Fashion Inc or Hype-sink?

The Indian fashion industry unveils a new business strategy that may just work.

By Shamni Pande

He has a `I-told-you-so' grin on his face as he speaks to you. The man's name is Birendra Singh Narula, his business card reads executive director, Ebony (an up-market department store chain), and he's one of the few people who watched proceedings at last month's India Fashion Week keenly. ''There are probably less than 0.1 per cent of our customers who can afford to shell out Rs 30,000 for an itsy-bitsy top, or Rs 80,000 for the rest of the dress,'' rattles off Narula with the practised ease of a man who has said the same thing several times before.

What The Numbers Say

Stores interested
in Pret-a-Porter lines : 1300

Cities in which these
1,300 stores are based : 12

Stores ready to
stock Pret-a-Porter lines : 519

Stores willing to
explore Pret-a-Porter lines : 655

Stores with
their own web-sites : 56

Stores ready to
sell Pret-a-Porter lines on-line : 29

Based on an ORG-MARG study for the FDCI.Stores covered: 2,200.
Cities covered: 22.

He has. Only, this time round, there are several willing ears. Like those of the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), the just-formed association of the fashion industry, which hopes to further the cause of Indian fashion by reaching out to mid-sized stores in mid-sized cities.

''Aspirations run very high in smaller cities . But these are not manifest yet as the outlets to cater to these needs are not around,'' says Sangita Sinh Kathiwada, Melange, a an up-market boutique chain which has been stocking fashion labels for the last few years.

That isn't a gut-feel driven statement; it is backed by research conducted by ORG-MARG in 2,200 stores across 22 cities. Gloats Sumeet Nair, FDCI: "The research sniffs out the exact nature of the opportunities that exist for pret-a-porter in these cities."

And get into pret-a-porter, designers must. For, only this product category can revive the fashion industry from the niche-trap it has created for itself. ''I am getting out of weddings once and for all. I have done too many and it becomes tedious to have 50 people of the same family nitpicking on shades. It makes great business sense for us to get into pret-a-porter,'' avers designer Sandeep Khosla. ''But then Levi's pret is not the same as Versace pret. There is a difference,'' he adds.

But mere Pret-a-Porter lines won't help. Most fashion designers retail is infra-dig. ''True, many retailers might not understand their clothes, but then these designers should take the trouble of tapping and involving retail dealer. In fact, smaller shops like ours are better equipped to serve their interests rather than big or fancy stores,'' says Rajendra Mohan, Director, Pall-Mall, a premium men's wear store based in Delhi.

Small towns, ready-to-wear lines, and an emphasis on retail are the three dominant elements in the fashion industry's strategy. The details: Pret-a-Porter lines in a realistic price band between Rs. 800 and Rs. 10,000; an association, the FDCI, that will address common concerns, and a new approach to relationships with the trade. Will this strategy work? Can India's fashion fraternity graduate beyond page-3 photographs into serious business space? ''Sure, they can,'' insists Francis Wacziarg, a big-time fashion buyer. ''A disciplined approach is a pre-condition to success in this otherwise personality-driven industry.''

Still, things will not be as easy as they seem. Going retail would mean volumes and that certainly isn't the Indian fashion industry's strong point. Agrees Victor Castelino, Regional Vice-President, May Department Stores International Inc: ''I am not sure if Indian designers are geared to go retail. I once heard a designer say she picked up a big order of 12 pieces from someone! That is chicken-feed for a department chain such as ours.''

Expectedly, designers resent any imputation about their ability to deal with volumes. Their argument: in a market where designs become obsolete in a few months, they cannot afford to build stock and then pray for retail demand to pick up. And retailers, for their part, cite the inability of designers (at least in the past) to create exclusive designs. Chorus Yahodhara and Sanjay Shroff, who run the ffolio chain of stores: ''These issues will disappear over time. When we started our store in Bangalore, we just could not find a designer who could work with us and create a range for our store. As a result, we had to get stuff from abroad. Now, we do see some potential and will come back to talk to some of the designers whose work which we've seen at the IFW.''

The retail thrust isn't just restricted to popular departmental stores like Ebony, Pyramid, Shopper's Shop, and Big Jo's, and fashion chains like Gabbana, Ensemble, and ffolio. It also extends to companies like Raymond, which plan to leverage their brand-image and channel-strength to launch co-branded fashion label initiatives. Says Vinod Kaul, Director (Retail and Marketing Services), Raymond Ltd: ''We are exploring the possibility of a tie-up with some designers. We may tap our 250 outlets across the country to set up a separate shop-in-shop for fashion labels.''

No longer is tapping the global market for fashion labels the only viable business strategy open to Indian designers. There is a volumes-driven domestic option. Only, the capabilities they require to do so may be a little different.

Issue Contents Write to us Subscriptions Syndication