Explore fashion with Madame

Monday, December 20, 2010

By Jeeta Bandopadhyay

A fashion designer from NIFT, Delhi, Akhil Duggar, creative director at renowned women’s
wear brand Madame, drapes his company’s journey in panache during a candid conversation
with Bizxchange.

“Our focus on contemporary styling since inception in 1993 made us a home brand in
women’s wear,” says Duggar. A team of skilled designers, bent on innovation, emphasis on
quality, along with able leadership of founder Bipin Jain, Madame achieved a turnover
(audited) of Rs 600 million in 2009-10.

To cater to the changing demands of today’s women, Madame produces 1,200 unique
designs annually in its 500,000-sq ft manufacturing space spread across three units. The
company has signed Sophie Choudry, former VJ, actor and singer, as its brand ambassador.

CMAI and IFF nominated Madame as the country’s most admired women’s western wear
brands.

The remaining interview excerpts are as follows:

Share with us the idea behind establishing Madame?

Madame was launched almost two decades back, with an insight to dress the fairer section
of the society with exclusive western wear and popularise it subsequently in the Indian
market. Our first target group was to attract teenagers and we succeeded in it. Currently,
Madame caters to all elements of the feminine pursuit and has extended its focus group
from 13 to 31.

What were your initial challenges? How did you overcome those?

The biggest challenge during the initial years was to compete with the inflow of western
apparels from countries like Thailand, which offered immense variety along with cheap
prices but more on synthetic bases. Branded products were not really popular among girls,
who were primarily dependent on their families for shopping. Moreover, emphasis was given
more on design than on brand and quality.

Our focus to emerge as an apparel brand that spells class, style, quality and above all,
comfort has helped us in our journey to success.

Being in the industry for 17 years, mention the

significant changes that took place in the
women’s wear segment?

Increasing self-independence among Indian women

led to a major change in attitude in the recent past.
The same is now reflected through her changing
lifestyle including her persona, her outfits, her
interests and primarily her ambition.
Western wear, has therefore, found a permanent place in the daily lives of Indian women,
who are enjoying their enriched lifestyle. The wardrobe of today’s women proudly show off
spaghettis and various other bold silhouettes such as razor-back, deep necks, off-shoulders,
short gowns, apart from T-shirts, tops, kurtis, pullovers, formal shirts, skirts and the like.

Prior to Madame, what were your corporate ventures?

Prior to Madame, the company was mainly involved in manufacturing of men’s scarves and
cardigans. Besides, the company owns an array of brands including NYCITI, MAD YG., GOLD
MARK to name a few.

What is the recent big picture for the company?

At present, the company holds over 80,000 sq ft of prime retail space in India, which
includes 77 exclusive Madame stores and 11 exclusive NYCITI stores. Our present target is
to touch 100 exclusive Madame stores by 2011.

Moreover, we enjoy a strong zonal representation network with presence at more than 600-
plus multi-brand outlets across the country. Furthermore, we recently launched the e-portal
for online shopping.

Are you eyeing exports in near future?

Yes, we are. We intend to venture into the global market as an Indian MNC and make a
mark in major fashion destinations of the world and compete with the best there.

Tags - Madame, Akhil Duggar, women’s wear, western wear, exclusive stores, retail, apparel, Bizxchange, Success Story,

Tags: 
Madame  women’s wear  western wear  Success Story  Bizxchange   Akhil Duggar 

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