Indian Terrain to re-launch vintage denims this winter

The CEO of sports lifestyle brand Indian Terrain, Charath Narasimhan feels that there would be an upswing in consumer sentiment, which would lead to a rise in spending and sales in the forthcoming festive season. He is hopeful that the buoyancy in business sentiment, that would be witnessed

by the industry in next six months, will continue for coming two-three years.

Indian Terrain, an authentic sportswear brand, firmly believes that simplicity is luxury. Working on this principle, the company has been creating apparels that are stylish

yet comfortable, and can be worn to both work and play. Focusing on the core brand strengths and consumer dynamics, the brand is working on its retail and communication strategy to establish strong presence across the country. “We have a lot of franchise queries coming in. Our products have established themselves in the market and we are looking forward to good times,” says Amitabh Suri, Chief Operating Officer of Indian Terrain Fashions. The company also plans to re-launch its vintage denim line by the festive season.

The brand grew by almost 50 percent last year and revenues jumped from Rs 157 crores to Rs 232 crores in FY 2014. Net profit more than doubled to around Rs 10 crores from Rs 4 crore the previous year.

Building retail presence

Indian Terrain retails through 750 MBOs, 175 LFOs, and 110 EBOs. The company is looking to 25 percent growth within the next few years. Trade sales have grown over 60 percent in the last year. Indian Terrain follows a multi-channel retail strategy. The current distribution mix is 40 percent EBOs, 40 percent MBOs, and 20 percent LFOs. “We believe in developing all channels and growing in a steady manner without overexposure. We would like to keep the distribution mix the same. Most EBOs are franchisee driven as it helps to bring out the best of entrepreneurial abilities,” Suri explains. The average Indian Terrain store is 600 to 900 square foot, while a flagship store is 1,500 to 2,000 square foot. After experimenting for the last 18 months with different online retail portals, the company has now launched its own e-retailing platform. It plans to expand to 120 stores by the end of the year, along with expanding with LFS.

The brand’s first store was launched in September, 2000 on TTK Road in Chennai, India. “We then moved to Bangalore and had already begun talks with Shoppers Stop and Lifestyle. In October 2000, we were with Shoppers Stop and in March 2001, we were with Lifestyle. Since then, we have been with all the large format stores, including Globus, Westside, Shoppers Stop, Central, Pantaloons, and Lifestyle. We also began distribution to Multi Brand Outlets (MBO’s) in 2001,” Suri informs.

Smart and sporty product range

Indian Terrain initially manufactured only shirts and trousers. Today it offers a wide range of work shirts, cotton trousers, denims, polo T-shirts, as well as fashionable sweaters and jackets for winter. The brand unveils four collections each year. Fast fashion is becoming the need of the hour as customer tastes keep changing. Therefore, launching new collections at a greater frequency is fast becoming a priority.

For Autumn/Winter 2014, its focus will be on tonal ensembles with innovative fits, garment finishes, and laundry. Indian Terrain’s linen shirts, khaki trousers, and winter collection have received a very positive response. The company now plans to re-launch Indian Terrain Vintage Denims this winter. The demand for the brand’s trouser line has grown above and beyond the company’s expectations. It is witnessing a 40 percent growth year-on-year with the khaki line doing extremely well.