V-Melo: Children are the new customers

V Melo the men’s innerwear brand is working on a growth that includes entering the kids’ innerwear space by next January. As Paresh Rathod, Director, V-Melo Apparels says, “There is lot of labor problems in this sector. We have tried considering

all categories in innerwear and wish to enter kids’ innerwear segment soon. We are just restricting ourselves because of production problems but are optimistic that by January 2012 we can definitely start kids’ innerwear.” The brand which is entrenched in the men’s innerwear segment recently launched a brand of capris called Malls. Also in the pipeline are finished track pants in the premium range for winters. Made from fleece these will be available in four fits. It’s mainly aimed at the European market. “Moving ahead from January ’12 we would like to extend our track pants by introducing two or three more styles, new vests and briefs. We are even looking at launching complete sets like track pants with T-shirt by summer 2012,” Rathod informs.

Along with product expansion, V-Melo has also increased its production capacity. From 35 lakh pieces it went up to 45 lakh pieces and by January 2012, they are adding a new factory in Tirupur, which will produce an additional 15 lakh pieces. Rathod points out that the innerwear market in the country has evolved in the last few years, yet it has a long way to go. And after the recent excise imposition, things are likely to become more organized, and irrational MRPs may become a thing of the past. “In the next five years, the industry is likely become more organized and the share of unorganized sector will fall. The entry of foreign players is likely to throw out of business inefficient Indian players. With better technology, innovative designs, cost control, and higher economies of scale, the consumer is likely to get better value for money,” he says.

As for V-Melo, it’s present across three south Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and by Januray 2012 it aims to step into Kerala. Also on the agenda are Gujarat, Kolkata and Bihar. “We have tried covering most big LFS in south whose yearly turnover is not less than Rs 1,000 crores like Chennai Silks etc. We cover 1,5000 hosiery stores and MBOs as well. By next year, we will be in big large format stores like Lifestyle,” he says optimistically. With 65 per cent growth this year they are targeting 80-90 per cent growth in the coming fiscal.