Lingerie players move beyond basics to capture the market

Domestic hosiery manufacturers are going beyond just offering basics. With an aim to give strong competition to global players eyeing to capture the market, domestic brands are adding new categories like party innerwear and night wear. By investing in R&D, design and following the global trends, companies like Bangalore-based Gokaldas Intimate Wear and the listed company Ashapura Initimates Fashion, are taking on competition.

Recently, Bangalore-based JG Hosiery planned around Rs 60 crores for its premium ‘party inner wear’ collection under the brand Zoiro. The company has brought an Italian designer on board to create a collection of party innerwear. The aim is to pit it against global names like Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. Ashapura Initimates Fashion will focus on strengthening its retail operations for its night wear brand – Valentine with the funds raised through IPO. Investing Rs 31 crores, the Mumbai-based company is planning to open 10 exclusive stores of the Valentine brand as well as an additional manufacturing base in Gujarat.

With rising number of women demanding branded innerwear and logging into online platforms to get hold of their favourite piece of lingerie, even domestic players like Delhi-based Groversons, which has been selling women's innerwear in the country for 60 years, plans to go public within a couple of years to carry out its planned expansion.

On the other hand, Iconic American brands such as Victoria's Secret and Agent Provocateur of the UK have set their eyes on the Indian lingerie market, and Japanese lingerie brand Wacoal has already made a proposal to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to partner with a domestic company to open single brand stores in the country.