Mafatlal Group to make strong foray into apparel business

Textile firm Mafatlal Industries to make a strong foray into apparel business by introducing ready-to-wear fashion wear at affordable pricing and for this they have identified three-four anchor categories. MD and CEO, Mafatlal Industries, Aniruddha Deshmukh said that their main strength is fabrics. They are one of the large manufacturers of denim in the country, and they also supply to domestic brands and international brands.

Mafatlal Industries was a popular and leading brand of yesteryear and now the company wants to restore the same old glory, Deshmukh said.

The other large business they have is textiles, where they do basically shirting fabrics, whites and prints … they are also doing school uniforms and the size of this business is about Rs 300 crore.

On the company’s foray into ready-made segment, Deshmukh said that as a fabric company, at some point of time it will need to make an entry into the ready-made segment. It is sort of a relaunch for them because the brand has been around for some time, but somehow never got the traction or momentum.

Their intention is that they convert their expertise and skill in fabrics into ready-made. In apparel business, there are two-three anchor categories they will focus on. Mafatlal countrywide is known for its whites and they want to bring it in ready-made. In denims, they are manufacturers for nearly 20 years. They have a medium-sized plant in Gujarat.

The company has a good retail presence mainly in western region. But they are now going to expand into regions including north, where they see a good scope.

One thing they have seen is that the more well known the brands are their products are probably not as fashion forward as some of the products from the not so well known brands. So, their focus will be on high fashion products, they want to be a niche player, but very very affordable.

Another category which the company is looking at is T-shirts. All these things will be the focal points of their collection. They are starting off from the north region and then they will spread across.

According to the Vice President–Sales and Marketing of MIL, Sheeren Gupta, one of the key things which the company is focusing on is pricing of the products, which will be very competitive.

They are not in the premium segment, but the products will definitely look premium. Their range will be Rs 899 to Rs 1499 for shirts, T-shirts will be priced at Rs 899- Rs 999 and denims for Rs 1499 to Rs 1699.

Mafatlal Industries is part of Rs 1,300 crore Arvind- Mafatlal group. The real revenue targets will probably start one or two years down the line. Priority at the moment is to get their products and distribution right.