In this issue

Lately, we have been witnessing varied spring-summer ranges. Complementing them are the new retail points in new destinations, from HRX’s first physical store to Lee’s another store. Amidst these, what caught our attention was the recent move by Pou Chen to invest in India. It has also left us to speculate on who else will soon follow suit against the backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions between China and the US and the impacts they will generate.

This, at the same time, encourages us to think that we should adopt a robust two-pronged strategy of much-needed reliance on exports and a thriving domestic consumption to ensure that we remain shielded, if not entirely, from any global turbulence. In the country with the largest population and prospective high dividends, there is enough room for any ambitious economictargets as well as for businesses to have great aspirations.

Moreover, a rise in disposable income, more people joining the workforce, and markets becoming more organized, to name a few, create more opportunities. This has prompted us to find out how the factors have impacted another highly unorganized market, ethnic wear. Although it has grown rapidly and its landscape has witnessed major shifts with the entry of retail giants, it remains to be seen how dynamic it will become in the coming years. I hope you enjoy our analysis as well as the industry leaders’ observations in this edition.

THE RECIPES FOR VALUE CREATION

At the 22nd edition of India Fashion Forum (IFF) held between February 28 and March 01, 2023 at Conard Bengaluru, several brand custodians shared their strategic moves that veered their businesses toward profitability. The session was conducted by Bijou Kurien, Chairman, Retailers Association of India.

10 mins

We are all about fashion

In May 2005, ALDO was introduced to India with the first store opening in Mumbai, Phoenix High Street. Since then it has further expanded and has its presence in all major cities across India. As an extension to the ALDO brand, ALDO Accessories stores were launched. Apparel Group India Pvt.Ltd has been the partner in India. The brand has roped in Bollywood actor Janhvi Kapoor as its ambassador. It has recently launched its Spring-Summer collection. N Bobo Meitei interacted with Abhishek Bajpai, CEO of Apparel Group India, to discuss a range of topics. Excerpts

3 mins

HUMAN FACES OF FASHION: UNVEILING THE EMOTIONAL PERSONAS OF 3 STAKEHOLDERS IN FASHION RETAIL STORES

Every fashion brand has its own unique identity, which is a reflection of the people behind it. And behind every successful fashion retail brand are individuals who are passionate, resilient, and emotionally invested in their work.

6 mins

ELI BITTON: BRIDGE-TO-LUXURY

Left battered and in a dilemma by Covid, Eli Bitton had to make a decision. To launch a fashion house in India. Thus the eponymous brand was born.

2 mins

The woman at the helm of Melissa India

Ruchi Sally currently helms Melissa India, a company founded in 1979 in Rio de Jenario, now a fashion favourite across 90 countries, including the fashion capitals of New York, London and Sao Paolo. The brand has seen multiple design partnerships with leading names including Karl Lagerfeld, Zaha Hadid, Jason Wu, Jeremy Scott, and Vivienne Westwood. With 16 years of experience in building brands in India, in her current role Sally is tasked with growing this international favorite brand's footprint in India.

2 mins

KOCHI BIDS ADIEU TO THE GRANDIOSE FASHION SPECTACLE!

LULU FASHION WEEK 2023 - SPRING/SUMMER

2 mins

Purplle: Making beauty accessible

Started as a beauty marketplace, Purplle.com today has grown into a community that enables beauty for all, says Manish Taneja. The business expanded to fill the gap in the market with home-grown private D2C brands that make beauty products affordable and accessible to women across India, Taneja, its Co-Founder and CEO informs Images Business of Fashion in an interview.

5 mins

Boom-Time For Vegan Fashion

The vegan leather market worldwide will expand to nearly $90 billion by 2025, while the overall vegan fashion market will reach $837 billion by 2030. The numbers speak of the groundswell of interest in vegan fashion. Since the most on-trend vegan leathers and fabrics are plant-based, the increase in patronage of these items is also good news for India's farmers.

4 mins

A commitment to craftsmanship

SDS by Kushal Shah specialises in luxury prêt, couture, and bespoke menswear. The label maintains that its retail strategy is focused on creating a memorable, high-end shopping experience for customers. Recently, it has opened a flagship store in Mumbai's Kala Ghoda district. In an interview with Images Business of Fashion, Kushal Shah Principal Designer & Founder of the label said, \"One of the biggest challenges we face is educating customers about the value of high-quality, well-crafted menswear. Many customers are accustomed to fast fashion and are not well-versed with the difference between a custom-made garment and ready-to-wear.\" Excerpts.

5 mins

Primal Gray: An attention to clean and linear silhouettes

Claimed to be built on transparent production, transparent fibre and fabrics, transparent composition and circular productive practices, Primal Gray positions itself as a conscious fashion brand.

3 mins

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Business Of Fashion Magazine Description:

IMAGES Business of Fashion is a monthly resource for fashion retailers, brand owners and industry leaders in India. It delivers fashion business intelligence on emerging retailers, disruptive technologies and domestic and global brands that are making their mark in the industry at a time of unprecedented change.

With a 24 year old loyal reader base of over 60,000 top decision makers, fashion retailers and fashion buyers, spread across all sectors of the business of fashion in India, IMAGES BoF has constantly proven itself as easily the most focused and best targeted fashion business media in India.

Launched in 1992, the monthly magazine is an informed, analytical publication on the fashion business in the country. It has played the role of a catalyst in the retail evolution in India focused on and driven by branding, marketing and retailing of fashion in the country. It enables continuous information exchanges through its activities - facilitating networking among investors, retailers and brand leaders. The publication is amongst the country’s top recall business magazines in India and its reach extends to 2,00,000 of India's top decision makers in retail and retail support business.