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Still negotiating the Indian Terrain
Indian Terrain may be positioned as a menswear brand, but doesn mind wooing the consumers of luxury too. Yes, this is possible in a mixandmatch world, insists Suri.
watch could be a Mont Blanc and luggage a Louis Vuitton. But the cotton shirt to work could easily be an Indian Terrain. Because you will look like an absolute idiot if you were dressed top to bottom in luxury brands, he says.
The casuals brand says it does not believe in dictating what to wear. Terrain offers fashionable khakis and coloured Tshirts and preppy, checked shirts. Our Tshirts could go well with our jackets, khakis or the fivepocket cargos. We have got everything out here in our stores for men to put together.
Chennaibased Indian Terrain was started in 2000 with a fair amount of fanfare as a value brand offering unique fashion. Initially,[url=http://www.sport.fr/smartphones/moncler.asp]moncler homme[/url], there was a lot of traction and visibility as it brought a certain quality to a market that housed several clones and wannabes. (Indian Terrain tailors most of its clothes inhouse, at its factories in Chennai.) But somehow it lost its way in the years to come, say observers.
When Indian Terrain was hived off from its exporter parent Celebrity Fashions in 2010, it gave the brand enough freedom to create its own unique space. But it has not cashed in on this adequately.
Says Raghu Viswanath of Vertebrand Management Consulting: brand has good products which are quite different from what most other brands and stores offer. But this alone won suffice. The brand needs to revisit its positioning. It needs to do some serious soulsearching and come out with a comprehensive, unique value proposition. But we have not communicated enough. Again, no apparel brand is spending money on active, conventional media. We are working on social media to change the way the brand is perceived. In the last few years, Indian Terrain has been working hard to shrug off that southern image by opening large stores in Delhi, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune. Indian Terrain supplies 750 counters, of which over 200 are in the South.
With 86 exclusive brand outlets and a presence in 127 departmental stores, the brand slowly is expanding its distribution network.
the last couple of years, the apparel industry had gone down. We took it as an opportunity to grow. We opened a lot of stores and expanded our distribution network.
Last year, the brand opened 25 stores, 20 the year earlier. In 201314, it plans to add 1015 stores.
At a wholesale turnover of Rs 160 crore, the brand story has probably just begun in some sense. By the end of 201314, it is looking at Rs 200 crore. will be a substantial achievement, after clocking Rs 100 crore threeandahalf years ago, says Suri.
Why does it take long for Indian apparel brands to achieve a significant turnover? it is very easy for brands to make it to Rs 50 crore. The journey from Rs 50 crore to Rs 100 crore is tough. 100150 is easy. Again, 150300 is tough. We don know why it is like this, admits Suri.
In terms of brand extensions too, Indian Terrain has taken a tepid approach. Five years ago, it got into womenswear but failed, and was done away with in just two years. doesn come naturally to us. Womenswear in India is a mixandmatch, salwarkurtadupatta, fusion market. Probably, we were too ahead in our fashion sensibilities; we had given too much too soon.
A women line may not be on the cards now, but Indian Terrain has entered the accessories business with socks and boxers. Shoes and belts are planned for later.
The brand, which is primarily targeted at the 3540 yearolds, is also working on a denim subbrand for next year, to appeal more to younger people. you become a jeans retailer, you can remove the age barrier fast, Suri says.
But this is not something that will be easy to crack. The brand had, in fact, experimented with a in America line last year, by sourcing from mills in Guatemala. This didn take off and was pulled out soon. mistake we made was that this line didn have a separate identity. We are looking to learn from this experience. While shirts are still the brand bestsellers, khakis are slowly proving to be the dark horse, says Suri.
The new kid on the block online retail excites Indian Terrain. Currently, it supplies to fashion retailers such as Myntra, Jabong and Flipkart. The last five months alone yielded business online of Rs 5 crore. are already on for the next season. A lot of people are buying online in places where Indian Terrain does not have exclusive stores.
Even as it tries to explore new avenues and correct old mistakes, the brand will be hoping the market revives soon.
Cotton prices are high and consumers still need to be coaxed into coming to the shops. Having taken a conscious decision to not indulge in too much discounting or hike prices this year, the journey ahead surely looks challenging for Indian Terrain, especially as it tries to woo new customers.
is helping us is that our stores are in key locations in high streets and malls. Only 67 of our flagship stores are off the market (not in mainstream locations). Last year, we saw a 40 per cent rise in new customers. is going to be a stigma Indian retailers will carry to the grave. But then, there is no choice. If you don move in, somebody else will occupy it, says Suri.