Fila’s association with Cravatex extended by 30 years

Leading sportswear maker Fila announced an extension

of its licence agreement with Cravatex for another 30 years and is also looking at increasing its exclusive stores to 100 in the next two years. The company would focus more on its apparel range. Fila is present in India for the past three years and operates under a licensing agreement. Originally an Italian and currently a Korean brand, Fila has 5 per cent market share in the Rs 2,000 crores sportswear market and is looking at doubling its market share to 9-10 per cent by 2015. “We are growing at 25-30 per cent annually, and we plan to add 60 more stores by 2014 to take the own-store tally to 100. And with this we will be focusing on more apparel sales here,” Fila global chairman and chief executive officer Gene Yoon told PTI.

The extension of 30 years with Cravatex would let it invest and launch exclusive Fila stores. So far the brand was present largely in wholesale and shop-in-shop formats and retail stores. Apart from its core focus footwear, which is 60-65 per cent today, the company also wants to give equal importance to its apparels range.

Fila had registered retail revenue of Rs 120 crores in 2011-12 in the country while its global sales stood at $1.2 billion (around Rs 6,403 crores). The company feels that China and India are two prominent countries in Asia that hold a lot of potential and current problems at Reebok India have created a growth opportunity for them in India.

Fila India, which in July roped in cricketer Virender Sehwag as its first brand ambassador with a contract for three years, has also tied up with Mohun Bugan in the football space due to the growing interest in the sport.