September 2015
Transcription
September 2015
PULPINDIA.COM BEINGHUMANCLOTHING.COM | AW15 COLLECTION NOW IN STORES MANDHANA INDUSTRIES LIMITED IS THE GLOBAL LICENSEE FOR BEING HUMAN CLOTHING. BEING HUMAN SUPPORTS THE TWIN CAUSES OF EDUCATION AND HEALTHCARE. EUROPE | INDIA | MIDDLE EAST | NEPAL | SOUTH AFRICA AMBALA | AHMEDABAD | AMRITSAR | BENGALURU | BHOPAL | CHANDIGARH | DELHI NCR | HYDERABAD | INDORE | JAIPUR | KANPUR | KOCHI | KOHLAPUR | KOTA | LUCKNOW | LUDHIANA | MOHALI | MUMBAI | NAGPUR | PUNE | RAJKOT | SURAT | UDAIPUR | VADODARA Standout Pieces That Will Make Heads Turn Gee Cee Overseas 6331/1, Padam Singh Road, Dev Nagar, Karol Bagh, Delhi-5 Tel. : +91 9873362666 E-mail : [email protected] www.facebook.com/TintedIndia | @tintedclothing_ www.tintedclothing.com | [email protected] Reflections DIWALI SEASON TO IMPROVE MARKET SENTIMENTS TEAM HOLA! & C O N N ECT I N G T H E B U S I N E S S O F FA S H I O N Publisher, Printer & Owner Gagan Marwah Editor Deepti Marwah Sr. Designer Umesh Khorwal Correspondents Rakhi Chaudhary Tanya Choudhary Web & Digital Marketing Sunil Kumar Marketing Team Darrick Solomon Circulation Palak SAINA MEDIA HEAD OFFICE 37/19, Lower Ground Floor, Old Rajinder Nagar New Delhi-110060 For advertisement/editorial enquiries Please contact Deepti Marwah-011-45872075, 09953214112 Gagan Marwah-011-45872073, 09873925220 Email id: [email protected] / [email protected] / [email protected] OWNER, PUBLISHER, PRINTER - GAGAN MARWAH, PRINTED BY HIM AT POLYKAM OFFSET, C-138, PHASE-1, NARAINA INDUSTRIAL AREA, NEW DELHI- 110028 (INDIA). PUBLISHED FROM 33/32, GROUND FLOOR, OLD RAJINDER NAGAR, NEW DELHI 110060 (INDIA). Website/ www.apparelfashion.net Reproduction of any of the content from this issue is prohibited without explicit written permission of the publisher. SEPTEMBER 2015 Deepti Marwah Editor APPAREL&Fashion REGD. OFFICE 33/32, Ground Floor, Old Rajinder Nagar, New Delhi - 110 060. (INDIA) Cell: 098739 25220, 098183 70778, 099532 14112 E-mail: [email protected] [email protected] 6 The apparel and retail market is going through a phase of mixed emotions as on one hand the sales period was more than extended to gear up sales, on the other the consumers’ sentiments are getting better. Most of the retail chains, retailers and wholesalers are looking ahead to the upcoming Diwali season which is one of the major seasons in India. Team Apparel & Fashion talked to some of the brands and retailers who expressed their concern over the extended, sales but are very positive about the sales and growth during the Diwali season. As far as the competition from e-commerce giants is concerned who are already planning a series of offer for the festive season, retailers are ready with special strategies and promotional schemes to woo the customers and beat the competition. Our cover story on the WEDDING WEAR will give a reflection of the current market scenario in the wedding industry, the ongoing trends, a report on collections presented by various designer labels, update on the raw material used for collections like fabrics, accessories, applications, etc. The changing trends and scenario of the wedding market is well defined in the story. In this issue, you will also read about the potential of South India market where most of the retailers and wholesalers are ready to invest and explore. The size of retail stores in Southern India, the strong buying power of consumers, and huge size of the malls is driving everybody towards them. The white paper on this market will reveal how and what is driving growth in these markets. In our RENDEZVOUS section, our team got into conversation with Fusion Beats company and came to know about its strategies for the Indian market and its young customer base. Also, we came across with another growing brand by the name of FUSION BEATS. Apparel & Fashion aims at not only bringing the latest news but also, analysis of market, sentiments of consumers, the upcoming trends, ramp reports, coverage of national and international trade events and many more. The motto is to bridge the gap between all supply chain verticals. Hope you will enjoy reading this issue and will share your feedback on the same. APPAREL&Fashion OM SAI RAM Email: [email protected] Contents 6 EDITORIAL 26 RENDEZVOUS ♦ Fusion Beats Plans to Seep into Tier II and Tier III Cities 32 10 36 COVER STORY ♦ A Vow to Simpleton 38 MARKET PULSE SUPPLIER BASE ♦ Satya Designs Plans to Open an Exclusive Boutique Store in Mumbai TRENDING FASHION ♦ Make in India - The Resurrection of the Golden Fiber Jute ♦ Exporters Expanding in Retail d eferre ost Pr the M merce With E-com to Begin n Optio ♦ Visual Merchandising- An Accurate Tool for Brand Building MARKET UPDATE ing Expaentadil in R IMPRESSIONS 42 ers Export 22 46 NEWS WIRE ♦ Zivame.Com Close to Raising $40 Million in Funding ♦ Free Fashionista- A Fashion line will be Launched by Prison Department Kerala Soon ♦ Flipkart Goes on Social Pathway- Introduces ‘Ping’ Option ♦ TANSIDCO and Snapdeal Collaborate for Bringing MSMEs in Front ♦ CCI Permits the Rs 750 crore Deal Between Future Group and Bharti Retail ♦ Cricketer Umesh Yadav Invests in Hyperlocal Fashion Portal Fashionove ♦ Digital Prints: Fad That Lasted Long 49 FAIR & EVENTS ♦ The Exhibitors at 61st CMAI Fair See Happy Three Days 28 8 WHITE PAPER ♦ A Gold Mine for Retailers and E-Commerce Companies SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion 51 FAIR CALENDAR CoverSTORY o t w o V A n o t e l S i mp dian Bridal Wear n I f o e c a F Changing t h g i e W s d e h S r a e W g n i d Wed W edding season is back again! Every girl wants to look the prettiest in her bridal attire, the one she has dreamt since she understood the meaning of marriages. But with the changes in the ideologies of people, even the meaning of bridal trousseau has changed. It’s royal yet simple! Overflowing super-duper heavy lehenga is not what today’s modern and contemporary girl wants. She would prefer highly elegant, buoyant and comfortable lehengas any day. A visual display of art, an imaginative design. For an Indian woman, traditional dress is not a costume. May be it is getting restricted to occasional wear, but the soul is very much alive. The would-be brides look for longevity in ensembles that work best as separates, pretty with sustainability. It has reached new dimensions with destination weddings with different occasion wear and reception gowns. For these entire functions colour palette differbringing in everything from soft pastels to quintessential trousseau hues such as shades of wine, midnight blue, emerald and fuchsia. The Great Indian Wedding Market The Big Fat Indian Wedding market- as the heavy name suggests – is grand in itself, taking in more than Rs. 800 billion and is positively expected to grow by 25% per annum. It is the one and only recession proof market in India. Many NRIs have the practice of coming to India for their marriage shopping and this boosts the Indian bridal wear market. Lavish Bridal wear in all shapes and forms are available all over the nation, in an array of colours, designs and prices to suit the choice and budget of every shopper. In the international market, Indian designer wears are selling like hot cakes. Fashion designers like Rohit Bal, Ritu beri, Wendell Rodricks, Satya Paul, and Manish 10 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion Malhotra cater to the overseas market and have established a successful image of Indian designers wear in the foreign market. An average cost for bridal trousseau starts from Rs. 25,000 and for sherwani it is Rs. 15,000. Every manufacturer and retailer involved with marriage related goods eagerly awaits the season to push business. And to add cherry over that, each new decade adds a different level to the grandiosity. Three decades ago people hardly thought about the great (read expensive) wedding function that has now become a trend and may be a compulsion. However, no one can complain; at least not the retailers and associated players because of the tremendous business opportunity that comes along with it. So in terms of economy, the bridal industry is alive regardless of fashion trends across the globe. If we talk about the creative bridal trousseau, we cannot miss out Shivan-Narresh’s Bikini inspired sari or a traditionally crafted ghagra by Anju Modi. Crafts such as chikankari, badla and zari have seen a revival thanks to bridal fashion. Indian 750 crore designer wear industry is hugely dependent on this ‘wedding wear’ market, making it the most revenue generating business. From Manish Malhotra to Tarun Tahiliani who started with prêt, are hugely focused on the bridal now. CoverSTORY Designer’s Take- Vogue Wedding Show 2015 The third edition of ‘The Vogue Wedding Show’, the 3-day luxurious wedding exhibition in collaboration with the Taj Group, presented the finest and most extravagant services in the bridal world. India’s ace couturiers like Tarun Tahiliani, Anita Dongre, Anju Modi, Varun Behl , Manish Malhotra, Monisha Jaising, Ritu Kumar, Sabyasachi and even the acclaimed Pakistani designer Sania Maskatiya showcased their latest and the most exclusive bridal collections at the arena. All these designers came up with lavish yet sober combinations of cuts, designs and colours grabbing a lot of eyeballs with their range. Manish Malhotra involved the very Old Persian style in its paisley clad off-white, maroon and pink collection which was contemporary yet stylish with shawl style dupattas and kotis. Changing style of Fabrics Velvet Tarun Tahiliani had his way with sheer light embroidered offwhite, peach, coffee and beige colours in a light and elegant fashion. This fabric has a tendency to look rich and royal even with minimal embroidery as the fabric has a luxurious shine in itself and the famous designer Sabyasachi usually prefers velvet in his range. Blessed with a great fall, this fabric has revived itself in the list of hot favourite fabrics for bridal wear. Raw Silk Crisp , Clean and modern. Raw silk lehengas have a shine but they don’t fold up into soft pleats. The look is super flared out and a bit stiff, as the lehenga fabric is full and stiff. The Varun Bahl stall had a sea of white on a rack with excessive detailing in a soft touch. Exquisite beading, white on white , roses, and shells made this a gorgeous , ethereal showcase. Banarsi & Brocade Very traditional in nature, it got lost in the race of innovations. But it is back again, with a Bang! No need to spend on over the top embroidery as the fabric has self gold patterns on it which look rich minus any embroidery. Anju Modi’s was a grand take on sheers and kotis in pale pastel with embroidered touch. Light weighted and attractive. What else do we need? Georgette Georgette is a soft, swishy, fluid fabric that looks nicer with work that is delicate and not too much. Net Jade by designer duo Monica and Karishma came up with a shower of soft colours in light yet pretty embroideries and beads work in their lehnga-choli. Ultra modern and chic with contemporary look. Much preferred now-a –days as it is easy to carry, light weighted and affordable as well. Tooffer extraordinary creativity, designers are blending fabrics, using yoke styles, decorative materials, gold zari, silk threads etc. to create masterpieces. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 11 CoverSTORY Emerging Hubs for Bridal Wear Manufacturing India is very diverse and rich in culture. Every region serves a definite purpose, bringing in colours in the apparel sector. Mumbai is known for menswear, Delhi for street-chic and Kolkata for extensive, grand bridal wear. With the growing bridal wear market, many new areas have been added to list of the manufacturers. Dadar in Mumbai has six Industries by Ashok Thakkar, Owner, Chintamani’s NX with his wife the name of Jaygopal, Ramgopal, Nandgopal, Harigopal, Balgopal and Omgopal all specialize in bridal wear. 20 year old Dadar based brand ‘Chintamani’ NX’ makes bridal clothing in the most extravagant manner possible.” I try to put my own taste into the colours and detailings we come up with. That gives me satisfaction,” informed Ashok Thakkar, Owner, Chintamani’s NX. Current Trends in Wedding Collection 12 Wedding wear is all about individual taste, but with time this taste has been changing. Now, light and more structured fits are favoured. The palette in vogue is cream and pastel shades that are offset by a lot of computer embroidery and dazzling gota patti work. The hot favourites are bright hues for women that include, an array of blues, midnight to powder pinks and a lot of yellows. Kolkata based designer label Swati & Sunaina have a vast range of bright handwoven style sarees in variant fabrics mainly brocades for the brides. “Traditional sarees have been a love for the would-be brides and that’s what we want to show in the limited edition collection of ours. Benarasi brocades, and gold wire work on brighter hues is IN for the season” says Swati Agarwal, Fashion Designer. Pure Benarasi Ekaya has an entire rainbow line sarees and lehengas for the brides. Embrace a palette full of colours. 1911 formed Jaipuri ‘Rajputi Poshaks’ had been well appraised by many since a century of its existence. They make exclusive SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion wedding wear sarees with thorough hand embellishments, gota patti and ari work. “Brides of today want an amalgamation of traditional and the contemporary. So, we combine the two on the sarees we offer with ultra modern embroidery designs in pretty and bright hues” informs sandeep Burad, from Rajputi Poshaks. CoverSTORY Success Stories of Top Wedding Wear Brands Manyavar Another name for men’s ethnic and wedding wear is ‘Manyavar’. Weddings in India have usually adorned Manyavar, be it regal sherwanis, elegant kurtas or even Indo-Western wear. “In our product line we already have product like sherwani, indowestern, kurta, j-kurta, Jodhpuri, Waistcoat, PDES. Besides this we can plan for new addition like :Party Sherwani, Royal Sherwani, Casual Sherwani, Wedding Sherwani, Shirt with Ethnic Jacket” says Ajay Modi, Director, Manyavar. The brand has manufacturing facility and head office in Kolkata and a capacity over one million units of apparel, the category’s highest in the world. The annual production capacity of the facility at Kolkata is one million units of apparel, ten times more than the closest player. Talking about the current wedding market scenario, he shared,” Earlier, people would wear suits or formal cloths for marriages, but now they are more inclined towards ethnic wear. A rise in disposable income has also given a boost to the segment’s growth. Moreover, young people are dynamic when it comes to spending money on things which matter to them, and to make events such as marriages memorable, they are ready to splurge. It is a fact that the segment is growing at a rapid pace and holds tremendous potential.” For the stylish wedding season, Meena Bazar Established in 1970, Meena Bazaar is a Delhi-based Indian ethnic wear retail brand. It originally started with a small store selling printed sarees and has evolved into a leading retail name today recognized by Indians globally. They are known for their exclusive and exquisite 14 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion range of Sarees, Suits, Lehngas, Kurtis, Gowns and Anarkalis. They have retail outlets in major ciities of India, and are rapidly opening stores in other cities. With a bridal range starting from Rs. 55,000, this brand has a great touch of elegance in lavishness. Manyavar is all set to bring in new varieties and innovations in the product line. ”Customer wants change and likes to experiment hence changing style and design while keeping comfort in mind has become primarily important. Hence it drives us to use new kinds of material and embellishments. Innovative touch can be given through the use of accessories which gives us opportunity to experiment with color and fabric. We have played with a minor variation in our pattern, cuts and style. In our products we have added angrakha, achkan, anarkali with panels, layering in sherwani and flared trousers to compliment the simple designs as well. When it comes to color section in this A/W 15 we are using multi tones and some hues like rust , orange, blue and red, dark violet blue, tint of yellow and classic blue. 2015 color pallet of global trend includes rich colors, bright pop up colors with vibrant touch, sparks of pink and white tone.” avers Sneha. Currently, the brand has 370 EBOs ,100 Shop in Shops and 500 Multi Brand Outlets (MBO) across the country and business channels in the US, UK and the Middle East and plans are to take the numbers to 500 Exclusive Brand Outlets (EBOs) by 2015-16. “By 2018 Manyavar will be aiming to open 600 exclusive stores, 1 million square foot of retail space which will include 100 flagship stores and 50 global stores and launch of women’s collection” he informs. In its quest to expand globally, Manyavar has founded its first international store (EBO) in Dubai and one in Bangladesh. CoverSTORY Shanu Chitlangiya Label SHANU CHITLANGIYA is a joint dream that was envisaged by the husband-wife duo Ritesh and Shanu. The Jaipur based couture label caters to both men and women, focusing and excelling in men’s section. Their product range in ethnic wear varies from sherwani and bandhgala to kurta and nehru jackets, including jodhpuri and long coats. Most of their clients hail from Rajasthan, Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai and US. “The demand of designer wedding wear is increasing day by day. It is a huge market with lot of scope. Since our label is a couture brand, the target base is upper middle to high class. We cater what people actually look for – Traditional with a Twist” says Rupa Choudhary, Designer, Shanu Chitlangiya. Diwan Saheb Established in 1957, the legendary Diwan Saheb has been very true to its commitment of taking men’s fashion to a new high by blending modernity with ethnicity and creating an extraordinary league of male couture as never witnessed before. From exquisite Sherwanis, Achkans, Jodhpuris and Kurta-pyjamas to exclusive western designer and business suits, Diwan Saheb has the best for every occasion. With three mega- showrooms and a chain of outlets in all the major cities across the expanse of the country, the brand reaches everywhere satisfying the needs of the customers. Also with stores in London and New York, Diwan While talking about the fabric innovations and designs she shared,” We use a variant range of fabrics from velvet, linen, textured velvet, as they are very much in demand these days. There is even a tilt towards the digital prints on the coats.” The label is going to organize various fashion shows this year to promote themselves. sahib has been expanding its global foot print round the globe. For this wedding season, Diwan Saheb has come up with a mix of traditional and modern geometrical patterns in subtle colour combinations, which includes a gold on pure silk and cream with a shade of rust. Intricate hand embroideries and mild adda-work is the heart of the range, inspired by the rich and royal Russian Culture. The flared Sherwanis, crushed tabby silk kurta and churidar, and a whole lot of amazing pieces. Sure enough, Diwan sahib is well living the dream the founders had once seen. Raas Akanksha Arora, Fashion Designer, Raas Brainchild of the designer Akanksha Arora, Raas celebrates the festive mood. Her latest collection ‘Jashn’ is very special as the showstopper lehenga is for her own wedding which is to be held late this year. The celebration, colour and brilliance of a wedding translated into fabric and wrapped around a delightful package of festivities has been shown in ‘Jashn ‘collection. The label has two stores in Delhi, one in GK I and another one in Shahpur Jat. “This contemporary fusion range is full of Indian silhouettes dipped in traditional motifs and work. I play a lot with the asymmetrical designs, be it kotis or blouses or lehengas and thus, setting my work apart from the ones in this industry. Jashn means colours, so yes the range would be very colourfull and energetic. Show-stopper attire, my Baraat lehenga is grand and beautiful celebrating my love for fullon fun. Perfect for any big fat Indian wedding” says Akanksha. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 15 CoverSTORY Himmat Singh India Runway Week presented by IFFD had a grand opening by Himmat Singh. The Jaipur based designer started his label ‘Studio Himmat” in March 2000, showcasing special garments with superior handwork & craftsmanship with interesting cuts, contemporary styling and innovative fabrics encompassing a range of Indian, Western, Formal, Casual and Fusion lines for men and women. A real representative of royalty & culture, he defines a true picture of the Prince and Maharaja through his creative collection. His designs are a blend of the past and present making a perfect range for the young blue bloods of the new world. His latest collection is inspired by the richness of Rajasthan’s culture and art with artistic handwork moulded into modern styles & silhouettes. “I am very proud to present my collection in the presence of celebrities like Mika Singh who loves to wear my label and Darshan Kumar who showstopped my show. My range of garments reflect variety of colours and fabric textures like cotton, linen, tweed, denims, velvet & brocades with embellishments of zardozi, gota pati and elegant hand work which will refresh new and contemporary designs both for man and woman” shares Himmat Singh. Dressed in his favourite mustard colour sherwani actor Darshan Kumaar was very excited during the show. “This is my second ramp show, earlier being for Archana Kochhar and the feeling is great. I believe in comfortable fashion and this attire is truly made for me.” The latest range launched by Himmat Singh is a new approach to the term royalty. Himmat Singh, Fashion Designer with Darshan Kumar, Actor Purvi-Aanal Purvi Pujara & Aanal Kotak Fashion Designer, Purvi-Aanal Gauri Couture Since 2012 from Punjab, Gauri Couture is a label that offers experimentation and uniqueness in a perfect amalgamation of Indian history over modern silhouettes. Their wedding wear collections sprinkle an essence of rich Indian embroideries and surface ornamentations over high fashion. The label comprises team of trio Nikheil Bassan, Rivendra and Twinkle who believe in timeless, classic and vintage fashion. Their India Runway Week 2015 wedding Wear collection ‘ Mastani’ is inspired from ghungroo talks about carefree swag of womanhood. The range also represents 16 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion Gujarati by birth, Gujarati by feel- this couture label brings about the essence of Gujarat via their work. Their 2015 collection celebrates Gujarati ‘Parampara’ of giving Gharchola to brides as trousseau which was traditionally worn as sarees. The designer duo Purvi-Aanal has recreated the magic of their fabric in their designs to lure the gen-next brides. The richness of the fabric has been enhanced and transformed into avante garde cuts and siulhouettes. “We have tried to blend spirit of festivity in plum, jade, and golden nude vintage colour palette. ” We experiment a lot with fabrics like crepe, georgette, raw silk, khadi silk, lycra and net to present a range for ultra modern brides and grooms. Silhouettes include pleated flared pants, stylized salwars, semistiched sarees, cap[es, blouses, bandhgala, waistcoats and kurta shirt- perfect for the whole pre and post wedding functions”, says Nikheil Bassan, Designer, Gauri Couture. Intricate and exquisite motifs taken from vintage India, embroiderd gold, bronze , copper colours and zardosi work adorn the beautifully defined collection. the glorious past with functional future with our designs which are a twist to the traditional tales. This purely Kutchi range is full of pastel hues and delicate embroideries and mirror-work reviving the traditional art forms of Rabari and soda hand work”, says Purvi Pujara. “ We have experimented with a lot of silhouettes ranging from dhoti styles to gowns in gota work adorned with fully embroidered kotis and jackets “, informs Aanal Kotak. (Left) Nikheil Bassan, Designer, Gauri Couture Showcasing his Collection CoverSTORY Kini Khimasia This Bombay based label is run by the gen-next designer Kinjal Khimasia who is pretty excited to present her new bridal wear collection. Inspired by the Winter sun, the range is full of sunny hues like orange, peach depicting the calmness of the mornings. And pairing them with the pop-coloured embroideries and work definitely brings about a spark in it. “I myself being a youngster know what today bride want- twist in traditions. So I make ‘Assorted fusion wear’ for them, wearing which she can set herself apart from the crowd in style”, says Kinjal. Kinjal Khimasia, Fashion Designer Kanika & Sugandh Kanika and Sugandh, Fashion Designers This Shahpur Jat luxurious couture label run by the designer duo Kanika and Sugandh has been in this business for two years. Their latest Bridal wear collection gets inspiration from the spunkiness of the ‘Flamingos’. Dipped in the shades of pinks and peaches, the bridal couture range is adorned beautifully by the use of detailing of pearls, zaris and zardosi. Talking about the current scenario of the bridal wear business, Kanika says,” This industry is highly competitive in its own way. As more and more of top designers are leaving their forte to get into making bridal couture, we are facing problems. Obviously, we are doing our best to compete and bring in some exquisite range every time.” Jaitra_by_garima The Haute Couture Bridal wear label by Designer Garima Sharma is special in its own way. This ultra contemporary label is rich in Indian-ness through its ethnic embroideries and work. “My latest bridal wear range is a gift to those women who are fearless yet elegant. Inspired from the architectures of Morocco, the collection is structured yet full of swing. This prêt-couture range is full of energy and grand in nature showcasing my love for the embroideries like mocaise, zardosi and ari work” says the young designer. The label uses a variety of fabrics like silks and satins as well as exquisite trims and add-ons. The label has grand stores one in Jagat puri and another one in Preet Vihar. Garima Sharma, Fashion Designer Krishna Mehta The glam and glitzy fashion event of the year, Lakme Fashion Week, saw great innovations and designs dipped in crazy colours. Om Tex, the official cosponsors,presented designs from renowned designer Krishna Mehta adding new dimensions on the red carpet. Formed in 1995, Om Tex has continually been touching Indian and International hearts with its Indian bridal and ethnic wear. The very famous bridal designer,with the hallucination of producing astute designs, Krishna Mehta got very much inspired by the art form called, “Abhala Bharat” also known as the “Sheesha concept”. She created her designs by using different shaped mirrors stitched to create an embroidery bringing alive the mono-coloured garments. With ethnic prints, animal motifs, bright colors and trend-setting desi styles and drapes her collection was every bit dreamy. In keeping with the season, Krishna Mehta experimented with various geometrical looks that creates sheer versatility in her every design created by her. While inspired by traditional techniques, the collection is innovatory designed to be worn in any part of the world. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 17 I n the seasons that have come and gone, a splash of digital prints has been sprayed across the fashion world, taking up a huge place in the brands allover. Digital fabric printing is taken as the greatest innovation of 21st-century fashion. Being innovative, fast, efficient and versatile technology the trend of digital printing has caught attention of many because of its increased demand. From the traditional flower prints to the materialized abstract graphics, the era of digital prints have come all the way. Huge help has been provided by the vastly improved digital printing technologies. The brands both nationally and internationally are adopting the changes in the digital printing scenarios. The printing revolution means that the textiles print isn’t just the new big thing, but is becoming more important and more recognizable than the logo in the branding of fashion companies –from Prada, Pucci, to the Indian brand Fusion Beats. The Designers of today rely on digital mastery as it is convenient as well as trendy. From Photoshop and illustrator to digital photography, digital printing is “the tool” for these young and established designers. 22 The range varies now from the earlier only t-shirts and tops. Now we can see bottom wear, floaters, and even jackets that have been adorned prints. The colours used are versatile as well, from multi-coloured psychedelics to dark- goth inspired ones. This major trend was also seen at the National Garment fair organized by the CMAI, Mumbai. Here, major as well as minor Mumbai and Ahmadabad based retailers came up with their distinct taste in digital prints. Worth mentioning styles were that of Bonaty Digital, a Parel retailer brand which deals with Men’s t-shirts and Polos. The company is two and a half year old, hence new and refreshing. “We offer a huge range of photo-prints on cottons, denims and various blends which is very much in demand these days. Our main focus is on today’s youth who doesn’t hesitate to experiment because we play a lot with collars and prints. Our distribution network reaches to all tier I and tier II cities where prints are highly popular” informed Maulik Mehta, Marketing Head, Bonaty Digital. The prints used are abstract and noval developed by their in-house designers. They get their printing work done from Bollywood loves to wear prints and the statement is evident through the collections Sonam Kapoor wore in her film Khoobsoorat. There she adorned her self with printed crop tops, long skirts, pyjamas, shorts , and even the summer jackets. It came as a great fad for the youngsters who want to look different and quirky. outside. Their product range is affordable, starting from Rs. 499 till Rs.2099. Another brand that has digital prints over the Men’s polos is Delhi based ‘Tinted’. A unique feature of their polos is the fabrics they use. The lightweight and handy garment is made out of lycra and viscose knit which is distinct in their own way. These budget Polos starts from Rs. 650 onwards. “Digital printing is a technology that has started to provide a gaining edge to the garments this season, and is attracting a lot of popularity among the clients across the globe. We just started our printed polo range and the response has been fabulous. Shirts, both printed and plain, would be a new addition to our collection” averred Saurabh Gumber, Owner, Tinted. The shirts of ‘Ramp Age’ were trendy with a lot of digital prints. The prints were abstract and bold well suiting the ‘Army’ theme that they had for the fair. A play of prints was seen on various fabrics such as corduroy, denims and natural linens starting from Rs.999 onwards. “ We are a young team so, we well understand the perspective of youth of India. We are known for our designer shirts all over India” said Gomsy Laddha, Owner, Ramp Age. From the desi prints of D-va creations, an Indo western brand dealing with tunics and kurtis on light weight It is fair to say that Indian retailers are walking hand on hand with the International trends as digital printing has broken down the barriers of traditional textiles. fabrics to the totally western photo prints of Elxsi. Many brands are offering digital printed garments. Another brand DCBD has the entire range based on vibrant prints fit for all body types. They experiment their photo-prints on a variety of fabrics including rayon, cottons, crepes, satins and others which they source from India and abroad. 2010 born Mumbai based brand B:Kind has a love for prints. Be it summers or the winters, the brand has a collection full of prints. The brand had a range of denims, chambrays, modals, twills and corduroys in blue dipped in floral and geometric prints. The range included tops, tunics, straight pants, dresses, palazzos and shirts. “Trends vary season to season, with the introduction of new themes and colour palettes, light weight fabrics on pastel bases and bright colour prints are topping the list this season” said Vidhi, Owner, B:Kind. Another company Satya designs has Indian prints inspired from mythological characters as well as a lot of abstract and geometric prints developed by their design team. The brand believes in ‘Mix n Match’ well displayed by their range which had an amalgamation of vibrant colours and distinct prints on unique silhouettes. For kids wear, the brand Tales & Stories, a premium denim maker came up with international prints on its range of shorts,skirts, denims, midis, jumpsuits and dungarees. “We have been in the export segment from last 44 years making us ahead in following trends and silhouettes. Prints have been a favourite both in domestic and International market and our products that had prints were liked by many” informed Atman Shah, Director, T&S. Who must have thought we can bring scissors or for that matter cups and beer mugs on the Indian Ethnic Garments. This vague idea was made to come into reality by the famous Masaba Gupta, who just loves to play with interactive prints. She has been the youngest Creative Director of Satya Paul and believes that her prints do the talking. Sure enough, her eccentric yet unique style has been adopted by Bollywood stars and even the people world wide. The saris are particularly eye-catching, with the clever use of “interactive” prints potraying fun and youthfulness. Her inspiration comes from small objects or things all around the world. Hectick boys wear has shirts with all over digital prints on cottons. While going through the domestic trends we can tell that prints on every piece of apparel is popular. Be it t-shirts, shirts, trousers, jackets, dress or anything. Like prints on prints is also in vogue. There are many companies that offer job work to the retail brands. To name a few, we have Sahiba Ltd., HM & Sons P Ltd, Madhav Fibers Pvt. Ltd., Bhupendra Textile, Singh Fashion Fabrics. Most of these companies hail from Surat, a hub for digital printing in India. “Anything which is new and innovative catches the attention and this is why digital printing is getting good response. With the availability of latest machines the company is able to increase the production capacity and also work on better margins, which is still difficult in embroidery” said Rakesh Bachkanswala, Owner, HM & Sons P Ltd. He further informed, “Digital printing is much more expressive and these days flower prints and abstracts are highly preferred by the buyers especially in Mumbai, Delhi and Jaipur.” Another player from Surat, Bhupendra Bhavsar, Partner, Bhupendra Textile said, “Despite its high prices, digital printing is more in demand these days amongst the buyers due to its advanced technology.” Yashiki Gumber, Sahiba Ltd. said, “Our group is now planning to install four more digital printing machines of Italian technology, which will make us world’s biggest Textile Digital Printing Studio.” There are many high-tech latest digital printing machines like MS ( JP7) by Orange O Tec Pvt. Ltd who have productivity of 5000 meter per day and give a speed of 210 lin.met per hour and Nassenger PRO 100 giving a speed of 1000 square meter per hour. The cost of printing comes out to be about Rs. 250 per meter. S ince its 1968 inception, the name Etro has become synonymous with style and patterns. Etro is known worldwide for its vibrant patterns, specifically paisley. The paisley pattern became famous after the fashion brand created it while designing furnishing fabrics in 1981. The more the popularity of Etro prints and patterns grew, the more coveted statement accessories using these motifs became. Etro is the go-to fashion brand for accessories like shawls, scarves and ties for women and men. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 23 MarketPULSE Festive Sentiments of the Retail MarketMall analysis I ndia being the country of festivities is full of opportunities for the apparel industry. Every festival brings about a different set of hopes for the retailers and Diwali season, the ‘King’ of all other seasons is surely expected to bring about tremendous sales for them. The holiday is considered an auspicious time to make big purchases. Billboards across the country advertise “festive offers” on everything from cooking oil to cars. Also with a burgeoning population, high incomes, high disposable incomes, rising middle class affluence, and availability of quality goods of the consumers, they don’t hesitate to buy regardless of the ups and downs in the market. The festive season sees an increase in spending and with that the performance of companies is also expected to improve. Stores rely heavily on Diwali shopping, which accounts for a large chunk of annual profits, and the competition is cutthroat with retailers trying to undercut each other by as little as a few rupees. Last year’s Diwali went dry with to few VEROMODA: Launched in 1987, VERO MODA is the brand of choice for the fashion-conscious, independent young woman who wants to dress well and pay less. VERO MODA offers quality, affordable and inspiring clothing for the young woman who wants to look good and have fun with her look. For this Diwali season, the brand expects to meet the target set for it. “Sales are low due to the falling sensex, but we expect good amount of growth during this festive season. We don’t feel threatened by the booming e-commerce as our range is just different; we stand apart from the others. We have our own strategies to woo the consumers and we have been adding good collections every now and while. Also, we are planning to put in gift vouchers and to do promotions. So let’s see” says Rahul Gulati, Store manager, Veromoda. Talking about the End of season sales (EOSS) he shares,” This EOS was definitely good for us earning us a 100% target achievement. We are hoping the same from this festive season.” Promod: French fashion promoter, Promod offers trends with a mix of urban, romantic, retro leisure and ethnic. Promod dresses up modern women that are looking for affordable, feminine and easy-to-wear fashion. The brands inspiring collection offers a wide range of frequently updated items from timeless seasonal must-haves to cutting-edge designer-inspired fashion pieces. Promod was created in France in 1975 as a family boutique with their self-designed clothes for women. The company rapidly expanded and now sells their clothing in 50 countries and since 1999 they are also online. 24 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion Neha Banerjee, Store Manager, Promod shoppers opening up their wallets and cutthroat competition from increasingly influential online retailers. And of course, for an Indian, cheapest sell always wins. Online retailers managed to capture the consumer’s imagination and wallet in an unprecedented manner last year and the trend is still on. Team Apparel & Fashion had a talk with the top retailer brands at Pacific Mall, Subhash Nagar in West Delhi about their plans and expectations from the festive season. GUESS: Established in 1981, GUESS began as a denim company and has since successfully grown into a global lifestyle brand. Today, GUESS designs, markets, and distributes full collections of women’s, men’s and children’s apparel as well as accessories. Throughout the years, the GUESS image has been portrayed in unforgettable, innovative campaigns that have made the brand a household name. For this festive season, the brand is hoping to get good sales with high discounts and gift vouchers and hampers. “We are getting a new range for Diwali, with the introduction of value added dresses and bags. Also combos would be delivered in the accessory range” says Tripta Chawla, Store Manager, GUESS. The brand feels that it is exquisite in its own way with no competitions from others. “We achieved 125% of our set target with amazing footfalls during the End of season sales. We were also able to retain our customers, which is a really good feeling. Adding to all the celebrations, good incentives were like a cherry on top”, shared Tripta. MarketPULSE FCUK: KAZO: Founded in 1972 by Stephen Marks, London based French Connection set out to create well-designed fashionable clothing that appealed to a broad market. French Connection offers a fashion-forward clothing range with a quirky spin on design, priding itself on quality and affordable prices. For the Diwali, the brand expects best selling with high sales. “Yes, the market is down, but we cannot sit back. We are bringing in new styles and stories in festive collection to suit more with the Mohammad Istaq, Fashion consultant, FCUK. festive spirit. Plans are to give out healthy discounts and festive combo offers to grab more attention. Currently, the store only has the Men’s range but we are planning to bring Women’s collection as well”, shares Mohammad Istaq, Fashion consultant, FCUK. Kazo, started in 2007, is a young international brand that has made its way into the centre of the fashion industry within a short span of time. The garments designed are phenomenally fashionable with a high wear ability and practicality quotient. The main asset of the collections is that it is highly affordable which enables customers an access to the latest designer wear, giving a chance to every woman to feel great in her skin, right to her soul. For this season the brand hopes a good hike in sales along with consumer retention probabilities. “We are planning strategies to tackle the e-commerce bump in our rides to success and hopefully it will be achieved during no time. EOSS was good, but Diwali will be better. Yes, expect good discounts and innovative range for the season” avers Ranjita Oinam, Fashion Consultant, Kazo. BEBE: 1976 established bebe is the go-to destination for chic, contemporary fashion. The brand evokes a mindset - an attitude, not an age. It’s a true original, always defining fashion’s next stride forward. Designed for the confident, sexy, modern woman, bebe is a global label that embodies a sensual, sophisticated lifestyle. For Diwali bebe is to come up with an entirely new range with detailed sequins work. “Obviously we are expecting great sales during the festive period and for that we are planning to give promotional gifts and vouchers such as a bag for a fixed amount of purchase and things like that” says Jyoti Gahlot, Store Manager, Bebe. Talking about the EOSS she added,” Honestly speaking, the End of season sales was just fine for us. Not that great but not so bad as such. But yes, we are expecting better response for the festive season.” MADAME: Known for knit western wear, Madame is a women’s ready-wear brand, owned by parent company Jain Amar Clothing Private Limited, India. The brand was established in 1980 with a vision to provide world class apparels and accessories for women. Presently, the company supports 60 exclusive stores spread across the length and breadth of India, which is a mix of franchised and company owned outlets. The brand has Dinesh Arawat, TM, just launched its AW 15 collection and would be adding some Madame more value added products during Diwali. “Winters have always been good for us and we would be expecting the same this year as well. E-commerce is booming and it’s like a win-win situation for us as we are present on all the famous fashion e-portals. So, no complaints” informed Dinesh Arawat, TM, Madame. He added, “There was a mixed reaction from the EOSS this year with high sales in August but slow in July. The sales are still present in our stores all across the country.” Forever New: Forever New is a fashion clothing and accessories brand founded in Melbourne, Australia. One of the fastest growing Australian brands, Forever New emerged in late 2006 as a start up retailer and now trades over 250 stores across seven countries. The brand celebrates the feminine beauty of women, a signature style flowing through every creative element. “Our brand does not focus on Diwali, but yes we are coming up with Forever New Bridal Western Wear Collection this November to attract the lovely would-be brides. So, hopes are high for this season” says Garima Kamboj, Area Manager, Forever New. “Our adding a new collection every month has done wonders for us, boosting the sales and helping in consumer retention. EOSS was great and hopes are to achieve the target sales” Garima explains. Global Desi: Free spirited, vibrant and delightful, Global Desi is a boho-chic fashion brand, inspired by India’s colours and chaos. Created in smooth western styles, every outfit in every collection tells you to go ahead and wear the vibe. The brand from designer Anita Dongre’s AND Designs India, Global Desi was launched in 2007. The brand will be bringing in a new range of kurtas and palazzos with innovative designs in simple colours as liked by the masses. “We follow the in vogue colour palette and prints and this season it would be back to basics. Since it is the festive season, vibrant colours would be present but nothing of value additions” informs Aniket Gupta, Store Manager, Global Desi. He further added, “We got over Rs 42 lakhs business during the EOSS. So, atleast Rs 40 lakhs would be the target for Diwali”. So, as we can notice, the brands have tied up their belts to get in good sales in their bags and have fully planned to how to tackle the approaching wind. Let us hope the season goes well for them. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 25 RendezVOUS Fusion Beats plans to seep into Tier II and Tier III cities Team Apparel & Fashion gets FACE2FACE with Rahuul Goenka, Vice President, Fusion Beats (Creative lifestyle Pvt. Ltd.) 26 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion T he cool yet chic brand has achieved a good name in its three years of existence doubling their growth. Amalgamation of modernity with ethnic roots and the use of light and comfortable fabrics have wooed many young working women as well as college goers into adding them in their wardrobes. Fusion Beats is available all across the metros and is planning to get into small cities as well. RendezVOUS AF: How is Fusion beats different from 109 F? Rahuul Goenka: 109 F is our company’s first domestic brand and it focuses primarily on Western Wear but Fusion beats, as the name suggests, it’s for urban classic women who are attached to the Indian roots. Its cool and chic comprising of desigual prints, a cheers to the Indian Spirit. We want to bring Indian culture to a platform where it can be adopted by every modern woman of the society. AF: When was Fusion Beats launched and what had been the ideology behind bringing up such a fashion? Rahuul Goenka:Fusion Beats came into existence in March, 2012 following the successful launch of 109F. Our idea behind launching such a brand was to make a fashion which is apt for women who loves wearing Western clothes, but is also proud of her Indian Ethnic culture. Fusion Beats fills the gap between the Western and the Traditional, by fusing these and adding a Fun and Fashionable element to the appeal. We provide exquisite fashion at affordable prices starting from Rs. 1000 onwards. AF: What new Fusion Beats would offer for the customersfor Autumn/ Winter 2015? Rahuul Goenka: See, we follow latest trends, designs and prints from trustworthy and International sites like WGSN. As women today work, go to office and juggle a lot of appointments, they want a comfortable fashion, an item which is soft to wear and aesthetically appealing. We have come up with longer length dresses, tops, cozy bottoms, A-line skirts and dresses with side slits, a look fit for parties at evening. Prints are very much in vogue right now, so we have Indianized and desigual all over prints on our products. Colour story used comprises blue, black and white but we also have other colours also. An experimental product of ours is the printed Kimonos and Poncho. Prints are expected to remain the same. Focus colours would be bright and sunny colours. AF: How is the branding of Fusion Beats done? Rahuul Goenka: Creating a brand is not difficult; making your brand visible is a very challenging task. We focus a lot on branding, from in-store posters and Visual Merchandising to big wide hoardings that have been put in various places in metro cities. Our advertisements are regular on top newspapers like Hindustan Times and The Times of India. AF: What type of fabrics you use on your product range? Rahuul Goenka: We basically work with light weight, but durable fabrics which are ideal for printing. Majorly fabric comes from various regions of India and along with that we use imported fabric also from China, Korea and South-East Asia. AF: What can we expect from Spring/ Summer16 in terms of styles and colours? Rahuul Goenka: Retail is going really slow at present, so I think S/S16 is going to be just an extension of A/W15. Nobody wants to expand much and get low response in terms of buying. Of course, fabrics would be changed as laces and sheers are getting popularity. AF: What are the expansion plans of Fusion Beats in the next five years? Rahuul Goenka: We are a new brand, so obviously we need to expand ourselves timely. Fusion Beats is available in six metros viz. Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad but, we are planning to expand the reach of the brand by seeping into the B and C cities. Also, we are planning to open new exclusive brand outlets and also we are coming up with our own online portal. AF: How much growth Fusion Beats is expecting in the current financial year? Rahuul Goenka: As our brand has been liked by many all across the country, we expect to grow by 50%. Hope, everything goes in our favour. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 27 WhitePAPER SOUTH INDIA- A GOLD MINE FOR RETAILERS & E-COMMERCE COMPANIES T here was a time when Northern region of India was considered to be the one with higher buying capacity but now, the scenario is changing. Last year’s slowdown came as a curse for many corporate retailers, however, the ones who remained unaffected were the family-run regional chain of stores operating in South India. The giant chains are not only growing brilliantly in size, growth and customer base but have expanded at a phenomenal pace over the last few years. The South based stores are known to be very cautious about giving a memorable and beautiful experience of shopping to their customers every time they visit their stores and that is why more and more customers are becoming loyal to them. Team Apparel & Fashion brings to you some interesting insights about the retail scenario of South India, the increasing buying capacities, the new and upcoming stores and the tangible growth in the coming years. The whitepaper we bring to you is the result of an in-depth study about South India emerging as a giant buyer. It is becoming a favourite destination for retailers, manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers. There are many reasons to it. Let us look at them one by one: 28 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion WhitePAPER Some Interesting Facts. . . T he southern states have the highest number of retail chains, and the largest of the mall is LULU International located in Kochi. RMKV, a departmental store in Tirunelveli, is spread in 100,000 sq ft area. The annual turnover of this store is more than any single Lifestyle or Pantaloons store in this whole wide country reaching Rs 110 crore at present. Today, RMKV is in the process of setting up another 55,000 sq ft anchor store at the 450,000 sq ft Brookfield’s Plaza mall in Coimbatore, being co-developed by Mangal Tirth Estates, the brain behind India’s oldest mall, Spencer Plaza in Chennai. Kalyan Silk, the infamous brand, has a six level, 85,000 sq ft showroom in Thrissur town doing a business of Rs 100 crore annually. Emmanuval Silks has over 100,000 sq ft outlet. Kalyan Silks has another nine-level outlet in Ernakulam, Kochi in 125,000 sq ft, which is believed to be the world’s largest silk saree store. This is nowhere seen in Delhi or any other northern region. There are ‘small’ stores like Coimbatore-based Shri Kannan Stores and Chennai-based Sri Murugan Stores who earn Rs 1.5 crore per month from each of their many stores. Now, who will be able to beat that? The Pothys Megastore in Panagal Park, Chennai as well as Kalyan Silks megastore in Ernakulam each does more than Rs 150 crore per annum business. Endorsed by the famous actor Suriya, Saravana Stores is a chain of retail stores, located in T Nagar, Purasaiwakkam, Chrompet and another one coming up in Anna Nagar selling textiles, jewellery, vessels and a wide range of consumer products. Taken to be the largest family run retail chain in India, the company has an annual turnover of about 6.50 billion rupees (200 million US dollars). Famous all over India, Nalli’s take the credit for spreading awareness about Indian ethnic wear amongst India’s youth, especially at a time when the general trend is towards western wear. The Chennai Silks (TCS) is a Tirupur- based giant selling silk sarees and ready to wear garments and like other retail chains in South, all TCS stores are located on high streets and not inside the malls. Another group which entered into its 64th year is Naidu Hall that has spread out to its present built-up area of 15,000 sq. ft with five floors of unadulterated shopping — blouses, saris, salwar sets, undergarments, nightwear, accessories and Western wear. When ranked business wise Saravana Stores tops the list with more than Rs 1600 crore business coming from its four stores, TCS is ranked second with more than Rs 1300 crore closely followed by Nalli’s, Pothy’s and RmKV. All these stores are known for their premium quality silk sarees. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 29 WhitePAPER Strong Financial Situation of Southern India W hen it comes to buying the most important factor is buying capacity and while retailers and retail chains are struggling with the pace of buying which only shoots up when the sales is on, the scenario in South India is totally different. Highly educated South Indians believe in quality buying, moreover, with strong career in IT and tonnes of gold laying in their bank accounts, they just make the perfect buyers. Education is highly valued in the south Indian community, and is seen as a gateway to a better livelihood. Many of the nation’s most prominent physicists and mathematicians have been South Indians. Kerala, while possessing a literacy rate above 98%. Information Technology is a growing field in South India infact Bangalore is India’s Information Technology hub, and is home to over 200 software companies. It is often referred to as the Silicon Valley of India. Four of the country’s top seven exporters of software viz. Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Coimbatore are located in South India. If the spending power of all states in the South is analaysed, Tamil Nadu takes the leading position, while Karnataka is also quite close. Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh take up the third and fourth position respectively. The highest producer of silk, cotton and knits, Tamil Nadu is also one of the biggest retail markets in the country. It is one of the most evolved when compared to its neighbouring states. In case, a product fails to live up to its expectations, the people do not purchase it again in other parts of India. On the other hand, the customers from Tamil Nadu are very loyal to the brands they buy. Therefore, if a company captures and gets well-entrenched in the market and continues to provide the customers with quality products, its market share will remain intact. Chennai is ranked number 7 in the list of wealthiest cities in India. Quality & Value- Priority For Consumers According to many wholesalers and retailers, unlike North India, the people in South are not fussy and do not like to show off their brand logos just for the sake of it. South Indians are simple people who go for investing and have a few pieces in their wardrobes with good quality and a mix of top to medium sized brands. The concept of street shopping is very limited in South. Consumers still prefer buying expensive and high quality silk products and that is why there are plenty of Stores in South India offering only silk- based products. The consumers prefer purity in fabrics, restricting themselves from wearing any sorts of blends. Customer Loyality Strategies Seeting Retailers On New Heights It has been observed that the strategy to retain and win loyality of customers in South is very innovative and unique. Most of the chains offer something exclusive to remain in the mind of their target consumers and do everything they can to get the consumer loyalty. For instance, the malls and chains provide 30 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion exquisite products taking a huge check on material, costing and quality. Also, they attract the consumers through value added services provided by them. “Go to Vijaya mall in Chennai, or the Pothy’s or in any of the silks emporiums, you will find people serving juice or dry fruits at every floor. Although these stores have stairs system and are built traditionally, it is just great to have such an experience” said Gautam Hirdaramani, Owner, Cupcake Girlswear, a Mumbai based Kid’s wear brand. Another example would be that of MK Retail in Bangalore, an 80 year old multi crore supermarket. This mart is WhitePAPER a famous not just because of its product range, but also its customer service as well. It makes it a point to help shoppers load bags into the car. On similar lines, Ratnadeep Supermarkets offer home deliveries across all its five stores in Hyderabad. Pothys stands apart from others in its most unique billing system. While in most stores one has to carry products to the counter where the bill is being made and purchases are packed, it is done differently in Pothy’s. The consumers there pick what they wish to buy and the sales men take them to the counter and get a printed bill, while the consumers can do the rest of shopping and get them billed the same way. All bills are put together and payment can be made at the cash counter. Retailers & Wholesalers Prefer Working With Southern India The success story in South is changing the landspace of entire sourcing pattern in domestic retail market. As a result many wholesalers are focusing on increasing business in South. While on one hand they get good quantity orders in one go on the other they feel that the payments are more secure in South as compared to North. Wholesalers from many states have lost their faith in the North based retailers, the reasons are many for instance; laid back attitude, delayed payments and delivery of products. On the other hand Southern India has become a hub for the wholesalers because of their promptness and discipline. “We supply mostly to Southern states. There are less payment problems in South when compared with North. Also, the prompt response that we get from the retail chain is better. They demand quality and are ready to pay the actual price for that” informed Dinesh Nishar, Director, Matrix, a Dadar based Ethnic wear brand for Men. “Most of the Mumbai based manufacturers and wholesalers get best deals in South. The buyers are polite and pleasant, good to talk to and genuinely take interest in going through the product range which is very different from the buyers of North who are arrogant,” said Palak, Spokesperson, Voodoo, a Men’s denim brand. As far as the sourcing pattern of South is concerned, the demand is good throughout the year and since the weather is almost the same there is no season based buying. “ Since South India is usually hot and humid, for them there is no particular season for buying apparels. So, there is a lot of business t- shirt makers throughout the year,” averred Maulik Mehta, Director, Bonaty Digital. The increase in sales is also seen during the festivals like Pongal, Onam and Tamil New year and during the month of October when wedding seasons set in. Online shopping has also become a popular trend in South. Initially it was the young customers, who were mainly attracted but now even the middle aged people, the middle class and the rich strata of the city have also fallen for this new trend and love it to the core. Latest figures show that Southern states take up 41% of the e-commerce business in India, North coming up next with 32%. “Today’s generation has become too high-tech, with is good in a way. Now, it takes just one click to explore products and buy them. We are available on all top-notch websites and E-commerce has definitely given a boost to our business” stated D. Raghunath, Marketing Head, Jus Cubs, a Bengaluru based kid’s Wear brand. Gautam Hirdaramani, Owner, Cupcake Girlswear Dinesh Nishar, Director, Matrix Maulik Mehta, Director, Bonaty Digital (At Right) D. Raghunath, Marketing Head, Jus Cubs APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 31 ImpresSIONS Visual Merchandising- An accurate tool for brand building T oday’s consumer want visually appealing, creative, out of the box designs, but a brand’s creativity is always judged by the way they present themselves. A brand’s creative merchandise is of no use if not put creatively. The role of a Visual Merchandiser having a sole task or making the brand store’s exterior as well as interior distinct from others according to the brand’s ideology is very important. As it is wisely said, “What appeals the most, sells the most”. Many brands have over the top kind of VM, from Dior’s April 2013 diminishing perspective one to the air jumping mannequins at the designer duo Shivan- Narresh’s Saket store. It’s beautiful; it’s catchy, well matched with the product range the brand offers. A well-planned retail store layout allows a retailer to maximize the sales for each square foot of the allocated selling space within the store. Freshness and new look actually are the reasons retailers are going for redesigning of the stores. Swarovski started its pilot phase of the Crystal Forest Concept in 2008-2009, where they implemented a limited number of pilot POPs. At present, they are introducing the new Crystal Forest shop fit in selected new locations, as well as start the step by step upgrade of our existing distribution with this new exciting retail design. The conversion program first focused on selected key markets and will stretch over the next years to all our monobrand distribution. The National Garment Fair held at Mumbai showcased a lot of creative VMs, each brand having a distinct style from rough and tough to chic and ethnic. The most creative ones were seen at the Kids wear hall adorned with mannequins on jeeps, a rock stage, a typical south Indian focused, cowboy style and many others. The one that stole the show was that of OKS whose stall was designed as a railway station with fake smoke, engine stone as well as a bell. Spykar presented an eye catching live painting show with rock music. Many brand had its stall designed old school style. Internationally, we have many instances of beautifully projected Visual Merchandising. Worth mentioning, one would be Adidas Pop up shop designed like an actual Adidas shoebox with laces peaking out. The title of the king of VM should 32 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion go to the infamous French brand Louis Vuitton. They have a style which nobody can match from the ancient meeting classic with dinosaur structure, to the overall lighting pattern in their flagship store at Fifth Avenue. Their stores are beautifully designed by French conceptual artist Daniel Buren. ImpresSIONS The funky and colourful brand Sportgirl has all their VMs designed likewise. It’s smart and full of colours with peppy bicycles and rods. One of their VM had film stills wrapped on the floor, walls and windows. In the centre, an orbit of convex mirrors, which further reflected the moving films as well as the movement and reflections of passers by, creates a feeling of being immersed in the installation. Flagship store of Levi’s London truly shows the brand’s concrete nature. The shelves and the colour scheme put along with the perfect lighting is so denimatic appealing. The francfranc store at Nagoya, Japan is known for its lighting appeal. The product range is shown via a number of windows on every floor lit with a series of lights. Bergdof Goodman’s April 2013 VM was inspired from Goth- Punk showcasing a black guitar and a Goth queen titled “Punk- Chaos to Future”. Moncler NYC has a creative pattern in which a single mannequin is repeated in a series. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 33 ImpresSIONS The high fashion Alexander Wang’s high fashion store located in NYC is like a mesh woven intricately with class. The whole monochrome concept is beautifully projected via grids. The “retail space” has to be the most productive and most efficient salesperson, and how you go about optimizing your sales space for maximum revenue is to employ the art and science of visual merchandising. Here are a few steps through you can make the best out of the resources to create an exquisite VM of you brand. These steps are perfect for all kind of brand stores, from small scale to medium and large. Tommy Hilfiger is the other name for casual chic and the visual appeal thrown through the VM is the same. Its blue, its carefree and out of the world. The brand doesn’t follow the norms and so does the wearer. Step 1-Keep your target customer in mind Obviously, you have to think about your target customers. You cannot create a funky environment for the brand catering to formal office-goers. Knowing your target customer inside and out will help you tremendously when it comes creating effective merchandising displays. A better understanding of their mentalities and lifestyles can help in creating an aura fit for them. Step 2- Coming up with an Inspiration Inspiration can come from everywhere, from things we see on daily basis to more refined ones. Choose them wisely and they need to be in accord with the product range you want to display. The exclusive Victor & Rolf Fashion Boutique is just as unique and designer as the brand. Meticulously made and a matt finish put over the material gives a real chic look. To add on that the monotonous continuity depicts the classiness of the brand. 34 SEPTEMBER 2015 The wild and sporty Nike makes a sportsman. This display of flagship store shows the vibrant and specific nature of the brand. Its uniquely done and exclusively presented. APPAREL&Fashion Step 3- Focus on everything Focus should be on everything, for all the 5 senses. Colour combination, lighting, symmetry, balance, contrast- these things are really very important to create multi-sensory experience. The music you play in your store has such a profound yet subtle effect on how your customers behave in store. Smell is considered to be a fast track to the system in the brain that controls both emotion and memory, two very prominent factors behind why we choose one brand over another. Step 4- Don’t forget to change the set-up with time and season This long procedure has to be repeated, as nobody wants to look at the same merchandise again and again. So, spice it up, come up with new ideas. Your merchandise changes with season, so why shouldn’t your store. SupplierBASE Satya Designs plans to open an Exclusive Boutique store in Mumbai Reviving the long forgotten traditional arts and crafts, Satya Designs has come a long way in its seven years of existence adding two more brands in its success list. The brand is available in all the reputed stores like LuLu, RmKV,Meena Bazaar and on top notch e-commerce sites and even has its own online portal. They are now planning to go into exports as well. Team Apparel & Fashion had a talk with Jinen Shah, Director of Satya Designs Pvt Ltd. 36 (Second Right) Jinen Shah, Director, Satya Designs Pvt. Ltd. with his wife & team SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion SupplierBASE AF: What is the story behind the brand ‘Satya’? Jinen Shah: ‘Satya’ was founded in 2008, making a fashion for the ever changing youth. The brand believes in essence, individuality serenity of a woman, designing for her pure soul.The focus is making a cutting edge fashion in garments by providing fusion of modern designs with ethnic incepts, to serve the multitasking and dynamic woman of today. Earlier we only worked in modern yet trendy Kurtis, but now, we have expanded our product range including tops, tunics and maxi dresses. We have three brands under us namely, Satya Designs, Satya Girls and recently launched Satya Fusion. Each brand is different, Satya designs is purely ethnic, Satya Girls caters to the trendy requirements of young girls and Satya Fusion serves as a link between the modern and the traditional. Our head office is located in Goregaon, Mumbai and the factory is located in Dadar West producing almost 20,000 pieces monthly. AF: What makes Satya Designs different from all Indo- Western brands? Jinen Shah: Our specialty lies in the fact that we believe in organic fashion, which is not commonly seen. We promote the use of traditional art such as hand block prints, vegetable dyes, hand embroidery, ikat prints, tie and dye in making vibrant and aesthetically appealing garments. We believe in comfortable fashion, which according to me is the need of the hour. We cater to women who are not afraid to show their vivacious self in practical clothing. A wide range of fabrics used such as chiffons, georgettes, viscose, cotton blends and polyester help us to be different from others. We don’t follow what others do, we create our own fashion. True, prints are very much in and everybody is doing prints. But we have been doing prints since we started. Our prints are unique and are made to stand out from the crowd. AF: How has the brand grown over the last few years and what attributes to the success of the brand? Jinen Shah: The Brand has seen amazing growth in the span Collection Showcased at National Garment Fair, Mumbai of 7 years. We are now available all over the country via reputed stores like Pothys, LuLu, RmKV,RituWears,Kalyansarees, Meena Bazar, Vijayu Stores, et al. Women’s taste and preferences keep on changing, making them prefer Indian, so, it is like a boon to us. Consumers make a brand and credit of our success goes to them only. Also, we believe teamwork and giving our best into everything. AF: Is Satya available online? Jinen Shah: Yes, of course, we are available on top notch e-portals like Snapdeal, Amazon ,Flipkart and many more. On top of that, our official website www.satyadesigns.com also offers ladies with a wide product range. AF: What are the plans of expansion of Satya in the coming five years? Jinen Shah: Our future target is to open an exclusive boutique store in Mumbai, as we don’t believe in chain stores. Also, we are planning to go for exports, actually we have even started looking for the potential buyers.We are still working on the betterment of our latest brand ‘SatyaFusion’ , so, lets see how the things go on. AF: What is your take on the current situation of retail market in India? Jinen Shah: Indian retail is going slow. Foreign brands like Gap, Zara have been giving us a hard time. But I just want to convey that Indian retailers should not be insecure of each other and should join hands and work in sync to fight competition. Innovation is the only way to survive in the long run. We have great potential to grow and be known. So, why fear? Collection Showcased at National Garment Fair, Mumbai AF: How much growth are you expecting from this financial year? Jinen Shah: To be honest, we are expecting a growth percentage between 20%-22% but sky is the limit. We never know when life can surprise us. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 37 TrendingFASHION Make in India The Resurrection of the Golden fiber Jute T here was a time when Jute was taken as a material appropriate for sack cloth. This was due to its high weight bearing tendency and durability. The image of jute was limited to hessian sack, shopping bags and coarse door mats. One might not ever think of wearing jute made garments before. The designers have always been curious about the ‘sack’ jute, however, nothing much was done earlier. However, the starting of ‘Make in India’ campaign by PM Modi has been influence for designers and manufacturers. So, the golden fiber has undergone into a known metamorphosis from gunny bags to a world of glamour and fashion. Now, we can see variations in jute fabrics (blended or pure) all across the exquisite collections by famous designers in versatile avatars. Jute is not only used as couching material, but entire range of garments have started to be born out of it giving consumers a wider range of products to choose from. Jute in its revolutionized avatar is now getting recognition and is seen in form of chic sarees, delicately embroidered, salwarkameez, kurtas and even western wear. In addition to it, it is also used in wide range of furnishing, soft luggage, hair clips, footwear, greeting cards and even moulded door panels for cars.India is the largest producer of jute goods in the world having 73 Jute mills with an annual spindlage production capacity of 1.86 tonnes. Indian jute sector comprises of organised jute industry as well as a large number of cottage units. Nowadays both modern jute mills and traditional handlooms spin out 38 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion high quality yarns and weave light-weight fine textured fabrics of perfect structure in exotic colours and designs to match with the needs of apparel professionals. Jute being a versatile, eco-friendly, recyclable and economical fibre is seen as the fiber of the future. The natural bright golden colour, raw appeal and the beautiful texture makes it one in a million. To reduce the inborn roughness of the basic fibre to make it more suitable for wearing, the National Institute of Research on Jute sion of being different from others made her use the fabric in the original form and muted colours decorating it with printing, beading and appliqué work. Designer Nachiket Barwe used the golden fiber in his Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week collection that was held last December. Seeing the designer’s work, even retail industry has started adopting jute into their collections. A visit into the CMAI’s National Garment Fair in Mumbai proved so. Many Mumbai based retailers and prabhamalhotra and Allied Fibre Technology (NIRJAFT), Kolkata has come up with a unique technology to make it into a more softer and malleable material. Many designers that adopted jute in their collections with the theme of‘ It is all about looking good in a burlap sack’. Prabha Malhotra even introduced jute in her Haute Couture arena. Her relentless pas- nachiketbarve TrendingFASHION wholesalers are taking the risk of the mass production of jute apparels. And surprisingly, the sale of these garments has been high too. “Today’s consumer wants to stand out and now when people have started following ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’, they are not afraid to follow’ Make in India and Adopt in India’. This Desi revolution has lead to quick and vast sales of Handicrafts and Handlooms respecting the hard work done by the poor craftsman,” said Ashwini Pable, the owner of Rewanta Lifestyle with ‘Orange River’ and ‘Soyrra’ , Mumbai based western wear brands who highly focuses on handloom fabrics and jute. Major examples from the fair would be that of “LeelaVeera” a four year old company located in Dadar. They use variations of jute like Jute silks to give them a royal and refined touch. Their range include sarees and dress material at a very nominal price. “We wanted to be different from the rest, and our love for the Indian culture and the passion of sticking to the soul of the soil lead us making apparels out of jute” said Pradeep S. Gala and his wife. In addition of jute they also have various varieties of handloom fabrics where their USP lies. Their range starts from Rs. 595 up to Rs 3999. Lower Parel-based Designer wear’s company “G-cube” is also unique as they make exclusive garments for Men’s wedding wear in jute. They have introduced bright and vibrant colours in the pastel shades and are using innovative designing and printing techniques in sherwanis. Fashion Designer Ankit Khimawat, who is the brain behind these out of the box ideas is confident about others liking his designs. The beautiful Kurtas and Blazers range carry his remarkable style. Jute is his latest addition in terms of fabrics and use The Believer of Make in India, Ashwini Pable, Owner of Rewanta Lifestyle Pradeep S. Gala and his wife, Owners of Leela Veera ofcouching, play of silhouettes and strong surface designing makes the new variety different from the crowd. The price is unique too, it starts from Rs. 4000 and goes up to lakh. Huge challenges are faced by the designers or brands as using jute isn’t easy. It has a very rough and course texture, which has to be subdued by using various means. A lot of attention has to be paid on the fit as well. But challenges are always there when something different is done, so the people associated with jute garment designing are always open to accept the difficulties. The Gujarat based organic brand Bhu:sattva started green instead of going green. Ethics combined with sustainability has helped creating this brand which is highly appreciated in India and abroad for its durable and eco-friendly fashion. Bhu:sattva promotes organic farming and Ankit Khimawat the Designer of Mumbai based ethnic brand “g-cube” the use of natural colours. Moreover, Bhu:sattva strives to revive the famous art forms of various regions of India paving a way for economical and social upliftment. The brand works a lot on jute and has got a huge response for it. The organic fashion house works with farmers across the country who produce certified organic cotton on one hand, and design institutions like NIFT and NID on the other, to fashion aesthetic and contemporary designs for its fashion line. With more and more people willing to accept the modernized version of the basic fiber, the retail industry is making them a part of their collections too. We can just hope this adaptation goes into classic and not just being fad. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 39 MarketUPDATE APPAREL INDUSTRY THE NEW ATTRACTION FOR BOLLYWOOD Bollywood Stars Turn into Fashion Designers T he apparel industry is observing a new trend from the past few years, looks like fashion designers are now going to compete with the Bollywood biggies in terms of creating fashion milestones in the apparel industry. Bollywood stars are bringing out the designer side in them by launching their own fashion line with some renowned brands. Kareena Kapoor known for her out spoken personality is the first Indian actress to launch her own line of clothing for women; with the retail chain Globus. Size zero became a rage because of her and now it is said that Kareena has been approached by an international brand to design a denim line called Bebo. Deepika Padukone also got into the zone recently and launched a limited edition collection with fashion giant Van Heusen blending vintage and in-vogue designs. Former beauty queen and actress LaraDutta also joined hands with the ethnic wear retailer Chabbra 555 to unveil her own collection of sarees. The entire collection was personally designed, conceptualized and hand-crafted by Lara with the name Lara Dutta-Chabbra 555. Such concepts not only create curiosity among consumers but also, give retailers chance to earn big through popular names and their brand image. Some other names in this league are Shilpa Shetty Kundra who also made her debut by designing clothes for her IPL team, Rajasthan Royals and Sonam Kapoor who is also going to launch her own designer label, along with her designer sister Rhea. Most of the celebrities have 40 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion access to latest fashion trends in both Indian and international markets thus for them it is quite easier to analyze and create an eclectic and vibrant range. The fashion and lifestyle e-commerce portals also believe that collaborating with the bollywood stars is a good promotional strategy. Bollywood brings with them a mass appeal and helps them in gaining visibility and expands their reach to get new customers. These days online platform is also gaining a lot of popularity and thus to reach wider audience many actors are launching their collections along with online sites like Jabong, Snapdeal, Myntra, Flipkart, Amazon, etc. Malaika Arora Khan also launched her own online fashion brandTheClosetLabel. com where anyone can admire Malika’s fine fashion sense. Supermodel Lisa Heydon who turned actress also collaborated with online fashion portal Shersingh.com. Some latest examples of such collaboration are Shilpa Shetty Kundra launching an exclusive range of sarees under the brand name SSK Sarees for the online retailer Homeshop 18. Alia Bhatt is also launching an exclusive apparel line with Jabong.com. The apparel range will be titled ‘Alia’. She has a great sense of style and has a knack for fashion. The collection has a touch of youth, confidence and style. The apparel range has various designs for different set of moods, be it the bohemian line, the casual denim line or clubbing / party line. Ripped jeans, leather jackets MarketUPDATE and floral. The collection makes a direct connect with Alias wardrobe. The collection includes apparel (western) and shoes for young girls as well. When the ladies are mixing fashion and business why would men stay away from this designer fever.John Abraham was the first Indian actor to have a clothing line on his name.JA Clothes line was launched in the year 2006 with the brand Wrangler which featured his favorite article of clothing, jeans. The biggest example of this trend is Salman Khan’s Being Human. From a T-shirt, Being Human has now grown into a full clothing line available in stores like Shoppers Stop, Lifestyle, and Jade Blue outlet. The store has been launched in partnership with Mandhana Industries, with whom Khan has signed an exclusive worldwide licensing arrangement for Being Human-The Salman Khan Foundation, to design, manufacture, retail and distribute Being Human fashion apparel. Bollywood’s famous Director Karan Johar known for his Classy sense of style is entering the apparel industry too. Vero Moda is launching a new collection named Marquee, designed by Karan Johar himself that too for women. This limited edition collection is a mixture of high street fashion and haute couture.This collection shows his style and love for fashion. The latest to join the club is “Haider” actress Shraddha Kapoor. She will be designing clothes based on the theme of fantasy. The newbie has also tweeted her first look, where she is seen portraying Red Riding Hood. Kapoor has named her brand as “Imara APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 41 MarketUPDATE s r e t r o xp E g n i d n a p x E in l i a t e R st o M he t e c th i er m W m in g e E-co B to n o i Opt I ndia is the fifth largest preferred retail destination globally and is experiencing exponential growth with retail development taking place not just in major cities and metros but also in Tier-II and Tier-III cities. Healthy economic growth, changing demographic profile, increasing disposable incomes, changing consumer tastes and preferences are other factors driving growth in the organised retail market in India. The retail market in India is expected to grow to US$ 950 billion by 2018. Seeing the increased demand for 42 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion latest fashion in the domestic market many exporters have started focusing on the domestic market. Although there are number of exporters who are already supplying to top notch brands through distributors and agents, some of them are already running their own brand, but there are still lot of exporters who are planning to enter the arena and try their luck. Team Perfect Sourcing got a chance to interact with exporters who are now planning to enter the market either through their own brand or to supply to the retail chain and major d e r r e Pref outlets of India. The industry feels that now that the domestic market is growing and there is a demand for quality and quantity, it is a good time to make a start. Both export and domestic markets are different from each other in terms of seasons, peak periods, lean periods, designs and fit, but the main ingredient is innovation and thus players can experiment and win the race. Apparel and textile industry which is India’s second largest industry after IT industry is amongst the fastest growing industry segment in the country. The apparel MarketUPDATE industry accounts for 26% of all Indian exports. The growth of the domestic demand for clothing in India is linked with the success of the retailing sector. With the introduction of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) government has approved 51% FDI in multi-brand retail and increased FDI limit from 51% to 100% in single brand retail. In market potential, India ranks seventh (after United States, China, Canada, UK, Brazil and Germany). During interaction many exporters also confirmed that currently they are in the experimentation mode and are trying to establish their names through different mediums like having an exclusive brand in the retail segment through online sites like Flipkart, Amazon, Jabong, Snapdeal, Myntra, etc. or selling their range to distributors and wholesalers. A highfashion manufacturing company, Neelam Expo Ltd. has been earning themselves a good name because of their exquisite designs and extremely detailed handwork. The company is planning to enter domestic sector via e-commerce first as the demand of these products have been high in the retail market. Pranav Sahni, Director, Neelam Expo shares, “E-commerce is the right platform to launch your brand in the market as through it one can create presence all over India so we are planning to associate with top e-commerce companies.” The company is located in Delhi and caters to European and American markets. “We are extremely particular about intricate designing and have adda work, sequins work and bead work in the range. Promoting a fully hand embellishment on all kinds of rich fabrics like satins, nets, organdy, high quality Representative from Coftab India polyester is the company’s USP. With a single factory the production capacity is limited due to the extreme handwork , however, they come up with very fine quality. Coftab India, a Jaipur-based company has been into exports from last 22 years. Known for its versatility and usage of different fabrics, the company makes hi-fashion tops, tunics, dresses and bottoms exclusively for women. It has got three approved factories that are located in different regions on Jaipur and are employing 600 fixed people for 1200 machines producing around 1,00,000 pieces per month. Zakir Hussain, Owner, Coftab India said, “We are mainly supplying to the US and Latin America and after being into exports for so long, we are now planning to enter into domestic sector by launching our own brand.” English Creations Craze, a company based in Punjab from last 15 years offering a wide spectrum of fashion accessories like shawls, scarves, stoles, sarongs, pareos, throws, fashion bags, etc. As its name refers; the company is inspired by a ‘passion for creation beyond imagination’. Shakti Sadh, Director, English Creations Craze said, “We are manufacturer and exporter of a premium range of silk stoles, scarves, shawls, lycra stoles, silk jacquard stoles, viscose lycra stoles, viscose jacquard shawls, etc and now while seeing the growth of demand in the domestic market we are planning to come up with our brand.” He added, “Online retail has become very much popular these days so we would like to enter first through e-commerce sector to establish our brand in the market.” Well equipped with cutting edge technology and advanced machinery, English Creations Craze has Pranav Sahni, Director, Neelam Expo the production capacity of 40,000 pieces per month. The company is exporting majorly to the US and Europe and is now looking forward to associate with buyers of Japan and South America. Shakti informs, “We are planning to set up a new compliant factory to tie-up with more buyers of these emerging markets and thus expecting to grow by 50% in financial year 2015-16.” Many players who are already catering to both the markets are now looking to increase their market share in domestic market which is performing better than the exports. Spencer Apparel Inc. is a state of the art apparel manufacturing company that was established in Tirupur and manufactures ladies and girls knitted garments for both export and domestic markets. The product range of the company includes wide range of styles in basic and high-fashion tees and tops, heavily embellished casual wear, lounge wear & Sportswear. Started in the later part of the year 2009, the company has seen continuous growth and is now capable of producing over 1 lakh pieces a month. N P Jagadesh of Spencer Apparel Inc. said, “We are catering to both the markets, though our export has the highest share in the company. We are looking forward to increase our domestic segment share in the coming year.” The company is supplying to ‘Westside’ and is looking forward to tie up with some more stores. Jagadesh expresses, “Export will not lose its sheen as a lot of new markets are emerging for Indian products so we are also targeting European markets to utilize our huge production capacity. The company is mainly using fabrics like cotton, viscose, modal and its blends, Shakti Sadh, Director, English Creations Craze with his wife APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 43 MarketUPDATE N P Jagadesh from Spencer Apparel Inc. Mayank Dayal, Director, BleuModa Fashion Tanveer Ahmad from Paramount Chikan Export Pvt. Ltd. 44 Rajen Kubadia, Owner, Kalakruti Apparels Pvt. Ltd. SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion polyester blends and elastane stretch yarns. “Placement prints, all over prints including reactive and burn out prints are some of the comprehensive array of embellishments that we execute to perfection and recently we have launched sugar prints on garments which is widely accepted by our buyers,” he added. With the continuous growth and development strategy, the company is gearing up for 40-50% growth in financial year 2015-16,” he added. Blue Bird International, an exporter and manufacturer of ladies garments has its own brand called ‘Bleu Moda’ for domestic market. The company has two units in Gurgaon and one unit in Shahdara and is supplying to Middle East in export segment. Mayank Dayal, Director, BleuModa Fashion said, “Export still have the highest share in the company, but the market of domestic is much better than exports and thus we are also more focusing towards our domestic market.” Domestic industry is still untouched by many who are now planning to enter with their exclusive product range. Since 1992 Paramount Chikan Export Pvt. Ltd., a Lucknow based export house is serving the industry with its wide range of ladies wear that includes blouses, tunics, dresses, pants, skirts, jump-suits, night wear, beach wear, kurtis etc. Tanveer Ahmad from Paramount Chikan Export Pvt. Ltd. shared, “We are mainly into chikan embroidered garments and are involved in the manufacturing of ethnic wear for ladies, men’s, kids wear and made -ups also.” He added, “We have received many enquiries from the retail players so we are planning to supply to domestic market through agents and distributors.” He also informed that the company is planning to set up a new unit for embroidery to meet the demand of both markets. With all in-house manufacturing facilities, the company has a production capacity of 500 pieces per day and caters mainly to the European countries. “We are expecting 50% growth in financial year 2015-16,” averred Tanveer. We have also noticed that many players who were earlier catering only to the domestic market with own brand are diverting towards exports. Kalakruti Apparels Pvt. Ltd., a company into retail since 1980 under the name of ‘Rajasi Poshak’ recently got into exports. The Mumbai- based company is known for making ethnic kurtas and coats for men in very subtle colours. They play with linens and cotton creating a very chic and classy fashion for today’s fashion forward man who are connected to the traditional routes. For the exports segment, the company has short kurtas that can be worn with denim. “After researching for so long, we have decided to set foot in the export industry. Sure enough, this segment is very different from the retail sector, but with the product range that we have, we are hoping to stand out” said Rajen Kubadia, Owner, Kalakruti Apparels Pvt. Ltd. The company has got five factories in Mumbai. Another instance of domestic brands moving to exports is that of Satya Designs Pvt Ltd. who are successfully running their brands in the retail sector. Currently menswear is the biggest segment in domestic market with 43% share, while women’s wear constitutes 38%. About 10% comes from boys wear while girls bring in the remaining 9% sale. The growth rate of women’s wear is higher than menswear and by 2020 it is expected to cross the market of men’s wear and would reach 43% compared to 37% of menswear. High growth categories in men’s market include active-wear, T shirts, inner wear and shirts. High growth categories in the women’s market include innerwear, woven tops/shirts and t-shirts. Ethnic wear categories like sarees and salwaar kameez also have high growth potential. created woven Product Mix ♦ Cotton ♦ PC ♦ PV ♦ Viscose ♦ Modal ♦ Lyocell ♦ Twill ♦ Drill ♦ Plain ♦ Satin ♦ Butta ♦ Dobbies ♦ Ducks ♦ Rib Stop ♦ Parcel ♦ Corduroy ♦ Tapestry & Home Textiles ♦ Cord ♦ Reversible Satin ♦ Linen Greige & Finished Fabrics ♦ Canvas ♦ Poplins ♦ Satin Stripes ♦ Jacquards ♦ Tusser ♦ Sheeting Annual Production ♦ 16.20 Million Meters ♦ High Quality Yarns & Fabrics ♦ Updated Technology for Weaving & Preparatory ♦ All India RMG + Industrial + Corporate Sectors ♦ Exports to Europe, USA & The Middle East ♦ In-house Testing Labs RamKrishna (Jhanwar) Group Regd Office: W#9, Bldg, #87, Plot # 50, Industrial Estate, Ichalkaranji - 416115. Dist. Kolhapur. Maharashtra State, India. Tel: +91 - 2302432053, 2425975 • Fax: +91 - 2302430297 Showroom & Sale: 293, Dharamraj Gali, M.J. Market, Kalbadevi Rd, Mumbai-400002, India Tel. +91 22 22402056. E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] Mumbai Office: 14/16, Ovalwadi Vithalwadi 5th Floor, Bajaj Chambers, Kalbadevi Rd, Mumbai - 400002 Tel: +91 - 2222403611, 22402600 Web: www.ramkisna.comz NewsWIRE Zivame.Com Close To Raising $40 Million In Funding Free Fashionista- A fashion line will be launched by Prison Department Kerala soon M a l a y s i a n sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad and Mumbaibased investment firm Zodius Capital led funding made the famous e-commerce lingerie site Zivame raise close to $40 million. The deal is likely to value Zivame at close to $100 million. The Bengaluru based company is planning to invest the cash in discounting, expanding private label and marketing. Zivame is looking to close fiscal 2015 with Rs 50 crore in gross merchandise value on a loss of about Rs 35 crore. It last raised funding of about $5 million in late 2014 from existing investors Unilazer Ventures, IDG Ventures and Kalaari Capital. Zivame initially started out as an aggregator of lingerie brands like Enamor, Wonderbra, Jockey, and Amante. But since 2013, it started private label brands to make up for the restricted customer base. The company gets about 30% of its sales from its private label high-margin Penny and Cou Cou, brands. According to a report by Indian Retail, last year, the total lingerie/sleepwear market in India is currently valued at $3 billion, of which around 1% is online. Flipkart Goes On Social Pathway- Introduces ‘Ping’ Option T he ever obsessed e-space users to get a two-in-one benefits of shopping and chatting with the newly introduced ‘ping’ option on Flipkart mobile app. Ping will allow users to shop for products on it app along with their friends. This service has been started with an objective to allow users to have realtime conversations with friends in order to get feedback about a product they plan on buying, or help friends get in on the decision of what to buy. The feature will also allow users to drag and drop products directly into conversations, let users share their screen so that they can browse products together with friends. For now Ping is available to a few Flipkart users on an invite basis. Gradually, it will be rolled out to all users. Ping being only 2MB in size has been developed to consume low data, low battery and is compatible with any smartphone running on Android 2.1 and above. 46 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion T In News he prison department is all set to launch its clothing line, after its successful venture in products like chappathis and Samrakshana cotton shirts. The range named Free Fashionista with a tagline ‘Threads of freedom’ will be hitting the market next month. The initiative is the brainchild of DGP (prison) Loknath Behera and is a part of the skill development and welfare programme of the prisons and correctional services of the state, which could also open up new avenues of vocation for prison inmates. Cooperated by Vedhika, a leading boutique of the district, as many as 25 inmates at Poojappura Central prison, who had inclination, skill and expertise in tailoring were identified and trained under expert fashion designers for 35 days. Even a separate unit was added to the existing textile unit in the prison in this regard in addition to 11 automated machines that already exist. TANSIDCO and Snapdeal collaborate for bringing MSMEs in front I n a quest for bringing e-revolution amongst micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Tamil Nadu, online fashion hub Snapdeal has collaborated with Tamil Nadu Small Industries Development Corporation Limited (TANSIDCO). The memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the two aims at helping MSMEs in Tamil Nadu to leverage the e-commerce opportunity and gain pan-India market access for their products. As per the MoU, Snapdeal and TANSIDCO will jointly provide special support for onboarding MSMEs in their initial journey from registering to listing, by helping them to fulfill requisite documentation, process, training, etc. Also, Snapdeal is to equip the businesses with online cataloguing, pricing, range and assortment planning, inventory management and refinement of product offerings based on consumer preferences, gathered through its data analytics tools. NewsWIRE CCI permits the Rs 750 crore deal between Future Group and Bharti Retail Cricketer Umesh Yadav Invests In Hyperlocal Fashion Portal Fashionove F P ashionove, a Kolkatabased hyperlocal fashion portal, gets involved in the trend of sportspersons turning investors. Recently, national as well as KKR cricketer Umesh Yadav invested an undisclosed amount in the portal. The 10 month old startup which provides a platform for local boutiques to register and transact products will utilize the funds for data collection and streamlining its app. The platform currently operates with data on 800 boutiques in Kolkata and plans to seep further into cities all across the country. Earlier, Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh and tennis ace Mahesh Bhupathi invested into startups like You We Can Ventures and Sports 365 respectively. roposed Rs 750-crore multi-tier merger deal between retail store and retail infrastructure businesses of Future Group and Bharti Retail has been given a nod by the Competition Commission (CCI). Announced in May this year, deal is expected to create a Rs 15,000-crore behemoth. Under the all-stock deal, Future Retail would demerge its retail business which would then be merged into Bharti Retail, while the latter’s retail infrastructure business would also undergo a similar process to be merged with Future Retail. Lakme Fashion Week serves as the launching pad for Witty Vir Das Collection I ndia’s one of the most multi-talented stars of all time- Vir Das-the Witty and the dashing is all set to try its hands at the fashion apparel sector. His collection would be the true reflection of who he its-humorous and style-ista, truly bringing comic sense to his designs. His funny quotes and thinking would be presented in his range of t-shirts and underwear. Ooohhh! Quirky on inside-out. This line is about, being an idiot and making it sexy. Pantaloons to invest Rs 125 crore this FY W ith an investment of about Rs. 125 crore, leading retail chain Pantaloons Fashion is planning to launch up to 35 stores across the nation this FY. The prime focus of this Aditya Birla run chain is to expand customer reach and portfolio enrichment. At present, Pantaloons has over 100 stores in India with reported net sales of Rs 433.70 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2015. Recently, in a major restructuring exercise, Aditya Birla Group announced merger of all its branded apparel businesses into one entity, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd. In 2012, Aditya Birla Nuvo had entered into an agreement with the Future Group to infuse Rs 1,600 crore into Pantaloons and acquire a majority stake in the store chain. Indians love shopping via channels: study In News W ith consumers embracing new technologies, the shopping experience has become increasingly sophisticated, enabling new ways for leading retailers to reach their audience. According to a study, nearly 74% of Indian consumers go for omni- channel shopping methods—local retailers, modern trade outlets and online. Sure enough, the customers are getting more and more resourceful. The study highlighted that a large chunk of Indian consumers still prefers to touch and feel a product before buying despite the fact that e-commerce has made shopping convenient. This is a reason why e-commerce companies are looking at establishing physical stores while brickand-mortar retailers look to leverage the fast growing e-commerce channel. The study found that almost 96% customers look for product information before shopping, and 76% of them search for it online. Three out of every four shoppers today are comfortable shopping across formats, and have done so in recent weeks. One-third of the consumers surveyed said they have shopped at both physical and online stores of the same retailers. Omnichannel has been attracting more and more consumers to it, and this study proves so. By integrating and aligning channels—stores, e-stores, mobile apps and social media—omni-channel retailing provides a flexible and seamless shopping experience to customers Many Indian retail players have also started this strategy- e-tail giant Flipkart, Snapdeal being a few of them. APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 47 NewsWIRE Columbia Sportswear Company opens three more stores in Mumbai India Welcomes Walmart’s 21st Store A fter a gap of about for years, US retail giant Walmart has opened its 21st wholesale store in Agra making it the company’s second outlet in the city. The opening of the store in Agra marks an end to a freeze Walmart had imposed on its spreads into India amid an internal probe to check whether its local unit flouted US anti-bribery laws. The new wholesale store at Sikandra Industrial Area is spread over 60,000 square feet with an stock over 5,000 items incorporating environment friendly practices like usage of green energy (natural gas), LED lights, water recycling through sewage treatment plant and ground water recharging through collection of storm water. Focusing on B2B segment in the country, Walmart plans to add 50 more cash and carry stores in the span of five year. Walmart has also recently partnered with mobile payment solution provider MobiKwik to power 20 of its Best Price Modern Wholesale stores in nine Indian states. I n a quest to establish the Columbia Sportswear Company in the country, its exclusive Indian distributor, Chogori India Retail (CIR), launches three new stores in Mumbai at High Street Phoenix, R City Mall and Infiniti Mall. With these stores, Chogori has now reached a total of 18 Columbia brand stores in India. CIRL signed an exclusive distribution agreement in 2013 with Columbia Sportswear Company covering retail, wholesale, and e-commerce sales of its Columbia brand. The new Columbia stores offer innovative products with various technologies that are comfortable, protective, functional and yet stylish for outdoor lovers ranging from Rs. 1,199 to Rs.14,999. Columbia’s apparel is designed to enhance the outdoor experience with ground-breaking technologies that include TurboDown, Omni-Heat Reflective, Omni-Tech, Omni-Shade, Omni-Freeze ZERO, etc. At present, the Columbia brand is sold in 100 countries, including North and South America, Australia, Asia, Europe and Africa with over 13,000 retail doors worldwide. Anita Dongre’s eco-conscious brand ‘Grassroot’ gets launched I ndia’s ace designer Anita Dongre launched her newest brand ‘Grassroot’, a craft based contemporary sustainable line recently with a huge store at Mumbai. Aimed at reviving and sustaining Indian crafts and artisans, Grassroot is an eco-conscious, leather-free and vegan line offering handicrafts and traditional arts. The brand has contemporized garments and accessories for the global woman of today who seeks align with brands that reflect fashion and ethics. With a philosophy of ‘Revive Sustain Empower’, Grassroot is also making inroads into bringing work to the homes of the artisans to not only protect handcrafted traditions, but to also rightly compensate craftspersons for their skills. There will be eco-conscious handbags, sling bags, totes, duffles, clutches and wristlets as part of the line. 48 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion In News GoCoop goes ‘ILOVEHANDLOOMS’ M aking PM Modi’s vision of ‘Make in India’ very much online, e-tailer GoCoop for weavers and artisans has launched the ‘#ILoveHandlooms’. As handlooms symbolize the rich cultural heritage and tradition of India, this eco-friendly making is slowly becoming a fashion statement. The campaign aims to popularize handloom among the masses and to bring out the uniqueness of handloom products. Through the campaign, GoCoop invites people to share their love for handloom by posting a photo or writing a story about a favourite handloom product they own. GoCoop has been ‘desi’ for a while now, launching ‘New Swadeshi Movement’ initiative last year on 15th August, 2014 to reinstate pride in handcrafted products and to reintroduce the younger generations to Handlooms. The e-commerce player currently works with over 200 co-operatives and more than 60,000 weavers and artisans selling over 14000 products through their online marketplace. The marketplace has 7,000 registered buyers including boutiques, retailers, brands, exporters and corporates buying and sourcing their bulk purchases of handmade fabrics and crafts. Fair&EVENTS The Exhibitors at 61st CMAI fair see happy three Days T he 61st National Garment Fair that was held at Bombay Exhibition Center, Mumbai, saw a great response. One of the largest ever Apparel trade fair was inaugurated by S.K. Panda, IAS, Secretary (Textiles). Hosted by Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI), the B2B fair was spread over around five lakh sq. ft with more than 700 exhibitors mostly from Mumbai and Gujarat displaying over 780 brands. Separate halls were allotted to different segments such as Men’s Wear, Women’s Wear, Kids Wear and Lingerie easing the way for the retailers, buyers and visitors. High footfall was noticed throughout the three days of the fair, bringing in new trading opportunities. ‘Gujarati’ fever was very much seen at the fair as wholesalers, retailers and even (At Right) Karsan Patel from ELXSI visitors were from Gujarat. The calls of ‘kem Chho? Majama’ was a constant music at the fair. And surprisingly, most of the wholesalers are supplying to Southern part of India. “We supply mainly to south, where there is a lot of scope in growth and expansion for a product range like us. Also, there are less payment problems and a better lead time” shared Karsan Patel from ELXSI, a Santa Cruz based Women’s wear Company which deals with printed western tops and tunics with a price range Rs. 1099- 1500. Digital prints ruled the fair, as they have been ruling for the past two years. Prints in all forms and varieties from water colour prints to Indian Kitsch, could be spotted almost on every stall. Also, the increased numbers of Ethnic wear companies well portrayed the choice of the city. Contemporized and basic Indian, Divvya Bhatnagar, Director, DCBD both was liked well by the visitors. 20 year old Dadar- based brand ‘Chintamani’ NX’ that makes bridal clothing in the most extravagant manner displayed unique silhouettes like drop downs, high necks in bright colours and heavy mirror work and embroideries. “I have tried to put my own taste into the colours and detailing we have come up with as this gives me a lot of satisfaction” informed Ashok Thakkar, Owner, Chintamani’s NX. “Our USP lies in the varied and affordable range in fact, one can find almost all kind of colours and silhouette options in our range,” said Ashwin Dhedia of Saheli Fashion Pvt. Ltd., 2001 born brand which makes Anarkalis for women. “We are planning to come up with trendy Kurtis for the next season” he added. Another brand ‘Pretty Women’ who has 10 factories with all in-house facilities in Mohammed Rehan Ali, CEO, Identiti APPAREL&Fashion SEPTEMBER 2015 49 Fair&EVENTS Ashwin Dhedia of Saheli Fashion Pvt. Ltd. Shushama H. Tikmany, Owner, D-va Creations Deepan Desai, Owner, Veda Saurabh Gumbar, Tinted 50 SEPTEMBER 2015 APPAREL&Fashion Nikunj Shah of Pretty Women Jayesh shah, Diector, M-Square Clothing India Pvt. Ltd. Mumbai added embroidered pants to their collection.” Upper body embroideries are very much common in our ethnic wear industry. So, our design team came up with a different concept of fully embroidered pants and salwars which can be worn elegantly under a plain or heavy kurta” averred Nikunj Shah of Pretty Women. Interesting fact is that, all these companies from the same area in Dadar which has six areas by the name of Jaygopal, Ramgopal, Nandgopal, Harigopal, Balgopal and Omgopal who all specialize in Ethnic wear. The festive season coming soon paved way for business opportunities for all these brands. Though labeled as Autumn Winter 2015, the fair didn’t see much of winter fabrics or silhouettes. Almost every exhibitor had come up with light weight fabrics as these wholesalers mostly supply to South, where there is 365 days of summer. “We have separate sections for summer and winter collection which is just a twist of other as we basically deal in T-shirts,” shared Jayesh shah, Diector, M-Square Clothing India Pvt. Ltd. The Goregaon based brand which makes Men’s T- Shirts plans to expand its product range. “Summer being the major season we deal in, we have cotton, rayon indo-western Kurtis in vibrant prints. We have Summer Style A/W 15” said Shushama H. Tikmany, Owner, D-va Creations, a Mumbai- based women’s wear brand who have their exclusive retail outlet in Mahalaxmi Chambers. Mumbai is the hub of Mens’wear and thus Hall Number I of the Exhibition Center was full for all three days. More than half of the participating companies displayed wide and innovative range of mens’wear. The competition to stand apart was so high that each of the stalls had come up with different range and techniques to woo the buyers. Spykar organized a painting performance along with a live music jamming session. Focus Jeans gave away free merchandise. The super attractive stalls also helped in the business along with the collection. While talking about the stall design we cannot miss out the creativities showed by the Kids’ wear brands. The toy train of OKS Boys, The Cowboy , the junk kirigamy , each of the stall was different from the other grabbing more and more of eyeballs. High footfall lead to high business and satisfied most of the visitors. “Though the retail market is sluggish, we got good response at this fair because of our organic and innovative collection. We make short kurtas for men using Indian handicrafts. Our products are famous at the airports where foreigners pick them as souvenir,” shared Deepan Desai, Owner, Veda. “We saw a great response here, most of our probable buyers are coming from Gujarat. Seeing the situation we are expecting 2025% growth for this financial year” said Saurabh Gumbar, Tinted, a Delhi based company which deals in Mens T-shirts. The brands were highly cautious of the designs and were taking full precautions to protect them from getting copied. Some even locked their stalls, only allowing genuine buyers to enter and explore their product range. A La Mode, a Mumbai based brand had a system of card swiping if anyone wanted to go through. These extremely precautious ones were the stalls of designer wear. Also, Tago let models roam around the exhibition area to make more and more buyers known about the product range. This system was adopted by many and fetched good results for them. Fair Calendar 2015 SEPTEMBER 10-12, 2015 The Grand Hotel, New Delhi OCTOBER SEPTEMBER 28-30, 2015 Exhibition & Convention Centre Jaipur OCTOBER 7-9, 2015 14-18, 2015 Tirupur New Delhi OCTOBER OCTOBER 17-19, 2015 29-31, 2015 New Delhi Goa, India NOVEMBER MARCH 28-29, 2015 16-20, 2016 New Delhi New Delhi