Oxemberg aims for 20 per cent growth

Men’s formal wear brand Oxemberg from Siyaram Silk Mills is buoyant about market and business ahead despite the current low consumer sentiment. The brand has charted out growth plans for retail and product development.

Gaurav Poddar, Director, Siyaram Silk Mills gives an insight, “We are buoyant this time since we are offering a different product. The look and feel of the garment is not similar to last year’s collection as there are new colours, styles and fabrics. We got a good response from trade partners and the overall scenario looks positive for us. We are confident of increasing our share in business.”

Poddar says that the Siyaram’s Fashion Avenue, their retail arm, is mainly in Tier II, III cities and some select metros and they are planning to open 50 franchise stores by December 2012. “In the readymade space, and looking cumulatively at Oxemberg, MSD and J Hampstead under Siyaram Silk Mills, the total business size would be about Rs 200 crores. Oxemberg alone is around Rs 150 crores and we would like it to grow by 20 per cent a year,” he adds.

As a measure of forward integration Siyaram’s launched Oxemberg in the early nineties. The brand has carved a niche for itself and strives to be different. “We are different from our competitors in the fact that our clothes are designed keeping in mind the customer’s comfort with his inner rhythm and music rather than just putting a series of apparel for him to choose. Our customers are ambitious and status conscious youth who want contemporary styling and excellent quality at a ‘value for money’ prices,” explains Poddar. Oxemberg is all about comfort and style. The clothes are so well styled and cut that it is like music to the body. The tagline: ‘Clothes that move to my rhythm’ sums up the core essence and positioning of the brand.

The retail format that the company is currently pursuing is the concept of Siyaram Fashion Avenue. It has 105 franchises and 15 company-owned stores. Siyaram’s Fashion Avenue is a multi brand retail showroom, showcasing all the company’s brands -- textiles and apparels. “Oxemberg is for customers aged 23 to 35, who want formals and semi-formals. MSD (My Style Destination) is a youth casual wear. J Hampstead is for the premium customer. In fabrics, there is Siyaram, Mistair and J Hampstead. That’s how we cater to men’s wear,” he informs.

Normally, in a store 50 to 60 per cent of the space is allotted to apparel brands. But if it’s in a mall, the space goes up to 70 per cent because mall consumer purchases are more towards apparels. In a small town where fabric sales are also important, fabric occupies a little more space, he explains. The brand also sells through 150 points of sales in large format stores and in about 2,000 MBOs.