The Hindu Business Line : Pearl Academy plans more campuses, new courses

Pearl Academy of Fashion (PAF), promoted by apparel group Pearl Global Ltd, has earmarked Rs 150 crore for strengthening its fashion and retail education infrastructure over the next five years.

The academy, which runs three institutes in India and one in the UAE, recently emerged as an international institute, after being invited to join as member of the International Federation of Fashion Technology Institute (IFFTI). The National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi, and National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, are the only other members of IFFTI in India.

Sharing the Academy’s future plans, its Executive Director, Mr A.K.G. Nair, said PAF would extend its reach by opening more campuses, launch new courses in fashion styling, interior design, fashion communication and accessories from the 2007-08 academic season and make fashion marketing course a two-year post-graduate diploma programme.

PAF is planning to set up five campuses at Delhi, Jaipur, Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata with student strength of 3,000. “We have firmed up our Chennai plans. The new building would come up on a three-acre plot at Sriperumpudur soon,” he said, adding that new campuses in Jaipur, Mumbai and Kolkata, the larger campus in NCT area of New Delhi and the residential block in Chennai would be ready by the end of next year.

Elaborating on the opportunities, he said, “There is nothing static in the fashion and clothing industry. If there is anything permanent, it is the ‘change’ and this is not confined to one sphere, but visible across the spectrum from material, embellishment, production and marketing strategies, cuts, and colour.”

“Styles vary frequently and materials change faster than they arrive.”

“The sector provides attractive openings at various levels, not only to professionals but also the talented and skilled youth,” he continued.

‘Infant stage’

Merchandisers and retail professionals are, according to Mr Nair, the backbone of the sector.

To a query on the transformation witnessed (within the fashion design industry) over the past decade, he said, “The Indian fashion industry is still in an infant stage, but has nevertheless gained prominence.”

Industry experts have estimated the designer wear market in India at Rs 1.8 billion, which is just 0.2 per cent of the total apparel market. Preliminary estimates, however, suggest that this industry is poised to grow to Rs 10 billion. This sector is dominated by the small scale unorganised sector.

The global market has been estimated at $35 billion and is said to be growing at an annual average of 9 per cent.

Better infrastructure

Mr Nair envisages the Indian fashion industry to grow at 10 to 12 per cent in the coming years. “This can happen if the infrastructure is strengthened and other logistic bottlenecks are removed. The mindset and attitude to establish a cohesive designer-retailer relationship would drive growth,” he added.

Asked how PAF was geared to address these issues, he said, “by imparting long-term career-oriented education and providing employable, trained manpower to the industry”.

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