John Hill to spread network across India

Fashion brand John Hill from Vir Retail with an extensive portfolio of casual and formal wear is spreading the net to reach every nook and cranny of India. Into its first year, John Hill’s turnover is Rs 28 crores and is expected to reach Rs 68 crores

by the end of next fiscal. A firm believer of franchised distribution being the key to success, it operates 102 showrooms spread across Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, UP, Punjab, New Delhi and NCR. On the cards are 28 more stores by Diwali this year. These will come up in Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir and Kerala. John Hill has no intention of going into MBOs or large format stores but is keenly looking at enabling e-commerce by the first quarter of the next fiscal year.

“We want to offer good quality products at half the price of niche brands,” says Ritesh Khandelwal, Senior VP, Vir Retail. Their aim is to give an international name to the brand. “The Indian psychology is that if an English name is given, it’s accepted. With John Hill, we have given a western look to the brand. We are both a formal as well as a casual brand,” he explains. However, the casual range makes up 60 per cent of sales.

 John Hill offers good value to the consumer because of its vertical integration. Whilst other brands make fabrics and do garmenting outside, or they buy fabrics and do garmenting in-house, John Hill does everything in-house. With an export background of 50 years and the experience of dealing with major international buyers, to John Hill fashion comes naturally, right from the color combinations to styling and the overall look of the garment. They compete with brands like Spykar and Mufti in casuals and with Peter England and Van Heusen for the formal range. Khandelwal opines, “We are keeping the prices similar to a discount brand while keeping the quality similar to that of a niche brand.”

 John Hill has expansion plans lined up across the board. Next September, John Hill Inners, innerwear for men will be introduced along with fragrances and deodorants. This will complete the entire male wardrobe as the brand already has casual and formal shirts, trousers, cargos, T-shirts, blazers, jackets and jumpers.

 They also have Miss Hill, a Western wear range for women. It is a store-in-store concept as it is retailed within the flagship John Hill stores. Vir Retail is also into children’s wear, but more as a niche brand than a discount brand. Baby Centre is only available in metros and within the John Hill Family Shop. Currently, there are 12 showrooms in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Pune, Sangli and Kolhapur that sell Baby Centre apparel. Chennai and Mumbai will be the next to retail Baby Centre.