The Hindu Business Line : Raymond, Grotto plan 60 brand outlets for GAS

Mumbai May 9 Raymond and Italian apparel brand Grotto SpA, through a 50:50 joint venture, plan to open 60 exclusive brand outlets for the high-end fashion brand GAS in the next three years. In addition, 12 flagship stores will also be set up.

Currently, two GAS stores have been set up, one each in Mumbai and Delhi.

"In the next couple of months, there are four more coming up: one each in Mumbai and Bangalore, and two in malls in Delhi," said Mr Anirudh Deshmukh, President (Retail and FMCG), Raymond Ltd.

Distribution chain

Raymond and Grotto have invested Rs 50 crore together to finance the setting up of a distribution chain to sell the GAS brand in India.

"We have four levels of distribution planned. Flagship stores, exclusive brand outlets, large format stores like Shoppers' Stop and multi-brand outlets," said Mr Deshmukh.

The brand targets the cosmopolitan, international-trend conscious consumers and prices vary from Rs 1,600-Rs 8,000. Apart from Tier I cities, Raymond is also looking to tap the markets in smaller towns like Vadodara, Ahmedabad and Nagpur.

"Even though it is a premium brand, we feel it will do well in smaller towns like Jaipur, Lucknow and Pune as they have fashion-conscious populations with high levels of disposable incomes. They do not really fall under the global parlance of small towns," said Mr Deshmukh.

Turnover

GAS is present in 56 countries and is available at 3,000 selling points. By the end of three years, Raymond plans to make the brand available at 600 selling points.

"We are targeting a turnover of Rs 125 crore by the end of three years," said Mr Deshmukh. The Rs 50-crore investment will cover working capital, advertisements and brand promotion.

"We are currently advertising on billboards and will start advertising in the print medium as well. But the bulk of the advertising will come during the autumn and winter seasons," said Mr Deshmukh.

More Stories on : Alliances & Joint Ventures | Brands | Retailing | Readymade Garments

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