Future Group back on fashion business growth roadmap

As the fashion business matures the Future Group set to reap the benefits of scale, experience and power of brands in creating value for all its stakeholders, points out Rakesh Biyani, Joint MD, Future Retail. Lee Cooper, the company’s flagship denim brand, crossed the Rs 500 crores mark last year and is growing at double digits. Similarly, brands such as Scullers, John Miller, Indigo Nation, Clarks, Jealous 21, DJ&C, Bare, Knighthood, aLL have all crossed the Rs 100 crores mark each and each of them are growing at over 20-25 per cent. Many of these brands like aLL, for plus size customers, or Jealous 21, a denim brand exclusively for women, are unique in the market and have created a strong customer following. Then, there are new brands like Giovanni, Clarks, Mohr that are growing at a steady pace.

The story behind CoverStory

The company launched CoverStory earlier this year, as India’s first fast fashion brand that is designed and sourced by a multi-cultural team based out of the company’s studio in London and is made exclusively for the Indian market. It has been doing phenomenally well with customers even within a few months of its launch. Biyani says, Future Group is a brand-led fashion company with its own distribution networks that are equally strong in their areas. Most of its brands are also retailed through all major retail chains, multi-brand outlets and other channels. The company sells over 15 crore units of garments every year and its fashion business is now over a billion dollars.

The big bold execution team

The company’s fashion business is led by a robust set of leaders in every business and each of them are leading growth and execution in these businesses. Almost all of them have spent more than a decade with Future Group and its fashion business and there is now a wealth of experience and expertise in envisioning trends, in execution and in operating these businesses.

Vishnu Prasad has led the reimagination of the Central chain. The next generation Central stores in Bengaluru and Delhi have set new standards in terms of customer experience and service. The company operates around 3.5 million square feet of retail space through Central and it is emerging as a clear market leader in the department store space. Future group has taken on ecommerce chains head on with Brand Factory. It is growing at a phenomenal pace. From 38 stores in 2014, the company will be operating 65 stores by the end of this financial year. Suresh Sadhwani has been the leading the entity’s growth trajectory.

Within a few years of FBB launch, there are now 55 fbb exclusive stores and another 237 stores within every Big Bazaar. The company has invested in creating this brand, and backed it up with fresh merchandise, better quality and superior customer experience. The brand’s head Rajesh Seth followed a ‘first price right’ approach in this business, steering clear of the group’s legacy of discounts and that was well received by customers.

The company constantly stays connected with its customers to gauge their demand patterns. With the help of strong loyalty programs that throws up data on consumers, buying patterns, they are able to plan merchandize, assortment, promotions, etc. The company has consistently invested in upgrading the customer experience and that has yielded results for the company.