Lockdown effect: People are ready to get dressed & go says Gautam Singhania of Raymond

• Raymond says that the same store sales growth has more than doubled compared to the pre-pandemic levels.
  
• The luxury apparel maker, which exports almost 90% of its products, says that there is a resurgence in demand from Europe.
  
• Domestic sales have also been good, thanks to the many weddings that took place in summer.
  
• Another good season lies ahead, says Gautam Singhania.

One of India’s most popular apparel brands, Raymond, is eyeing a bumper sales season ahead. And, it’s not just because of the upcoming festival season.

Gautam Singhania, MD of the Raymond Group told Business Insider India, now that offices are open, people wanted to go back to ‘dressing up’.

“They are also now a different shape and size. There was also a lot of pent-up demand and as offices opened up, a lot of apparel buying happened. The same-store growth more than doubled as compared to the pre-pandemic levels,” Singhania said while speaking of the growth drivers for his group’s apparel business.

Demand from Europe is back

According to an IDBI Capital report, the company is expecting a double digit growth in textiles while in shirting it sees growth in mid to high teens. The luxury apparel maker, which exports almost 90% of its products, is also happy with the resurgence of demand from Europe.

“In European markets, the demand is very strong. People are back with a vengeance and they want formal clothing. In fact, in Europe, supply chain is a bigger problem than demand,” said Singhania.

The Indian market too has seen good sales, thanks to the many pending weddings that took place in the summer wedding season. Unofficially, as many as 40 lakh weddings are known to have taken place in the mid-Jan to June, and that’s only good news for Raymond, which is known for its wedding formals.

India goes in for ethnic wedding wear

The company also expects a good festive and winter wedding season. And, it’s not just formals that they hope to dress the baratis in.

“Raymond is integral to weddings and special occasions and Indian ethnic wear is a growing trend today. We are present in that segment with Ethnix by Raymond and currently available in 32 exclusive brand outlets (EBO), which will be over 100 stores by the end of this fiscal year,” said Singhania.

The Ethnix brand, which will be in direct competition to Manyavar, will also be made available in select Raymond Shops, multi-brand outlets and large format stores like Shoppers Stop and Central.

Raymond, which is bullish in this category, is also carving a niche that’s much different from that of Manyavar.

“Raymond’s ethnic wear is positioned as classic to contemporary in elegant format compared to contemporary and edgy for Manyavar,” said the IDBI report. It hopes to capture 10-15% market share in ethnic category in the next five years.

The 98-year-old company is banking on its brand name in the men’s category and groom lounge, to be able to push forward its ethnic wear business too. In the long term, it hopes the Ethnix brand will contribute 15-20% of the total sales of a store.

During the pandemic, the company also gave a push to the online business, which has grown at a good trajectory in terms of customer acquisition, it says. They are also taking up multiple initiatives to customize orders received online, and adapting to the technological changes ahead.

All in all, it’s betting on another good season to drive its business growth. “Unless the world goes into another lockdown, I do not see any reason why we shouldn’t have another good season,” says Singhania.

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