Sachin Tendulkar launches men’s apparel brand True Blue

Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has started his new innings and this time it’s in apparel. He has teamed up with Arvind Fashion Brands to launch a premium men’s apparel brand called True Blue. The first outlet will come up in his own hometown, Mumbai in May.

Tendulkar and Arvind Fashion Brands have formed a joint venture to launch this label. Apart from taking an equity stake, Tendulkar has also helped in designing the collections. For Tendulkar, creating something iconic that every Indian can talk to was very much present on his mind. So when he was approached by Arvind Fashion, he immediately could connect. As he points out, True Blue is very subtle, it is something that he would like to wear.

The plan is to open 25-30 stores in the near future. The brand is targeted at 28-40 year-old men. Initially, casual and formal wear in the price range of Rs 1,200-3,500 and premium evening wear in the range upto Rs 8,000 will be available. The Arvind group is eyeing revenue of Rs 200-300 crores from True Blue in the next five years. Arvind Fashion Brands and Arvind Sports Lifestyle CEO Rajiv Mehta points out that it was their expertise matched with Tendulkar’s unmatched love for anything India that gave them the confidence to go ahead with the decision, and eventually it lead to a joint venture partnership.

Once the brand is established, the plan is to introduce accessories such as belts and wallets. As of now, there are no plans of getting into women’s clothes.