentine opens new store in Mumbai

Valentine, the well-known leisure wear brand has opened an exclusive 400-500 sq. ft. store at a prominent shopping street of Linking Road. The store is designed to give a classy look and is equipped with facilities that benefit an exclusive showroom. The store offers both a classy and quirky range of products. The brand caters to the fashion needs of men, women and kids across relax wear, nightwear, women’s innerwear, bridal lingerie, etc.

Valentine, a brand from Ashapura Intimates Fashion has already made its presence felt in major cities across India. The brand plans to add another 200 odd EBOs pan India with first few stores to open at Mumbai, Gujarat and North India as a priority. Also, the brand plans to enter into new categories of relax wear in the near future.

Chennai Silks opens second store in Hyderabad

Chennai Silks, the multi- brand textile and garment retailer, has launched its second showroom in Hyderabad at Mehdipatnam.

The new showroom was formally opened

by Tollywood Diva of PelliChoopulu fame Ritu Varma. The brand’s showrooms are present in many of India’s airports including Coimbatore, Mumbai, and Hyderabad airport and there are showrooms in cities Vellore, Trichy, Erode, and Tirupur, among others. Chennai Silks, a textile and garment business with over 50 years’ experience in Tamil Nadu, has been, further increasing its presence many cities. The showroom houses the sarees and other traditional wear the brand is known for along with its textiles, casual and western garments, and its jewellery brand Sri KumaranThangaMaligai.

Chennai Silks was founded in 1962 by Shri.A.KulandaivelMudaliar and, after more than half a century in the garment business, the brand has gone on to become a giant in Tamil Nadu, and throughout India as a whole.

60 brand retail Around 85 new malls to come up in India in next five years

In the next five years, India is likely to witness the opening of 85 new malls. As per latest data from Anarock Property Consultants, of these, 85 malls are under construction, over 30 of them are expected to open just in the top eight Indian cities by 2020.

Low vacancy levels and high rentals in Tier I cities are now also paving the way for retail expansion in Tier II cities like Lucknow, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Mangalore and Ahmedabad amongst others. In fact, sensing immense opportunities and easy penetration into the Indian retail diaspora, overseas

retailers are now expanding not just in metros but even Tier II cities like Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Lucknow and Jaipur. This has led to mushrooming of malls all across the country.

However, no mall in India today can depend solely on shopping as its prime source of revenuegeneration and footfalls. Developers have understood that they need to transform their malls into community spaces to stay relevant to today’s far more discerning customers. Thus, most malls are striving to become prominent ‘shoppertainment’ locations. Today’s top-performing shopping malls are mixed-use businesses that incorporate social entertainment options, provide unique appeal along with certain depth in the shopping experience, and are in prime locations that are easily accessible by both public and private transport.

possibility to combine shopping with other activities such as dining and entertainment and the ability to compare prices across different stores. However, 59 per cent stated that they could be tempted into malls with the promise of savings and discounts, and 20 per cent said that improved and 18 per cent mentioned experiences and events.

Overall, the study established that along with savings, convenience was an important factor in a consumer’s decision to shop at a mall or not, but also found that what this actually translated to in terms of expectations varied from shopper to shopper. Malls are allowing customers to try on clothes as a point of differentiation in the apparel sector for much longer. To prepare for the future, these traditional retail destinations therefore need to multiply and diversify innovations capable of improving shopper convenience and dragging consumers away from their computers.

Naaptol plans for offline stores

Small fashion startups prefer Tier I cities

Multi-channel home shopping company Naaptol is looking to expand and decentraliseits fulfilment centres it has drawn out an omni-channel strategy as Indian retail industry is seeing an increased thrust. The company plans to set up 150 offline stores across India in the next two years.

It has opened its fourth store in the country and first store in Ameerpet, Hyderabad for an investment of USD 1 million. Within Hyderabad, the company has identified four more locations for offline stores in other major cities and towns in Telangana.

The company’s turnover for 2016-17 stood at Rs 630 crore. The company is keen to create more customer touch points across the country and further bolster its offline presence in India.

With the offline entry this year, the company anticipates that it will contribute to about 25 per cent of the overall revenues after 2-3 years, once the proposed 150 stores are operational and it has clocked Rs 628 crore revenues last year sees stable revenues this year too. Naaptol is also aiming to acquire 10 million customers in less than one year by establishing a panIndia offline presence.

Founded in 2008, Naaptol is India’s first home shopping brand. It offers services over multiple touch points. The

Despite the growth of tier II and tier III cities lately, fashion startups still prefer to operate from Tier I cities.

For instance, GetNatty, a multichannel platform in March 2016 with 7 designers from Vadodara, has signed up over 100 high quality designers, over 1000 customers from 20 cities, mostly Tier-I. The company has generated Rs 30 lakh of revenue in the past 12 months, mostly from physical points of sales in Tier-I cities.

It aims to raise $500,000 to expand its designer base in Tier I cities like Delhi and Mumbai. The start-up feels that a physical presence in Tier-I is an easier way to do business for a newbie than reaching TierII online and competing against large companies. Similarly, 6Degree, fashion tech startup with a similar business model, started out in 2014 from Mumbai then started working with leading fashion capitals across the globe and is only now looking at expanding to Tier-II and III cities.

The startup offers marketing and other business services to fashion designers on a subscription model.

company connects to its consumers in nine languages. It currently processes around a million orders a month. It offers products from a wide range of categories such as kitchen essentials, home décor, fashion & lifestyle, automotive care, electronics and communication devices.

Malls must use strategies to differentiate it from the competition A recent study reveals, malls have a fighting chance in the apparel sector and can get ahead with new technologies and services that differentiate them from their rivals. Nearly 60 per cent consumers prefer to shop for apparels in malls, mainly because doing so allows them to try on and compare clothing. 39 per cent of those surveyed preferred malls because they could visit multiple retailers in one destination.

Other advantages highlighted by respondents included the fact that going to the mall could be a social event, convenience when shopping for last-minute gifts, the

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62 brand Retail Visual Merchandise to influence retail growth

The Indian retail industry is having a CAGR of ten per cent a year. If every piece falls in the right place then India will surpass the capabilities of China by the end of 2025.

A report published in the year 2016 by Boston Consulting Group in collaboration with the Retailers Association of India depicted a whopping fact that the contemporary Indian retail industry evaluated to $600 Billion. The same figure will be doubled to more than $1 Trillion by the end of 2020. The e-commerce market will take a huge leap to grow and touch the $70 Billion mark within 5 years.

Taking this figure as a threat, the brick and mortar brands will have to change their visual merchandising strategies likewise to dominate the game. The big retail magnates will stronghold the market with

Bata India has gets a makeover, plans more store expansion Footwear brand Bata, which has been undergoing a makeover both in terms of products and imagery, hopes to leverage its strong legacy of reliability and trust in the Indian market. Apart from launching and renovating stores, with a focus on large format retail experiences, it has also launched an internationally designed collection and forayed into sports apparel with the launch of the first Power store in NCR. As Bata attempts to move away from

their innovations and inclusions of remarkable visual merchandising strategies.

Visual merchandising is linked to an attractive way of distributing the product. It gives out important information about the product. This is where the experiential store comes into the picture.

The ideal way to cut through a tough competition and making a mark is via an experiential strategy engaging the customers.

Great visual merchandising will tell stories while transporting viewers to new places, new times, and new states of mind. Additionally, great visual merchandising will create moments, landmarks, and points of view. The word visual merchandising means engaging with the vision of customers. Nearly 83 per cent of brain thoughts are processed using visual data. It’s all about creating something visually stimulating to take the consumer from standing in the store to having an emotional connection with who they are, who they want to be, how they want to feel.

The use of technology towards informing, educating and engaging customers can be a good step towards the future.

solely a value for money proposition to a more premium brand, the same is being reflected in its communication. Bata has doubled its marketing spend this year. The global footwear industry has been experiencing rapid expansion and witnessing a significant growth, primarily due to increased demand for trendy yet comfortable footwear among all age groups and innovative footwear products worldwide. Due to advancements in manufacturing processes, technology innovation and integration, modern, trendy, and comfortable shoes are being continuously developed at reasonable prices in order to keep pace with the growing demand for these products in emerging countries in the World. Anand Narang, VP Marketing, Bata India says investments are also going towards in-store technology and launching red concept stores which are designed as per consumer preferences and nearly 70 per cent of the revenue comes from the men’s and kids’ segments and the rest is women’s. In addition, it has launched three new format Power Stores, Bata Women and Bubblegummer. With 1,400 stores in 350 cities, it is planning to spend

Rs 100 crore on retail expansion and open 100 stores this fiscal. The focus is also on building omnichannel capabilities.

Delhi has a new design W store

W, the fusion wear brand by TCNS Clothing opened its new store in Kamla Nagar. Spread across 800 square feet, the highlight of this store is the new retail store design adopted to display the new categories of merchandises differently. The most prominent feature is the usage of white as the principal colour that helps better focus on colours of the merchandise.The new arrangement is likely to highlight the brand better within the store.

The display of merchandise too has been enhanced and various means have been deployed to showcase the merchandise better through podiums of display fixtures, lighting fixtures, taller display units amongst other elements.The new store will provide the latest designs and silhouettes, vibrant collection with a comprehensive mix of styles featuring an extensive range of kurtis, fashion bottoms like palazzos, churidars, trousers, dupattas and accessories to match every occasion, mood and personality.

India’s first khadi mall to come up in Jharkhand Jharkhand is all set to become the first state in the country to have a dedicated mall for indigenous produces. The mall would come up in the HEC area which is also giving way for the Ranchi Smart City. Artisans, especially coming from the tribal communities, would be benefited from this. Noting that handicrafts were being accorded priority in the state, Das stated people in the villages are talented and so far 1.13 lakh artisans have been registered to be trained to make goods as per the needs of the market. He further added that through the initiative of the Khadi Board, a lot of people in the rural area will get jobs and the board was also providing them with markets. The CM also talked about adding artisans with technology and market and to encourage them to do value addition.

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64 Trends Activewear ready for exponentially growth

The activewear and athleisure categories of apparel are ready for exponentially dynamic growth.

Athleisure is no more another trendy sportswear, but instead it is a relaxed apparel and a lifestyle change post increasing health consciousness worldwide and a new culture of leisure wear at the workplace that has made it acceptable to wear T-shirts and other leisure wear to the office.

This change has been largely driven by millennials in the US where 28 per cent of people use such clothing.

Post the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) declaring 21st June as an International Yoga Day in 2015, India has seen an exponential rise in yoga and outdoor activities which in turn has been fuelling growth of the activewear and athleisure categories.

Paragon Apparels is one such to tap

Study reveals casual fashion drives growth in luxury goods

As per a study by consultancy Bain casual luxury is driving global sales of high-end apparel, footwear and handbags as bigspending consumers look for low-brow statements in t-shirts, sneakers and rubber sliders. Bain partner Claudia D’Arpizio, who led the study for the Altagamma association of Italian high-end producers revealed the casual trend is driven by millennials, with help from their comfort-seeking parents and next generation of consumers, teens.

Casual fashion is boosting sales of personal luxury items including apparel,

into the market with its own brand Alcis.

Roshan Baid, MD, Alcis analyses, “Till now most of the market has been dominated by the foreign brands whose prices are not affordable for the regular Indian customers. Their designs also cater to the premium segment of the customers. India is much beyond that. We need to cater to the Indian taste and Indian colours.”

Though the country’s players has much to learn, the main growth hurdle for domestic brands comes from overseas players in the Indian market such as Nike, Adidas, Reebok and Puma as these brands have more than 80 per cent market share and balance 20 per cent of the crumbs is shared by local players.

Mohit Singhal, Owner, Aurro Sports shares his views, “The overseas activewear brands in India are getting benefits despite having high prices because they are not seeing any competition from the domestic brands.” Sanchit Khurana, Founder, Pace Athletica also shares the same view.

Indian manufacturers are keen on reducing their cost of operations to become cost-competitive in the Indian market. They are correspondingly reducing the margin on their products.

However, Indian athleisure brands need to reach rural market and small cities by educating the young generation on various sports and yoga to grow the activewear market.

Indian manufacturers need to develop raw material suppliers for different fabrics locally as well as trims required for manufacturing their activewear products without compromising on quality as well as train their workforce.

footwear and handbags. China is forecasted to post stunning growth of 20 to 22 per cent this year, as traditionally higher prices there come more into line with prices overseas. On the other hand a strong euro is penalizing sales to tourists in Europe, local consumers are filling the void to keep the market steady with a projected growth of 2 to 4 per cent.

The United States, is promoting from a weaker dollar and tourist spending for a forecast of 3 to 5-percent growth.

Younger consumers who had long been “detached” from luxury are now buying individual elements that appeal to them. The power of social media like Instagram is also giving a sense of urgency to fashion trends.

The study also showed that apparel is growing less than accessories, because evening and formal wear still a significant part of many fashion house collections are less in demand than casual elements.

Khadi fights against global warming Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) today said a ‘zero-effect, zerodefect’ khadi product was a major agent in humanity’s fight against global warming and climate degradation.

KVIC chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena stated that for more than 60 years, khadi has been linked with India’s fight for freedom and today it has emerged as one of the most eco-friendly products.

He further added that khadi has not only given India a unique identity, rather it also coexists with the most modern spinning and weaving mills and has the potential to make a place to itself in the international textile scene.

Khadi today it is perceived as one of the major agents in our fight against global warming and climate change.

Global warming is the consequence of man’s greed and avarice; it is nature’s answer to the dastardly acts of man. Energy is a critical requisite for economic growth, especially in a developing country like India. khadi was not a symbol of commercial war but of commercial peace and was popularised by none other than Mahatma Gandhi.Textile Industry consumes a significant amount of energy, says Saxena.

72 BuSiNeSS outlook

Putting their past behind, brands positive about sales this festive season After a gap of more than a year, brands are now looking forward to doing good business this festive season. While competition has increased, most have lined up innovative collections and are going all out to boost sales this year, write Prerna Sharma and Ajay Goswami  Demonetisation and GST slowed down business last year

Sharad Venkta, MD & CEO, Toonz Retail “With the implementation of GST, teething issues are slowly fading away and the market is ready with festive boost. With lower taxes in the lower price slabs, customers are sure to gain, thus buying should increase. With one tax, movement of goods will be faster reaching consumers quicker thereby boosting sales. We have not seen much difference yet.

Festive season has picked up and by the end of it, we will see growth of around 10 per cent this year.”

M

uch like other sectors of Indian economy, the textile industry too faced the brunt of demonetisation followed by teething troubles with the implementation of GST. While organised players hailed GST as a positive move for the industry, smaller players were not able to face the pressure. Growth dipped. For more than a year, growth has been like a pendulum, yo-yoing between bad times and not so bad times.

Demonetisation and then GST kept the textile industry on toes the entire last year

 Owing to GST, the industry is shifting gears from unorganised to organised structure  Companies are prepping up for the festive season to make up for lost sales in the last year  Most are optimistic about good sales this year  Innovative collections lined up for upcoming season  Overall a positive mood this year

but there’s a silver lining amid dark clouds as Sharad Venkta, MD & CEO, Toonz Retail, states, “With the implementation of GST, teething issues are slowly fading away and the market is ready with festive boost.

With lower taxes in the lower price slabs, customers are sure to gain, thus buying should increase. With one tax, movement of goods will be faster reaching consumers quicker thereby boosting sales. We have not seen much difference. Festive season has

picked up and by the end of it, we will see growth of around 10 per cent this year.”

However, not everyone takes Venkta’s lines and is so optimistic as Deepak Bansal, Director, Cantabil has a different experience to share, “We faced a lot of challenges with competition last few years. Multinational companies have made a benchmark for product quality and world trends. All competitor brands are investing on R&D to improve quality. So, we have to continuously

BuSiNeSS outlook

73

Deepak Bansal, Director, Cantabil “Analysing our past sale and growth record and with our team efforts, we can predict growth in sale in upcoming season. We are continuously improving our product and following world trends. We are investing in R&D so that we can serve best products.

Business is increasing in Tier-II and III cities as well as in metros.” The brand is continuously opening new stores in these cities and is optimistic about growth in upcoming season.” improve our brand while maintaining quality, price, trend and new innovations.”

For Woodland the previous festive season was just about fine as demonetization had just set in. And Harkirat Singh, MD, Woodland feels “This year every business is hopeful and expecting great sales figures. With new technologies come new opportunities, such as expansion of online retailing, new customer base that are fan of online shopping. With this the biggest challenge comes to secure the payment methods and make sure that no fraudulent activity takes place.”

Sanjay K Jain, MD, TT Ltd, a veteran in this business expects gains for the branded segment in the overall scheme of things, “We see business shifting from unorganised to organised segment, and overall growth of 10 per cent provides a huge opportunity to us. Consumers prefer buying foreign brands even if local one offer better value for money.

This advantage will stay as long as Indian brands’ standards, service, consistency and detailing don’t improve. We foresee year on year growth of about 15-20 per cent as GST blues are over.”

Opportunities ahead Each day comes with new opportunities.

As the society evolves, consumer behaviour and their spending patterns tend to shift. As Blackberrys’ spokesperson says, “The share of income spent on apparels is increasing with aspiration for better lifestyle. Consumers have becoming more fashion conscious which is leading to dynamic portfolio for brands. And with the entry of international brands, choices have increased and so has competition.”Omni-channel marketing is one of the biggest opportunities in retail sector today. It helps brands touch-base with different audiences with a common communication through different routes.

One of the biggest challenge the industry currently faces is competitive pricing offered by international brands and Indian consumers being price receptive leads to easy switch from one brand to another.

For domestic brands the focus is to remain relevant in a competitive atmosphere. And they are innovating with their lines.

For example, Being Human is looking positively at the upcoming season as it has experimented a lot with its designs and styles in its latest collection. “We are providing all possible trends under one roof. Also, we have been growing at a good pace in the past consecutive years and are looking at a 20 per cent year-on-year growth for the next three to four years,” say Being Human spokesperson.

Upcoming season is full of festive occasions for Woodland. This is the peak time for shopping and a good time for businesses. In India, August end is the beginning of festive season. During this period, religious sentiments lead people to make important purchases and investments.

With changing menswear dynamics, Vito Notaristefano, Head-Design and Made-toMeasure Specialist, Tailorman says, “Over the years, we have seen a gradual yet steady shift in the way men approach shopping.

Customers today are more evolved and wellinformed about their personal sense of style and take on fashion. This is one of our major

opportunities to tap into the hidden market of menswear. With awareness comes a broader need to dress for an occasion, a greater sense of experimentation, and a wider scope for innovation. It gives us immense joy to witness clients step out of their traditional mould and embrace custom fit and design.”

Apparel is a highly cluttered yet discreet segment. Brands need to keep innovating

Sanjay K Jain, MD, TT Ltd. “We see business shifting from unorganised to organised segment, and overall growth of 10 per cent provides a huge opportunity to us.

Consumers prefer buying foreign brands even if local one offer better value for money. This advantage will stay as long as Indian brands’ standards, service, consistency and detailing don’t improve. We foresee year on year growth of about 15-20 per cent as GST blues are over.”

74 BuSiNeSS outlook

Vasanth Kumar, MD, Lifestyle International “Most retailers were waking up to the new reality of a more digitally savvy audience. This has both positive and negative rub-offs on organised trade, especially large format stores. On the positive side, there was demand consolidation, whereas on the negative side, the severe impact on the cash dependent realestate sector meant mall development slowed down briefly. However, the future of retail is far from looking bleak. With a rejuvenated approach towards creating unforgettable consumer experiences, the retail sector will be all about reimagining, redefining and thriving for the digital age.” and stay aligned with the pulse of the target groups with all five Ps in right proportion to sustain business season after season.

Brands also have to study the vacuum in the market and emerging trends and keep feeding that side of opportunity, to get noticed. Adds Usha Periasamy, Director, Classic Polo, “Classic Polo apart from giving complete men’s wardrobe solutions is now exploring athleisure for men that has extensive potential at the price bracket owned by us. Denims and shirts are in focus more with respect to fabric and wash innovations apart from styling. So, constant innovation is the rule of the game to stay afloat and grow and no brand is exception to this rule.” Fit is another area where Classic Polo is to get closer to the consumers to offer

‘Made to order’ experience for the millennial who are keen about their looks.

Tapping rural markets, Shingora is focussing in Tier II cities as UP and East Indian territories have greater potential for business.

Says Amit Jain, President, Shingora, “We are increasing our presence in these regions as we see great opportunities there. The challenge is, people love to wear fashionable and high-quality products but when the price goes up, they become price conscious. This challenge is a result of an increase in wool yarn prices. We use pure Australian Merino wool as Shingora does not compromise on quality by using blended wool.”

Business outlook Despite past uncertainties, certainly all is not lost and companies are yet again prepping for the festive season. Bansal informs, “Analysing our past sale and growth record and with our team efforts, we can predict growth in sale in upcoming season. We are continuously improving our product and following world trends. We are investing in R&D so that we can serve best products. Business is increasing in TierII and III cities as well as in metros.” The brand is continuously opening new stores in these cities and is optimistic about growth in upcoming season.”Notaristefano highlights, “With wedding months nearing, we expect an exponential rise in our wedding segment.

We launched a unique custom trousseau service for customers that adds to our philosophy as a brand to provide the best made-to-measure menswear experience.

The service also aims to help all Tailorman grooms transition effortlessly into their new lives and undoubtedly in style. The festive season is always one of our major plays but this time we have stepped into the ball game with a brand new collection and a newly opened store and that helps us tap a new market and product range that we have not explored earlier.” Festive

season is promising for Classic Polo too.

EOSS is looking encouraging based on trade sentiments and receptivity. Last year, festive business was a flop for most brands which is why huge inventory was stuck with many brands resulting in early, long duration EOSS and higher discounts to clear choked inventory.

Hoping for a good season ahead, Praveen Mutha, CMD, Cool Colors, believes, “With whole lot of festivals lined up, we are hoping it will increase demand raising our sales across the nation, We are positive about coming season. We have lots of surprises in store and know our customers are going to love them.

The growth rate for this year’s festive booking is good and expecting 40 per cent growth in the festive business compare to previous year.” Shingora sees growth of 25 per cent in its sales. Jain adds, “We have collaborated with around 20 new MBOs for pop-ups across the country for this upcoming season.

We have targeted potential areas where we believe it generate more business. Our new collection will attract fashionable people. As it’s the time for weddings.”Offering exciting opportunities ahead, Vasanth Kumar, MD, Lifestyle International sums up, retail will be all about creating a strong value proposition for consumers. Be it in-store or online, brands will look at providing immersive, participative and engagement driven experiences. “Most retailers were waking up to the new reality of a more digitally savvy audience. This has both positive and negative rub-offs on organised trade, especially large format stores.

On the positive side, there was demand consolidation, whereas on the negative side, the severe impact on the cash dependent real-estate sector meant mall development slowed down briefly. However, the future of retail is far from looking bleak. With a rejuvenated approach towards creating unforgettable consumer experiences, the retail sector will be all about reimagining, redefining and thriving for the digital age.”

76 retail outlook

It’s all about juggling between online and offline retail Modern retail is all about balancing between brick and mortar and ecommerce which most brands have understood well.

They are adapting and changing their strategies while also accepting discounting as a new way of doing business, write Prerna Sharma and Ajay Goswami • Omni channel retail has been adopted by most brands today

Kavindra Mishra MD, Pepe Jeans India “While e-commerce expands your reach and customer base, another factor to consider is the influence of social media and its huge impact on the apparel industry.

The Internet has given social media the reach, which wasn’t possible 10 years ago. Fashion in the age of millennials and social media is different – influencers and bloggers are the new trend-setters.”

• Physical retail stores still offer the ultimate experience to consumers • Online has revolutionized the entire retail landscape • Companies are expanding through EBO and MBO formats to reach hinterland • Discounting strategy is a big demon for some while some are taking it head on • Key to balance both formats of retail while also discounting

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eports suggest India’s e-commerce market will cross $800 billion. The online space is growing at par with brick and mortar retail as brands are amplifying their strategies to ensure an omni-channel business model. This will help acquire new consumers while retaining existing market share. What makes this market promising is the heavy investments and rapid increase of internet users.

Omni channel the way ahead Retail today is all about creating a strong value proposition for consumers. Be it in-store or online, brands are constantly looking at providing immersive, participative and engagement driven experiences. Most retailers are waking up to the new reality of a digitally savvy audience. This has both positive and negative rub-offs on organised trade, especially large format stores. On the positive side, there is demand consolidation, and on the down side, severe impact on

retail outlook cash dependent real-estate sector means mall developments slowed down briefly.

However, the future of retail is far from bleak. “With a rejuvenated approach towards creating unforgettable consumer experiences, the retail sector will be all about reimagining, redefining and thriving for the digital age,” explains Vasanth Kumar, MD, Lifestyle International.

Kumar goes on to says staying true to consumers’ growing needs, Lifestyle is a true omni-channel player with its online store where customers can shop from the convenience of their home. “Our business online has grown exponentially over the years and with innovations such as click and collect and endless-aisle among others, we provide a complete, memorable and convenient omni-channel experience to our customers. We see immense opportunity in the online space. Lifestyle is an omni channel player and we see our online presence augmenting our overall sales.”

On similar note, Kavindra Mishra, MD, Pepe Jeans India points out, in order to drive growth, it is important to consider the buying behaviour of consumers in small towns which is different compared to consumers living in the urban areas. “They seek value; they have an affinity towards local culture

and are more conservative in their choices.

In the last two years, the delivery reach and speed in these areas has also picked up making it an ideal time to target additional customers with the help of e-commerce partners. While e-commerce expands your reach and customer base, another factor to consider is the influence of social media and its huge impact on the apparel industry. The Internet has given social media the reach, which wasn’t possible 10 years ago. Fashion in the age of millennials and social media is different – influencers and bloggers are the new trend-setters.”

Indeed online sales has developed into a

promising segment but has the drawback of being restricted to urban literate population who account for a small percentage of the wholesales especially the mass innerwear segments, feels Sanjay Jain, MD, TT. “Online format undoubtedly is a great tool for brand building, ultimately appending channel sales format. We also have a fully integrated online presence for our products serviced through our facilities in Delhi NCR. Online format at best is a supportive sales platform for channel sales. Hence, we peg the price points at general retail selling price points with a promotional bargain bundled with it. Traditionally, a price point ranging at the mid-point of MRP and wholesale price point is the most ideal fostering good sales on this format and in turn not cannibalizing the channel sales.”

With mobile retail is emerging as the new tool for shopping, it is quickly lapping up consumers’ attention. With the surge in smart phone penetration, Internet is playing an essential tool for business growth and brand recognition, globally. The online channels has paved way for customers to shop anywhere in the world with wide varieties, within a click. “This has led Dollar to enter into omni-channel retail. We have launched our e-commerce retailing section

three years back. We have increased our presence in e-commerce and among online retailers in the country. Around 2 per cent of our total sales come from our e-retailing department. In the near future, online retailing will be widespread in the innerwear industry,” observes Vinod Kumar Gupta, Executive Managing Director, Dollar Missy explains.

For Shingora, online platforms are the future for retail business worldwide. The brand has always given prime focus on its own official website. “We feel it’s the best opportunity for any brand to be known for its creativity with cost effective way from

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Sumit Dhingra COO, Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions “In today’s retail environment, customers’ purchase decisions are highly influenced by the store ambience and experience. Our new Arrow store design, celebrates the brand’s strong legacy of dressing professionals for the last 167 years.

Going forward, we believe it is vital that every Arrow store must reflect the brand ethos.”

its competitors. We are focussing on our mobile app and ways to make it more easy and effective for our customers. We have also collaborated with other online platforms like Myntra, Jabong, Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, Limeroad, Find.com, Tata Cliq, etc, as well. We believe one should keep separate online and retail strategies as both segments have different behavioral customers. As we believe that online sales is the future, we use social media platforms as a huge segment to drive sales onto our online portals with very cost effective manner with reaching out to high number of people across the globe,” stresses Amit Jain, President, Shingora.

E-tailing has allowed brands to reach consumers in places where physical stores are not feasible. In tune with this, Vero Moda’s omni-channel strategy is designed to cater to the needs of today’s consumer. The focus is to give consumers the comfort they need to shop anywhere and everywhere with minimum efforts. Vero Moda is one of the biggest partners in women’s western wear segment with partners like Myntra, Jabong, Flipkart, Amazon, etc.

And it’s not just about adult fashion even kids’ wear segment players have latched on to online retail to boost bottom line as

78 retail outlook

Sanjay Jain MD, TT “Online format undoubtedly is a great tool for brand building, ultimately appending channel sales format.

We also have a fully integrated online presence for our products serviced through our facilities in Delhi NCR. Online format at best is a supportive sales platform for channel sales.

Hence, we peg the price points at general retail selling price points with a promotional bargain bundled with it.”

Sharad Venkta, MD & CEO, Toonz Retail India says, “At present, we are selling at major online retailers like Jabong, Flipkart, Amazon, and are also present in online kids specialty sites. We also launched our own website. There has been a remarkable change in online sales. While major marketplace players are consolidating, many new players are entering the space.

We haven’t seen a remarkable difference in our store sales due to online discounting.

For our category, parents tend to physically check the quality and safety features of products, also stores provide personal interface which build confidence and thus tend to buy offline.”

Physical stores hold their charm Today, in order to rest on physical retail growth, companies must channelize their strategies towards offering unique experiences to consumers. As Sumit Dhingra, COO, Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions rightly points out, “In today’s retail environment, customers’ purchase decisions are highly influenced by the store

ambience and experience. Our new Arrow store design, celebrates the brand’s strong legacy of dressing professionals for the last 167 years. Going forward, we believe it is vital that every Arrow store must reflect the brand ethos.” Recreated with the sole aim of bringing the brand’s core value of ‘expert craftsmanship’ to life, the beautifully designed store showcases Arrow’s glorious heritage in a befitting manner. The customer’s in-store journey begins with an elegantly presented timeline of key events and innovations in the brand’s history. In living up to the brand’s reputation as an expert shirt-maker, the store has a finely curated ‘shirt bar’, which displays the extensive range of Arrow shirts.

Talking about Deal’s strategy, Sameer Patel, Founder & Chairman, Deal Jeans, says, “Initially, Deal started with multi-brand outlets as its first distribution channel. With the brand getting an immense response, we incorporated modern retail through large format stores to channelise further penetration. With invention in technology and online shopping being most preferred by consumers, Deal then expanded its USP to online shopping portals where growth of online shopping helps to establish the brand much faster, there is no geographical boundary anymore. After capturing the

Vasanth Kumar MD, Lifestyle International “Our business online has grown exponentially over the years and with innovations such as click and collect and endless-aisle among others, we provide a complete, memorable and convenient omni-channel experience to our customers.

We see immense opportunity in the online space. Lifestyle is an omni channel player and we see our online presence augmenting our overall sales.”

Vinod Kumar Gupta Executive Managing Director, Dollar Missy “We have increased our presence in e-commerce and among online retailers in the country.

Around 2 per cent of our total sales come from our e-retailing department. In the near future, online retailing will be widespread in the innerwear industry.” market through MBOs and LFS, the brand added another channel -- standalone stores -- to increase market penetration.

Today the brand has 21 EBOs pan-India; one international outlet and is available at more than 800 MBOs, over 200 LFS and all leading online shopping portals. We are currently focusing on expansion of EBOs in India and internationally.”

Women’s ethnic brand Soch’s existing retail network comprises 115 EBOs, 15 MBOs and close to 60 LFS stores. Vinay Chatlani, CEO & Director Soch, says, “We plan to double this footprint in three years. We are new entrants to MBO and LFS, so we see larger growth in terms of touch points. The East and North Indian markets are big, lucrative and exciting that we have just started to explore. We need to aggressively expand our foothold in these two markets while continuing to grow in the rest of India. In the next couple of years, Soch will double the touch points.”

Similarly, TT’s EBO chain TT Bazaar is being expanded and with an average two to three new stores being opened every month. Jain says, “We are looking to strengthen our base in Central and Western India in the coming years. Our retail presence is growing at a fast pace with expansion of our distribution base. We are augmenting our presence simultaneously at all fronts be it EBOs, channel partners, etc. And to service this growth, we are also augmenting our manufacturing facilities

retail outlook with increase in production capacities of existing facilities with a new integrated textile project in Gajraula, manufacturing capacity of around one crore pieces per annum. We are expanding our EBOs under the brand TT Bazaar and hope to reach 100 stores in coming year. Our brand is available in 30,000 MBOs and this is growing every day.”

Similarly, Toonz Retail is concentrating on smaller town where customers are aspirational. “Delhi, Rajasthan, UP, Maharashtra and Karnataka are our primary markets where we have maximum presence and have plans to expand our retail presence. We are expanding our infant range as the category has a lot of potential,” details Venkta. Women’s legging brand Missy is aggressively looking at inorganic growth through M&As. To boost its growth further, the company is eyeing substantial number of EBOs, shop in shops and kiosks across major cities. The focus is on expansion of Dollar Missy by adding to the product portfolio with brassieres and athleisure for women.

around 30 MBOs and three flagship stores.

This season, the brand will be available at more than 50 MBOs. It is targeting Northern and Eastern territories with focus on Tier II cities. Similarly, Vero Moda and Only are not limited to urban markets alone. Both brands want to bring the best of fashion to as many cities and as many people as possible. The brands are available across different formats like EBOs, shop-in-shops, the Vero Moda and Only official websites and leading e-commerce portals. Vero Moda currently has 65 EBOs and 206 SISs whereas Only has 51 EBOs and 208 SISs across the country.

Talking about Cool Colours’ strategies, Praveen Mutha, CMD informs, “We have begun entering the Eastern India focusing our resources to understand both the challenges and opportunities for creating a sustainable business in that part of the country. Our expansion plans are on track through a calculated increase of our distribution network, with a mix of EBOs and MBOs. We have also improved our market portfolio to cater better to consumers. We are promoting it through a mix media of traditional marketing and online promotions through social media. While online sales do play a role, our sales strategy is influenced by a variety of other external and internal factors.”

Shingora on the other hand is available at

festival in calendars for the public which is celebrated by all religions and states with same intensity. Earlier EOSS was strictly twice a year to liquidate the season’s remnants (summer and winter) but post demonetization and GST, trade environment has undergone a change and EOSS period has bled into fresh seasons for many brands expanding the period of 45-60 days max into 90-120 days in various names and forms. Again, no brands have any immunity to this, be it national or international.”

Toonz Retail however has a more positive approach to discounting as it believes in offering heavy discounts in order to attract online and offline customers. Besides selling current fashion, the brand also

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Discounting, sure way to pep up sales Discounting trend has changed retail in the last few years. While online retailers have made the most of discounting strategies and pepped up their sales, brick and mortar retailers have found it tough to keep pace with them. As described by Usha Periasamy, Director, Classic Polo, “End of season sale is again unlisted

Usha Periasamy Director, Classic Polo “End of season sale is again unlisted festival in calendars for the public which is celebrated by all religions and states with same intensity.

Earlier EOSS was strictly twice a year to liquidate the season’s remnants (summer and winter) but post demonetization and GST, trade environment has undergone a change and EOSS period has bled into fresh seasons for many brands expanding the period of 45-60 days max into 90-120 days in various names and forms. Again, no brands have any immunity to this, be it national or international.” looks forward to launching new season’s collection. Shingora on the other hand does not want to be known FOR discounting brand but with EOSS being strong in the market Jain says customers wait for the discount period to buy their favorite products and therefore retailers have to use this opportunity to clear old stock to focus on fresh stock.

80 CoVer StorY

Siyaram’s launches two apparel brands – Mozzo, Inspiro • Launches Two new mass market RMG brands Mozzo and Inspiro • They are fashionable and affordable • Shirts are the core products for both brands • Pricing is sharp • Distributors have already been appointed for retail • Plans to have around 30 distributors and reach 2,500 retailer initially • After three years, aims to reach Rs 500 cr five years

Ramesh Poddar Chairman and MD “Mozzo and Inspiro are brands for the mass market, positioned differently.

These two brands are more into fashion. The design is fresh and the target is the masses. So, these can’t be compared to our other brands.”

S

iyaram recently launched two apparel brands: Mozzo and Inspiro. Mozzo, is a casual apparel brand that offers jeans, chinos and a range of casual shirts in attractive core items like plain, print, check etc. Inspiro, is a formal brand aimed at professionals. It has an aspirational charm with its smart stylish range of formal shirts and trousers made from finest cotton yarn.

The collection encompasses a vast range of designs and color combinations for formal and office wear.

Both brand’s positioning is that of ‘fashionable yet very affordable’ products.

Shirts are the core products for both and pricing is sharp. While 80 per cent of the range is priced below Rs 1,000 to be within GST’s lowest 5 per cent bracket, only a part of the range mainly bottomwear like jeans, cotton casual trousers and formal trousers are above Rs 1,000 but below Rs 1,500.

The brands are aimed at fashion conscious, upwardly mobile modern youth who follow international trends and dare to incorporate new styles in their wardrobe. Both brands

offer latest designs, attractive colors, luxurious feel and lustrous fabrics and are in line with global trends.

With its strong brand image and dynamic marketing strategies, Siyaram is geared to raise the bar for all-round growth. Siyaram is India’s largest producer of blended high fashion suiting and shirting fabrics, manufacturing over 60 million meters of fabrics annually. The company’s flagship fabric brand is Siyaram’s but its portfolio is full of many other successful fabric brands like Cadini, J.Hempstead, Mistair and Royale Linen. In ready to wear segment Oxemberg, J Hempstead and Cadini are well known. The company’s state-of-the-art manufacturing plants are located in Tarapur, Daman and Silvassa. Ramesh Poddar, Chairman and MD, Siyaram-Poddar Group speaks to DFU Publications about the two new brands and their future plans.

What is the concept and thinking behind Mozzo and Inspiro?

The size of men’s readymade garment segment is around Rs 2 lakh crore. Post

GST, the segment has been sharply divided into two price categories: first, garments below Rs 1,000 which attract only 5 per cent GST, nearly 70 per cent of the market is in this category, mainly unbranded players.

Second, is garments priced above Rs 1,000 that attract 12 per cent GST which makes this price category unproportionately expensive. Only mid to high end brands operate in this cagtegory.

We saw a huge opportunity to offer ‘fashionable yet very affordable’ branded products in the first category where Indian mass market lies and have launched casual and formal specific brands under our flagship brand Siyaram’s. In the absence of many brands in this segment, Siyaram with its huge resource in fabric is confident of providing high quality garments made with quality fabrics, craftsmanship and latest styles; offering not just quality products but branded quality products, an exclusive positioning in the mass market, as of now.

Siyaram is the largest producer of blended suiting and shirting fabrics, and has the widest network of around 3,000,00 retailers

cover story

near future, however we are not planning to open exclusive outlets.

“The challenge is to maintain sharp price points without compromising on the quality and durability; we also see a big surge in demand on the value segment in the country.”

What kind of distribution network do you plan for the new brands?

We have already appointed 18 distributors.

The distributors will buy the products and sell it to retailers, unlike conventional distribution system where distributers sell and then buy goods. The products would reach retail in the upcoming season and we will track the response and expand accordingly. In one year, we plan to have around 30 distributors and reach 2,500 retailers. We also plan to have shop in shops module especially with fabric retailers. For the two brands, we have a different team.

across the country. Post GST, fabric retailers who are already in GST net now wish to sell garments as well. We will integrate with them and build a network of garment retailers. So, we feel both these brands will be successful through this network.

Siyaram already has other apparel brands like Cadini and Oxemberg in its portfolio, how does the company plan to deal with the new brands?

The readymade garment industry is growing while getting into more and more segments such as: premium, super premium and mid premium brands. Cadini is a super premium brand and Oxemberg is a mid

priced brand. Mozzo and Inspiro are brands for the mass market, positioned differently.

These two brands are more into fashion.

The design is fresh and the target is the masses. So, these can’t be compared to our other brands.

Earlier too, brands were launched in mass segments and later shifted to higher price points, what challenges do mass segment pose?

The challenge is in pricing, to offer quality products using high quality fabrics. Also, the challenge for a mass brand is to have a wide network across the country including in rural areas. With Siyaram’s expertise and

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background both these challenges are easy to manage.

What is the product portfolio of these two brands?

Mozzo will have shirts, casual trousers and jeans. Shirts are Rs 699 to Rs 999; casual trousers are Rs 1,200 to Rs 1,500.

In jeans, 80 per cent of the range will be above Rs 1,000. Inspiro has formal shirts and formal trousers. Initially, both brands will focus more on shirts, solids predominate the range. We will extend the product line in future and include T-shirts and blazers. We will also launch advertising and branding activity to create a pull for the brands. In the

“We saw a huge opportunity to offer ‘fashionable yet very affordable’ branded products in the first category where Indian mass market lies and have launched casual and formal specific brands under our flagship brand Siyaram’s. In the absence of many brands in this segment, Siyaram with its huge resource in fabric is confident of providing high quality garments made with quality fabrics, craftsmanship and latest styles; offering not just quality products but branded quality products, an exclusive positioning in the mass market, as of now.”

“The products would reach retail in the upcoming season and we will track the response and expand accordingly. In one year, we plan to have around 30 distributors and reach 2,500 retailers. We also plan to have shop in shops module especially with fabric retailers. For the two brands, we have a different team.”

What was the response during the distributor launch?

We got a good response from all over, especially UP and Bihar and wherever Siyaram is strong. Gradually, we will go everywhere. We also hope retailers, consumers respond to our brands.

What are your projections for these brands?

After three years, we hope to reach Rs 300 crores and Rs 500 crores in five years.

What are the challenges being faced by readymade garment segment and brand retailing?

For brands, discount sale period has become very challenging. Discount sales are a trend even with premium brands. But if you cater to the mass and give good quality, we feel there will be no problem. Still 85 per cent of the market is mass. I don’t think there are many brands in mass market.

Being a legend, what is your message for the textile industry?

Textile is a vibrant industry in India. The future is good but you have to work hard honestly and systematically.

84 lead story: stori Fashions

‘We plan to introduce knitted joggers, shorts, pajamas in the coming season’

Manoj Kumar Bhaiya Managing Director, Stori Fashions “We are also launching innovative stretches in various categories including shirts, trousers and blazers. With natural fibers taking a stronger position in the season, the vitality and brilliance that nature can offer, inspires.”

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haiya feels that style is more about being yourself and fashion is the packaging of your personality. “Your confidence is the key factor. The inspiration is all around us, for each and every collection there’s a serious amount of hard work, sleepless nights and true dedication behind it,” he adds.

One of the most striking innovations of the brand includes the naturally-inspiring and stimulating palette – festive celebration, inspired from forest depths, which reacts to different winter and festive tones. “We are also launching innovative stretches in various categories including shirts, trousers and blazers. With natural fibers taking a stronger position in the season, the vitality and brilliance that nature can offer, inspires,” reveals Bhaiya.

He says, all their categories viz shirts, casual and club wear, kurtas, formal and casual trousers, denim jeans, washed casual blazers, shorts and pajamas are performers. “Though modern in style, these have universal essence and a local connect.

They are a combination of classic and

In its upcoming festive A/W ’18 collection, Stori Fashions offers latest trends that impact the menswear market. “With world boundaries becoming void, consumers are becoming aware of diverse products and brands available in the market. Especially in men’s shirts segment, small and large floral prints and dense checks are likely to rule in the season,” states Manoj Kumar Bhaiya, Managing Director, Stori Fashions. Speaking about his brand’s offerings, he adds, “Our line of washed casual blazers and T-Shirts has already grown to be trendsetters in the Indian ready to wear market.”  Domestic shirt market in India is expected to grow at an annual rate of 8 per cent to reach Rs 52,000 crore by 2020  Stori’s upcoming collection will be ruled by small and large floral prints and dense checks  The brand will add 500 to 1,000 MBOs in the next two years  Recently went online with over 350 styles  The brand’s semi formals have gained popularity with a combination of casual and classic look  Casual and semi casual shirts contribute 65-70 per cent of the brand’s shirts business

lead STORY: Stori Fashions

current, colorful, fun, easy, confident and triumphant but accessible.”

Stori’s upcoming collection will be ruled by small and large floral prints and dense checks. Natural materials in forest shades, print and patterns inspired by the celebration colors, compact cottons, linen blends, tensile and modal will be the emerging trend for the brand.

Business Outlook Bookings for the current season, irrespective of regions are extraordinary.

“We did our A/W ’18 centralised booking in Hua Hin-Thailand where around 1,200 retailers placed orders. Retailers, who could not make it to Hua Hin placed orders in our regional venue bookings. Our sales team is now following our season’s ‘Door to Door Travel’ agenda .We are busy preparing for S/S ‘19,” Bhaiya observes.

On GST he opines, the basic idea behind the introduction of GST was to convert entire India into a single market. This has had a positive impact on the country’s GDP and given a boost to our economy. “This will benefit all branded manufacturers,” Bhaiya says. “Especially players like us stand to gain appreciably in the years to come because GST allows us to be much more aggressive with input tax credits,” he adds.

Retail Detail Currently present in over 5,200 MBOs’ across the country, Stori is expanding its distribution network, and plans to add

500 to 1,000 MBOs in the next two years.

“We launched our retail plan last year and opened 10 EBOs, and will have 25 EBO’s by March 2019. Currently, our MBO business contributes 95 per cent to our annual turnover,” reveals Bhaiya.

As for new launches, apart from blazers and T-shirts introduced two seasons ago, Stori is introducing a range of products that compliment a man’s wardrobe. A wide line of accessories will be launched soon. “We plan to introduce knitted joggers, shorts and pajamas in the coming season,” states Bhaiya. Meanwhile Stori recently went online with over 350 styles. “The response was overwhelming and inspiring,” remarks Bhaiya. “But, we are not online sales driven company and our commitments are more focused on brick and mortar channel partners. Our online presence does not affect our strategies,” he adds.

Market dynamics The current domestic shirt market in India is estimated at approx Rs 40,000 crore. It is expected to grow at an annual rate of 8 per cent to reach Rs 50,000 to 52,000 crore by 2020. Shirts can be broadly classified into formals and casuals, and sub categorised as semi-formals and semi-casuals. Formal shirt generally have a crisp and rigid look while semiformal is slightly more relaxed, and is sometimes referred to as ‘cocktail,’ ‘Sunday best,’ or ‘festive’ dress. A smart casual is neat yet casual attire and is close to the term business casual.

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Formal shirts used to dominate in the 90’s but now the scenario has changed. In the last few years, global trend in casuals has influenced the Indian market. “Our market has witnessed a higher growth in semi casual segment as compared to formals. Semi formals have also gained popularity with a combination of casual and classic look. The industry conveniently calls it smart casuals,” Bhaiya observes.

Casual and semi casual shirts contribute 65-70 per cent of the brand’s shirts business and this is expected to continue for some more time. “We cannot foresee any major change in coming years. Casualisation effect will prevail in the shirt market in the near future.

Value brands will grow rapidly in all categories as consumer awareness about brands have increased substantially and demand for value for money has also is increased. Growing urbanisation and corporate culture will further catalyse growth,” concludes Bhaiya.

“We launched our retail plan last year and opened 10 EBOs, and will have 25 EBO’s by March 2019. Currently, our MBO business contributes 95 per cent to our annual turnover.”

“We cannot foresee any major change in coming years. Casualisation effect will prevail in the shirt market in the near future. Value brands will grow rapidly in all categories as consumer awareness about brands have increased substantially and demand for value for money has also is increased. Growing urbanisation and corporate culture will further catalyse growth.”

STORI FASHIONS PVT. LTD. www.stori.in

G16STUDIOS -JULY 2018 SFPL

#2/5 3RD CROSS, OPP TO OLD TOLL GATE, MYSORE ROAD, BANGALORE-560026 Phone +91-80-267 42545, email: info@stori.in

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Izod returns to its heritage collection for Fall/Winter ’18

Sumit Dhingra CEO, Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions “We are working on multiple fabric bases for denims. While 100 per cent of our range is cotton-stretch, we have also introduced knit denim this season.

These ensure you have the look and feel of denim, but comfort of sweatpants.

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VH owned brand Izod is a mid-range clothing company that makes dressycasual clothing, sportswear for men, along with footwear and accessories. It is a part of PVH, group’s heritage brands division along with Van Heusen, Arrow, Warner’s, Olga, and Speedo (the latter licensed in perpetuity from Speedo International in North America only).

Season’s New Offerings For Fall/Winter 2018, Izod has returned to its heritage – All American Sport and its

inexhaustible sources of inspiration – the ivy league colleges, pretty coastal towns and the grand inland scenery. This season, the collection comprises of two key capsules – Winter Nautical, encapsulating the college prep & the nautical themes; Explorer – the quintessential winter look.

Izod (formerly Izod Classix) is Izod’s main brand for men, and also the most widely available. This line spans tailored clothing, sportswear, activewear, and fragrances, to leather goods. Until 2015, this line also included women’s clothing. Izod Jeans is the denim basics and weekend sportswear from the Izod line, which is offered at some department stores. Izod Saltwater is a collection of men’s clothing primarily designed for relaxed laidback weekends. This line generally features softer fabrics for greater comfort. Introduced in Spring 2016, Izod Advantage with Sportflex is a collection of high-performance clothing aimed at active individuals such as tennis players. This line often features lightweight cotton/polyester blends, non-iron fabric, pre-shrunk fabric, stretch fabric, and/or moisture-wicking fabric.

Izod Premium Essentials was introduced in Spring 2017 as Heritage Essentials, renamed to Premium Essentials with the Spring 2018 collection. It is a collection of men’s button-down sport shirts with more traditional fabrics. Izod PerformX is a high-tech sports collection aimed at winter sport gear, golfers, swimming, and

IndyCar, often featuring lightweight microfibers and super pima cottons. Izod Golf is the official golf line of Izod, including shirts, shorts, and pants, available for both men and women.

As of 2017, Izod produces three seasonal collections per year: Spring, Fall, and Holiday.

Products are released in phases with the first products of Spring collection generally being released in November of the prior year, the first products of the Fall collections being released in June of the current year, and the first Holiday products being released in October of the current year. Core non-seasonal styles that are available year-round (except if discontinued) are referred to as Basic.

Future trends Denim will be a key category both from business point of view and future trend. “We are working on multiple fabric bases for denims.

While 100 per cent of our range is cotton-stretch, we have also introduced knit denim this season.

These ensure you have the look and feel of denim, but comfort of sweatpants. We have also introduced a new slimmer fit in the denim range,” explains Sumit Dhingra, CEO, Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions. Sports Flex is going to be the fabric of the season. It is a fabric stretch for maximum comfort, quick dry-moisture is pulled to the fabric surface where it evaporates.

It also has properties such as roll resistant collar and UV protection.

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Tailorman to open new showroom in Delhi Seasonal shift in fabrics and styles Tailorman, till last month, used cotton and linen fabrics to beat the hot and humid weather. Now, with the slow transition into fall and autumn, the brand is shifting to darker shades and thicker fabrics. “You’re sure to spot deeper hues such as burgundy, olives, violets, rust, sunset orange, mustang etc. As always, the earthy tones are the highlight, blending perfectly with the monsoon gloom and the winter chills,” notes Notaristefano.

The brand loves to play on layers and textures. It recently re-infused asymmetric patterns in its ethnic wear collection as well.

With the beginning of the wedding season during the year-end the brands will shift its attention to motifs traditionally inspired from mosaics and Art Deco, a perfect balance between patterns and modernism.

Vito Notaristefano Head of Design and Made-toMeasure Specialist

We recently launched a unique custom trousseau service for our wedding customers that adds to our philosophy as a brand to provide the best Made-to-Measure menswear experience

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ailorman’s new ethnic collection ‘Romeo’ revolves around the concept of ‘Romance’.

The collection is emboldened by and embodied with references and inspirations from iconic characters like ‘Django’ from Tarantino’s ‘Django Unchained’; and Leonardo Di Caprio’s suave and contemporary take on the great Mr. Gatsby. “The collection uses a lush mix of gold metallics with powerful notes of red, navy and wine colors,” states Vito Notaristefano, Head of Design and Made-to-Measure Specialist. The collection blends Indian cultural staples such as the Kurta and Sherwani with a more modern and global outlook. “We aim to view traditional fabrics like Brocades, Silks, and Velvets through a contemporary lens,” reveals Notaristefano. “Art Deco motifs and inspirations, leather and zippered details all are combined smoothly to create an alluring lifestyle experience.”

New offerings The brand expects an exponential rise in its wedding segment with the upcoming fall season. “We recently launched a unique custom trousseau service for our wedding customers that adds to our philosophy as a brand to provide the best Made-toMeasure menswear experience. The service also aims to help all Tailorman grooms transition effortlessly into their new lives and undoubtedly in style,” affirms Notaristefano.

“Apart from this, we’ve also recently launched a beautiful range of fall formal wear. The collection is a modish take on boardroom essentials and covers the exemplary range of colours from Blues, Navy’s, Black’s to varied shades of grey and beige,” he further states.

Retail expansion Tailorman is in the midst of opening its new showroom in Delhi NCR. “We’re extremely excited about the new phase and expansion of our brand, and hoping to reach out to a new and profound set of individuals who understand and embrace the Tailorman principles,” beams Notaristefano.Over the years, there has been a gradual yet steady shift in the way men approach shopping.

Customers today are more evolved and wellinformed about their personal sense of style and take on fashion. “This is one of our major opportunities to tap into the unheld market of menswear. With the awareness comes a broader need to dress for the occasion, a greater sense of experimentation, and a wider scope for innovation,” he asserts.

Discount sales The brand Tailorman does not believe in offering discounts to its customers. It believes

that its product should speak for itself and its strategy in terms of discounting is mostly addressed towards its old loyal customers who resemble it’s our brand principles.

E-commerce initiatives Extremely strong on the digital front, the new website of Tailorman is completely optimised for a unique and 3D simulated shopping experience. The brand focuses on the singular and consistent experience that it hopes to provide its customers. “We aim to excel across all our service platforms and provide a unique and dependable Made-to-Measure experience,” states Notaristefano. The brand has been deeply marketing on social media, especially Newsletters and Facebook over the past year, and has witnessed a major spike in sales and responses from potential and existing customers. “Our sales strategy is primarily three-fold. We focus on product, engagement, and awareness through every campaign strategy,” he adds.

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Arrow unveils revamped store at High Street Phoenix large, loyal, and growing customer base.

Arrow recently unveiled its newly revamped store at High Street Phoenix in Mumbai. The store, spanning over 1,000 square feet, houses the complete range from ARROW’s latest collections. It has been recreated with the sole aim of bringing the brand’s core value of ‘expert craftsmanship’to life and showcases ARROW’s glorious heritage in a befitting manner. “The store design celebrates the brand’s strong legacy of dressing professionals for the last 167 years.

Going forward, we believe it is vital that every ARROW store must reflect the brand ethos, reveals Sumit Dhingra,Chief Operating Officer – Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions Limited.

Sumit Dhingra Chief Operating Officer – Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions Limited.

“The store design celebrates the brand’s strong legacy of dressing professionals for the last 167 years. Going forward, we believe it is vital that every ARROW store must reflect the brand ethos,

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rvind Fashions Limited is a subsidiary of Arvind Ltd, India’s largest integrated textile player recently launched stores of marquee retailers Gap and The Children’s Place. One of the largest producers of denim fabrics and is supplier to many fashion brands in the world. The company has been a pioneer in bringing international brands like Arrow to India. The company has licensing relationships with many international brands including Gant, Nautica, Arrow, Izod, US Polo Association, Elle, Ed Hardy, Hanes, Cherokee, and Geoffrey Beene.

Arvind also has a portfolio of 12 of its own brands.

Retail presence Armed with a legacy of 167 years, Arrow celebrates twenty five years of its operation in India in 2018. The brand has over 250 exclusive brand stores and 500+shop-inshop counters in the country, and caters to a

New offerings Recently ranked as the ranked the‘Most Trusted Brand’ in the Apparel category by the 2018 edition of TRA’s ‘The Brand Trust Report, India Study, Arrow lives upto its reputation as an expert shirt-maker, by finely curating a ‘shirt bar’,that displays its extensive range of shirts at its store. The brand, in the last 160 years, has innovated

every important style. It has introduced the detachable collar, launched the adjustable waist bands in trousers and brought the wrinkle-free, stain-free concepts to clothing.

Today, the brand offers a range that suits the corporate corner office decision-maker as well as it does the young professional.

Latest innovations Acknowledged as an expert shirtmaker, the brand has regularly enhanced its wide range of product offerings over the years with innovations such as the AutoPress the wrinklefree shirt, Smart shirt, Superluxe - the stitchless shirt, etc. As Sumit Dhingra, Chief Operating Officer – Heritage Brands Division, Arvind Fashions Limited, notes,“The mark of a great brand is not just the size of its business, but also the kind of trust and loyalty it inspires in its customers. ARROW is one of our heritage brands and the fact that it has earned the trust of Indian consumers is all the validation we need of its success in India. It proves that the steps we have taken to engage with our customers and build a strong pan-India brand have all been in the right direction.”

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Woodland: New collections to give an edge in upcoming season

Harkirat Singh Managing Director, Woodland India “These garments combine activity focused design with technologically advanced materials. We are also committed to sustainable and eco-friendly business practices through innovation and technology,”

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esort wear, the latest trendy collection by Woodland, the outdoor adventure brand. The new collection offers apparels and footwear for a lavish holiday. The collection comprises pastel colored polo, collared shirts, boat shoes, and classy lace-up sneakers. “These garments combine activity focused design with technologically advanced materials.

We are also committed to sustainable and eco-friendly business practices through innovation and technology,” reveals Harkirat Singh, Managing Director, Woodland India.

Inspired by the theme ‘adventure’, these garments are made using varied fabrics such as light wear cotton, linen, rayon, etc. They are available in vibrant colors such as olive green, ice blue, black, red, lilac, orange, wine, etc in trendy designs such as striped and plain polo, digital print tees, button down shirts, denims, checker shirts. The brand will soon launch its AW’18 collection to woo customers with ultra-stylish apparels, footwear and accessories.

Retailing in India and abroad Retailed through 600 company-owned exclusive outlets and over 5,000 MBOs Woodland plans to add another 60 stores this financial year. These will be divided equally in small towns and metros. “Already present in the international market, Woodland is

planning to enter more foreign countries in near future,” notes Singh.

He observes, the upcoming festival season will be peak time for shopping and boom time for both business and sales.

“The previous festive season was just fine with demonetisation. But this year, every business is hopeful and expecting great sales figures,” avers Singh. “We are offering great deals with our end of season sale, flat 40 per cent off on the whole Woodland store and 25 per cent off on Woods London handbags,” he maintains.

Online retail on fastrack growth Woodland’s online sales are done through its own website. It’s growing at a fast rate and the brand expects to grow at 40 per cent in three to four years. “We plan to concentrate on a seamless approach via available shopping channels, i.e. mobile Internet devices, computers, bricks-and-mortar, television, radio, direct mail, in-store experience and so on. We are also available on various websites like Flipkart, Amazon, Myntra, etc,” Singh observes. “Our EMI scheme for online sales has proved beneficial. It is one of the prime reasons for the growth of online sales. Soon after its launch, it generated a tremendous response from customers. Nearly 15 per cent of our sales are now through this scheme,” he sums up.

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Blackberrys launches two new collections

Ramesh Kaushik

movie Race 3 and have launched tuxedos, shirts and trousers under this collection.

It’s exclusive, because of the superiority in fabrics and fashion elements used, lending the wearer a complete impactful appeal,” Kaushik elucidates. For its business suits, the brand prefers using cotton and linen for making business suits. “Our collection offers structure, checks, floral prints and solid patterns across the collection. The colour palette has vibrant blues, deeper tones and subtle pastels for a summery look,” Kaushik divulges.

Fashion drivers Fashion has evolved cleverly. Today, there’s a wide vista to dress oneself as per personality. Comfort being the primary concern now, other factors that determine future fashion trends include innovative outfits, more avenues to dress up, blurring boundaries of casuals at work, functionality driven fabrics and garments and mix n match styles.

The kids wear segment offers the opportunity to share income expenditure on apparels due to the want of having

Vice President-Brand Experience, Blackberrys “They are available with reversible jackets, detachable collars and lapels and surprise elements that give them the option to wear the outfit at different occasions,”

“O

ur new collection is about carrying your outfit with multi-attitude. It is crafted to let the outfit transform from a business look to evening party look,” says Ramesh Kaushik, Vice President-Brand Experience, Blackberrys. The Blackberrys Formals A/ W18 collection comprises three-piece suits which enables the consumers to carry multiple looks with a single ensemble. It also includes multi-collar shirts that blend for different occasions. The multi-occasion garments of the brand are crafted for lifestyle needs of the aspiring men and cater to their comfort needs. “They are available with reversible jackets, detachable collars and lapels and surprise elements that give them the option to wear the outfit at different occasions,” Kaushik says. The trousers are available with functional units including reversible trims, satin waist which though is perfect for weddings but can also be worn with a belt as a formal trouser for work.

An impactful appeal Blackberrys has also launched the new and exclusive Race 3 collection. The line is available as a limited edition from House of Blackberrys. “We are the style partner to the

a fashionable lifestyle. “As consumers are getting more fashion conscious, it is leading to a dynamic portfolio for brands.

International brands pitching in Indian market is leading to wide choices for the consumer,” expounds Kaushik.

Retail presence “Currently operational in over 230 EBOs and over 500 MBOs, we now aim to expand our operations in the Tier II and III cities besides opening over a 100 stores,” Kaushik informs. “We offer EOSS along with midseason offers. We also launch exclusive promotion plans for the loyal customers.”

Blackberrys has online presence through its website, social media and all leading e-com partners. Its contribution from e-com at present is 6 per cent and is likely to expand in future.

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Future Lifestyle Fashion on retail expansion spree with Brand Factory, Central

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uture Group is planning to launch around 200 Brand Factory stores in the coming years. Future Lifestyle Fashion will open in airports across Goa, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Chennai and Chandigarh. The Goa store will

be spread over 10,000 sq ft and others will be of 4000 sq ft. But the price of products will be the same as elsewhere.

Central stores will focus on footwear category. Footwear will be spread over 18,000 sq ft and handbags over 6,000 sq ft.

Central is about brands and new products and since the consumer seeks choices Central offers a large assortment.

The number of Cover Story stores will also be increased. Cover Story has 12 stores and a similar number may open in the coming years. This brand is into fast fashion.

Future Group wants to draw online customers to its stores. It does this through campaigns and which has worked since sales of jeans, backpacks, luggage, and home products among others have gone up by four to five per cent.

Nearly 10 to 15 per cent customers are acquired online-to-offline by Future Group, which is expected to go up to 35 per cent, especially through online promotions.

Future Group has an ambitious Retail 3.0 strategy with stores becoming more technology-enabled.

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Classic Polo to add 20-30 stores next year

C Usha Periasamy Director, Classic Polo “We recently launched active wear and athleisure range and plan to promote wide spectrum of double mercerised T-shirts starting at Rs 1,499. Classic Polo is categorised into two sub brands: Classic Polo and CP Bro. The brand is further grouped into three product categories: premium casual, authentic jeanswear, leisure and sport. CP-Bro is categorised as casual and edgy catering to the younger generation.

lassic Polo’s S/S ’19 collection features nano interlock, injected, supima, linen cotton, mercerised, multi color inject, etc. It also offers bonding technology for knit/woven, micro knitted denim, micro dobby, oxford vertical striper polo as well shirts, four-way Lycra tee’s and shirts, micro checks, twill, printed, flex waistband, wrinkle free finished pants, techniqcal secure pockets for the travelers/ jogger pants and reflectors. “Prints are developed as per seasonal theme,” states Usha Periasamy, Director, Classic Polo. “These include all over ditsy prints, enlarged prints , placement prints, repeat motifs, embroidery badges, mix media, pigment print , HD print, discharged print ,distressed washed out prints and laser,” she maintains.

Optimism about business ahead She points out last year, festive business was a huge flop for most brands resulting in huge inventory being stuck with many brands and early EOSS which lasted for a the longest time with higher discounts to clear the choked inventory. “Sample once seen and goods once sold are termed old and are difficult to sell on full price. Q1 of new financial year has actually given us little hope on the basis of consumer buying behavior vis a vis last year despite discounts clutter and inventory at all stores,” says Periasamy.

Retail network The brand is present in over 4,000 MBOs, 110 EBOs and 400 large format stores. It is keen to expand in Tier II and III cities and expects to add 20-30 stores next year. The brand will mainly expand in Chennai and Mumbai by opening around 15-20 stores.

The brand is present with major e-commerce portals such as: Paytm, Snapdeal, Flipkart, Amazon, Myntra and Jabong

New products “We recently launched active wear and athleisure range and plan to promote wide spectrum of double mercerised T-shirts starting at Rs 1,499. Periasamy expounds.

Classic Polo is categorised into two sub brands: Classic Polo and CP Bro. The brand is further grouped into three product categories: premium casual, authentic jeanswear, leisure and sport. CP-Bro is categorised as casual and edgy catering to the younger generation.

The collections has three themes; High flyer Soul, Expanding Minds and Adventure Awaits. Currently, Classic Polo is exploring the athleisure segment for men. As Periasamy says, “Denim and shirts are focused more on fabric and wash innovations apart from styling. So, constant innovation is the rule of the game to stay afloat and grow and no brand is exception to this rule.” The company is researching extensively on fits to cater to consumers’ “Made to order” experience.

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Cantabil focuses on R&D to improve product line constantly

Deepak Bansal Director, Cantabil “We are introducing athleisure, global nomadic culture, sustainability, fabric innovations, feasibility, regeneration, comfort, minimal structured floral and geometric prints, minimal styling, individuality, modern migration, hand feel of textures and functionality of design,”

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n its upcoming S/S ’19 collection, Cantabil has followed international trends. “We are introducing athleisure, global nomadic culture, sustainability, fabric innovations, feasibility, regeneration, comfort, minimal structured floral and geometric prints, minimal styling, individuality, modern migration, hand feel of textures and functionality of design,” explains Deepak Bansal, Director, Cantabil. The theme for the S/S ’19 is free spirit, functional and reflection.

The brand has opted for minimal styling as per its targeted consumer group.

High quality fabrics used “We have introduced high quality fabrics, minimal and value added styling keeping in mind the functionality of the product, wash processing to generate feel to the garments and use of sustainable raw materials,” he reveals. “We are improving our product quality in fabric, stitching and fitting of the product. Colors for the season are shades of indigo, blue cadet, sunny yellow, riot red,

rubber plant green and khaki.”

The key fabric trends for the season include knitted dobby and 3X1 twill in heavy over-dyed tint for denim; dobby, satin and organic fabrics for trousers; Indigo and sulphur checks, linen and cotton dobby for shirts; linen blended, cotton, knitted jersery and imported TR for suits; and single cotton jersey and dobby knits for knits.

“Analysing our past sale and growth record, we can foresee a growth in sale in upcoming season. We are continuously improving our products and following global trends. We are investing on R&D, so as we can serve best product to our customers,” notes Bansal.

Retail spread Cantabil has over 200 EBOs. The brand’s business is increasing in Tier-II, III cities and

in metros. “We are continuously opening new stores. People of these cities have become more conscious about accepting branded goods and quality products. So, we can predict sales growth in upcoming season. We are opening new stores across India,” reports Bansal.

Cantabil’s brand philosophy is based on discount format. “We see this as factor of growth and our position in Indian market.

Now all international brands are also giving seasonal discounts.” Cantabil has faced many challenges in the past from other brands. All competitor brands are investing on R&D programs to improve quality and be a pioneer in the market. “We are continuously improving our brand in terms of quality, price, trend and new innovations,” states Bansal.

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Cool Colors expects 40 per cent growth in business this festive season

C Praveen Mutha CMD “Through our use of programmed design, we have created truly unique products. We explore new fashion trends that set us apart from the rest of the brands.”

ool Colors’ new collection of blazers and T-shirts under ‘The Global Traveller Campaign’ includes prints and patterns along with a range of classic designs like prints, checks and plains. The brand offers a wide variety of cutting edge style at affordable rates. It has always created something unique with each of its collection and offered consumers uncompromised style. As Praveen Mutha, CMD says, “Through our use of programmed design, we have created truly unique products. We explore new fashion trends that set us apart from the rest of the brands.”

Gearing up for festive season Mutha points out “Market trends are set up by a variety of factors including customer preferences, with each season bringing in new ideas and fresh way of looking at designs.”

The festive season, in its turn, witnesses the emergence of new style that affects the color palette and designs for that season. Keeping this in view, Cool Colors plans to introduce new designs that will run across all seasons and be consistently in demand. The fabrics to be used would be linen, a mix of cotton and linen and pure cotton.

With the festival season around the corner, Cool Colors hopes to push up demand for its garments across the nation.

The brand expects at least 40 per cent growth in business compared to last year.

Muth says “Cool Colors through dedicated work directed towards its brand image, has broken free of the ‘just another brand’ impression and is now seen as an alternative to mainstream brands.”

Retail spreading is wings Currently Cool Colors operates in 1,200 locations across India. Expansion plans include increasing distribution network through a mix of EBOs and MBOs. The brand recently forayed into Eastern India through a calculated increase of its distribution network, with a mix of EBOs and MBOs. “With this expansion, we have focused our resources on understanding both the challenges as well as opportunities for creating a sustainable business in eastern India,” asserts Mutha.

Online plays an important role in the brand’s sales strategy. It is also influenced by a variety of other external and internal factors. As Mutha informs, “We are currently promoting Cool Colors through a mix media of traditional marketing and online promotions through social media. We have already generated a lot of interest and orders for the collection and expect it to do very well.”

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Bonjour to display new range of socks to 12,000 and is expected to grow even more. “The number of dealers pan India has increased from 140 to 160. Bonjour also has 14 EBOs across major cities and an exclusive franchise model in Delhi.

Bonjour is present on 12 major e-commerece sites with online purchase offers. “Though, our backbone is offline retail chain but Bonjour is also available on own website and other associated e-commerce sites.

Looking at the current market

Raj Kumar Jain MD - Bonjour

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xclusive socks and hosiery brand Bonjour will display the all-new color range of designer socks and winter socks in India’s largest apparel trade show, the 67th National Garment Fair being organised by CMAI. The collection offers fresh, trendy designs and utmost comfort.

The socks are available at a reasonable price and provide quality comfort to customers. They come in eye catching and vibrant colors, with imprinted licensed cartoon characters. A fresh collection of Wow socks has also entered the market targeting college students and trendy men with its attractive designs and crew length comfortable shape. The Wow socks also have interesting quotes to suit the mood and occasion of the customer.

New launches “We have also launched fantasy socks for ladies and young girls in vibrant shades of nature that can be added to a beautiful outfit.

These will be the only digitally printed and customisable on-demand socks available both on online and offline,” states Raj Kumar Jain, Managing Director, Bonjour.

The sports signature socks from Bonjour are available for sports enthusiasts in India.

Apart from this, five different pattern socks are also launched with target segment of young girls that includes interesting designs like tiger pattern to be paired with sandals,” he elaborates further.

The brand’s style statement targets different age groups depending on their

taste for fashion. For kids, there are designer socks in eye catching vibrant colors, which also come with imprinted licensed cartoon characters. They have also launched Fantasy socks for ladies and young girls in vibrant shades of nature and add to a beautiful outfit. “These will be the only digitally printed and customisable ondemand socks available for the customers both on online and offline market,” Jain elucidates.

Apart from this, five different socks patterns are also being launched for young girls. These include designs like tiger pattern to be paired with sandals. “One of our most innovative socks include the ankle length no show socks in basic colors and cool shades,” Jain explains. The brand has also launched a fresh collection of formal socks.

The color palette of this collection gives a new touch of fashion to a pair with sandals.

Materials used The socks are made of cotton and spandex in a ratio of 60:40 or 70:30 for comfort; they are skin friendly and have moisture wicking fabric. Synthetic yarn is used often in the finest fabric of socks in a technically evaluated composition. “We use special imported fabric for signature premium socks, which is imported from prime brand US,” states Jain.

Retail spread Last year 10,000 retail outlets showcased Bonjour products. This has now increased

“We have also launched fantasy socks for ladies and young girls in vibrant shades of nature that can be added to a beautiful outfit.

These will be the only digitally printed and customisable on-demand socks available both on online and offline,” trends we are trying to improve online shopping experience for our customers in an innovative and better way. We are planning to venture into customised socks and will soon have it on site,” Jain discloses.

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Bodycare International to launch new kids’ products

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leading player even in the kids’ innerwear, infant wear and thermals category, Bodycare International offers vests, briefs, trunks, panties, bloomers, boxers, etc in innerwear and T-shirts, lowers, capris, shorts, frocks, skirts, etc in apparels for kids in the age group of 0 to 14 years. The brand was incepted in 1992. “Driven by the values of trust, quality and excellence, Bodycare International in the past two decades, has become a force

launching an elaborate range of pre-winter and hard winter apparels for girls and boys.

It is launching new products for infants in denim. “The fabric for our garments is sourced in house. We mainly use cotton, cotton Lycra, sinker, etc,” he informs.

to reckon within the innerwear market,” states Mithun Gupta, Director.

aims to further penetrate the underdeveloped markets in India. It is present in 1,500 MBOs across India, the brand plans to expand its product range for kids’ apparel. “We already have six operational EBO’S and plan to start another 10 this year,” Gupta affirms. “We are also present in LFS.” Speaking on growing competition from regional brands, Gupta says, “We faced a lot of competition from regional brands initially but were able to present uniformly as a pan India brand because of our good quality and competitive price edge and also because of our association with brands like Disney, Mattel, etc.” With a turnover ranging between Rs 100-Rs 300 crore, Bodycare was positively impacted by the GST being an organised player, they easily adapted to the new structure.

Expanding its reach Targeted at customers of all income groups, the products are highly affordable.

The brand is present across 29 states and

Mithun Gupta Director “Driven by the values of trust, quality and excellence, Bodycare International in the past two decades, has become a force to reckon within the innerwear market,”

Evolution of the brand Noting that there were no branded players in the kids’ wear category, Satish Gupta, a visionary entrepreneur started Bodycare International in 1992. Set up with an initial capital of Rs 2 lah, the brand endorses the qualities of trust, quality and excellence, and has, in the past two decades, become a force to reckon within the innerwear market.

The brand has nine production units spread over 3 00,000 sq. ft. area. “Our units are located at Noida, Delhi, Dehradun and Tirupur. Their production capacity is around 25 million pieces per annum and further expanding,” informs Gupta. The brand is

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Toonz Retail to focus on infants clothing to gain market share

Sharad Venkta MD & CEO, Toonz Retail states “Wear anything which is cool, casual and goes with your personality. It should be classy, trendy and smart. The theme is inspired by coordinated styling.”

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oonz Retail’s new collection under labels ‘Super Young Boys/Girls Stories’ and ‘WowMom Boys/Girls Stories’, are loaded with theme-based clothes and coordinated styling. The collections encompass three different themes: inspired by cultural travel and hand sketched safari theme to create memorable travel diaries; for sporty kids who love outdoor fun; for water babies for that perfect beach holiday.

Each theme is named differently for boys and girls. The collection focus on playful and airy

styles in cool breathable cotton fabrics for both babies and toddlers 0-3 years under the brand WowMom and young kids aged 3-12 years under Super Young.

Using chemical free dyes in super soft finish for soft skin, the WowMom collection comes in pastel shades and light colours going into bold prints, while it is all about bright colours in the Super Young Collection. There is a lot of excitement around the prints, caricatures, alphabets and quotes for kids. The summer collection includes shirts, tee-shirt dresses, jumpsuits, shorts amongst others, making the kids look stylish happy. Talking about the style statement, Sharad Venkta, MD & CEO, Toonz Retail states, “Wear anything which is cool, casual and goes with your personality.

It should be classy, trendy and smart. The theme is inspired by coordinated styling.”

Innovation the core of new collection With the onset of festivals and weddings, kids can dress in traditional wear with layers.

Bright colours like red, maroon, gold, bright pink make for a perfect festival look for girls.

Double layered anarkalis, dresses and gowns will look beautiful on girls. Light embroidery adds the much needed shimmer and bling.

Girls can team these outfits with printed scarves, which would keep them warm.

For boys, casual pants with shirts or stylish denims teamed with nice jackets make for a perfect evening look. In traditional wear, they would look cute in dhoti kurtas, and sherwani’s which can be worn over vests keeping them warm, informs Venkta.

Speaking on future trends Venkta says,

“Under our concept ‘Denim Dairies’, we try to connect with our target group, making it fun and engaging. This year, we are going to introduce New Fits, Emoji Highlights and innovative packaging with DIY features.

Also, along with clothing, we will enter sports merchandise.”

Sales expanse post GST He is confident GST related teething issues will slowly fade and the market will be ready for festive buying. With lower taxes in the lower price slabs, customers are sure to gain and buying will increase. With one tax, movement of goods will be faster and reach consumers quicker which will boost sales, feels Venkta. Talking about the discounting, he adds, “At Toonz Retail, we believe in offering heavy discounts to attract online and offline customers. The strategy is simple.

Besides selling our current fashion, we also look forward to launching new season’s collection.”

Territory expansion The company plans to concentrate on smaller town where customers are aspirational.

Delhi, Rajasthan, UP, Maharashtra and Karnataka are its primary markets where it has maximum presence.

The plan is to expand retail presence in these states. As far as new products are concerned, he says, “We are expanding our infant range as the category has a lot of potential. We are creating a complete range of products – around 130 products – under the WowMom brand for infants, which includes products for new born to three year olds. The second product category we are entering into is sports and this will be for an older age group kids.

Under the infant range, the company will be

introducing baby snuggle wrap, double terry, hood toy, baby nappy, diaper bags, baby dry sheet, shorts and pyjamas, sleepsuit, to name a few. The sports range will include products like tennis ball, cricket ball and swimwear.

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Twills introduces six new concepts for A/W ’18

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s a brand which believes on innovation, the upcoming winter collection from Twills will introduce six new concepts: Him, Painted, Indi code, Pure, Club and Knitted Fabrics shirts. The ‘Him’ collection comprises checks; Painted includes prints; Indi Code is based on denim collection; Pure involves dobbies structures, fillafil, and pigment coated.

The Club collection includes evening wear and boasts of dark and bright shirts. The sixth concept knitted fabric shirts includes knitted fabrics and is the most exclusive in the entire winter collection.

Naveen Gamini Managing Director, Twills “Extra care is given to the quality of fabrics we use for products. The raw material is sourced from topnotch companies like Arvind and Vardhaman,”

Latest offerings In shirts, the brand offers two fits this year: regular and slim fit. In bottoms, it offers ankle length trousers and cropped jeans. Knitted shirts and knitted trousers are also being offered by the brand. The fits and designs are inspired by global trends. “Extra care is given to the quality of fabrics we use for products.

The raw material is sourced from topnotch companies like Arvind and Vardhaman,” reveals Naveen Gamini, Managing Director.

The range is available in the price range Rs 999 to Rs 1,799. Prices have gone up by

about 10 per cent this year owing to GST last year. It may increase another 5 to 7 per cent next year. “We produce three lakh pieces per month. Capacity is increased by 20 per cent every year,” Gamini adds.

Retail spread Twills recently opened a flagship store spread across 5,000 sq. ft. in Vijaywada, taking the total store count to 98, including three flagships. “It is available with 2,200 MBOs and large format stores such as Reliance, Brand factory and Central to name a few on a pan India level. We aim to establish 50 more stores by the end of this year and have identified states like UP, Bihar, Odisha and Maharashtra for expansion,” notes Gamini. The expansion will happen largely in Tier II, III cities as these cities generate more business with less-expenses.

“Though online channels are a good option for sales, the continuous offerings of discounts hamper profit margins. Offline channels do not pose this challenge,” opines Gamini. Twills online business is generating good sales, with the brand being present on all major portals such as Amazon, Flipkart and Myntra.

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Being Human expanding in Tier II and III cities

Saurabh Singh Head Designer-Menswear

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eing Human has divided it’s a/W’18 collection in two themes; athleisure and denim.

“The collection introduces new products across all categories with a key focus on denims and shirts. Each line has multiple themes covering the latest trends in casual and street wear,” states Saurabh Singh, Head Designer-Menswear.

The athleisure collection is divided in two themes inspired by ‘Digital Grunge’ and ‘Modern Noise’ whereas the denim collection draws inspiration from ‘Future Rises from the East’ and ‘Into the Wild’.

New Collections Inspired by street sports grunge vibe, Digital Grunge theme uses bright pop colors and a contrast of sheen and matte finishes where as Modern Noise is a monochromatic theme with primarily black, grey and white along with a few muted pastels featuring graphics with heavy distress and noise effects. The key looks from this are a high-low styling with long line and boxy fit T-shirts combined with drop-crotch joggers or cropped ankle length jeans.

The denim line theme, ‘Future Rises from the East’ is inspired by the collusion of oriental and western influences, animal prints, paisleys, bright plaids and Japanese prints, fused to create a modern bohemian ad-hoc style statement. ‘Into the Wild’ explores the heritage of denim work wear and how it was

worn by miners, lumberjacks and other blue collared workers back in the day. The line reinterprets it to keep up with current times.

“Apart from our casual collection, we have also launched a smart casual collection for the festive season. The collection features smart tailored stretch shirt paired with slim fit chinos in monochromes as well as bright pop colors,” notes Singh. “In the past few seasons, we have seen a drastic growth in the denim segment making it stand out as a category in youth fashion. While athleisure is a steady market, denim has more experimentation and innovation involved.”

Comprising checks and flannels, The Being Human Clothing AW’18 collection features variations ranging from basic checks to heavy brushed flannels, indigo checks and checks with yarn innovations like naps, grindle, space dyed, and corduroy weave along with embellishments like placement and all over prints, embroideries, badges, etc.

This season, Being Human will launching a few new products like light weight jackets which are perfect for all season travel; new fits in denims like cropped skinny fit,striped denims with ankle fit and few statement casual shirts with lot of embellishments.

“We are looking forward to the upcoming season as we have experimented a lot with our designs and styles,” Singh observes. “We are providing all possible trends under one roof. Also, we have been growing at a good

“We are looking forward to the upcoming season as we have experimented a lot with our designs and styles,” Singh observes. “We are providing all possible trends under one roof. pace in the past consecutive years and are looking at a 20 per cent year-on-year growth for the next three to four years,” he says.

Retail Detail Being Human Clothing has a footprint in over 15 countries with over 600 pointof-sale. “We have 67 MBO’s; 63EBO’s and are available at 206 SIS,” Singh says.

“Our plan is to tap new markets such as Northeast, known for its fashion driven consumers.”The brand will also open stores in Jamshedpur, Bhubaneshwar, Srinagar, Vapi, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Delhi, Guwahati, Noida, Lucknow, Dehradun, Jammu, Raipur, Meerut, Gorakhpur, Gurugram, Cuttack, Imphal, Shillong and Goa this year.

Being Human has a strong online presence which includes all leading online websites like Myntra, Amazon. The brand will soon launch its own e-commerce platform which will cater to all its customers across India.

“We usually sell only old collection on the online portals hence it does not affect our store sale strategy. Also e-commerce may have become the default shopping mode in big cities but it is still a tiny segment at mere 2-4 per cent of India’s retail sector,” he notes.

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Lifestyle International spreading retail, sees opportunities in online space

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he upcoming collection of Lifestyle International is inspired by international runway trends and the season’s colours, each catering to specific categories of our wide audience segment. The Forca brand appeals to the vibrant and multifaceted youth of today, inspired by the fun and stylish lifestyle of young men. “The Forca collection comprises trendy ensembles for the spontaneous, adventure seeking millennial,” elucidates Vasanth Kumar, Managing Director, of the brand. “On the other hand, the brand Ginger caters to young girls, who have a strong sense of individuality and is totally comfortable in her skin. Melange is a contemporary Indian wear brand by Lifestyle that consists of vibrant ensembles that redefine contemporary ethnic wear. The collection harmoniously blends ethnic and contemporary,” he further adds.

As per Kumar some key fashion trends likely to dominate in the upcoming season for women’s wear include: stripes, polkas, colourful checks, dark florals & dark florals in jewel tones. “A significant upcoming trend includes dramatic sleeves such as balloon, trumpet, dolman, flair and ruching. Tie-ups, whether in the form of a dress or tops, will make a big comeback. For menswear, the new collection will include all over prints and solid colours in shirts and tie waist, tapered crop and pleated front in formal trousers,” Kumar reveals. Athleisure as a trend will be big with sportif taping, tapered track pants and

paneled bottoms as key styles. Suits, denims and t-shirts will continue to be an integral part of the new season’s collection.

Gearing up for the festival For women’s wear, the festive season is all about ethnic cuts in contemporary styles asymmetrical hems, dramatic sleeves and pearl detailing are some of the key cuts and styles. For those looking beyond ethnic options, Code by Lifestyle, offers consumers a party wear collection comprising cocktail dresses which can be worn on festive occasions as well. In menswear, the festive line boasts of rich jewel tones (Ruby, Sapphire, Gold) with classic cuts. Trending colours for the season are mustard, navy, rust, purple, royal blue, forest green and olive, etc.

Retail spread Lifestyle is present across 71 stores in 43 cities. The brand plans to open 12 to 14 stores in the current fiscal and 8 to 10 more in the next. The retailer has maintained a growth of 25 per cent CAGR over the last three years and aims to continue with this growth momentum.

“In the future, retail will be all about creating a strong value proposition for consumers,” expounds Kumar on future retail trends.

“Be it in-store or online, brands will provide immersive, participative and engagement driven experiences.” Most retailers now are waking up to the new reality of a more digitally

Vasanth Kumar Managing Director “A significant upcoming trend includes dramatic sleeves such as balloon, trumpet, dolman, flair and ruching. Tie-ups, whether in the form of a dress or tops, will make a big comeback. savvy audience. This has both positive and negative rub-offs on organised trade, especially large format stores. On the positive side, there is demand consolidation, whereas on the negative side, the severe impact on the cash dependent real-estate sector means that mall developments will slow down briefly.

“However, future of retail is far from looking bleak. With a rejuvenated approach towards creating unforgettable consumer experiences, the retail sector will be all about reimagining, redefining and thriving for the digital age,” asserts Kumar.

Online presence A true omni-channel player, Lifestyle International, through its online store lifestylstores.com, enables customers to shop from the convenience of their home.

“With innovations such as click and collect and endless-aisle among others, we provide a complete, memorable and convenient omni-channel experience to our customers,” Kumar reveals. “We see immense opportunity in the online space and we see our online presence augmenting our overall sales,” hopes Kumar.

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coats & jackets

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Sahiba teams up with designers to raise the bar

Yashiki Gumber Director, Sahiba “We are among the only houses, which have collaborated with over 25-30 top notch designers from the industry, other than having an in-house designing team of 50 plus designers. We have also been focusing on setting trends in ethnic fashion for women,”

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e launch about 30 odd collections every month, across all our products - suits, saris, lehngas, kurtis, embroidered garments, etc,” says Yashiki Gumber, Director, Sahiba. “Currently, we are launching, ready-to-wear fashion collection that includes gowns, party wear, etc.”

Turnkey solutions Sahiba is involved in the entire textile process that a fabric undergoes. This ranges from sourcing the best yarns to dyeing, printing, embroidery, digital printing in one of the world’s biggest digital printing studio. Each process is conducted in-house to provide the best of every technology.

“Having, a team of over 100 designers and fashion consultants, we design each product ourselves, and ensure nothing less than 800-900 designs every month across all product portfolios,” Gumber states.

Over period of time, Sahiba has been collaborating with various designers like Suneet Verma, Maria B, Payal Singhal, etc, to provide affordable luxury in every wardrobe for women in age group of 1865 years. “We are among the only houses, which have collaborated with over 25-30

top notch designers from the industry, other than having an in-house designing team of 50 plus designers. We have also been focusing on setting trends in ethnic fashion for women,” notes Gumber.

Over time, fashion has become more generic and subjective. “In the future, we expect it to focus more on comfort, carrying your personal statement style, and experimenting with all kinds of fabrics, colors, and prints,” he adds.

Dynamics of women’s ethnic wear market Women’s ethnic wear still holds a major chunk of the apparel industry. With a CAGR of about 15 per cent, the industry has a lot to bank on in coming years. Post June, India witnesses the best festivals and weddings.

This is expected to boost demand for festive wear collections in coming months.

With more women joining the workforce, acceptance of ethnic wear as fusion trend among young girls, comfort and ease of wearing, higher disposable income, westernisation of ethnic apparels, increasing organised players in ethnic wear segments, etc, are some market growth drivers. Last few months, the market has seen stagnancy in terms of premium products, attributing to the ease of liquidity. Mid-range price points have worked well and grown. As far as competition is concerned, the industry can still absorbs a lot. “To provide the best

collections at best possible prices, brands have to be on their toes,” Gumber opines.

Future plans Elaborating on the brand’s future plans, Gumber says, “We aren’t really planning to focus on the premium segment. Rather, the reason we tie-up with top designers is to provide a fashion label at affordable prices for women who wish to have a designer label in their wardrobe but cannot due to high prices. That’s the idea of providing affordable fashion.”

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Celebrity power that does magic

ndorsement is a channel of brand communication where a celebrity acts as the brand’s spokesperson and certifies its claim and position by extending his/her personality, popularity, status in society or expertise in the field to the brand. In a market with a high proliferation of local, regional and international brands, celebrity endorsement is traditionally seen as providing a distinct differentiation. This explains why over the years, many aspiring brands in Asia have jumped on to the celebrity endorsement bandwagon.

Celebrities no longer just endorse products or brands they are jumping right into the business, making angel investments or taking sweat equity. Most work with professionals, relying on the latter’s business acumen and experience to create a fortune out of an idea. The best example is the Indian cricket captain and the country’s most valuable celebrity brand with endorsements worth $144 million — Virat Kohli. He launched his clothing line Wrogn with online celebrity fashion business Universal Sportsbiz (USPL), which also owns Collectabillia and Imara, a few years ago. USPL, founded in 2012, is backed by cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar and recently raised Rs 100 crore from Accel Partners. However, experts feel even though stars in India often rise to the status of demigods, they haven’t fully exploited their brand value. Globally, celebrities like Victoria Beckham, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who don’t have the fan following like many Indian stars, have gone on to build hugely successful celebrity fashion lines.

When Gourav Jaswal, Founder of Goa-

Kayne West leverages his brand across all industries and media platforms for each and every campaign. He ensures every actions and events that he does is in congruence with his overall brand image. He develops new content and integrates that content into his music, wardrobe, merchandise and more. He believes by integrating everything together it can build off one another.

Indeed celebs add value to a brand, and boost its prospects with high recall value. Till recently, celebrities stuck to just endorsing a brand however realizing their market potential, they are now becoming partners and reaping associated benefits  Celebrities no longer just endorse, they have a stake in the business  For a successful label, a showstopper means more eyeballs  Celebs lend an aspirational quality to a product  Help a product get noticed in the media, among consumers  For a brand merchandise strategy to be successfully adopted by fans and influencers, timing is everything based incubator Prototyze, started work on a plan for a fitness startup, he knew he needed a co-founder and brand ambassador who embodied the product. His friend Gul Panag — known largely as an actor and social activist until she turned entrepreneur — seemed the perfect fit. Jaswal says, she comes with fitness credentials. She also represents an intellectual and ethical position in society, which is important to the brand.

The actor is the personal running coach on the startup’s app, demonstrating stretches and dispensing running and diet tips.

It’s this gap that people like K Ganesh, serial entrepreneur and partner at GrowthStory, plan to exploit. He’s set to have

his celebrity e-commerce business up and running in six months. Ganesh is convinced customers are no longer swayed by traditional advertising. Millennials are looking for a cause, a community and a narrative. They are happy with micro brands that address a specific cause or need, such as cruelty-free products. They research and buy online, relying on influencers.

While the younger crop of stars tend to establish their own brands and work with startups, older celebrities prefer investing.

Actor Suniel Shetty has invested in men’s grooming startup Beardo (in which Marico took a 45 per cent stake last year), while his contemporary Madhuri Dixit has a stake in

BRANDING STRATEGY Celebrities no longer just endorse products or brands they are jumping right into the business, making angel investments or taking sweat equity. Most work with professionals, relying on the latter’s business acumen and experience to create a fortune out of an idea. fitness tech startup GOQii. Cricketer Yuvraj Singh set up YouWeCan Ventures and has invested in startups like Healthians, EduKart and Startup Buddy.

Anirban Das Blah, Founder of celebrity management firm Kwan Entertainment, points out celebs have realised the need to plan for the future and build a business that continues beyond their acting or sporting careers. Kwan has tied up with marketing firm Dream Theatre to start Mojostar, a company that promotes celebrity brand merchandising. The firm recently finalised deals with actors Jacqueline Fernandez and Tiger Shroff. For Blah, today’s celebs are more careful with their investments. They look at this as a true business opportunity and put in the time and effort required to build the company.

Actor Hrithik Roshan, whose HRX line of clothing and accessories retails on Myntra, is among the celebs deeply involved in the startups they are associated with. Roshan’s HRX inked a deal with fitness startup Curefit, co-founded by former Flipkart executive Ankit Nagori and Myntra founder Mukesh Bansal, and has a stake in the company. Nagori says, Roshan has been involved in every move the startup has made, and designed the HRX workout offered at the startup’s gyms. They have co-created the format with Hrithik, who is a benchmark in fitness and health. With his backing, the format gets more credibility.

Roshan does a Facebook live session with gym-goers every month.

Tennis star Mahesh Bhupathi teamed up with Hemchandra Javeri, former Nike country head, to start sports apparel brand Zeven in 2016. Javeri says, it was Bhupathi’s idea to create an affordable sportswear brand in India. Bhupathi is actively involved in it. Being a sportsperson, he understands what’s needed and gives feedback. The cofounders have invested Rs 50 crore in the company. Much of Zeven’s brand-building and deals came through Bhupathi’s network.

Zeven is the kit partner for IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Ravindra Jadeja and Rohan Bopanna are among the sportspersons endorsing the brand, which has sold products worth close to Rs 2 lakh. The company recently acquired the

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rights for International Cricket Council (ICC) merchandise in 23 markets, including India.

Recently, India’s leading value Fashion brand, Max Fashion unveiled its new ‘Spring 2018 Collection’. The collection was launched by Marathi superstar Swwapnil Joshi in Pune and Vashi. Max also launched an exclusive collection curated by Joshi in a Lookbook, ‘Max Styles Swwapnil Joshi’. The collection honours the likes of those who are driven by a dream and not the society.

Those who stand for what they believe in.

Veteran designer Ritu Kumar says Bollywood stars can be a great influence in promoting Indian textiles globally. The designer, who presented her offbeat collection, ‘Hip Hop Baroque’, inspired by the music genre of hip-hop says the reach of Tinseltown is mindblowing. They play an important role in taking Indian textiles forward, according to Kumar.

understandably need the added boost, an established designer says when a designer gets a solo slot there is an inadvertent expectation from the organisers, media, and audience that a personality will walk the ramp. A celeb guarantees coverage with certain sections of the media and instantly gets one noticed.

For a commercially successful label like Shyamal & Bhumika, a showstopper like Kangana Ranaut means more eyeballs in the Indian and Middle Eastern markets.

They duo says, nearly 60 per cent of their clientele are second-generation NRIs and they don’t necessarily care about Bollywood showstoppers. But for them, it’s important who they associate with. It’s important that the work of thousands of artisans is appreciated than just a one-time mention.

Social media at work

Branded merchandise has gained popularity, especially in the form of T-shirts, hoodies and ball caps. Celebrity branded merchandise has also reached new heights, with the likes of Rihanna, Justin Bieber, Beyonce and Kanye West - with their own clothing lines. These celebs leverage their brand identity with merchandise to create a stronger brand resonance among consumers. They are able to generate popularity around these merchandise for their fans. For a brand merchandise strategy to be successfully adopted by fans and influencers, timing is everything. It’s about understanding when the consumer is most likely to make a purchase or be in the market for something new and it is crucial to the overall marketing strategy.

Kayne West leverages his brand across all industries and media platforms for each and every campaign. He ensures every action and events that he does is in congruence

Recently at Bandra Fort, Kareena Kapoor Khan walked the makeshift runway for Kolkata designer Anamika Khanna’s Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) Summer/Resort 2018 grand finale. Almost instantaneously, she made headlines on social media.

Instagrammers started debating on her looks

rather than talking about Khanna’s use of inventive silhouettes, bright colours, youthful prints or embroidery. In India, fashion and Bollywood make strange bedfellows, mutually beneficial and reciprocal in reverence, yet conversely detrimental to any serious conversation centred on creativity and commerce, states the coveted designer.

Designer Ridhi Mehra-Sekhri, whose five-year-old label has gained prominence as a red carpet favourite among celebrities like Shraddha Kapoor, Malaika Arora, Parineeti Chopra and Diana Penty, says Indians love their celebrities. And if they add a glamourous element to your collection, lend an aspirational quality to your clothes and help you get noticed in the media, it’s a good resource to tap. While newcomers

Rise of branded celebrity merchandise

Customers are no longer swayed by traditional advertising. Millennials are looking for a cause, a community and a narrative.

They are happy with micro brands that address a specific cause or need, such as cruelty-free products. They research and buy online, relying on influencers. While the younger crop of stars tend to establish their own brands and work with startups, older celebrities prefer investing.

122 BRANDING STRATEGY with his overall brand image. He develops new content and integrates that content into his music, wardrobe, merchandise and more. He believes by integrating everything together it can build off one another.

It’s important to stick to the core of your brand identity, and he does this on every communication channel, whatever he is in the public or or that the fashion industry is corrupt, he is pretty consistent.

The flip side of endorsements Not every star’s success in the real world has translated into good business. Cricketer Robin Uthappa launched an early-stage venture capital firm Caffeine Ventures in 2015, and invested in iTiffin, a food-tech startup, which soon shut shop. If sources are to be believed, Uthappa was passionate about a few ideas but his fund didn’t have a great experience with investments. Tapan Kumar Das, Founder, iTiffin who now runs a consulting firm, says having a celebrity investor helped but a big name doesn’t guarantee success.

Aviral Jain, Director Duff & Phelps India a consultancy, has another view, being associated with a celebrity can bring risks too. The product is correlated to fame.

Negative publicity for the celeb can impact the brand. For instance, when news of Tiger Woods’ infidelity got out, it led to a $12 billion loss in the market value of his sponsors in 10 trading days. In 2016, Snapdeal dropped actor Aamir Khan as brand ambassador following the actor’s comments on intolerance raising a storm.

Industry observers say celebs are yet to make large bets on startups. Blah adds celebrities prefer a royalty-based model.

Sometimes, there is ownership at the brand level but they refrain from investing capital.

Their preferred route is low-risk with midsized rewards.

Back to basics Before any brand signs a celebrity, they should consider three main aspects: Attractiveness: This principle states that an attractive endorser will have a positive impact on the endorsement. The endorser should be attractive to the target audience in certain aspects like physical appearance, intellectual capabilities, athletic competence, and lifestyle. It has been proved that an endorser that appears attractive as defined above has a greater chance of enhancing the memorability of the brand that he/she endorses.

Credibility: For any brand-celebrity collaboration to be successful, the personal credibility of the celebrity is crucial.

Credibility is defined as the celebrities’ perceived expertise and trustworthiness. As celebrity endorsements act as an external cue that enable consumers to sift through the tremendous brand clutter in the market, the credibility factor of the celebrity greatly

influences the acceptance with consumers.

Meaning transfer between celebrity and brand: The success of a brandcelebrity collaboration heavily depends on compatibility between the brand and celebrity in terms of identity, personality, positioning in the market vis-à-vis competitors, and lifestyle. When a brand signs on a celebrity, these are some of the compatibility factors that have to exist for the brand to leverage the maximum from that collaboration.

Even though these three major principles must be adhered to by companies, practically it might be difficult to find celebrities that satisfy all these three conditions. Depending on the nature of the brand and kind of product being used, companies can selectively emphasize on one factor over other.

Do’s and Don’ts All brands must be aware of some important aspects of celebrity branding: Consistency and long-term commitment: As with branding, companies should try to maintain consistency between the endorser and brand to establish a strong personality and identity. More importantly, companies should view celebrity endorsements as longterm strategic decisions affecting the brand.

Three prerequisites to selecting celebrities: Before signing on celebrities to endorse their brands, companies need to ensure they meet three basic prerequisites, namely the endorser should be attractive, have a positive image in the society, and be perceived as having the necessary knowledge (although it might be difficult for a celebrity to meet all three prerequisites).

Celebrity–brand match: Consistent with the principles discussed earlier, companies should ensure a match between the brand being endorsed and the endorser so that the endorsements are able to strongly influence the thought processes of consumers and create a positive perception of the brand.

Constant monitoring: Companies should monitor the behaviour, conduct and public image of the endorser continuously to minimize any potential negative publicity.

One of the most effective ways to do this is to ensure that celebrity endorsement contracts are effectively drafted, keeping in mind any such negative events.

Selecting unique endorsers: Companies

should try to bring on board those celebrities who do not endorse competitors’ products or other quite different products, so that there is a clear transfer of personality and identity between the endorser and the brand.

Timing: As celebrities command a high price tag, companies should be on the constant lookout for emerging celebrities who show some promise and potential and sign them on in their formative years if possible to ensure a win–win situation.

Brand over endorser: When celebrities are used to endorse brands, one obvious result could be the potential overshadowing of the brand by the celebrity. Companies should ensure that this does not happen by formulating advertising collaterals and other communications.

Celebrity endorsement is just a channel: Companies must realise that having a celebrity endorsing a brand is not a goal in itself; rather it is one part of the communication mix that falls under the broader category of sponsorship marketing.

Celebrity ROI: Even though it is challenging to measure the effects of celebrity endorsements on companies’ brands, companies should have a system combining quantitative and qualitative measures to measure the overall effect of celebrity endorsements on their brands.

Trademark and legal contracts: Companies should ensure that the celebrities they hire are on proper legal terms so that they do not endorse competitors’ products in the same product category, thereby creating confusion in the minds of the consumers.

These guidelines are intended to provide companies a useful framework that they can use while deciding on the celebrities to endorse their brand.

In the end…

The important aspect that companies must note is that celebrity endorsements cannot replace the comprehensive brand building processes. As branding evolves as a discipline companies must be extra cautious to utilise every possible channel of communication rather than just a celebrity endorsement. When all other steps in the branding process is followed and implemented, then channels such as celebrity endorsements can provide the cutting edge.

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Duty-free Chinese fabrics get converted into RMG in Bangladesh, enter India

ncreasing apparel imports particularly from Bangladesh is silently disrupting India’s domestic textile value chain from fibre to apparel, suggest some reports.

The industry has asked for immediate government intervention to impose sourcing restrictions in order to cut the damage.

A team lead by Prabhu Dhamodharan, Convenor, Indian Texpreneurs Federation (ITF), met Suresh Prabhu, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry to show their concern.

Statistics reveal, apparel imports into India rose from $10.94 million in 2009 to cross $100 million-mark in 2015 before soaring to $136.43 million in FY2016. As per a 2006 treaty with Bangladesh, India allows duty-free import of readymade garments from Bangladesh under SAFTA. Initially this facility was limited to 8 million pieces but in 2010, this quantitative restriction was lifted. Made-in-Bangladesh garments import surged thereafter. From a CAGR of 67 per cent between 2006 and 2010, it rose to 98 per cent between 2011 and 2014.

The real picture As a matter of fact, Bangladesh does not produce enough fabrics domestically.

The duty-free, quota-free facility extended to Bangladesh benefits China’s export of textiles. Bangladesh imports fabrics from China, converts them into garments and exports the stuff to India. Since import of Made in China fabrics is meant for export, Bangladesh does not impose any import duty on the fabric import and this facilitates backdoor entry of Chinese textiles into India.

India, on the other hand, has not imposed any sourcing restrictions. To top it all, the duty-free quota facility has now been extended to all 49 LDCs on a non-reciprocal

basis and without any sourcing restrictions.

Not only this, the entire scenario would be detrimental to some LDCs like Ethiopia, Cambodia and Myanmar, which have duty-free access to the EU, Japan and US markets.

As Sanjay K Jain, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI India) points out the duty-free facility given to Bangladesh on grounds of it being a Least Developed Countries (LDC) was actually benefiting China’s textile exports. In pre-GST scenario, import of garments from Bangladesh and other countries were attracting a CVD (Countervailing Duty) of 12.5 per cent and education cess of 3 per cent. However, postGST, this has been removed, hence there is no cost for garment import from Bangladesh and other countries.

Revising SAFTA rules To make things in favourable for of Indian companies, ITF and CITI have suggested a revision of SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Area) rules of origin to make use of

yarn and fabric of Indian origin mandatory for allowing duty-free quota-free market access. As Dhamodharan says, this would boost the country’s yarn and fabric export to Bangladesh and other LDCs. India has accepted sourcing restrictions imposed

by Japan. This has hurt our apparel exports to Japan under India-Japan CEPA (Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement). Giving example of global practices of imposing sourcing restrictions, Jain says the US imposed sourcing restriction under NAFTA for accepting duty free import of garments from Mexico and other NAFTA members. On similar lines, the government can make amendments to help the domestic industry without really denying duty free market access to Bangladesh and other LDCs. Such a move will prevent China from taking undue advantage of a facility that is meant for LDCs. This measure is also expected to give a fillip to India’s export of yarn and fabrics to Bangladesh and other LDCs, which at present, are being supplied

by China.

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Growing retail making headway for mall boom in India

he mall culture that began in early 2000s, has deeply sunk into Indian consumers’ psyche.

Despite challenging times, including the recession of 2007-08 and the advent of e-commerce businesses, the number of malls mushrooming in the country has not slowdown. By 2017-end, there were more than 600 operational malls across the country. Interestingly, more than 30 new shopping malls covering nearly 14 million sq ft area are expected to come up across top eight cities by 2020. Today, malls have become standalone brands. To stay relevant, they have adopted new-age technologies from design and construction stage to the final end-user experience, which is what drives footfalls. Some leading malls in and around NCR offer a unique experience to consumers like: DLF’s Mall as lifestyle and entertainment destinations.

Going by such a stupendous performance, Tier II cities like Thiruvananthapuram and Mangalore have also opted for malls, with the former seeing the launch of Mall of Travancore early this year.

The Western region has its own share of success stories. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) houses some of the most iconic shopping centres such as Inorbit Mall, High Street Phoenix and Infinity Mall, among others. Neighbouring Pune, with its more generous land availability, has malls like Phoenix Market City, Amanora Town Centre and Seasons Mall.

Omnichannel growth of India in Noida has an indoor ski-range (Ski India). The Great India Place in Noida, popularly known as GIP, has a water park and one of the best kids play zones in the business (Worlds of Wonder and Kidzania).

The Grand Venice Mall in Greater Noida is a tourist destination with its Venetian theme which includes gondola rides and provides a distinctly European feel. The second-largest mall in the country in terms of area, World Trade Park in Jaipur has a unique display feature wherein 24 projectors create a single image on its ceiling. Other prominent malls that are doing exceptionally well in the North include DLF Promenade and Select City in Saket, DLF Cyberhub and Ambience

Mall in Gurugram, and DLF City Centre in Chandigarh.

Down South, Lulu International Mall in Kochi, touted to be the largest mall in the country, is creatively using technology-based novelties to offer a highly differentiated experience.

These include new-age technologies like geo-fencing, beacon technology and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR). It also uses technology to interact with its customers and keep them abreast on the latest activities within the mall.

Another case in point is the Phoenix Market City mall chain in Bengaluru and Chennai, marquee developments in the retail real estate space that have established themselves

Today, malls and online shopping work in tandem. They have to come together to offer truly an exceptional experience to its consumers. Malls need to transform into community spaces to stay relevant to the increasingly discerning Indian customers.

Besides an ambient shopping, Indian consumers expect comfort and enablement at every level from their mall visit. Mall developers are on a steep learning curve as they try to figure out how to inspire customers, who are not just shoppers but experience-seekers, to not only stay longer but to return. As a result, Indian malls today are constantly striving to become prominent ‘shoppertainment’ locations. For now, e-commerce and malls have learned to coexist in India.

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India’s growing prominence in global e-com landscape

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he Hong Kong Trade Development Council has published a research on India’s growing e-commerce consumerism. As per the report, India is considered a difficult market to do business, despite substantial improvement in the ease of doing business in recent years. In the World Bank’s Doing Business 2018 report, India jumped up 30 places from the year ago in international rankings measuring the ease of doing business, making it into the top 100 for the first time.

India’s growing e-com strength From a much lower and later starting point than China, India has staged a sustained e-commerce boom. At the same time, the government has cautiously opened up retail and e-commerce sectors to FDI. Given these factors, and notwithstanding the existing retail FDI restrictions and entry barriers, India presents plenty of business opportunities to Hong Kong companies that are prepared to tap into the country’s booming e-commerce market, by jumping on the online sales bandwagon and/or leveraging the online platforms that are emerging there.

While India’s e-commerce sales was only $30 billion in 2017 – just 6.7 per cent of China’s total and 11.2 per cent of that of the US – the country’s e-tailing market

growth is expected to outstrip both China and the US in the next five years. China is the world’s largest e-commerce market, its growth boosted by a fast improving broadband infrastructure, increasingly affordable mobile devices, and a myriad of innovative services linked particularly to smartphone applications. The average annual growth rate of China’s e-commerce market for 2012-17 was 46.2 per cent. While such growth was truly remarkable, it actually fell short of India’s average annual growth of 59 per cent in the same period. From

2017-22, the difference in average annual growth rates is likely to continue to move in India’s favour, with China’s e-commerce sales expected to expand annually by 12 per

cent, only half of the growth forecast for India’s.

While India’s population is a similar in size to China, its 2017 per capita income of $1,852 was less than onequarter of China’s, according to the IMF. The differences between the two countries in terms of e-commerce development and purchasing power mean that the per capita e-commerce spend in India is much lower than in China, amounting to $23 in 2017 (just 7per cent of China’s figure). The ratio of per capita spend in India to that of China, however, is expected to improve slightly to more than 11per cent by 2022. Despite the e-commerce euphoria of the past few years and the market growth expected in the next few, Indian consumers will continue to be extremely price-sensitive.

Whether purchasing online or elsewhere, the majority of them may not be able or willing to afford pricier, imported international lifestyle brands and high-end products, particularly products boasting top-of-the-range features and functionalities.

Cross-border e-com opportunities for Hong Kong Hong Kong companies eyeing India’s retail market potential, particularly that of the super-charged e-commerce segment, should have a clear understanding of how cross- border e-commerce could be adopted in practice. Any FDI-invested SBRT operation in India is subject to a 30 per cent local sourcing requirement, but also has the added option of operating an associated single-brand B2C website. However, any foreign company failing to register in India and/or source locally will not be permitted to operate a single brand B2C e-commerce website in the country.

Indian consumers browse and shop from overseas or non-Indian B2C e-commerce websites, and it may be practically difficult to require those non-Indian websites to observe the 30 per cent local sourcing requirement. However, overseas B2C websites that are committed to selling to India need to effectively reach out to Indian consumers with marketing campaigns and promotional activity, and they will be better off staying close to the market with their local SBRT setup. Hong Kong companies keen to sell to India via a local presence may find it a practical step in making contact with Indian consumers.

Successful e-commerce operators have adopted both online and offline marketing initiatives to boost online sales. It is difficult to orchestrate an overall sales and marketing strategy without securing a local business identity in India, and a further difficulty to overcome is the local sourcing requirements imposed by the regulatory authorities. That said, Hong Kong companies interested in selling to India may be able to identify a third party in India with a registered business entity to help facilitate selling, in order to avoid incurring heavy capital commitment upfront.

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E-commerce to thrive in India despite challenges

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n the $710 billion retail industry, e-retail has been one of the fastest growing formats in India owing to convenience and personalised shopping experience factors.

It was estimated at $16.3 billion in 2017 and is slated to grow at CAGR of 45 per cent to reach $49.5 billion by 2020. Much of the credit for this stupendous growth goes to government initiatives like ‘Digital India’, because of which Internet penetration reached 400 million, and around 48,000 gram panchayats are connected by optical fibres under 120.8 million have access to broadband.

Apparel and lifestyle category top buys While the segment is led by electronics category with a share of 49 per cent, apparel and lifestyle take the second spot at 25 per cent (including footwear, bags, belts, wallets, watches, jewellery, etc.). The adoption of e-tail in apparel and fashion industry is resisted by consumers preferring to touch-and-feel a product before making purchase decision. And to rule out this concern, initiatives like cash on delivery, easy return and exchange, discounts and offers are being implemented to encourage online shopping. And to capture higher market share, e-retailers are opting for an omnichannel retail model by opening physical store to capture a bigger market audience. In addition, e-tailers are also investing in studios to improve uniformity in product catalogue for different suppliers, thereby enhancing customer’s shopping experience. Along with faster and easier navigation, most e-tailers provide detailed specifications of the products to make it easier for consumers to make purchase decisions. For instance, high resolution pictures and zoom in features are provided on the website to showcase the details of the products. Multiple images from different angles enable detailed view of product.

Measurement charts assist the customer to make the right fit decision in case of apparel products, etc.

Fraught with challenges While there are innumerable opportunities, there lie challenges as well. These include intensive competition. As per research, changing customer preferences and competitive demand has made e-tailing a highly tough business, resulting in cashburn with regular promotions/discounts.

High discounts by e-retailers to acquire customers have led to unreal customer expectations, low loyalty and losses.

Besides, most logistics companies do not have pan-India reach. As some regions are not easily accessible, retailers have to cancel such orders due to inability of logistics partners to provide service in those areas.

Inadequate infrastructure such as poor conditions of roads, highway, etc., is one of the main challenges faced by the e-retailers.

Conventional brick-and-mortar channel still has the ability to convert return of product into sales. When consumers go to shop to return the product, they generally shop for other goods due to easy accessibility to other designs and variety in the shop, which is not the case in online shopping.

Additionally, the purchase drivers are different across different geographies, regions and population centres.

Factors such as promotions, discount and

offers are the key driving factor for online purchase across all the regions – metros, Tier I and II cities. But there are other region specific factors such as, availability of new products, better product assortments, easy return policy, express delivery options, etc., which drive growth in different cities and regions. Because of such compounding issues, e-commerce companies need to continuously devise newer strategies to sustain their presence in the market.

What lies ahead Despite disadvantages no way do consumers move-away from this wide retail channel. They are up for experimentation and innovative offerings. The key lies in creating a memorable and personalised shopping experience, at the same time, ensuring lower logistics and operational cost, leading to higher revenues. Increasing internet penetration is just a sign of good times ahead for the e-commerce and retail industry as a whole. E-tailing has the scope to consolidate wholesale and distribution channels and develop India-specific business models.

Hackman Enterprises: gurbindersinghvedi@gmail.com

9654760447

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Technology and its slated expanse for apparel value chain

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pparel value chain comprises of downstream functions (retailing) managed in advanced economies and upstream functions (manufacturing) managed by least developed economies.

Given the small and medium enterprise status of apparel manufacturing and mostly entrepreneurial ventures, cheaper access to technology will be an incentive towards adoption by apparel manufacturing organisations, stresses Dr Prabir Jana, NIFT, Delhi. He says, for the first time, the developed and the developing worlds are creating, collaborating, communicating, and consuming on similar technology platforms, spurring global innovation. Of the 253 ‘unicorns’ tracked by CB Insights, 65 are from China, and 10 from India. In the global list, only three

unicorn companies are related to clothing, while as many as 35 are e-commerce related.

Apparel product development hasn’t still come to terms with the adoption of technology for process improvement.

Alluring advantages As per Digital IQ survey by PwC, companies that are technology leaders in their industries are twice as likely to achieve rapid revenue and profit growth as the laggards. Originally seen as a tool largely for improving efficiency – doing the same things better and more cheaply – technological innovations are now the fastest means of opening up new revenue streams and transforming traditional industries. Added to that, individual technologies build on each other and amplifying each other’s effects, set the stage for ‘Industry 4.0’. While AI – an emerging technology – is the motive force behind robots, IoT is the key driver behind

cyber-physical systems transforming the factory floor into a co-working space with robots. Similarly, Augmented Reality (AR) will give a fillip to training and instructionrelated functions and real time physiological data of humans will give fillip to simulation or digital twin technology and so on. The sky is the limit when one wants to opt for technology in apparel value chain.

Artificial Intelligence algorithms are capable of performing tasks which normally would require human intelligence such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and language translation.

AI is an ‘umbrella’ concept that is made up of numerous subfields such as machine learning, which focus on the development of programs that can teach themselves to learn, understand, reason, plan, and act (i.e., become more ‘intelligent’) when exposed to new data in the right quantities. Augmented reality or the addition of information or

visuals to the physical world, via graphics and/or audio overlay has the potential to improve the user experience for a task or a product. This ‘augmentation’ of the real world is achieved via supplemental devices that render and display the said information.

Moreover, another rapidly growing technology, blockchain has been rapidly seeping into industries. It is essentially a distributed electronic ledger that uses software algorithms to record and confirm transactions with reliability and anonymity.

The record of events is shared between many parties and information once entered cannot be altered, as the downstream chain reinforces upstream transactions.

Autonomous land-based vehicles can also prove to be beneficial. These are air unmanned land-based vehicles that move without an on-board human pilot and can be operated autonomously (via on-board computers) on a predefined flight plan or can be controlled remotely. The most popular of all, Internet of Things (IoT) enables devices to be connected and be remotely monitored or controlled. Next comes robots that automate, augment or assist human activities, autonomously or according to set instructions – often a computer programme.

Besides these, virtual reality (VR) and 3D printing is increasingly finding space in the apparel industry.

134 if INSIGHT Plus-sized clothing to be charged more?

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s it right for a brand to charge more for plus-sized clothing?

This issue has divided opinion over whether or not using more material should lead to higher prices. While some have said it seems perfectly reasonable to charge more for a larger garment, others have labeled it as a fat tax.

Plus-size models feel higher prices are discriminatory and that people don’t choose to be the size they are. If there were to pay extra money for clothes, the subliminal message is that they’d better lose weight.

Brands say it can take twice as much fabric to make the same garment in a larger size. What complicates the issue is that brands don’t charge extra for taller women or lower the price for petite women.

For decades, plus size fashion has been a neglected segment. Oversized, wide and broad are features that are often neglected in fashion, with clothes mostly advertised and sold through slim models. With the rise of e-commerce and dedicated fashion portals, this segment is gradually evolving.

Plus size fashion is no longer confined to boring colors and loose silhouettes. Many brands are helping this evolution by bringing global trends to the segment like cold shoulders, off-shoulders, ripped denims and bright prints, among others.

Global online clothing rental market to reach $1,856 mn by 2023

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s per a Allied Market Research study, global online clothing rental market was valued at $1,013 million in 2017 and is expected to reach $1,856 million by 2023, registering a compound annual growth rate of 10.6 per cent from 2017 to 2023. In 2017, women’s online clothing rental and ethnic wear segments dominated the global market share. Men’s and western clothing segments were anticipated to grow at a robust rate.

Asia-Pacific was estimated to grow at the highest CAGR, at 11.4 per cent, during the period. The market is increasing in developing economies of Asia-Pacific mainly because

of the need for an economical alternative to purchasing, a gradual increase in social acceptance of rental clothes, and an overall increase in sales in the online clothing industry, the report added.

136 e-tail E-commerce on a rise in Tier II and III cities

Inexpensive data plans and smooth connectivity along with safer and easier online cashless transaction apps are driving sales in the e-commerce industry in smaller cities across India. According to consulting firm RedSeer, 19 million more online shoppers are likely to be added in 2018 from Tier II+ cities. In contrast, only four million shoppers will be added from Tier 1 cities.

With the government announcing broader internet plans for rural areas, first-time rural consumers are expected to grow exponentially.

Currently, 56 million digital shoppers from smaller cities and rural areas are online. Retail businesses in Tier II and Tier III cities are increasingly aware of this momentum, resulting in a shift from retail to online business to tap the potential in these areas

Online shoppers to grow by 115 per cent in 2018: ASSOCHAM

As per a recent study, over 120 million Indian consumers are likely to shop online, clocking in annual growth of 115 per cent in 2018. As many as 108 million consumers shopped online in 2017. The consumers’ highlighted cash back guarantee, ability to give cash on delivery, fast delivery, great deals and access to branded products as major motivators to shop online.

The ASSOCHAM-Resurgent joint study projected, over 60-65 per cent of online shoppers may opt for placing their orders on mobile phones from the present 40-45 per cent. As many as 89 per cent consumers covered in the study were heavy users of the internet. The respondents span Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Pune among others.

has just completed her transition. While the initial offering is sparse, the designers have multiple drops planned.

Backed by a strong technical skill in design and manufacturing, Huemn has showcased in the last 13 seasons of Indian fashion

weeks, is constantly seen on influencers all over the world and has won many accolades for their work, including the Vogue India fashion fund 2017.

Every collection of Huemn is heavily influenced by elements around us -- whether it is the socio-political ambience of our times or conversations about gender and identity.

Being a spectator or an armchair activist doesn’t cut it in the times that we live in. So their attempt has always been to reflect the mood of the ‘now’.

HT Media signs £24m deal with Koovs

Flipkart, Amazon and Paytm Mall have been expanding into new sectors, including grocery, and with Walmart’s recent $16 billion acquisition of Flipkart, e-commerce in India is expected to launch more offline retail stores. A combination of factors have contributed to India’s growing ranks of digital buyers, including large investments made by companies like Amazon, Flipkart and Paytm Mall, growing internet and smartphone usage, and demographics—the country’s young population and burgeoning middle class. eMarketer estimates that a quarter of India’s population will become digital shoppers by end of 2018, the figure touching 41.6% by 2022.

Online retail sales to grow by 31 percent

Huemn launches ecom platform with first non-binary section

According to a report by marketing research firm eMarketer, online retail sales in India are expected to grow by 31 per cent this year to touch $32.70 billion, led by e-commerce players Flipkart, Amazon India and Paytm Mall.

Fashion label Huemn has launched an e-commerce platform that, for the first time, features a non-binary section. The clothes on the non-binary section are modelled by Taksh Sharma, a transgender model who

Media company behind the Hindustan Times has signed a £24m deal with fashion retailer Koovs. Under the terms, the company is raising an initial £6 million from existing and potential new shareholders.

HT Media will then provide £16.8 million marketing and advertising services to Koovs in exchange for shares in the company. Koovs has also committed to spending another £7.2 million on further media services from HT Media.

The deal will help boost HT media’s marketing output after it was forced to cut back spending due to a £50 million funding gap. It is also likely to provide significant encouragement to other potential investors.

Koovs raised £22 million in 2014 when it debuted on the London market. But it has struggled to be as profitable as its rivals, posting successive pre-tax losses. The brand made its first move in the UK last year when it sewed up a deal with Simply Be.

138 e-Tail Major Brands plans to increase its online revenues over 3 years

Premier international fashion apparel, accessories and beauty brands retailer Major Brands is stepping up expansion plans to open more stores and grow its online presence. Major Brands could also soon bring lingerie brands Victoria’s Secret and Pink to India. It has been in India since 2001 with 180 stores and is now planning to have over 500 stores in the next 3-3.5 years. Tushar Ved, President, Major Brands says the online revenue is expected to grow from less than 5 per cent currently to over 25-30 per cent of overall revenue in this period. He further added the planned expansion comes on the back of new malls being opened by specialist shopping centre

Online players adopt new technologies to boost business India’s e-commerce scene is exploding.

The number of online shoppers in India is expected to grow 2.5 times by 2022 over 2017. Sensing the lucrative opportunity, retailers are working to improve their offerings, investing in areas such as table stakes like e-commerce platforms and marketing automation (83 per cent apiece) to supply chain management (70 per cent) and mobile commerce capabilities (66 per cent).

operators. Also, online retail market has matured in the last seven years. Previously the company launched shoes and accessories brand ‘Call it Spring’ and two years ago sports shoes and apparel brand New Balance.

The retailer also announced the launch of personal care brand Bath and Body Works, the second brand from its partner company, the US-based L Brands, whose portfolio includes lingerie brands La Senza, Victoria’s Secret and Pink.

Shubrangshu Pani, MD, retail, JLL India says over the last three years, retail mall development has consolidated with a handful of specialist shopping centres operators, who among themselves had close to 10 properties. These mall developers have strong financial partners or funds backing them up and are now opening about 40-50 new properties in the next five years.

include devoting resources to AI and robotics in an effort to trim product return rates, eliminate fraudulent transactions, and reduce spend on logistics. Yet others see AI’s potential to accelerate voice-based shopping, especially where rural and older shoppers—who commonly face language and dialect barriers—are concerned.

Data and analytics are helping some e-commerce firms optimize inventory by keeping stock levels low while improving efficiency and productivity. With the rise of FinTech and a vast amount of private data being hosted online, blockchain and AI are helping companies determine authenticity in multi-party transactions and expedite payment settlement.

Small e-commerce companies fighting to stay ahead

Some firms are going a step further and overhauling their strategies in order to ensure a competitive edge. E-commerce players are investing in the kind of experiential tech that offers an elevated experience for consumers. Examples of these investments

As Amazon and Walmart battle it out for a larger portion of India’s e-commerce market share, small e-commerce are worried about their future. Tech firms are now coming to the rescue of such physical store owners and helping them out with digital technologies.

Snapdeal, which has turned its focus to the mass market, catering to the customers in Tier II and III towns, has witnessed a 40 per cent spike in seller activity which were

previously dipping, leading to 2.5X growth in order volumes, revealed Snapdeal insiders.

On the other hand ShopClues, which has reportedly been shopping around for a buyer, plans to open a pan-India network of experience stores that will showcase its in-house exclusive labels like Digimate, Home Berry and MEIA. In the online world, economics in some segments such as grocery may be even more one-sided.

Anil Kumar, CEO of RedSeer Consulting says smaller firms do not have deep pockets to offer price, convenience, fulfilment at scale, they would necessarily have to offer customers a unique value proposition that the big players do not have, in order to survive.

E-commerce is still only 2 per cent of retail, so there are opportunities for multiple players operating in different segments of the consumer spectrum. All is focussed on the lower-income Bharat consumers who are largely underserved, and that’s a huge opportunity, says Sanjay Sethi, co-Founder and CEO, ShopClues.

Amazon India launches seller lending network

Amazon India has launched its Seller Lending Network (SLN), which will allow sellers on the e-commerce major’s platform to seek loans from multiple third party lenders. Amazon India has partnered organisations like Aditya Birla Finance, Bank of Baroda, Capital First, Capital Float, Flexiloans, and Yes Bank for the lending programme.

With this launch, a seller can perform all loan-related activities including viewing multiple loan offers, applying for loans and easy loan repayments by linking their Amazon sale proceeds to their loan account, all on Amazon’s Seller Central portal.

Amazon India, which is locked in an intense battle for market leadership with homegrown player Flipkart, has about 3.4 lakh sellers on its platform. Under SLN, sellers will get access to a wider selection of loan options

140 e-tail Amazon aims at top spot in fashion retail in India

Amazon is bidding to be the largest fashion store in India in terms of selection.

The US e-commerce giant grew over 90 per cent in both volume and value terms in 2017. The company, over the last one year, has been incorporating technology as well as backend processes it uses in the US. The firm has been making buying experience more interactive by adding new features such as video catalogues for women’s products, higher priced products.

Fashion, one of the most important categories for the company, will be among the first few verticals to have the platform available in various Indian

from multiple lenders and loan types as well as competitive interest rates. They can avail loans via an online application process with minimal documentation and a very quick loan approval process of 2 or 3 days for new loans, and intra-day approval for existing loan renewals through SLN. It also has Lender Central a portal for lenders to facilitate exchange of information between lenders and Amazon. Lender Central will facilitate information about seller performance data, loan application status and loan portfolio details.

Fynd gets new premium domain name

languages. The company plans to provide everything from product descriptions to helpline numbers in as many as seven Indian languages to begin with. The move, it hopes, will help bring in customers from Tier III and smaller towns.

The company also plans to start its own offline experience zones soon.

It is still testing the concept and will run pilots over the next few months. These experience centers will be a mix of online and offline experience and will help users see what is available on Amazon. The company might take these experience zones to Tier-III and the rest of India.

space, however, feel Flipkart’s growth projection seems conservative in light of its acquisition in May by Walmart. Flipkart’s GMV growth has slowed drastically to 11 per cent in 2016-17 from 69 per cent jump in the year before, as the domestic ecommerce industry went through a slump.

Myntra, Jabong to invest $300 million to improve market share

Fynd Co-Founder, Harsh Shah stated the previous domain was causing a lot of conflicts in the minds of customers. Negotiation for acquiring this domain name was on for a year. A typical four-character domain name price ranges from $50 million to $1.5 million, making it a tough fight to put up. He further added, switching to a new domain could boost new search rankings, increase search engine visibility and not lose traffic. Web traffic is vital for business and attracting the right visitors will only help generate qualified leads and drive more sales. Currently, the ratio at which Fynd is growing is impressive there is no barrier to impede Fynd’s growth journey. With Fynd’s latest funding led by Google, the fashion e-commerce portal has got a foremost boost to improve its activities.

By controlling technology and investing in continuous innovations such as the domain name change.

Flipkart expects to treble GMV by 2020-21 In its attempt to avoid confusion amongst customers and attract maximum traffic to its website, Fynd, the unique fashion e-commerce portal, has found new domain name that summons India’s exclusive fashion e-commerce portal, Fynd. It has changed its domain name from gofynd to fynd Obtaining the new domain name has been difficult and a long wait for the company.

projection seems conservative in light of its acquisition in May by Walmart. Flipkart’s GMV growth has slowed drastically to 11 per cent in 2016-17 from 69 per cent jump in the year before, as the domestic ecommerce industry went through a slump.

Some experts tracking the ecommerce

Flipkart expects to triple its gross merchandise value, or gross sales to $17.6 billion in 2020-21.The online marketplace’s gross merchandise value, or gross sales, surged 51 per cent to $6.2 billion in 201718. Amazon India, on the other hand, is expected to reach $17 billion in GMV in 2020 and $23 billion in 2021, according to a May report by Citi Research.

Some experts tracking the ecommerce space, however, feel Flipkart’s growth

The Myntra and Jabong units of Flipkart plan to invest $300 million over the next three years to improve market share. The units also expect to triple their gross merchandise value to $4 billion in three years, from $1.2 billion in fiscal year 2017-18. The retailers intend to triple their combined customer base and improve their share of the domestic online fashion market to 50 per cent from an estimated 35 per cent now.

Myntra and Jabong had garnered 500,000 new customers in their recently concluded flagship sale End of Reason Sale (EORS).

The fashion units also plan to launch 100 offline stores over the next two years in a bid to become profitable. Myntra acquired Jabong in July 2016. They expect to become Ebitda positive in the next three years. Experts tracking online fashion space believe private labels, offline stores and franchise stores will improve their turnover.

142 e-Tail Snapdeal plans to increase seller base with instant seller sign up

Ecommerce companies are increasingly exploring different avenues that can be transacted online. Snapdeal has been working towards onboarding sellers from different fields. The company is looking to increase its seller base in the country by offering them a seamless on boarding process through its Instant Seller Sign-up feature.

Snapdeal has been seeing a decrease in business with lessening in both seller and customer base. The company is looking at inventive ways to recover its fortunes and hoping this move will help on board new sellers on the platform. Snapdeal looks at seller experience being a key parameter to track. With this automation, the time taken

Flipkart to rebrand itself Flipkart’s fashion business aims to grow its sales by 60-65 per cent this financial year and touch $1.7 billion in terms of gross merchandise value (GMV) by March 2019.

The e-commerce company has undertaken a rebranding exercise as part of a broader strategy to stand out as a premier online fashion destination and help differentiate it from other online retailers.

Since 2012, Flipkart has aimed to be a mass-market player, catering to all sections of online shoppers across big and small cities. Its acquisition of Myntra in 2014 further helped boost its position as the leading online fashion retailer in the country. The e-tailer also kept the Myntra brand alive as it catered to a premium section of buyers, selling more expensive fashion. Now, Flipkart aims to apart as a premium fashion player, with its new rebranding project to make itself a so-called online fashion capital.

for seller sign-up will reduce from 28 hours to less than a minute. New sellers can now start their sales on Snapdeal within 10 minutes of sign up.

Snapdeal being a genuine marketplace does not hold any record or endorse its own private labels. By instant seller sign up it will assure all sellers have a level playing on Snapdeal. This newest initiative will speed up the on boarding process for sellers on Snapdeal and will provide new sellers a swift and seamless start to their digital commerce endeavors.

For 2017 fiscal the company incurred a net loss of Rs 4,647crore. It also saw its total income decrease by 12.6 per cent to a total of Rs 1,291 crore.

month over the last couple of years. The mobile app enables sellers across India to sell online seamlessly within minutes by providing end to end order processing, inventory management, pan-India logistics (including cash on delivery), payment support, and a wide-range of supply.

Established merchants, as well as budding entrepreneurs including housewives, college students and young graduates, can put up their own products or resell from an extensive range of products available on the supply platform. Small and medium businesses going online could boost the country’s growth by ten percentage points to 48 per cent by 2020.

Ayesha Accessories plans to focus on expanding e-commerce platform Ayesha Accessories recently plans to reinforce their MBO network along with adding five more EBOs by end of this fiscal while working aggressively on their own e-commerce channel. Along with adding more EBOs in addition to their 19 stores and 90 SISs the brand will expand majorly through SIS formats and e-commerce channels.

Ayesha Accessories recently opened 3000

Online marketplace Shop 101 raises $5million funding

Online marketplace Shop 101 has raised $5 million in series A funding led

by Stellaris Venture Partners. Shop 101, enables entrepreneurs to sell online using Whatsapp, Facebook and Instagram, and now it plans to utilise the capital to strengthen its core leadership and product team, scale the supplier network and enhance its technology platform.

The Mumbai-based startup has already empowered 3,00,000 entrepreneurs and currently has 100,000 applications download on Playstore. Its vision is to democratize e-commerce by empowering entrepreneurs and small merchants to launch their own online store as well as sell on WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and other social channels with a few clicks.

Shop 101 has grown 25 to 30 per cent

sqft, spread across three levels, flagship store along with their new cafĂŠ outlet, Cafe Py. Jacquelin Kapoor, CEO, Ayesha Accessories says at present the brand has 90 MBOs with Central, Shoppers Stop and Project Eve and 19 standalone stores. It always wanted to have flagship store along with the new F&B entity, Cafe Py. The brand has introduced some DIY services in the space to connect to the young travellerswhich the company caters to. From business perspective, it has grown 200 per cent from online, currently they are working on e-commerce site along with retailing via all leading online trading channels.

144 Fashion Post Reliance picks up stake in menswear label by Raghavendra Rathore

Reliance Brands, a part of Reliance Industries along with Italian luxury group Ermenegildo Zegna have picked up an equity stake in homegrown fashion

designer Raghavendra Rathore. The deal is the first such investment by a global luxury brand in a domestic fashion label.

Both the designer and the fashion house will expand the Indian luxury label in an effort to attract new customers. The development signals a wide untapped opportunity of growth for the domestic fashion industry at the premium end.

Zegna is retailed in India through three stores run by Reliance Brands.

Rathod, the Indian menswear designer famous for his Jodhpuri Bandhgalas — currently has seven standalone stores in India. The affinity synergies between his brand and Zegna, as well as the expertise which comes from Reliance, convinced him to opt for the strategic investment. Some of the other Indian designers to have raised institutional funds include House of Anita Dongre, Satya Paul and Ritu Kumar. While these fashion designers fall in the premium category, Rathod’s label is categorised as luxury.

Shyamal and Bhumika aim to focus on markets abroad For renowned designers Shyamal and Bhumika Shodhan, the journey has mattered more than the destination. Now the designers plan to reach out to more brides in India and abroad. The designer couple aim to take Indian crafts and skills to the world as

ALL collaborates with Narendra Kumar for ‘aLL Primero’ collection After two phenomenally successful seasons, aLL – The Plus Size Store is back with its third season at Lakme Fashion Week Winter/ Festive 2018. The Plus Size Model auditions will take place on July 5 in Mumbai at The St. Regis, Lower Parel.

It will be dream come true to all winners at the audition as they will then get to put their best foot forward and walk on the Lakme Fashion Week runway. aLL –The Plus Size Store is collaborating with ace designer Narendra Kumar to design aLL PRIMERO’ Collection, part of their Autumn Winter’18 Collection which will be showcased with a plus size fashion show at the upcoming Lakme Fashion Week Winter/Festive 2018.

The auditions will be judged by an eminent panel including actress Zareen Khan, designer

Lakme Fashion Week Festive Winter edition in August The 38th season of lakme Fashion Week (lFW) Winter/Festive 2018 edition will start from August 22. The five-day fashion extravaganza will take place at St. Regis hotel.

The show completely aims to support new talent and introduce inclusive platforms and addresses the insatiable fashion palate of its patrons.

Ashwath Swaminathan, Head of Innovations at Lakme stated that the Lakme Fashion Week has always brought together the best of both beauty and fashion. Winter/ Festive 2018 will showcase the latest trends and concepts in fashion and beauty. It promises to be yet another exciting season.

From its beginning Lakme Fashion Week has presented the best of fashion and showcased exceptional talent and skill from the industry and the upcoming season will continue to bring forth new fashion ideas, along with a focus towards making the platform more inclusive, sustainable and global in its outlook, says Jaspreet Chandok, Head-Fashion, IMG Reliance.

distinctive to the table, the mix of sensibilities, applications and visions stem interesting options for all to choose from.

they feel India has been the textile hub of the world for time immemorial.

The brand opened their third flagship store at the DLF Emporio in New Delhi and is planning to grow in the international fashion sector. Since its inception in 2000, the brand Shyamal and Bhumika has gained global fame for its intricate style and elegant collections. What distinctly defines this talented duo is their commitment towards reviving Indian crafts.

The collections are created to appeal to not only the Indian brides but also incorporate boundaries to bring in the multicultural global bride. Each designer brings something

146 Fashion Post Designer Ruchika Sachdeva wins Woolmark prize

Designer Ruchika Sachdeva feels her job is to provide a distinct point of view on global fashion. Her label Bodice Studio is about transcending trends and creating globally relevant clothing that draws on its Indian roots. The brand’s vision is to incorporate traditional hand weaving and surface ornamentation techniques and showcase how the rich tradition of Indian textiles can find expression in cutting-edge fashion.

She is the winner of the 2017-18 International Woolmark Prize (IWP) womenswear

category. The IWP-winning collection, will be available in store from this month via the International Wolmark Prize retail partner network. There are bomber jackets, sleeveless coats, box pleated dresses and easy overlap tie pants. All are made from different weights of wool in a color palette inspired by mid-twentieth century artist Tyeb Mehta.

The collection also incorporates kantha, traditionally used by women in Bengal to stitch together old saris into quilts. Traditional beliefs hold that the quilts are auspicious and will help protect the newborns wrapped in them through imparting the bonds of love between mothers, grandmothers and aunts that are stitched into the fabric, quite literally.

Sachdeva, after graduating from the London College of Fashion, moved to India to set up her own label.

textile production. NBC Sustain is committed to reviving and creating marketing solutions for indigenous crafts and tradition, believing this can change the landscape of fashion in India and abroad. He says it would take 10 seasons to transform the fashion industry and make it more sustainable than its current situation.

Designer Naushad Ali to exhibit at London Fashion Week next February

Narendra Kumar, Hetal Kotak-CEO, aLL – The Plus Size Store, Lubna Adam- Fashion choreographer and Jaspreet Chandok – Vice President and Head of Fashion, IMG Reliance.

Nitin Bal Chauhan endorses sustainable fashion with new line Nitin Bal Chauhan is promoting sustainable fashion with his new line, NBC Sustain.

Chauhan is also set to launch a flagship store in New Delhi this month. The idea behind NBC Sustain is to make handmade products. The store, Chauhan says, is for socially-conscious independent women from all walks of life and will be located in Ambawata One, Mehrauli.

Chauhan says modest fashion and sustainability it will be the focal point of his work. The main objective is to improve the quality of raw materials, design and production and market it well. His collection includes hand printing and dying techniques like shibori, tie-dye, batik etc. The designer works with man-made natural fibres like modal, bamboo silk, pineapple fibres, and organic cotton.

Besides working with sustainable weavers in Himachal Pradesh, he is creating marketing and design solutions for craft clusters in the region to promote sustainable

Indian designer Naushad Ali is set to exhibit at the International Fashion Showcase (IFS) at London Fashion Week 2019 through IMG Reliance. Ali has been selected as one of the 16 finalists for the first edition of IFS biennale at London Fashion Week in 2019 -- from February 11 to 25 -- along with a designer residency in 2018 supported by London College of Fashion and Somerset House.

IFS nurtures and presents work from upand-coming fashion talent from around the world. The biennial fashion presentation is a partnership between the British Council, British Fashion Council, London College of Fashion, UAL and Somerset House.

For London Fashion Week February 2019, the showcase has a new format. For the first time, 16 selected designers from across the globe will showcase a series of compelling installations to represent their respective country.

Ali is a designer with minimalist inclinations.

He believes in revisiting designs to adapt more than to add. He has a deep love for Indian traditions and crafts, creating designs that bring together modern cuts and heritage fabrics.

148 Fashion Post Sabyasachi Mukherjee expands wedding collection at Lane Crawford, Hong Kong

Known for his richly hued and deeply overstated traditional wear and the most trusted-designer for brides, Sabyasachi Mukherjee has expanded his global reach with an international wedding line for his second exclusive capsule collection for the multi brand Hong Kong store Lane Crawford.

Inspired by the 1920s, the line of wedding wear includes wedding dresses, dinner dresses, and veils among other offerings.

The garments, although white, are covered in Mukherjee’s signature embellishments,

Bodice Studio’s collection to be launched in July India-based label Bodice Studio’s innovative capsule collection, that won the 2017-18 International Woolmark Prize will be launched into world’s leading boutiques in July 2018, via the International Woolmark Prize retail partner network. Pieces of the limited-edition collection, designed by Ruchika Sachdeva will also be available online on Farfetch and Mytheresa as well as Boutique 1 (London and Dubai), Takashimaya (Tokyo), Tata CLiQ Luxury (India), Parlour X (Sydney) and David Jones (Sydney).

The collection draws inspirations from many sources such as colours of expressionist artist Tyeb Mehta who developed a visual language to reflect the spwirit of newly independent India. For the silhouettes, inspiration was drawn from the swirling costumes of nautch dancers, who were highly educated, independent women, part of the refined Mughal culture of music and dance during the 18th and 19th centuries.

All of these inspirations build on the studio’s foundation of slow fashion designed for longevity and the non-conformist individual.

The collection amalgamates natural materials such as virgin wool, plant dyes and Ayurvedic herbs with cutting edge technology.

Odisha handloom enters the international stage With many fashion events being organized, Odisha is slowly developing into a fashion hub promoting talent in the handloom industry on a world platform. Many designers

coupled with the collection’s simple and modern tailoring, creates a mix of East and West bridal aesthetics. Mukherjee says he wanted to create a robust business in India, focusing mainly on ethnic Indian clothing and he introduces the first ever white wedding line by Sabyasachi at Lane Crawford, Hong Kong.

Mukherjee had designed his first collection for Hong Kong’s Lane Crawford boutique in 2017. The collection was inspired by global travel and was a more western wear orientated take on his classic opulent traditional wear.

from Odisha have showcased their designs at the national and international levels such as India Fashion Week and Lakme Fashion Week. Odisha fabrics are creating ripples in India and abroad. From Sambalpuri, Berhampuri, Bomkai to tribal saris and drapes, Odisha fashion was not represented properly earlier but now a new wave of designers like Bibhu Mohapatra, Pritam Panda, Pankaja Sethi and others have gone international and found a place on the global fashion map.

Fashion institutes such as NIFT have played an important role with the help of a new pool of talent, who are eager to join the industry. There is no point in comparing Odisha with other states at this point, says designer Pritam Panda. Odisha fashion scenario is still at a nascent stage compared to some other states. But in recent times more and more fashion shows and fashion tours such as the Bhubaneswar Fashion Week are being organised.

Designer accuses Sanjay Garg of copying Designer Vaishali Shadangule has accused Sanjay Garg, Raw Mango of copying a sari design, which was a part of her collection showcased at a fashion week in Delhi in 2012. The white and silver sari with a linear design pattern was worn by Vaishali as she came on ramp at the end of her show. She says that she came across the design when one of her clients sent her a message about finding the same design as hers on Raw Mango’s social media page.

She sent Garg a mail informing him that

a sari on his social media page was a copy of her design. He says the collection, titled Grid, was launched digitally on his Instagram handle on April 27 this year, before entering retail stores, and has been inspired by the monochromatic works of Nasreen Mohamedi. Nadiah – the sari being discussed – is one of the design collection.

He says geometrical patterns can look similar and that his team has created four color variations of the sari in question, in different techniques. He insists the naked eye can easily spot the difference between Nadiah and any other designer’s creation and that the shapes in Nadiah are connected by a running line that runs from end to end of the design.

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152 tech trend

Blackberrys moves to Ivalua to streamline supply chain

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lackberrys is counted among the top men’s suit brands in India for its unique range. With growing clientele, it has sustained its position among the top three domestic menswear brands in India (and the first to introduce off-the-peg suits). It operates in all retail formats panIndian viz. multi-brand outlets, ecommerce and large format branded stores carrying its three range of menswear: Mainline, Urban and Casual. Incepted in 1991 in the bylanes of Chandni Chowk, New Delhi, under the leadership of the Mohan brothers. Today, Blackberrys is a one stop shop for every man’s wardrobe needs with 217 exclusive stores across 115 cities.

Relying on technology to boost growth Talking about the brand’s tech evolution, Hemant Gupta, CFO, Blackberrys says the company has been always been tech savvy. When it came to enhancing store experience, it readily moved to IT partners such as Ivalua. With annual spend of $100 million, Blackberrys introduced Ivalua in 2016 across six of it’s spend categories: new store projects, packaging, gifting & events, visual merchandise, contract labour & it infra and trade purchases. By taking this process online, they were able to achieve centralisation of data, further develop supplier database and receive reports from the system to properly monitor spend. For procurement, it offers a fair and transparent process when selecting a particular vendor because everything is now online with e-sourcing.

For the company, cost-cutting is no longer the solution for sustainable profitability; the key to success is finding creative ways to

optimise it. With a total annual spend of $9.8 million in 2016 and $19.5 million in 2017, after the introduction of Ivalua’s solution, the company has been able to achieve year on year savings of 14.3 per cent in 2016 and 10.8 per cent in 2017.

The most important achievement in the process has been to bring the purchase of raw materials for apparel manufacture – fabric, interlining and buttons – and the quality parameters expected from historical vendors, into the online space: With certain kinds of base articles, they need to ensure these are NOS (never out of stock) as they

work towards two seasons – autumn/winter and spring/summer. Whenever a customer visits a store, around 20-25 per cent of its merchandise, which features in the mainline range, are always available in store.

Blackberrys has been able to identify certain vendors to deliver those base fabrics and trims so that it can reduce down procurement costs from its historical higher levels.

Blackberrys operate on a production cycle of 120 days, so whatever it is planning for each season requires three to four months to build up that stock. Around 60 per cent of the merchandise is needed in one go to launch a new season range and feature stock across all its stores – to manage that supply chain efficiently is key to avoid blocking its working capital and mitigate against increasing administration costs in warehouse management.

Seeing substantial results, next step for the company will be to expand the adoption of Ivalua solutions. This year, they plan to introduce procurement to purchase order to achieve end to end tracking of what services have been awarded to suppliers. The dynamics of the supply chain requirements for retail are changing daily. In that scenario, they are open to further enhancing digital capability for strategic sourcing.

154 tech trend

Predictive Analytic tools helping brands/retailers stay ahead in fashion

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ith designer labels filling up consumer’s wardrobes and fashion changing at lightning speed, the attention span of consumers is less than that of a goldfish. Given this scenario, designing clothes that last beyond the next week seems foolish. Therefore, to help designers traverse through the fashion landscape with solid direction, tech companies are using predictive analytics.

A long tradition While outwardly, predictive analytics may appear to be antithetical to creativity; design houses, manufacturers, and retailers have always engaged in analysis, albeit perhaps not in a formal sense. Reviewing what has sold well previously, researching the history of a brand to inform future styles and staying on top of things like color trends are all basic analytics that have always being used

by designer teams and merchandisers.

However, the newer role of data is meant to give more developed insight into what consumers want.

‘Edited’ is a retail technology company that helps retailers and brands around the world ensure they have the right product at the right time for the right price. Among other things, it creates dashboards where executives can compare their own successes and failures from the previous season, and that of their competitors. Planning toolkits also help companies set up trend parameters, identify key growth areas, and the subcategories that drove that business.

Use of smart apps Use of data can help brands develop a closer relationship with their customer. As per a Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ Survey, nearly half (46 per cent) of all consumers would like apparel brands and retailers to use information from their purchase history to personalise their shopping experience, Additionally, 46 per cent consumers wish apparel brands and retailers knew more about what they like and how they shop. And more than

one-third would like brands and retailers to focus more on local trends and styles in their cities.

Data can be a guide when a designer feels creatively stifled or when his team feels that the data is pointing out something new and different which they should try, even if that’s not the case. The study points out, nearly 40 per cent of consumers use apparel brand and retailer apps on their smartphones or computers to shop online or in-store. And 54 per cent consumers are more likely to buy clothes from a store that offers personal clothing collections based on previous purchase history and preferences.

No guessing games This is the type of data that brands and merchandisers can mine for future collections. According to Tableau Software fashion retailers are using embedded analytics to validate orders for certain styles, size, and color to avoid incurring additional manufacturing costs for small production run sizes. Fashion Snoops is another forecasting agency that works with companies to act on future trends.

Their perspective is to understand how the consumer lives, what they eat, what kind of music they listen to, where they travel. All this sets the tone and intention on product that will serve and resonate with them. The company also identifies cultural macro and micro trends using news articles and social media. They follow the trends throughout the year and then help inspire design themes based on that. This includes color, texture, shape, and material. For brands and retailers, having these various data points will help take the guesswork out of how best to reach consumers.

156 BRAND STORIES Bad Boys

Banana Baby

Apoorva Khandhar, Owner

The Brand Operational for the last five to six years, Banana Baby focuses on quality of products. The brand always chooses the best materials right from fabric to cotton. It generally uses cotton, hosiery cotton, muslin, velvet and net. Most of the raw material is procured from Mumbai, Korea, Thailand and China. The brand has its own manufacturing unit with a production capacity of 10,000 pieces a month. It is not season oriented and has smooth business throughout the year with a gross turnover of approximately Rs 2-3 crores.

Retail Spread The brand based in Mumbai, as a wholesaler, works with over 350 retailers on a pan India level. They are prominently operational in Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune, Kolhapur, Surat, Ahmedabad, Indore, Jharkhand, Lucknow, Assam and Orissa.

Implementation of GST Although it will take some time for the fashion sector to understand the pros and cons of GST, the tax will make everything transparent with the unorganised market getting stream lined. The brand looks forward to having a good business year. The festival season is expected to boost business by 20 per cent to 30 per cent.

Urban Race The Brand Starting its journey in Ahmedabad in 1992, Bad Boys has been manufacturing bottomwear for boys for the last 25 years. The garments are mostly made in cotton and denim. Denim is procured from Raymond and cotton is procured from local mills.

Colored cotton too is procured from local mills. In denim there are different washes for different look, design and style. Around 20 to 25 per cent fabric is imported from China. Metal and leather accessories are also imported from China with the brand name on it.

Upcoming Collection The Bad Boy’s winter collection mostly uses dark colors as they are in fashion during winter. The fabric garments is majorly hosiery denim which is extremely light weight and comfortable for children. The brand targets 3 to 14 year old boys and the price points vary between Rs 1000 to Rs. 2,000.

Retail Presence The brand engages distributors state wise, who are connected to MBO’s. They are engaged with about 200 MBO’s and 15-20 LFS. The brand has a presence in around 12 states and is still expanding. It is majorly present in Northern region like Delhi, UP, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka and plans to venture into Kerala, West Bengal and Bihar soon.

The GST impact The introduction of GST smoothened business tactics. Business today, is more transparent and hassle free. The unorganised sector too is settling down creating healthy competition in the market. The market upheaval due to GST did have its impact on business, however now it seems to be rolling back and with the festive season not far away a boom is expected. As a brand, Bad Boys is looking forward to at least a 20 per cent growth by the end of this financial year.

Manish Kapoor, Owner

The Brand A manufacturer of casual shirts since 2015, Urban Race offers a huge range that includes solids, checks, designer to denims. The brand recently launched a short kurta which has generated a huge response.

Since the designing is done in house, the brand has two production units in Indore with a capacity of 20,000 pieces per month. It has an annual turnover approximately of Rs 10 crore and is looking to 25 per cent growth this fiscal as the market seems good.

Collection This season, the brand used vibrant colors keeping in mind the upcoming festive season. The collection showcases a great variation in design in plain, and different washes for denim. The prices garments are affordable with the range starting from Rs 999 to Rs 1,499. The target is 20 to 45 years olds as this age group likes experiencing new trend and are open to fashion.

Retail Spread Urban Race recently stepped into the MBO format and deals with approximately 500 MBO’s. The brand also deals with store chains and is present in states like Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh Delhi and Haryana. Kapoor feels GST has organised previously disorganised market compelling players in this segment to pay taxes, leading to a healthy competition. The demand for quality goods is growing, with the market picking up.

158 Brand stories dearly Mr Arvind Director The Brand Incepted in 1995 to cater to the growing demand for kids’ wear in the age group four to five years, Mumvai-based brand Dearly, by Fashion Forcast is a leading manufacturer and supplier of kids garments including shirts , T-shirts, pants.

Nearly 99 per cent of the garments are made from cotton. The colors are determined on the basis of market trends.

The collecTion The latest collection includes embroidered garments. These are available in all sizes from one year old kids onwards. The brand manufactures around 13,000-14,000 garments in a month that are sold through distribution centres across India.

reTail spread Since Dearly does not have an EBO, the brand is are sold in all leading MBOs across India. Targeted at higher middle class, these garments start from Rs 200 and goes upto Rs 1,000.

BlUff Harsh Mansukh Chera, Owner

The Brand Established in 1992, Bluff started operations by manufacturing terry rayon trousers, and has, since the last two years, also started manufacturing shirts. The brand added the pathani and kurti segment in 2017. The brand majorly deals in printed semi club wear shirts club wear shirts, pathani and kurtas , symmetrical kurtas, terry rayon trousers, cotton trousers and corduroy trousers. It has five units with a production capacity of about 5,000 to 6,000 pieces a month.

collecTion For upcoming winter season Bluff will introduce asymmetrical kurtis and shirts. Its premium range of shirts will be available in prints such as Astrik, polka dots, floral and digital prints, Lycra and satin. The trousers will be in stripes. The color pallet for shirts will include the usual colors but the trousers will be available in pastel shades. The fabrics, for shirts, will include synthetic fabric, cotton based, linen based, imported fabrics, corduroy and terry rayon fabrics etc. Though most of this fabric is sourced from India, some has been procured from China.

This is generally used for patch work, matching and additional touch ups. The trousers will be made using cotton, terry rayon and corduroy procured mostly from China. The price points of shirts vary between Rs 999 to Rs. 2,900, the trousers are available in the range of Rs.1, 099 to 3, 000 while pathani are available from Rs. 2,500 to Rs.3,500.

reTail spread The brand deals with a large number of retailers and also plans to starts its own portal by 2019.

AUTUMN/WINTER 2018

T - S H I R T , S W E A T S H I R T , T R A C K S H I R T

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160 Brand stories J.K. eThnics

ripples

Mohammad Jakir Hussain

Reemkaara Gada

Proprietor

Director

(gUlaB garmenTs)

The Brand Incepted in 2,000 by Mohammad Jakir Hussain, Proprietor, JK Ethnics deals exclusively in boys’ ethnic wear like coat suit, jacket suit ,pathani, Indo-western, etc. Production is done inhouse. The brand has nine production units with a capacity of 2,000 pieces per day. It uses innovative fabrics such as Linova and Korean Nachka sourced from China and Korea.

Indian fabrics such as TR, silk and cotton are also used. The price points of these garments vary from Rs 700 to Rs 3,000.

collecTion The brand offers a splashing range for boys, designed in special and bright colors. The range includes regular wear, ethnic wear and Indo western wear. The whole collection is a splash of colours with quality, finish and reasonable rates. It will be displayed at the CMAI Fair in Hall No.4 in Shop No 907.

reTail spread J K Ethnics has made its presence felt across India and internationally in Dubai, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and America. The brand caters to over 500 retailers but is not interested in online retail or LFS format as it doesn’t suit their business.

The Brand Established in 1993, Ripples offers bottomwear for men only.

The product basket includes formal, trousers, denim and basic denim. The brand mainly targets middle aged men and young boys. Customers encompass both students and the working class. This year, the brand targets Indian audience as today’s generation is fashion conscious. The garments are manufactured in house right from designing to packing.

collecTion The latest collection includes denim and cotton prints, ankle length cotton trousers, club wear and beach wear. Sophisticated and timely, the collection also offers basic denims in fancy, straight, and narrow fits. The fabrics are sourced from the best mills of India as quality and comfort are topmost priority of the brand. Prices are affordable and start from Rs 850 onwards.

reTail spread The brand caters to about 150-200 MBOs in Maharashtra alone. It wishes to make its brand presence felt pan India in the next three months .The brand already has a strong presence in Gulf. It now intends to be recognised as a brand with values.

162 BRAND STORIES Texas Jeans

carPenTer Jeans

Tanuj Tulsiyan Director

Meeta Singh CEO The Brand A quality oriented manufacturing Unit, Gauri Shaki Fashions has been manufacturing denims for the past 10 years. Known in the market as Carpenter Jeans, the brand mainly offers denim jeans. The company has over 10 years of experience in the manufacturing of jeans. Present in around 12 states of India, the main customers of Carpenter Jeans include Chunmun, Wardrobe, Capital Garment,etc .

ProducTion uniT The brand has a manufacturing unit in Karnal, Delhi-NCR and a warehouse in Central Delhi. “Our unit is equipped with all the necessary machinery and workforce like skilled tailors, designer, cutters, Pattern-makers, quality checkers. With a fully equipped production unit, we produce high quality garments in order to meet the industry standards. Our present capacity is 15,00017,000 garments a month. The units also have a mess and hostel facilities for the staff and labourers, “says Meeta Singh, CEO.

QualiTY assurance Quality is the most important factor in our organisation, states Singh. “We therefore observe stringent quality standards right from procurement of raw material till the delivery of the final product delivered to Our Valuable Customers.

Our quality controllers study the changing trends and impl ement new ideas in our production unit, “he adds.

warehouse “We have established a good warehousing and packaging unit in a spacious area,” informs Singh. The unit, managed by experienced unit members, is segregated to accommodate various items on the basis of size and specification.

The Brand Texas Jeans started in 1992 makes jeans, shirts, shorts, casual trousers. It is into fashionable and aesthetic clothing for men 16 to 61 years. Since corporates allow employees to wear denim, the color and fit and feel of the cloth gives the look of trousers and comfort of denim. The brand has a huge presence in almost 15 states with more than 800 MBOs. It also has EBOs in about seven states, some are Orissa, Maharashtra and Kerala. Plans are to expand in Northeast India. The monthly manufacturing capacity is 20,000 pieces.

new collecTion For this season, Texas Jeans is coming up with subtle shades in hues of olive, grey, beige and blue. The brand is coming up with ankle fit denims, which are shirt length denims. There are a few new designs and easy fit denims. Texas Jeans is also introducing denim shirts for the upcoming season. These have variations in color with blues and with different washes like cloud wash, scrap spray, Dx wash, ice, tone and indigos. The fabric for shirts is more into checks and florals.

Hotel Orchid Room No. 257

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Hotel Orchid Room No. 257

d a p u r,

164 BRAND STORIES

horiZon The Brand

The collecTion

Horizon opened in 2007 and offers T-shirts and shirts. The target group is men 20 to 60 years. The brand has a range of chic and casual shirts. The production capacity is about 1,500 shirts and 5,000 T-shirts a day. Horizon sells pan India and is strong in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi etc. In the retail space, the brand caters to about 600 retailers and about 20 distributors

The new collection will have indigo, denim, cotton and Lycra shirts. There will be more of checks, and bold stripes in basic styling. Casual shirts for men offer not just style and comfort but a blend of glamour, trend and sophistication for a distinct and sharp look. With fresh and new styles produced every season, the range of shirts does meets the tastes of men in terms of fashion and style.

Karim Lalani , Mitesh Ojha Directors

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H o u s e N o : 8 1 , K h e s r a N o . 4 3 7 , 3 r d F l o o r, B l o c k - W Z , To d a p u r, New Delhi. Mob : 91-9350584947 / 9650775666 E-mail : carpenterjeans@gmail.com

166 BRAND STORIES

Perfitalia

Hammad Rehab Proprietor

The Brand

Brand Mission

Italy-based Perfitalia does lounge wear, sportswear and casual wear. This includes sports T-shirts, polo T-shirts, jackets, sweat shirts, hoodies, light jackets, joggers with buttons and capris.

Italian fashion since the beginning has long been synonymous with masterful tailoring, rich history, impeccable style and grand tradition. That’s where Perfitalia comes in. Fabrics used are polyester cotton, polyester and Lycra. The production capacity is 70,000 to 80,000 pieces a season. The brand caters to more than 90 MBOs and is planning expansion in the near future.

Perfitalia believes in the philosophy of instilling a sense of attitude that stands for perfection and innovation for athletes everywhere through its apparels. Its products are dedicated to heroes who live with a “never give up” attitude and have extreme zeal. From runners who run for leisure, to fitness freaks who take their every single workout to a new level and to professional athletes who play the game at the highest level, the brand lets each of them find their true rhythm.

168 BRAND STORIES Lekha Advertising and Marketing Vipin Mom Managing Director

The brand

Dedicated workforce

Lekha Advertisement and Marketing, established in 1996, is a 27-year-old accessory manufacturing company. A top player amongst the newspaper advertising agencies, this Delhi-based company, is a one-stop destination servicing both local and customers from other parts of Delhi.

Over the course of its journey, Lekha has established a firm foothold in its industry. Its belief that customer satisfaction is as important as their products and services has helped the brand garner a vast base of customers, which continues to grow by the day. The brand employs dedicated individuals who put in a lot of effort to achieve the common vision and larger goals of the company. In the near future, Lekha aims to expand its line of products and services to cater to a larger client base.

The products Lekha Advertisement and Marketing offers a wide range of products and services that cater to the varied requirements of its customers. It mainly deals in digital printing and multimedia work. The company’s garment accessory unit deals in all types of metals accessories like hooks, buttons, zips, etc along with leather and other labels mported from China. This company has been associated with all leading brands of the country.

We are renowned manufacturers of mannequins and dressforms

F. Y. Trading Corporation.

MANNEQUINS & DRESSFORMS

310, Adhyaru Indl. Estate, Sun Mill Compound, Lower Parel, Mumbai - 400013.

Mob: 9820282621 / 9820588570 Ph: 022 24941618

E mail: doshianandk@gmail.com

170 BRAND STORIES aPPle eYe

aTaM associaTes

Varun More Director

Manikant Jain Owner The Brand Atam Associates deals in garment accessories, labels, hand tags and buttons. The labels are made of different fabric and metals like cotton , rayon, leather. The raw material is majorly from India but some are imported and the metal labels come from China. The brand has introduced the latest technology for leather labels and tags and caters to almost 300 brands.

Atam has three manufacturing unit, each producing a particular material label. The woven labels are manufactured in Himachal Pradesh. The tags are manufactured in Haryana and the leather labels are manufactured in Delhi. The brand enjoys a pan India presence and has a strong prominence in Delhi, Ludhiana, Pune and Maharashtra.

Business ProsPecTs Many new brands have emerged but are not able to sustain because of the challenging market which is witnessing strong brands’ winding up. This does not bother Atam as the brand is diversified and well equipped to face challenges. The brand hopes that the season will be good with the festive season at the door.

The Brand The Kolkata-based brand was launched as the kidwear already constituted around 60 per cent of the total export market and offered immense scope. The market was thus more viable and competitive. As the consumption of kidswear is always greater than both menswear and womenswear; it was the most suitable segment to start with.

The collecTion The brand has an entire collection for new borns and casuals; The color pellet keeps changing with every season. For this season, the brand uses lot of tropical and cool colors. Its USP is the urban wear, designed at par with international brand but at affordable prices.

The brand has its own manufacturing units in Kolkata and Tirpur.

The fabric used for the product is majorly cotton. Jerseys are made in knitted garment; the denims are available in interlocks.

Denims are procured from Arvind Mills while cotton is sourced from Mumbai.

reTail Presence The brand deals with about 2000 MBOs. It also has 8 EBOs and intends to add another 4 EBO’s before the festivals. The brand is strongly present in the North, South and West markets.

172 BRAND STORIES Shakti Pant Fixer

Lil Tomatoes

Nitin Sachdev Proprietor

Sanjay Goel Proprietor

The Brand Lil Tomatoes came into existence in 1995. The brand offers t-shirts,capris denims,blazers,jackets and sweat shirts for boys aged between 2 to 16 years. These garments are made in knitted cotton,lycra,jerseys,fleece and fancy fabrics. The raw material for these is procured mostly from Mumbai, Ludhiana, Delhi and China.

The brand owns two manufacturing units with a production capacity of about 40,000 pieces a month. Its t-shirts are available in the range of Rs 300 to Rs 600, denims in the range of Rs 700 to Rs 1,200, capris Rs 400 to Rs 600 and sweat shirts between Rs 500 to Rs 800.

The brand Shakti Pant Fixer has been a hooks and eye manufacturer since 1977. The only product manufactured is hooks and bars. The company which used only five designs once has now improvised and innovated 35 more designs. The metals used for production are brass, steel and iron. Raw materials are from India and China.

The company hopes to grow and be recognized all over India.

It is driven by market and advertising and sampling. It gets information through magazines and online. It also does surveys to know the market trends. Compared to last year the market is much slower but the Kolkata market is picking up on business.

Cute Little Fashions Rajesh Kasat Director The Brand Cute Little Fashions was incepted around 35 years ago. The brand mainly offers baba suits for 9 months to 8 years. Its manufacturing unit, with a turnover of Rs 10 crore, is located in Kolkata. It manufactures around 1.5 lakh garments per year.

The price range of garments, marketed across India, is Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,600.

New Collection The latest collection includes the kurta pattern. These are made using knitted patterns. Earlier party wear was in vogue but these days comfort wear is stressed upon. Customers prefer neat, clean and sober clothes. The garments are made in bright colours like red and mustard. Made with mercerised fabrics, these garments are distributed across all leading MBOs and retail outlets across India.

Future Plans With rising standard of living and education, knowledge of fabrics and fashion is increasing. Customers today demand innovative materials like mercerised cotton. As the purchasing capacity of customers is decreasing, the brand aims to maintain its turnover before venturing into expansion of operations.

The Collection The brand welcomes the upcoming festive season with aspirational designs in bright yellow and maroon. As far as styling is concerned, the brand focuses on AOP graphics, cut any at least sew, high density prints for essential wear and for blazers and Nehru jackets. Adding a few more items in boys capris and shorts in woven fabric, the brand covers nearly 95 per cent of a boy needs..

Retail network The brand is present in about 50 large format stores across India and is also present in MBO�s in NCR and Haryana. The brand plans to expand by at least 30 MBOs by the end of 2018.

174 BRAND STORIES

Aeromen Mohan Prajapatti MD Aeromen is a prominent men’s wear brand from the house of ‘M.K. Enterprises’ which is owned by Mohan Prajapatti. Highly recognized for its men’s semi- casual shirts and formal shirts, it is aimed at people aged between 18-40 years old. The price point for shirts is between MRP Rs. 899 to Rs. 1,399. The brand offers refined silk printed cotton shirts in the ratio 30 per cent. “We experiment a lot in order to bring a variety of styling options for our consumers. Our fits enable end users to create their own styles. The collection patterns keep on changing between three to four months, says Prajapatti.

Aedon “Besides, we have another brand by the name of ‘AEDON’ which was launched in 2012. The brand offers party wear designer shirts in linen and flex cotton. This is an ethnic wear brand aimed at men aged 25 to 60 years. “We use mix and match designs and hand work. The MRP is Rs 900 to Rs 1,700 in it. For winter we will have linen fabrics,” adds he.

Centoventi The third brand is ‘CENTOVENTI’. This is a formal and party wear brand which offers white shirts. The price point varies from MRP Rs 700 to Rs 1,500.

All three brands have the same target group. Cotton and branded fabrics from Monza and Carlon have been widely used. There are checks, print, plains, stripes, dobby, twills, structures as well. Value addition has been done to meet the demand of the semi-casual segment.

Retail The brand has a retail presence in about 2000 MBOs in Maharashtra, Ludhiana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Chennai, Kolkata.

It plans to open EBOs and venture online in the future.

176 FACE TO FACE

‘Top quality is what benefits the user more than the owner’ Madhu Kapoor, a man of great vision and an institution himself started with gunny bag stitching and gunny bag closing machines that was the business of that time. Slowly and slowly it came into garment, knit wear and textile machinery and today it is a huge story. Today, ALT Pvt. Ltd. is one of the top line manufacturers of the world in the field of apparel machinery.

What is your mantra for success?

My understanding is that the day you reconcile Madhu Kapoor to the fact that I know MD everything you are close to death. If one closes his doors to learning and knowledge then you are closed to obselence. I believe in keeping myself open to learning and enhancing creativity.

Therefore in every business there should be a preference to engage young people as they have creative minds and that enables production.

a customer who is under the Parel flyover in a wooden hut with two machines run by a family. That’s also my customer. That is our trust area.

What kind of prospect do you see in the garment industry?

Tremendous prospect. The growth rate, if it goes the right way cannot be less than

supply the top quality machines. Top quality is that which benefits the user not the owner. If the operator is comfortable and is earning well then the machine is of top quality. We are also monopoly on training with a huge training network. Offering after sales services to the customer to maintain their machines and also a buy back policy to introduce new technology and machines.

Why is your take on indigenous machines industry?

Our machines are all Indian machines.

We manufacture in India. Our brand Swantex is India’s number one brand with the highest market shares in India. We of course use components from different countries like Japan, Romania, USA and China and assembling at different site.

Therefore our machines are Indian. Today we have can’t be a frog in the well, it’s not India we are a part of the global market today. We have to see and understand where we are we at an advantage and take it. For example let’s take the technical textile. In technical textile the most economical fabric comes from China but very high quality fabric comes from France, Italy. Belgium, so depending upon which order you are picking you need to source from there. So you need to keep your mind open and source worldwide. The world is a market place to buy and sell.

Tell us about your product line.

We deal in machines for all sewing products which consists of ready garment, knitwear, shoes and boots, tarpaulin, upholstery, dolls and toys, figs, parachute, car filters. Life boats, bullet proof jackets and the list is endless.

What is the trust area as far as the end user in the global and domestic market is concerned?

There is nothing as trust area. The type of customer varies in size of the unit and manufacturing capabilities. We have customers like Sahi Exports which has a man force of more than 300,000 and also

double every year. India stands at 4 per cent now compared to China which is at 68 per cent. China is planning to reduce production this year by 10 per cent which if it comes to India the growth rate for the country will be 250 per cent. Attention should be on these positive moves for the nation to move ahead. Then younger generation should get a much better deal .

How do you see the prospect of immediate winter wear season for the domestic market?

The domestic market is so huge and the winter wear segment is just roaring business. Business is amazing. The market cannot be compares to a confectionary shop. Surveys should be conducted to know what the consumer wants. Once this is identified there is huge business.

Everyone needs the burning passion to drive you to achieve. If you don’t have the passion you are only surfacing and cannot go deep inside.

How is competition in machinery making business?

We have hundreds of competitors around the world and still winning because we

Understanding the customers need and renting out of machines. We try to give the entire facility to the industry so that the industry can survive.

Please shed some light on your future projects?

Training is a big story. The training college in Gaziabad in Tonika City is nearing completion and intends to be one best project of its kind in the globe not in India. Hopefully our honorable Prime Minister will inaugurate it as skill development is very close to his heart.

The group enjoys an alumnae of more that 512,000. Today ALT is present in almost all countries around the globe. AlT has been training people from the lowest walks of life from orphans, destitute, drug abused to war widows, shaping their lives with positivity and economic independence to live a better and meaningful life. They are trained in different fields of the industry from an operator to fashion maker , quality control to production. It is skill specific to the need of our industry. The ALT Training College Foundation is a charitable trust running on donations from our profit making companies.

Pawan Bansal President - GMWA, Hyd. 09701666444

Atish Agarwal General Secretary-GMWA 09949077773

Sunil Kumar Raichandani Chairman, Fair Committee 9885508108

178 BRAND STORIES solus Plus

BaMBini

Nihkil Cheda Partner

Jayanti Prajapati Partner The Brand Bambini, established in 1996, is a boys’ wear brand that offers T-shirts and jackets in indigo and imported lycra. The brand uses regular colors to make kidswear for the age group of six months to two years and four years to 16 years.

The brand’s USP is it makes its designer wear. The brand is present in over 700 MBOs pan India. It generates most of its profits from Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. In future, the brand plans to enter online retail space. It expects a 15 per cent growth in the kidswear market.

new collecTion In its new collection, Bambini offers full sleeved t-shirts having V-neck, round neck and polo neck. These t-shirts made in lycra, linen, cotton and soft materials. For its upcoming season, the brand will offer jackets in fabrics like indigo mix and match. It will also offer leather jackets and printed blazers in dark tones like black and blue. These will be offered in lazer and digital prints.

The Brand Solus Plus came into existence in 1987. Starting its journey with cotton casual shirts, the brand today is a pioneer in its segment in India. It offers a huge variety of casual shirts. The brand has three manufacturing units with a production capacity of 1,500 shirts per day.

collecTion This winter, Solus Plus offers a huge collection in indigo. It comprises checks, plains, structures and dobbies. It will also offer a collection on kurtas, printed shirts, and stripes plains shirts.

The fabric used for these clothes is mainly cromes, oxford, cotton and linen. These fabrics are mostly procured from distributors from Mumbai. The color pallet chosen for this winter includes warm colors ranging from bright to dark. The brand targets the age group of 25 years and above and the price points vary from Rs 895 to Rs 1,395. The uniqueness of the brand is that they offer sizes from X to 10X to 10.

reTail Presence Solus Plus does not have any large format stores s it does not suit their pattern of work. The margins in such kind of stores are low and the price offered is not up to the mark. The brand caters to about 1,200 retailers across India. The brand is also present in online format like KTM, Jabong, Myntra and Flipkart.

180 BRAND STORIES Flu Jeans

Gavio

Charanjit Singh,

Davinder Singh,

CEO

Partner

With over 2,500 retailers and distributors across India, the brand focuses on jeans and velvet trousers.

The brand Flu Jeans has been operating in the menswear market since the last 26 years. The brand offers denims and cotton trousers for men in the age group of 18 to 38 years. Its production capacity is around 900 pieces a day. The fabrics for the brand are procured from leading mills in Ahmedabad. It has 2,500 retailers and distributors in line. The brand has a strong presence in northern India. Its expansion plans include setting its own franchise showroom in the next year and a half.

New Collection The winter collection of the brand focuses on jeans and velvet trousers. Its denim range will be offered in knitted woolen fabric while the trousers will be available in cotton and velvet.

The fabrics majorly used for the collection include lycra, cotton modal.

The Brand Gavio, introduced in 2005, is into men’s wear with jackets, track suits, T-shirts, lounge wear and such. For track suits knitted fabrics are sourced from Ludhiana. The production capacity is 10,000 pieces a month. An in-house design team works to come up with new designs and colors for every season. Inspiration is taken from day to day life and surroundings. Gavio sells through distributors and dealers in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and South India.

New collection For winter, Gavio has stripes in special fabrics, special knits and enzyme washes. The range has florals, polka dots, stripes and other all over prints and a new range of indigos. This season the brand is also coming with bright colors as men also like to wear bright colors.

182 BRAND STORIES

Manas Astonia

Manas Astonia opened in 2011. The brand caters to men with party wear shirts, formal suits, blazers and designer suits. The brand targets 20 to 40 years as they are extremely fashion conscious. The fabric used is more of cotton, semi-cotton, flex and linen. For suits more of PR fabric is used and polyester and knitted fabric. The fabric is procured majorly from Mumbai. The production capacity is 200 pieces a day. The brand caters to about 700 to 800 MBOs. It has one EBO. The brand has a tie up with Amazon.

The Collection

Ajay Gupta, Owner

The collection has a warm feel, bright colored suits and colorful shirts in prints and dobbies. Designer suits and party wear shirts have varied designs and new fabrics. In suits more of knitted fabric has been used. Colors for suits are more of wine, blue, black, while shirts have fluorescent colors. A new cut called ‘Angraha’ has been used for the collection.

184 preview Apparel Sourcing Paris: To host global clothes and accessories makers The trade show, will include a new segment dedicated to business services: packaging, software vendors, logistics providers, inspection and certification offices, etc. It was implemented in conjunction with the MouvTex, the website specialising in providing support for ready-to-wear brands from the sketch of design to shipment.

C

onsolidating its position as a leader for global sourcing of clothes and fashion accessories production, Apparel Sourcing Paris to be held from September 17-20, 2018, in Paris will host 690 exhibitors.

The show, to be organised by Messe Frankfurt France, will offer a dynamic solution for women’s, men’s and children’s clothes and accessories. It will be a huge platform, divided into three distinct areas showcasing accessories, formal wear and casual wear. It covers the entire range of clothing from active wear to urban wear, childrens wear, fashion accessories, ladies wear, menswear, shawls & scarves and underwear.

The trade show, will include a new segment dedicated to business services: packaging, software vendors, logistics providers, inspection and certification offices, etc. It was implemented in conjunction with the MouvTex, the website specialising in providing support for ready-to-wear brands from the sketch of design to shipment.

Around 18 Indian companies are

expected to visit the national pavilion displaying myraid skills. The trade fair will also host countries like: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Hong Kong, China, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. China, a regular participant, will showcase the best of its ready-to-wear products on over 100 sq. mt.

In addition, The Accessories Showcase will display finished products like socks, umbrellas, ties, gloves, hats, fabric bags, etc. This season’s show will mark the return of De Beltz, a Hong Kong manufacturer of belts and braces, who has its own label aimed at distributors.

Nearly 40 exhibitors will attend the trade show.

These include:

• House of Saki, a manufacturer of coats designed in Sweden and made in Pakistan will introduce its new collection • Nikhil Enterprises will offer an enormous choice in attractive, high-quality beachwear • The Bangladesh office of Hellenic Sourcing,

a Swedish specialist in the ready-to-wear business since 1964 will mixe European design with local skills.

• Shawls & Scarves will group the manufacturers of textile accessories for the upper body with a wide variety of shapes and materials. The Indian specialist for traditional pashminas, Ahujasons, will make a grand return at the event.

The “Small Quantities” circuit will make a comeback, enabling visitors to organise sourcing to meet their individual needs.

This will be combined with the “Sustainable Sourcing” circuit, to help visitors discover the ranges of eco-friendly products.

The trade fair will also repeat its fringe events with the trends aggregator The Dressing, the Agora, its series of business talks and catwalk shows. The catwalk programme will include clothing experts from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, Chinese ready-to-wear labels and Apparel Sourcing + Shawls & Scarves.

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THE #1 EUROPEAN TRADE FAIR FOR WORLDWIDE APPAREL SOURCING

17 – 20 September 2018 Paris Le Bourget

www.apparelsourcing-paris.com

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186 preview Leatherworld Paris to open on September 17 With Leatherworld Paris, Messe Frankfurt France intends to launch equivalent flexible materials such as fake fur - the quality and technical properties of which have improved considerably to the point of providing competition for genuine fur.

M

esse Frankfurt France will hold Leatherworld Paris, an international trade fair dedicated to leather clothing, accessories and products and equivalent techniques from September 17-20, 2018 in Paris. Around 50 exhibitors are expected to attend this fair spread over 1,500 sq. m. that will be held under “The Fairyland for Fashion” banner and bring over 1,850 exhibitors together.

With Leatherworld Paris, Messe Frankfurt France intends to launch equivalent flexible materials such as fake fur - the quality and technical properties of which have improved considerably to the point of providing competition for genuine fur. This inclusion in Leatherworld has generated tremendous response with clothing manufacturers eager to attend the show. Leather and associated materials, especially those used for accessories, or often extensively for clothing, will be grouped here in one area, simplifying searches by prime contractors.

New synthetic materials with a leather effect have appeared in the interior furnishings, automotive and fashion sectors.

They offer properties that leather to date did not provide: waterproof qualities, affordable

price, etc. These criteria are now becoming essential in order to respond to the global growth in consumption. A lack of supply and the high cost of genuine leather have driven the demand for imitation leather over the last decades, without forgetting the wish of some ready-to-wear brands to avoid using materials of animal origin, even entirely “fur-free”.

China remains the foremost supplier to France and Germany be it tanneries/taweries, small leather goods, gloves or footwear, which forms the main body of the products at Leatherworld, particularly for fake fur. Ecopel

from Shanghai, the major supplier for fake fur and imitation leather, will also attend with its French representative. The Pakistani leather industry will also be represented by two firms with proven skills. Additionally, a range of leather goods from Lebanon in addition to three specialist leather firms from Turkey will also attend the fair.

Messe Frankfurt France will also organise a series of lectures on the latest happenings in the industry. A trends forum and a catwalk show combining leather clothing and accessories will round off this new offering.

TW43

17 – 20 September 2018 Paris Le Bourget THE INTERNATIONAL LEATHER TRADE FAIR

www.leatherworld-paris.com

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188 preview Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles: Trend forecasts to add zing to upcoming edition

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ointly hosted by Messe Frankfurt, The Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT and China Home Textile Association, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles is Asia’s foremost home textiles fairs. Reputed as an ultimate destination for the burgeoning Asia’s home textiles market, the fair is a great trade platform for home textiles and accessories for suppliers and buyers from across the globe.

Forecasting future lifestyles The 2018 edition of Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles has collaborated with international forecasting firm NellyRodiTM Agency to form a trend committee with different fields of expertise in order to gain latest comprehension of international lifestyle forecasts. ‘Future’ is the keyword of the season and three themes have been developed to illustrate this keyword. The three themes are: Caring Future: A greener, more moral and socially oriented creation that draws inspiration from new eco-gestures and good altruist sense with a new credo – take care of nature and man. Crazy Future: Plays on whimsical surrealism and petulance, the master of light-hearted insouciance. It plants a seed of madness in creation.

Emo Future: Is new nostalgia for the origin of things and reconnects us to the essential.

Neo-mysticism consecrates the elements and celebrates spiritual, benevolent nature.

It inspires the perpetuation of traditions and rituals our ancestors practiced, in all their wisdom and humanism, to glorify nature The three themes will be demonstrated and discussed throughout the four-day fair in a series of events, while exhibitors’ products that resonate with the themes will be displayed in the Trend Area. Trend Forum tours will also take place, allowing show attendants to learn and discuss with designers and trend experts about lifestyle trends.

Wide spectrum of products As the leading home textillle trade fair in Asia, participants can expect to see latest items and discover the forthcoming market direction. To fulfill this, more than 1,000 suppliers from China and across the world will showcase a wide variety of products covering the whole spectrum of home furnishing, while trend forecast, which is being introduced during the show, will provide both exhibitors and buyers with insight and guidance to stay ahead of the market.

190 pREvIEw 34th IAF World Fashion Conventionto be held in Maastricht this October

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he 34th edition of IAF World Fashion Convention will be held in the Maastricht, Netherlands on October 9 and 10, 2018. The event caters to apparel industry leaders from across the supply chain, from all continents. The theme of the edition is Building a smart future for the fashion industry.

In a world where prices cannot drop much lower, boats cannot go much faster and people cannot work much harder, improvements are made only when the

business is made smarter.

From smart supply chain collaboration to smart new machines, smart materials and above all, smart people, the convention will show many inspiring examples of a smarter apparel supply chain. Top speakers from across the globe cover the width of the supply chain, from raw materials to apparel sourcing and from production to retail trends. The convention provides an excellent

opportunity to meet the global industry in one location in a few days’ time.

World Fashion Convention is organized by the International Apparel Federation.

This is the only global federation of its kind representing apparel associations from 60 countries, representing over 1,50,000 companies. The co-organizer is Modint. This is the Dutch association for the fashion and textile industries. It has about 600 members who have a cumulative annual turnover of about nine billion euro.

Avantex Paris to focus on sustainable development tech

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vantex Paris, a trade fair for sustainable development technologies, will be held at Le Bourget from September 17-20, 2018. The trade fair, to be organised by Messe Frankfurt France,

emphasises on innovation and sustainable development in services, materials and technologies for textiles and clothing.

Avantex has become a real network, an aggregator of ideas, a lab that goes beyond the world of fashion in the strict sense. The show, in its seventh edition, will be well represented by high-tech technical textiles

from China and Taiwan. South Korea will be present its myriad skills in outdoor materials from Bosung Textile, and the best in applied research and experimental development from the international Korean Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH).

Avantex aims aim to demonstrate the links

between technology and clothing through a series of presentations and roundtables moderated by experts on the inherent issues in the market and which make up the exhibition: materials and components, clothing and accessories, prototype studio, smart retail.

192 preview

CHIC’s theme ‘New Makers’ to bring progressive changes in Chinese fashion

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HIC, China International Fashion Fair would present around 800 exhibitors in an exhibition space of approx 50,000 sq. mt. in two halls from September 27 to 29, 2018 at the National Exhibition & Convention Center, Shanghai.

The current conditions for international fashion companies in the Chinese market offer significant improvements for international brands. Import tariffs will be lowered from 15.9 per cent to 7.1 per cent to promote import and upgrade the industry.

This edition’s motto is ‘New Makers’, with this, Asia’s leading fashion fair is picking up on the latest changes in the Chinese fashion market and providing the essential tools for the Chinese market. The new, young design of the fair, launched in March this year at CHIC, is being expanded.

Individual sections present the latest trends in Chinese and international fashion market. CHIC connects and brokers partnerships and launches the new generation garment industry, which builds on high-tech strategies and interlinks industrial production with modern information and communication technologies, relying on intelligent, digitally networked systems in self-organised production.

Individual pavilions Fashion Journey puts the focus on international exhibitors. In addition to the large Italian pavilion, the French pavilion ‘Paris Forever’ and the Korean show-in-show ‘Preview in China’, individual participants from Poland, the UK, France, Italy, Spain, Japan

Qian Mu, Long Sheng and Dandinghe. CHIC Young Blood shows young lifestyle brands, Kid’s Paradise offers e.g the largest fashion group in China for children’s fashion Xtep Kids. Future Link gathers fashion service providers for among others supply chain solutions, smart retail and smart production, RFID, laser technology and data utilisation.

Visitor management

and the USA use CHIC as a bridge in the Chinese market. Impulses, CHIC’s designer section, features emerging designer brands such as Junne, Hua Mu Shen, King Ping, Anjaylia, Mao Mart homme, Tuffcan, etc.

The Sustainability Zone, first showcased at CHIC in Fall 2017, is receiving greater emphasis due to increasing environmental and health awareness of Chinese consumers, featuring sustainable supply chain solutions, sustainable innovation and sustainable fashion collections. The womenswear section New Look of CHIC presents next to leading Chinese brands like Avrala, and CMH also international brands like Saint James from France, Esisto from Germany, Trenz Eight from Canada or PN JONE, USA. Beside the suppliers of classic menswear, Urban View, the menswear section, also includes casualwear brands like NRDMA and Supin as well as bespoke companies like H. Pin& Tack, Jin Yuan Yang, Fa Lan

VIP match making activities at the fair, will take place especially for selected international brands that will have the opportunity to present themselves and make relevant contacts in Chinese trade. Meetings are organised among others with multi brand stores and buyers such as The Fashion Door, Dong Liang, Jing Dong, VIP Shop and department stores, and retailers such as Carrefour, Amazon, Decathlon, Wang Fujing, etc. An important tool for CHIC visitor marketing is social media; for this special programmes are run, in which individual brands are presented to prospective visitors.

CHIC is visited by representatives of all distribution channels for distribution in the Chinese market, at the last event in autumn 2017 more than 65,722 visitors from all over China and other nations were registered at the CHIC, with a significant increase in multi brand stores.

Seminars and shows The future of fashion business in China will be discussed with a panel of experts as a part of CHIC Talks. A trend seminar from WGSN for F/W 2019 and a workshop on bags and shoes production from the Moda Pelle Academy are lined up. CHIC shows provide an overview of selected international brands. CHIC is organised

by Beijing Fashion Expo, and China World Exhibitions, supported by China National Garment Association, The Sub-Council of Textile Industry (CCPIT) and China World Trade Center.

194 PrEViEw

Yarn Expo-Autumn, ITMA Asia + CITME to happen concurrently in mid-October

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he scale and importance of China International Import Expo (CIIE) – an initiative launched personally

by Chinese President Xi Jinping at a Belt & Road Forum in 2017 and hosted by the country’s Ministry of Commerce – has necessitated the renovation of three halls at the National Exhibition and Convention Center for two months starting early September. The unavailability of the full fairground has led to the decision of moving Yarn Expo Autumn two weeks later to October 15-17. Therefore, this year, Yarn Expo Autumn will now not be held at the same time as Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics-Autumn edition rather it will take place concurrently with the biennial ITMA Asia + CITME which runs for two extra days until October 19.

A change of date “The unavailability of halls was unforeseen but upon notice from the fairground, we assessed all possible alternatives for hosting the fair. While it is unfortunate that for this edition, it will not be taking place concurrently with Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics, we are confident that the same strong business results can still be achieved alongside ITMA ASIA + CITME. With over 1,600 textile machinery manufacturers and some 100,000 trade buyers from different textile sectors taking part in ITMA ASIA + CITME, Yarn Expo

exhibitors will have abundant opportunities to meet buyers of apparel fabrics and home textiles as well as garment manufacturers,” informed Wendy Wen, senior general manager, Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd. Yarn Expo Autumn is Asia’s leading trade platform for the yarn and fibre industry, with quality suppliers from around the world showcasing natural and blended yarns

including cotton, wool, flax, and man-made fibres and yarns, as well as specialty products including elastic, fancy and blended yarns.

Last year’s Autumn Edition attracted 493 exhibitors from 13 countries and regions, and 17,185 trade buyers from 84 countries and regions. The fair is organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd and the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT.

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196 faBriC nEws Arvind to set up new mills

Arvind’s textile division, which makes denims, knits and wovens and women’s wear, contributes nearly 55 per cent to the group’s consolidated turnover. Under the mother brand Arvind will has ready to wear and fabrics. The key growth driver for the company will come from fabrics as well as the ready to wear segment.

The company has earmarked investment over the next couple of years involving setting up of new mills, advertising and branding expenses and others. The investment will be borne by the company from its daily cash flow. It is also looking at setting up manufacturing units in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and others.

The second component which will

Vardhman expands print facility

Vardhman Textiles has gone into printed fabrics. The printed fabric facility with an annual capacity of nine million meters in Himachal Pradesh has state-of-the-art technology suitable for woven, knitted and non-woven fabrics.

The company has incurred a capital expenditure of around Rs 2,000 crores in the last five years. Currently it operates at near 100 per cent utilisation levels in the yarn business, catering to diverse customer requirements. It manufactures a wide range of textile products across yarn, fabrics and fiber and has the operational flexibility to strengthen it further.

boost revenues from the textile division is increasing the use of own fabric, particularly for export markets in the US, Europe and Far East, which will directly boost its margins. Under the current scenario, global brands like Gap, CK, Nautica and several others procure clothing material from Arvind and send it to third-party contract manufacturers in India, Bangladesh, Vietnam and other locations.

However, some global brands have expressed interest in procuring the finished product directly from Arvind instead of routing the fabric to other

manufacturing units elsewhere. The target is to increase own use of fabric from the present 10 per cent to 40-50 per cent in the next four or five years.

Besides cotton yarn and blends, it is looking at more synthetic and blended yarns and is also taking steps to expand its existing fabric processing capabilities.

Vardhman has improved its technology platform, so that its process automation, product quality and monitoring processes can be upgraded to deliver higher and better output. The company’s technological capabilities have accelerated data-driven analytics and decision-making, enabling it to capitalise on opportunities at a faster rate.

The company is one of the largest textile companies in India manufacturing cotton yarns and fabrics, constituting about two per cent of the country’s yarn production. The fabric processing capacity is 110 million meters a year. The product basket is diversified. It is now not only in cotton but creates blends like cotton tencel stretch, cotton modal super stretch and difficult products like bi-stretch.

Textile and apparel industry recovering after GST blow

India’s textile and apparel sector, which was hit majorly due to demonetisation, GST, rupee

appreciation and high domestic cotton prices, is finally showing some signs of recovery. The Rs 1,300 crore Samarth scheme for skilling, the Rs 6,000 crore package for apparel and made-ups along with various state incentives, is expected to create a strong turnaround in the textile and clothing sector, and put the industry back on the growth path.

However, policy support is still needed for stopping excess imports and refund of all duties and taxes on exports across the value chain. Embedded duties, which are in the range of four to six per cent across the value chain are not getting refunded. This is one of the key factors for a decline in exports apart from blockage of funds due to delay in Goods and Service Tax (GST) refunds.

The industry feels the biggest game changer that could transform it and put it at par with competitors such as Vietnam and Bangladesh is a free trade agreement with EU, Australia, Canada and Britain for made-ups and garments. In financial year 2018, imports of textiles and apparel touched $7 billion, which is 16 per cent higher than last year’s.

Co-optex handloom expands its presence abroad

Tamil Nadu Handloom Weavers’ Cooperative Society, popularly known as Co-optex launched a dedicated portal, where buyers abroad can order products. It has tied up with DHL and Professional Couriers to deliver orders in the US and China. Co-optex is now focused on product diversification and e-commerce to expand its customer base.

The brand opened retail showrooms in Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. It has inaugurated a refurbished ‘Pothigai’ retail showroom of Co-optex near the Central bus stand in Tiruchi. The Tiruchi showroomhas registered sales of around Rs 4.53 crore and during the current year has set a target of Rs 5.50 crore. Co-optex, recorded worth Rs 316 crore during 2017-18 and has set a target of Rs 340 crore for the current year.

With the core strength of Cooptex being cotton products, weaver empowerment has been given a thrust in 20 cotton weaving clusters in the state, updating weavers with technical and design knowledge. The frequent meetings and workshops with weavers, designers and society managers helped get 2200 new designs of various products last year.

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200 HOME fasHiOn

New brands strive ahead while established ones lose ground

Amit Jain Proprietor, a&m Consulting After 30 successful years of professional career, Amit started his consultancy company to connect manufacturers with retailers/ sellers in home fashion last year.

During his professional career, he was associated with some of the leading corporate organizations and brands such as Trident Group, Bombay Dyeing, Welspun, OCM, JCT, Garden & Grasim. During these years, he performed diverse roles from marketing, operations, PPC to sourcing and finally successfully as a profit centre head. He did compressed management and fashion course from LIUC, Castellanza, Italy, had persued M.Tech at I.I.T., Delhi and B.Text. from T.I.T, Bhiwani prior to that.

T

he branded segment in any category has a few top and established players who set the way forward and raise the bar. For many decades, the numero uno in India’s home textiles space was Bombay Dyeing. However, many new challengers like Spaces, D’décor, Portico, Trident DCtex and ‘Raymond Home have emerged today. These brands are fast establishing themselves in this highly competitive space. Each is trying to grab shelf space being vacated by the leader.

Brand losing ground Traditionally, Bombay Dyeing’s strength was exclusive brand outlets and the distributors serving them. Most of their EBOs were concentrated in Southern India.

These stores were complete family textile shops, selling saris, dress material, suiting and shirting, school uniform along with home textiles. Till the beginning of 21st century, Bombay Dyeing had in-house manufacturing for most of these products. It had state of the art factories with best practices. However, operational strength waned due to high costs and management’s strategy of monetising premier land bank. The brand took to

outsourcing most its products by 2004. And finally even bed linen by 2014-15. EBOs sold these products easily as they came from The Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing Co and there was no competition in branded home textiles. Over the years, Bombay Dyeing’s focus moved from being family textile to home textile. But, survival of EBOs was based on a mix of textile products. This was also the beginning of other brands/local products being sold at these stores. The EBOs transformed and over the years, they remained EBOs only in name. And as the share of other textile brands increased, EBO sales dipped and Bombay Dyeing moved to selling home textiles through multi brand outlets (MBO), modern retail stores (LFS), on-line market place and institutions.

This led to a change in pricing policy.

Bombay Dyeing was known for its fair pricing with the legendary kanta chap as its symbol. However, modern retail has its end of season sale (EOSS) and on-line ‘big billion day sale’ et al. And to be a part of this game, the brand introduced perceived pricing products (PPP) both for modern retail and EBOs. This led to an erosion of brand image. Earlier, customers used to eagerly wait for Bombay Dyeing’s 15 per

HOME fashion take at least a decade.

The space left vacant by Bombay Dyeing was picked up quickly by Welspun’s brand Well Home, Portico New York, Carmichael House by SKumar’s and later by Spaces and D’Décor. Other home textile manufacturers, like Alok and GHCL launched and then closed their domestic brands. One even tried bringing UK’s Rosebys to India.

cent discount but market forces changed it to a minimum 25 per cent during EOSS and PPP was being offered at minimum 50 per cent or Buy 1 and Get 1.

New brands make a mark The space left vacant by Bombay Dyeing was picked up quickly by Welspun’s brand Well Home, Portico New York, Carmichael House by SKumar’s and later by Spaces and D’Décor. Other home textile manufacturers, like Alok and GHCL launched and then closed their domestic brands. One even tried bringing UK’s Rosebys to India.

Well Home was the first casualty of the discount war. They were discounting products throughout the year with advertisements of ‘upto 70 per cent off’. The franchisees on high streets became unviable and the brand went bust. Portico and Spaces have gained over the years in modern retail and occupy premium space in Lifestyle and Shoppers Stop stores. Both brands are focussing on institution business as well.

D’Décor used Bollywood’s superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s starpower and its strong leadership in sofa and curtain fabrics to establish the brand at MBOs. It’s selling strategy of direct to retail (DTR) and providing product display unit (PDU) with branding became a game changer. Further innovation on digital printing of bed linen, took care of inventory issues, the main driver of EOSS. They used SRK to create a premium image of the brand. Better designing, packaging and higher margins to retailers lead credence to the brand.

DCtex’ has been trying to follow the same strategy by roping in Hrithik Roshan as brand ambassador. But, these have been brands only at MBOs. Indeed more recently D’Décor has opened exclusive galleries. But to have a reach of over 2,000 selling points across more than 100 cities and towns shall

Domestic market’s lure The uncertainty of international market, is forcing big international home textile players like Welspun, Trident and Indocount to increase their presence in domestic market.

In 2015, Trident re-launched its brand as Trident Home Décor Design, with Kriti Sanon as brand ambassador. Indocount came out with bed linen under Boutique Living (BL). In 2017, Spaces changed the logo to a more colourful and vibrant one. BL disrupted market by launching 300 thread count digital printed bed sheet priced at Rs 1,999. Spaces created hype around ‘hygro technology’, positioning itself as an innovative brand. Trident came out with air rich and melange products in 2016 to counter Spaces’ technology advantage. Apart from BL, other two have fully integrated bedsheet and towel manufacturing in-house. Hence, they have a price advantage over others.

201

Further, catering to top international brands/ retailers, they have access to international designs, innovations and practices.

Meanwhile, retailers too have increased focus on in-house brands/private labels.

Popular ones are Dreamline from Future Group, Home Centre from Lifestyle and Ivy from Shoppers Stop. Their exclusive home stores are adding to consumer experience.

Indeed, New Age brands should make Bombay Dyeing wiser. The challenge is to grow, without compromising on their strength at EBOs through a national distribution network. Brand needs to do SWOT analysis and work out strategies based on ground realities. The oncoming festive season can see a turnaround in Bombay Dyeing’s fortunes. While internal and external conditions have been difficult in last few years still there is light at the end of tunnel.

Bombay Dyeing needs to start leading the pack through innovations, focussed product mix and with ears to the market.

202 BUSINESS News Reliance Brands to buy Genesis Luxury

Reliance Brands, owned by India’s largest retail chain Reliance Retail, will buy Genesis Luxury, a group company of private equity fund Sequoia Capitalbacked Genesis Colors, for an estimated Rs 450 crore. The acquisition will make Reliance a dominant player in the country’s booming luxury market, and give it an edge in bargaining for real estate

Reliance Brands acquires Rhea Retail

Reliance Industries has acquired Rhea Retail. The acquisition was made through Reliance Brands. Reliance Brands is the brand licensing arm of Reliance Retail.

It will result in significant synergy since the target company, like Reliance Brands, operates in the retailing industry.

Rhea Retail sells products for children and expectant mothers.

Rhea was incorporated in April 2007.

Its revenue for the year through March 2018 was Rs 200 crores, the same as the previous year. For 2015-16, however, its revenue was Rs 175 crores.

Reliance Brands has a portfolio of over 40 international brands that span across the luxury, bridge-to-luxury, high-premium and high-street lifestyle segments. These brands include Gas, Diesel, Marks & Spencer and Steve Madden.

Last year, Reliance Brands acquired a 46.6 per cent stake in Genesis Luxury Fashion, which operates brands such as Armani, Canali and Michael Kors.

Apart from fashion and lifestyle, Reliance Retail operates in the grocery, consumer electronics and fuel retail segments. The

concessions, overhead costs and other benefits.

L Catterton, one of the early investors in Genesis Luxury, had picked up the 40 per cent stake in the firm over a period of six years for Rs 135 crore.

Genesis Luxury sells brands like Burberry, Canali, Paul Smith, Armani, Just Cavalli and Jimmy Choo. Reliance Brands, an arm of Reliance Retail, is one of the largest retail distributors for luxury and mass brands in India. The brands’s’ portfolio includes Amsterdam-based fashion brand Scotch & Soda and Kate Spade New York apart from partnerships with 18 global midto-luxury brands including Diesel, Hamleys, Steve Madden, Timberland, Kenneth Cole, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Paul & Sharks.

company operates 7,573 retail stores in more than 4,400 cities across India. It also operates 495 fuel retail outlets.

Reliance Retail has expanded over the past five years with its revenue growing at a compound annual rate of 45 per cent. It has become the first retailer in India to cross the ten billion dollar revenue milestone and enter the list of the world’s top 200 retail chains.

A Finish Line and JD Sports complete merger The Finish Line and JD Sports Fashion Plc have announced the completion of their merger. After the merger Finish Line has become an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of JD Sports, which is the leading European retailer of sports, fashion and outdoor brands, thereby creating a market-leading multi-channel, multi-branded retailer of sports fashion and footwear with expanded global scope. The current conditions of the athletic footwear industry remain decent, but the industry is not immune to the structural issues that other segments of the retail sector face.

The acquisition of Finish Line from JD

Sports creates another relatively large player in the industry and will have a stronger bargaining power with brands, but the structural challenges are still there. Peter Cowgill, Executive Chairman of JD Sports stated the acquisition offers the company the opportunity to expand its market leading elevated proposition into the most significant global market.

On the other hand Sam Sato, Chief Executive Officer of Finish Line added that with the closing of this merger with JD Sports, Finish Line opens an exciting new chapter and together it will bring a leading-edge innovation and service to the customers.

Lux to merge JM Hosiery and Ebell Fashions Knitwear major Lux Industries will merge two of its units, JM Hosiery and Ebell Fashions. The merger will take place through a share-swap deal. Under this arrangement,

Lux Industries will issue 48,00,000 shares to the promoters of JM Hosiery and Ebell Fashions. There is no cash payment involved to any side.

The merger is expected to be completed before the end of current financial year. Post the merger starting next fiscal the company is hoping for 15 per cent jump in its topline.

With the consolidation of premium brands like Genx and Lyra with Lux, the topline and bottomline should get a boost through operational synergies and a single brand strategy.

Lux is looking to strengthen its position in the country’s premium hosiery segment. It posted revenue of Rs 1140 crores with profit of Rs 79 crores for fiscal 2017-18 while the combined revenue of JM Hosiery and Ebell Fashions for the last fiscal was Rs 491 crores with a profit of Rs 38 crores.

Lux Industries offers innerwear and sleepwear for men, women and children. It is retailed in more than 4,50,000 stores across India and also has a strong online presence with brands like Genx, Lyra and Lux.

ABRL to sell retail chain More to Samara Capital Aditya Birla Retail (ABRL) has signed an agreement with private equity fund Samara Capital to sell its food and grocery retail chain More for an enterprise value of Rs 4,300 crore. The $41-billion aluminium-automobile telephony diversified conglomerate entered the grocery retail market after acquiring smaller retail chain Trinethra Retail about a decade ago. It had also restructured its retail

204 BUsinEss nEws Arvind to scale up garment manufacturing six fold

Arvind Ltd, maker of Arrow and US Polo Association apparel in India, plan to invest Rs 1,500 crore in three years to increase its garment making capacity by six-fold to meet the rising demand for branded apparel and fashion garments.

The expansion is a part of a mega global trend of selling garments directly to a brand as a full packaged solution rather than selling to an intermediary who converts and then sells to a brand.

The company will open large factories in Gujarat, Karnataka, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh which can employ 10,000 workers.

The exercise is a part of a target of doubling India’s largest denim maker’s textile turnover by 2022 from Rs 6,000 crore at present. Denim constitutes around Rs 2,500 crore to the total turnover.

The company will use cash flows to fund Arvind Fashions for many years to expand the fabric-to-garment conversion capacity

business by merging Madura Fashion and Lifestyle division from Aditya Birla Nuvo with the listed Pantaloon Fashion and Retail a few years ago. The restructuring created the country’s largest branded apparel company by sales and number of stores.

ABRL reported a 20 per cent increase in FY17 sales to Rs 4,194 crore, with net losses narrowing to Rs 644 crore from the year earlier. However, the company had debt of about Rs 6,573 crore on its books and financing costs amounted to Rs 471 crore at the end of March 2017. The accumulated debt was mainly due to the acquisition of Trinethra and Fabmall a decade ago, and Jubilant’s Total Super Store two years ago.

H&M India sales up 19 per cent in first half of this year H&M’s sales in India during the six months ended May jumped 19 per cent. The Swedish fashion retailer has 32 stores in India. The plan is to add 50 more stores by 2020. On an average, a store is opened every month.

Each generates an average of Rs 33 crores in annual sales. H&M went into the second quarter carrying too much stock and still has some imbalances in the assortment – something that is being gradually corrected.

Globally, H&M has been struggling with billions of unsold inventory and flat sales growth which in turn has led to higher markdowns and profit squeeze. The retailer stocks fast fashion items created in-house and teams up with designers for one-time

collections. It keeps a large inventory of basic, everyday items sourced from India and Bangladesh that carry a lower price tag than most of its rivals.

Indian fashion retail market was worth $56 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach $103 billion dollars by 2027. As the world’s second most-populated country, India is an attractive destination for US and European brands and has attracted some of the world’s largest private labels that are banking on

young consumers increasingly embracing western-style clothing.

Khadi sales increase to Rs 2,503 crore Khadi and Village industries’ sales shot up by over 25 per cent to Rs 2,503 crore during 2017-18. The Khadi sale which was Rs 914.07 crore during the years 2004 to 2014, increased to Rs 1,828.3 crore during

the years 2015 to 2018. Overall it increased more than 100 per cent.

KVIC manufactures products ranging from honey to soaps and food to handicrafts, are cloaking a double-digit growth.

According to KVIC, around 375 new khadi institutions were set up, compared to only 110 such organisations being established in 10-year period from 2004 to 2014 in over two years period since 2015.

In the meantime, compared to average sale of Rs 44.77 crore in the 2004-14 decade the average khadi sale by departmental sales outlets (DSOs) during 2015-18 shot up by 168.24 per cent to Rs 120.09 crore.

Government plans super premium Khadi brand to tap luxe customers The MSME Ministry plans to rope in top

206 BUSINESS News Dollar Industries expects improving margins with focus on premium garments

With a shift in focus towards the premium segment from innerwear and women’s apparel, Dollar Industries is expected to increase margins by 100 basis points to 13.5 per cent by next March. The company is concentrating on making premium products at affordable rates. Ankit Gupta, VP, Dollar

designers for super-premium segment products with the help of textile ministry.

It plans to create a “super premium” segment for Khadi to boost sales of khadi products. The apparels can be made using hand-woven fabric for reaching the luxury customer base.

The super-premium products will be sold through lounges in select Khadi outlets.

Secretary in the MSME Ministry A K Panda says they will first make a list of super-

premium Khadi products which are already being manufactured in many of parts of the country. To begin with it plans to have a directory and showcase all in one place so that youngsters looking for something stylish can opt for super premium Khadi products.

Going forward, teaming up with top global luxury brands, the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) will enhance the reach of its products.

Alcis to manufacture apparel from recycled polyester Faced with government pressure to reduce pollutants and the need to adhere to corporate social responsibility guidelines, Alcis, a performance wear brand promoted by

Industries says the company’s recent joint venture with Pepe Jeans is a move towards expanding its presence in the premium segment. The premium segment contributed nearly 21 per cent to the company’s revenue as of March, 2018.

The company targets revenue growth at 15 per cent compounded annual rate over the next five.

Sales mix would change too with premiumisation being in the forefront. Dollar Industries has been one of the fastest growing knitwear and innerwear companies and promoted by Dindayal Gupta under the name Bhawani Textiles. It created substantial presence in India under the Dollar umbrella. Dollar is present across segment in innerwear with brands like Big Boss, Force NXT, Missy, Champion, Ultra, Force Go Wear, Economy range etc.

Paragon Apparels is now focusing on using less plastic while simultaneously recycling old material and using newer technologies to alter the way they manufacture products.

It will manufacture 50 per cent of its apparel from recycled polyester, which is derived from plastic waste.

Alcis Sports has been making T-shirts from waste plastic bottles since the past two years, called Wonder Tee, each T-shirt uses about 8 plastic bottles.

Roshan Baid, Managing Director of Alcis Sports, stated that consumers in India is increasing becoming environmentally conscious in consumers, the company has decided to discard polyester and move to

208 BUSINESS News Sales of Reliance Retail outpace Future Retail

As per filings for the year ended March, the privately held subsidiary of Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries is now nearly twice the size of the Future Group. The Biyani-led conglomerate’s revenue-per-store rose at a slower pace than its larger rival, but it still earns more.

Sales at Reliance Retail stood at over Rs 41,000 crore in the year ended March, as per BloombergQuint’s calculations based on its filings. It excludes revenue earned through retailing fuel products and telecom arm Reliance Jio Infocomm’s outlets.

Sales of comparable retail business of Future Retail and Future Lifestyle stood at about Rs 22,700 crore during the period.

Reliance Retail was able to increase its retail operations with average revenue per store rising by 42 percent as compared to flat growth for the Future Group. The retail chain added 221 stores in the financial year ended March. Nearly 100 of these were for lifestyle chain Trends. It had 3,837 outlets as of March. Future Retail’s store count crossed 1,350 with the acquisition of Hypercity and addition of 131 stores during the period. Reliance Retail added 2 million sq ft area and ended the year at close to 15.5 million sq. ft. The Future Group, having added 2.3 million sq. ft., now operates 20.2 million sq. ft. An average Reliance Retail store is 4,040 sq. ft. compared with 14,777 sq. ft. for Future Group. recycled polyester.

The company has also partnered with Flipkart to sell official FIFA fan-wear merchandise exclusively.

Mumbai duty free campaign clocks in double digit growth The ‘duty free is now free’ marketing campaign, one of Mumbai Duty Free’s biggest ever campaign, has been supported by print media, in-airport and outdoor advertising. The campaign, in addition to new store openings and passenger growth contributed to robust sales growth of 25 per cent year-on-year in May 2015. The

campaign was given added momentum by a big shopping festival in May and June. A highlight of this shopping festival includes the $5 voucher handed to every traveler through T2. The voucher can be used across Mumbai Duty Free stores with no minimum purchase condition.

In addition, customers shopping with Citibank cards can claim 15 per cent cash back on their purchases. Vodafone also contributed by offering an International Roaming Pack worth US$15. Beyond this, shoppers who spent over US$60 in departures also received a ‘Mumbai DutyFree Is Now Free’ envelope containing discount vouchers, redeemable coupons and experiences from partner brands including Make My Trip, Vodafone, Myntra, Urban Ladder and Mumbai’s luxury mall, Palladium.

Paakhee to expands sales network, increase production capacity Handcraft accessories maker Paakhee launched last year has sold over 1,500 units of home accessories so far as well as a similar total of fashion accessories.

Previously focusing on flea markets, the plan is to expand online and start selling on the platforms like Flipkart and Amazon.

The brand also plans to launch its own e-commerce store in the near future and retail outlets are planned for Bangalore and Kolkata within the next three years.

Besides expanding sales, the brand will

expand its network of craftspeople across India. As Paakhee sells items such as handbags with handcraft designs, the idea is to continue to expand the brand’s production network to increase its production capacity and product portfolio. Paakhee, in Bengali, means bird. So just like a bird the brand is building its nest, one twig at a time, from branches of different trees.

The long-term plan is to scale up and be a meaningful micro-enterprise that is able to uplift and empower as many rural artisans as possible. The venture procures finished products directly from artisans, and takes customised orders from individuals and corporates. In-house designers collaborate with artisans to work on the latter. Craftsmen collaborate and brainstorm on contemporary ideas and techniques.

Reliance Retail to enter fashion wholesale space

With the aim to establish its unorganized bulk business of garments and accessories, Reliance Retail is entering wholesaling of fashion and lifestyle products through both offline and online channels. Along with its branded range, the wholesale business will aim at small and medium retailers nationwide for bulk supply of products, including its own branded material.

RANG JO DIL CHAHE R

LEGAND IN FABRICS

72

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX FAIR EXPRESS

A to Z Chemicals Action

31 213

COVER

MOZZO

FRONT OUTER GATEFOLD

ZOIRO

FRONT INSIDE

LIVA

BACK INSIDE

DOTTED JEANS

BACK OUTER GATEFOLD

JUNCTION

Duke

01

Mona Leaves

149

Etiquette

101

Mozzo

51

F Y Trading

169

Mustang

Alvaro Ties

113

Fifty Degree

97

Officer

36

Angel Bells Apparel Sourcing

133 185

Flu Jeans

127

Outlook

45

06-07

Paduka

145

Alt

Apple Eye Apple Plus

99 150-151

Atam Associates

125

Bambini

163

Bamboos

123

Be Indi Benaloons Bhavini

20-21 39 202

Focus Force/Dolalr

93

Garbo Club

55

129

Pretty One

47

Gartex

191

Rich Look

33

Gavio

159

Ronak Syntex

197

GMWA

177

RUK

143

GTE

183

Senator

107

Hackman

131

Seven Days

198

IIGF

181

Sheriff

109 179

65

Blue Buddha

115

indian Ethenic Syclone

137

SIGA

Blueman

117

Intertextile Shanghai

189

Smarat

Bodycare International CAA Cantabil Carion Carpenter Jeans

irony

30

Stori

86

61

J Tex

195

Stride

41

Kanzen

139

Subscription

Knit Show

173

Sunnex & Study

Kothari Fabrics

209

Super Sox

Lady Lyka

141

Tango/Taiko

89

Leather World

187

Tiaga KIds

35

175 59 02-03 165 49

Challenge

12-13 135

Clone

08-09

CMAI

155

Concept

04-05

Cool

10-11

Crossline/Renz

53

Dearly

214

Dollar

91

Dominus

28-29

24-25

Cash zone Choice Point

161

Perfitalia

Black Panther

Bodycare Creations

82

22-23

Leeman - Leeboys Lekha Lifestyle Lil Tomatoes Manas Astonia

216 14-15 111

63

Twills

16-17

211

U turn

119

57 103 26-27

Urban Race

75

V Mart

153

Vaibhav Poshak

167

Marc Socks

147

Valji Uniform

207

Mexico

105

Varney Fabrics

205

Vinita Textile

193

Missy/Dollar Mohit

95 171

West Wood Zonic

43 18-19

212 Industry Bytes Rajiv Suri replaces Govind Shrikhande at Shoppers Stop

S

hoppers Stop has elevated chief executive Rajiv Suri as managing director, replacing Govind Shrikhande who will step down by June end.

Shrikhande was with the department store chain since 2001. Suri was appointed as the CEO of the company in January this year.

Chandru Raheja, promoter and chairman, also announced his retirement from the current position with BS Nagesh taking his role. Nagesh so far was non-executive vicechairman. Now he will be non-executive chairman.

BS Nagesh has been the guiding force since the first department store was set up in Mumbai. Shoppers Stop has 80 outlets across the country. For the quarter ended December 2016, Shoppers Stop posted a 12 per cent rise in total income as opposed to the corresponding quarter of last year.

The company has undertaken a number of transformation activities, which it hopes to

complete by the third quarter. Its IT spends are focused on operational expenses, introducing scalable solutions and bringing in transformation.

As part of the transformation process, Shoppers Stop stores across the country

have wireless solutions and guest wi-fi.

This will enable a single-view dashboard of connected customers, insights into customer behavior analytics, traffic flow and analytics as well as location-based services for effective in-store marketing and tracking.

Snapdeal’s Jason Kothari joins Infibeam as president J

ason Kothari, Chief Investment and Strategy officer at Jasper Infotech that owns and operates troubled online marketplace Snapdeal.com, has joined Ahmedabad-headquartered Infibeam.

Kothari, who joined Snapdeal from real estate portal housing in January last year, will move to Infibeam as its president, leading the strategy, corporate development, international operations and investor relations functions at India’s first listed ecommerce entity. The position will leverage his valuable experience to realise Infibeam’s global plan and drive the ext era the company’s evolution.

The development follows a turbulent 18 months for Snapdeal, which had to fight a bruising battle with rival ecommerce player Flipkart and its own investor, Japan’s SoftBank, to ward off a takeover by India’s largest ecommerce company.

INDUSTRY BYTES

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