MARCH 2015 | VOL. XVI | NO. 3 | `100

INDIA FASHION FORUM 2015:A PREVIEW

FACING FASHION RETAILERSIN INDIA TODAY

THE

ISSUES

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MARCH 2015 | 206 PAGES | VOL. XVI NO.3 | www.imagesfashion.com

March and celebrating Holi. The beautiful splatter of colours, wild rush of energy and outpourings of passion. Fashion.The India Fashion Forum. March 18-20. Celebrating the passion of fashion. Correlated albeit incoherently. Correlated issues. Minor issues. Major issues. Retailing of fashion. Most important issues. The March issue, Images Business of Fashion. This issue.

It already has, and further promises to be, quite a month.

Dear Readers, the lead study of this, the March issue of IMAGES Business of Fashion, is “The Top 10 Issues facing fashion retailers in India today.” For this study we decided that there was no one better, to decide what the top issues are, than the Indian fashion retailers themselves. This entailed “going for votes” to retailers. This is always a concern to us at editorial, even though it is a concern of a different kind than that to politicians. Thankfully, all our concerns were laid to rest by the immediate and very kind support of the fashion retail fraternity which largely did respond to our questionnaires. We are very grateful. Hope you enjoy going through the study. This issue is also packed very well with good quality in our regular most read sections. Do go through ‘My Thoughts’ and the insights from several star retailers in particular.

This issue also carried the fi nal preview of this year India Fashion Forum which will be held in Mumbai from the 18th to the 20th of March. We hope it helps you in planning your IFF experience. This year’s IFF in fact with its totally new quad-core experience has been planned with such immense effort and passion that I would rather not speak about it here. I wouldn’t know where to begin. Or end. Please be there to experience it.

In the oldest Roman calendars, March was the fi rst month of the year. And the holidays the Romans observed from the fi rst through the Ides were the new-year celebrations. March was named after Mars—the Roman god of war and also the guardian of agriculture, thereby March was the beginning of the season for both farming and warfare—perhaps the two biggest economic activities of those days. I hope the IFF this March will also catalyse a new era of growth in fashion retail here in India too.

Incidentally, the last day of the IFF—March 20 is also the International Day of Happiness. Plus, the day, as March equinox, also heralds the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. I am sure that all our guests at IFF’15 will have a great experience—happy, inspiring, insightful, and that we all leave IFF with renewed energy and a spring in our strides as well.

Amitabh Taneja

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contents | March 2015contents | March 20

EVERY MONTH25 Editorial32 Letters to the editor38 Outlets40 Seasons Offerings

MY THOUGHTS44 Tectonic shifts in global fashion retailing and implications for India Ankur Bisen, Senior VP - Retail, Technopak, discusses the tectonic shifts in

global fashion retailing and implications for Indian fashion industry

LAUNCH PAD48 Samir Sahni’s new passion: Forever Fashion Images BoF takes a sneak preview at the soon to be launched Forever

Fashion brand

REGIONAL STAR50 Blue Club’s charismatic clothing in north Gujrat Harish Bharani, Owner, Blue Club discusses the journey of Blue Club down

the years

CATEGORY PIONEER57 Bata’s golden run continues The company recently initiated a revamp of its manufacturing and retail

business which is already bearing fruit

MEGA RETAILER80 Winning impressions With 200 outlets, Reliance Footprints growth plans include expansion via

franchise route

POWER PROFILE84 Ethnic fashion redefi ned W has plans to go deeper into the country’s market and to expand

internationally

86 A ‘human’ gous success Manish Mandhana, MD, Mandhana Industries on what makes the brand

humane

RETAIL EXCELLENCE91 Stylising everyone G Satish Menon, MD, Sirs N Hers shares his plans to leverage the online

retail channel

92 Connoisseurs of style After six renowned stores, Study By Janak now decides to grow its legacy

nationally via franchising

PREVIEW95 IFF Curtain Raiser A preview of 15th India Fashion Forum 2015

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INTERVIEW108 Gitanjili explores ethnic wear lifestyle with

its new apparel brands -- Gili & Diya Sanjay Anand, CEO - Apparel Business,

Gitanjili Lifestyle speaks on the future plans for his two brands -- Gili and Diya

112 Passion, innovation & progress thats Valentine

Harshad Thakkar, CMD, Ashapura Intimates Fashion Limited explains the plans and vision of the brand

SPECIAL FEATURE118 Is Indian fashion industry moving with the

pace of e-commerce? Saket Toshniwal explores the fashion e-com

moves and structures

WEB WATCH130 Fast and furious Tanvi Malik, Co-Founder, Faballey.com talks

about her fast moving fashion portal

132 Catering to the fashion aspirations of modern India

Praveen Sinha, Founder and MD, Jabong.com, talks about the challenges he faces in running an online enterprise in India

TRADE WINDS136 CMAI 60th national garment fair The event refl ected theoptimistic growth in

the Indian textile sector

138 TAI Vidarbha: Value added development can bring in desired change

The event projected Vidarbha as the next garment and fabric hub of the country

TECHNOLOGY140 “Let’s go virtual shopping” Suchi Mukherjee, Founder and CEO,

Limeroad.com talks about devising unique and creative ideas to woo customers

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THE TOP 10 ISSUES FACING FASHION RETAILERS IN INDIA TODAYAn exclusive Images BoF study

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my thoughts

In 2014, Karl Lagerfi eld signed up with H&M to design its capsule range of menswear and

womenswear. The collection was sold out in minutes, something unthinkable even a few years ago. Weren’t mass fashion retailers supposed to be untouchables for the trendsetters of Paris? Mass retailers are not supposed to be known for making cutting edge fashion statements! So, what was Lagerfi eld doing with H&M? Indeed, the past fi ve years have been unprecedented for the global fashion business. It would be fair to argue that the fashion business has witnessed several tectonic shifts which have signifi cant implications for the Indian fashion industry as well.

The fi rst such shift is the transition of

TODAY GLOBAL FASHION RETAILING IS WITNESSING SOME INCREDIBLY CONSTRUCTIVE SHIFTS AND TRANSITIONS. ANKUR BISEN, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, RETAIL, TECHNOPAK DISCUSSES THE TECTONIC SHIFTS IN GLOBAL FASHION RETAILING AND IMPLICATIONS FOR INDIAN FASHION INDUSTRY. THIS IS OUR EDITOR‘S PICK ARTICLE OF THE MONTH.

TECTONIC SHIFTS IN GLOBAL FASHION RETAILING AND IMPLICATIONS FOR INDIA

power from brands to retailers in terms of driving global fashion trends. Today, players like H&M, Primark, Uniqlo and Zara defi ne trends, launch designs, and capture the imagination of consumers, while brands like A&F struggle for survival and relevance. Between these two extremes is the war between brands and retailers which is clearly tilting in favour of the latter. New age retailers have successfully positioned their retail brand as a fashion microcosm. More importantly, they have managed to replicate their success across geographies. This power shift has also put a lot of pressure on multi-brand retail chains, which are now working overtime to align with the new reality.

Fashion has rapidly become more ‘democratised’ – connoting mass appeal

and affordability in the past fi ve years than it did in the past fi ve decades. This is the second tectonic shift. In the good old days, new fashion used to be the raison d’etre for premium prices, exclusivity, and differentiation between fashion brands. Fashion cycles created lags, of six months up to a year, before new designs were made available for masses. Today, new fashion is a mass trend right from day one. This shift is an outcome of multiple trends. A well-connected world has disrupted the fashion industry in terms of design, supply chain and going-to-market.

This means that a new washed denim look can concurrently be procured from a Diesel as well as an H&M store, never mind the fi vefold price premium for the former. This convergence of fashion

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stable, all under one roof, thereby, delivering fantastic choice and quality for the consumers. Our stores offer consumers the fi nest range of footwear, a contemporary shopping experience and excellent choice for the entire family for all occasions to make it a true footwear destination.”

Market presenceSpread across 115 cities in 23 states, the chain’s countrywide store network consists of more than 200 doors at present. Encompassing total retail area of 7.5 lakh sq.ft., Reliance Footprint’s exclusive showrooms can be found at prime locations in metros, large urban centres and even small cities like Berhampur, Durgapur, Muzaffarpur, Raipur, Rourkela, Siliguri, Shillong in the east; Ichalkaranji, Nanded and Sangli in the west; Alwar, Ambala, Bhiwadi, Haldwani, Satna and Yamunanagar in the north; and Bhimavaram, Eluru, Kollam, Kurnool, etc in the south.

During the FY 2013-14, the chain posted same store sales growth of 15 percent.

STARTED IN 2007, RELIANCE FOOTPRINT, A MULTI-BRAND FOOTWEAR RETAIL CHAIN, CATERS TO THE ENTIRE FAMILY’S NEEDS THROUGH ITS EXTENSIVE COLLECTIONS. HAVING GROWN ITS PAN INDIA FOOTPRINT TO OVER 200 DOORS TODAY, THE CHAIN’S FURTHER GROWTH PLANS INCLUDE EXPANSION VIA THE FRANCHISE ROUTE. BY NAMITA BHAGAT

WINNING IMPRESSIONS

Touted as India’s largest multi-brand family footwear destination, Reliance Footprint is a unit of Reliance Retail Limited, a subsidiary company of Reliance

Industries. The concept came into being in 2007 with its fi rst store opening in Bengaluru. Leveraging its unique proposition of offering mid-to-premium high quality merchandise of renowned brands across all price points, the concept has struck a strong chord with consumers. Alongside footwear, the store also houses other product categories, viz., accessories and luggage. The company’s CEO, Gopalakrishnan Sankar states, “Reliance Footprint is the most preferred footwear shopping destination for millions of consumers across India. At Reliance Footprint, we bring the best of the brands from various parts of the world including many from Reliance’s own

mega retailer

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contents | March 2015

WELCOME TO THE INFASHION SECTION OF IMAGES BUSINESS OF FASHION. IN THIS SECTION, WE BRING TO YOU THE LATEST VISTAS AND INSIGHTS IN FASHION CREATION ACROSS FASHION DESIGN, FASHION TRENDS AND FASHION INGREDIENTS

L E A D S T O R YOUTLOOK 2015 TEXTILE IN INDIAImages BoF talks to industry leaders and takes an overview on the textile industry in India today

T R E N D SFASHION: WOMENSWEAR

TRENDS DIRECTION FOR FALL 2015

Ingene Insights presents major trends for this fall 2015

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D E S I G N E RFUSING CLASSIC MATERIALS & TRADITIONAL TECHNIQUESRadhika Jain, owner, Ravv shares

her design philosophy and collections she dotes on

166F E A T U R E DC O L L E C T I O NCLASSIC POLO’S SPRING SUMMER ‘15 COLLECTIONUsha Periasamy, Vice President - Operations & Brand, Classic Polo talks on the brand’s plans and new innovations for spring summer’15

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lead story

India’s textiles and garments industry, which accounts for 14percent of the country’s total

industrial production and 4 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP), is considered as one of the most signifi cant contributors to the national economy. After witnessing challenges during the year 2013 and for most part of 2014, given unfavourable economic conditions, the Indian textiles and garments sector has seen reversal of trends in the second half of 2014.

In 1965, Prime Minister Lal Bhadur Shastri gave out a famous slogan ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kisan’, which touched the hearts and minds of every Indian citizen. Today, history seems to repeat itself with the campaign and slogan ‘Make in India’ for the Indian industries. The Modi Government has launched this major new national programme designed to facilitate investment. This programme is set to foster innovation, enhance skills, protect intellectual property and built best-in-class manufacturing infrastructure.

The domestic and global economic conditions are gradually improving along with the focused efforts made by the Ministry of Textiles. The Indian textile sector is set for growth, buoyed by revival in domestic consumption and export demand.

Industry growth driversThe Indian textiles industry has shown a positive trend and the future looks only bright. Estimation of a good cotton yield will be one of the major drivers of growth for the industry. Both the domestic market and exports are to witness good market demand for 2015. The new government is in support of innovation, technology usage and modernisation of the industry with a particular focus on bridging the gaps in the textile value chain.

The government has taken several measures to create infrastructure, which will invite entrepreneurs to invest in the Indian textiles industry. However, there are key challenges like proposed reforms in labour law, support to develop a skilled

OUTLOOK 2015

IMAGES BUSINESS OF FASHION PRESENTS AN OVERVIEW OF THE TEXTILE AND GARMENT INDUSTRY OF INDIA, DISCUSSES INDUSTRY GROWTH DRIVERS, CHALLENGES FACED BY THE INDUSTRY AND THE ROAD AHEAD. BY GURBIR SINGH GULATI

TEXTILES IN INDIA

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DENIM AND FASHION TRENDS – CAPSULE FOR INDIA

Editor-in-Chief: Sabine KühnlCreative Director: Gian Luca FracassiSenior Editors: Maria Cristina Pavarini/Christopher BlomquistFashion Editor: Juliette NguyenManaging Editor: Wolfgang Lutterbach

Credits for India Capsule

FASHION | DESIGN176 The creative science of success Despite market diffi culties success is at hand.

New fabric developments and new business strategies disclose other facets of how Italians are succeeding today.

FACTS | STORE CONCEPTS178 Come and say hi, no need to buy Dr. Denim ’s fi rst own store is a multi-faceted

affair in which serving coffee is as essential as selling jeans.

179 Welcome to Bargain City Bad Münstereifel, Germany was on the brink of

bankruptcy. Now it serves as an incubator for completely transforming retail business.

FOCUS | STORE DESIGN180 City lights Check out our store tour du monde to fi nd the

best fashion retail design the world has to offer this year.

FACTS | RETAIL DESIGN198 ‘There’s a lack of emotion’ How do you design a store window? What are

the no-gos in shopfi tting? Claudia Herke of style consulting offi ce Bora.Herke. Palmisa no shares her insight.

FACTS | CONSUMERS201 Mix & match The retail fashion trade today is changing faster

than almost any other business sector. That is why we are sharing the very latest results about consumer shopping behavior.

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176 | March 2015 | IMAGES Business of Fashion | Capsule for India – Sportswear International

fashion | design

> The blue cloth scienceInnovation is key when it refers to new materi-

als and Italy continues to host top-quality denim and smart fabric manufacturers. Berto, for instance, developed its The Blue Selvedge offer of handwoven denims and denims with selvedge. Both Candiani Denim and ITV participated the Global Denim Awards in Amsterdam. Candiani opted for minimal-istic microdesign stretch fabrics while ITV, who was among the winners, offered vastly different denim interpretations. Italdenim, meanwhile, is developing various sustainable denims while Lanificio Europa is experimenting with new printed and coated denims.

Sci-fi fabric storiesWill evening dresses ever glow in the dark? Italian couturier Federico Sangalli has developed Light My Night, a line of bags and evening dresses whose fabrics incorporate superthin optic fibers that when connected by a LED through a small hidden battery (such as a cell phone’s) can create special light effects. Italy’s Il

The creative science of successDespite market difficulties success is at hand. New fabric developments and new business strategies disclose other facets of how Italians are succeeding today. By Maria Cristina Pavarini

“When selecting pro-ducts we mostly follow trends tied to the his-tory of a product that, for instance, might bring back to mind athletes’ successful performance. Though mostly, we make the difference by being ourselves first of all.” —Patrizio Vita, One Block Down

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