Doll, the ethnic brand for girls looks at Punjab for growth

Dressing up for occasions is serious business nowadays. Both adults and children take dressing up seriously and the market has adapted to meet the ever growing demand. Doll is one such homegrown brand that makes only ethnic wear for girls. In fact, it is the first brand which introduced ball gowns for young girls in India. It was at a time when there were only long skirts available for occasion wear but over time things have changed. Now, the demand for ball gowns is all season, and the last wedding season there was a huge demand for them. So, for the forthcoming season, it looks forward to an even higher demand and being present in 30 MBOs in Punjab by winter.

Variety is the keyword for success

Doll has a wide variety of ethnic wear for different age groups, starting from one to three years. Then there is a segment for the five to 12 years. And even though prices are on the higher side ranging between Rs 2,500 to Rs 8,000, the company justifies this by saying that for good quality and exclusive products, people don’t mind paying. The designs are not pure ethnic. Most of the products are western with an ethnic looks in terms of patterns and cuts. The main products are lehengas , gowns, palazzos and ethnic crop tops with ghagras . For all the products good quality Banarasi, brocades and handloom fabrics are used.

Ethnic can be challenging

With so many global players in the kids’ wear segment today, it is tough for a purely ethnic/Indian wear to survive. But Doll is confident about its place. It knows that even though making and selling girls ethnic wear is a big challenge, they are in an advantageous position. None of the global players are into ethnic wear and so when people have to shop for occasions, they will go for Doll’s ethnic collection.

Presently, Doll is available with 350 MBOs across India. In UP alone the brand has nearly 55 counters. Interestingly, during winter it is the north which gives them good business while in summer it’s the south. The brand is also present in markets abroad. There they have a set of buyers who have their own boutiques. Doll has markets in Bangladesh, Mauritius, the US, South Africa and the UK. These markets comprise five to 10 per cent of their business. In fact, the company is planning to open EBOS in foreign countries where they are already present, most probably through franchisees. The plan is to start with the US.

Jayesh Shah, Proprietor, Doll, says, “Right now the market is a bit slow. From January 2016 the market has not been promising. Some brands have failed because of over expansion. You open a series of stores and then get into trouble. This is a business where you can easily survive by doing what someone else is doing. But creativity and innovation are a different story. This path is taken by just a few.”