Though Hidesign's growth story in India has been exponential, the market is fragmented, with the entry of top-end luxury brands such as Dior, Hermes, Gucci and Louis Vuitton. Its Indian marketing spend is also likely to increase by about 30 per cent this year. Last year, it had spent about $210,000 (around Rs 11.3 crore) in promotions in the international markets, and about Rs 7-8 crore in India. "We would also pay the distributors for strong marketing initiatives," adds Kapur. With international markets needing a rethink, marketing spends in these would go up by about 60 per cent this year. If any e-commerce site offers it, that would be its own cost," points out Kapur. It has also tied up with Amazon for markets in the US, UK, Germany and France. "We are slowly tapping the route by creating a store online," he adds. Meanwhile, Hidesign is also tapping the e-commerce space. The company is all set to enter Philipines, Ghana and South Africa over the next few months. "The number is going to grow substantially over the next one year," says Kapur. Hidesign is present in 23 countries, which includes India. "We will go for six months, one year to two years strategy, and will expand depending on the response in each market," Kapur says. The flagship stores, that are more brand-oriented and not "just a buy and sell" trading model for markets outside India will be piloted at first. "Our future growth markets would be Asia and Africa," he says. But, we will avoid high-streets which are very capital-intensive (high rent)," says Kapur, adding that the economic and consumer sentiments in the US and the UK are "very negative" at the moment. "We will not go for any big investment soon. It will begin with shop-in-shops, and is likely to explore the franchisee route as well. Outside India, Hidesign has 18 distributor-owned standalone outlets at present. We have realised that we need more direct consumer connect," he adds. "We will replicate the Indian model in all the markets, but slowly. The concept of standalone stores will now be taken to all the countries Hidesign sells in. ![]() This is, undoubtedly, a cause of concern in the long run," Kapur says. ![]() "There has always been a gap between us, the brand owner, and the consumers in all the markets we operate, except in India. While Kapur was selling products through distributors in multi-brand stores in international markets, he established standalone and shop-in-shop Hidesign stores in India. "Our growth in India was so rapid that our international markets felt the lack of attention," says Kapur, admitting that it was a mistake to be so late to the party. Once Hidesign entered India, it knew why the rest were rushing to cater to the luxury clientele which had moved on from just comprising the maharajahs. But now, Hidesign is taking a page out of its Indian business to improve its prospects abroad. Dilip Kapur, the owner and president, had preferred to stay out of India, expanding to other shores. The Puducherry-based, luxury leather goods brand Hidesign, which began its journey in 1978, entered India only in 2000. As foreign luxury brands made a beeline for the recession-proof buyer in India, a made-in-India brand charted the opposite course.
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