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| Edited By: Shailaja Sharma |Source: DNA |Updated: Mar 18, 2018, 05:03 AM IST
Religion Clothing, Ringspun, Traffic People, House of Gods, Voi Jeans, Joe Bloggs, Santa Monica, Butterfly Twists... Rings a bell, anyone?
These UK-based fashion brands could soon open in a mall or commercial complex in your neighbourhood. Most of these have a global presence and are scouting for local partners in India to strike joint venture, licence or franchise agreements.
A willing and increasingly brand-savvy Indian consumer is good news for retailers around the world, after all.
London-based brand management company Brandspoke, which has a presence in India, is helping the brands enter India.
"We have been approached by a number of brands to help them enter India, and we are starting to. India is gaining focus and nobody can afford to ignore the market," said Michael Pike, director, Brandspoke.
The organised sector accounts for around 7-8% of India’s $500 billion-a-year retail industry, as per market estimates. Food and grocery account for the lion's share of the overall market at around 60%, followed by clothing and fashion with about 17%.
The UK brands are hopeful of stimulating interest from Indian retailers and mall developers at India Fashion Forum, an industry trade event, later this month, said Pike.
India allows 100% foreign direct investment in single-brand retail. However, most brands are keen to enter the market with a local partner rather than on their own.
But finding a sizeable local partner is easier said than done. Large Indian retailers such as Future Group, Reliance Retail and SKNL are inundated with calls from international brands keen to enter the country, said Pike, whose company has worked with Future Group for its private labels in the last 10 years and Dabur for its health and wellness retail format NewU.
"The interesting thing about India is that consumers are demanding more brands, but Indian retail market is in an early stage and too complex for newer brands to understand it quickly. They are all in need for a special on-ground local partner's expertise," he said.
