Bhaskar Denim launches jacquard denim for autumn ’14

Bhaskar Denim has launched its latest collection of printed and jacquard denim fabrics. The brand has also launched its Autumn/Winter 2014-’15 collection at the recent Texworld, Paris.

Jacquard denim the new offering

A lot of new products viz. jacquards, prints, blended fabrics made with Tencel, modal have been launched by Bhaskar Denim. Blended yarns have been used to give a new look to denim with plenty of colors. They have also used sandwich colors which is basically a combination of colors, on top, middle and bottom that gives a good washed down effect. Talking about the latest collection Srigopal Jhawar, Business Head says, “Our latest collection is of printed and jacquard denims. There have geometrical and floral prints. Colors are dark with cross hatches. Cross hatches are slub patterns in warp and weft. Jacquard is going to be a trend in lightweight shirtings, women’s tops and men’s tops. There is power stretch for women and comfort stretch for men.”

Innovative marketing concepts

Bhaskar Denim has been catering to top global brands like H&M, Jack & Jones, Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, Killer, Lee, Wrangler, M&S, VF among others. It also sells to domestic distributors with a strong network in Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Delhi. Now the company has come up with a new way to boost sales and distribution, called the ‘Quick Delivery Concept’. “It’s another way of marketing our product. Here we have fabrics ready on the shelf, one roll to 100 rolls and ship it to the customer in seven days. The concept has 20 to 25 fabric types and the stocks are based on current trends,” Jhawar explains.

Bhaskar expects the festive season to be good for retail. “Monsoons have been good and we expect agricultural income to increase. This will boost spending on garments. We expect to grow by 12 to 14 percent. Good denim fabrics are in demand. And sales are happening,” says Jhawar.

However, he feels denim fabrics in the lower segments are under pressure because a lot of capacity is being added at that level. Exports have gone up because the dollar-rupee conversion has increased. “This is one of the reasons India has been able to compete with countries like Bangladesh, China and Pakistan. If you look at the Indian rupee versus the dollar, the appreciation has been almost 15 percent. But for Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, who are competing with us, the appreciation is about four percent,” says Jhawar.

Indeed manufacturing costs have gone up due to a number of reasons which include: rising cost of imported chemicals, devaluation of the rupee, increasing viability of cotton exporters leading a push in cotton and yarn exports putting pressure on margins. However, what keeps the brand going is its export viability.

The company produces 3.5 million meters of denim fabrics a month with its in-house production facilities. The brand has also added mercerizing capacity since there’s a big demand for stretch fabric. It also has machines needed for value addition of denim. “We are planning to add another half a million meters a month production capacity. This will happen in January 2014,” says Jhawar.