Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla: Sustaining An Indian Luxury Brand

For the exclusive use of M. Wong, 2023.
W25137
ABU JANI SANDEEP KHOSLA: SUSTAINING AN INDIAN LUXURY

BRAND
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January 2020 marked a good start to the year for Saudamini Mattu, the young chief executive officer of
Mumbai-based Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla (AJSK), a hugely successful 34-year-old Indian luxury brand
specializing in luxe couture, interior design, and wedding decor. Demand for AJSK’s exquisite garments
was picking up after a challenging economic downturn during the previous year, and the House of
AJSKknown for its opulent, grand, and luxurious hand-embroidered garmentswas gearing up to meet
the rising demand. In March 2020, however, the lockdown implemented in India due to the COVID-19
pandemic brought things to a grinding halt. An upset Afshan Mukherji, head of production at AJSK,
informed Mattu about the cancellation by a client of a huge order of couture garments for a family wedding.
In keeping with the pandemic protocol, the typical larger-than-life Indian wedding was being replaced by
a small ceremony, primarily held at home. Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the global luxury market
had been facing challenges on several fronts,1 and Mattu wondered if the changes she had introduced at
AJSK would be enough to navigate the shifts in the environment that impacted luxury consumers, AJSK’s
hundreds of artisans and craftspeople, its design team, and its brand experience.
Mattu knew very well that while the House of AJSK relied on ancient Indian embroidery techniques and
the traditional Indian ethos as its core strengths, a large part of its success was contingent on the mystique
and genius of its lead designer duoAbu Jani and Sandeep Khosla. Their vision, audacity, and creative
genius had enabled the synthesis of a brand philosophy that fused Indian tradition with modern sensibilities,
making the brand an extension of their own personalities and lives. Mattu’s focus and concern were on how
to successfully grow a brand that was inextricably linked with the personas of its founders. What would
fuel the growth of the organization in a slow-to-grow yet rapidly changing luxury market? Would she, the
niece of one half of the designer duo, be able to successfully grow the AJSK luxury brand while remaining
true to the sensibilities of Jani and Khosla?
1
“The State of Fashion 2019,” Business of Fashion and McKinsey & Company, 2019, accessed June 14, 2021,
https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/industries/retail/our%20insights/the%20state%20of%20fashion%202019%20a
%20year%20of%20awakening/the-state-of-fashion-2019-
final.ashx#:~:text=The%20State%20of%20Fashion%202019%20marks%20the%20third%20year%20of,fashion%20in%20th
e%20year%20to.
This document is authorized for use only by Man Wa Wong in CB 3043: Business Case Analysis & Communication taught by Eunyoung Song, City University of Hong Kong from Jan 2023 to
May 2023.
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COMPANY BACKGROUND AND HISTORY
Jani, from Mumbai, first met Khosla, from Kapurthala, Punjab, on August 15, 1986, at the Bandra studio
of Xerxes Bathena, a Bollywood costume designer. It was a serendipitous encounter, as from the moment
Jani and Khosla were introduced, an instant connection was forged between them over common dreams
and hopes. As Jani recalled, “As the afternoon progressed, we knew we wanted the same thing: To create
the most fabulous clothes. Clothes that carried all the hallmarks of India. Our [India’s] fabulous
embroideries, colours, textiles.” Within a month they had forged a partnership, as Jani had received an offer
to open a boutique and shared that opportunity with Khosla. They named the boutique Mata Hari, a name
that was to set the tenor of their workMata Hari was a spy, an elusive woman evoking desire and
exhibiting a certain tragic mystique, who was immortalized on screen by Greta Garbo in the spy drama
Mata Hari, which was released in 1931. Their Mata Hari was a collection of 80 distinctive garments. As
Khosla proudly explained, “For the first time, the design element was introduced in an Indian garment.”
The boutique bore their singular style. The dressing room was circular with beige walls and a peach floor
and had been designed in such a way that when the client stepped out dressed in the duo’s creations, the
spotlights fell on themmaking them feel like a star in the garments. As Khosla explained, “Everybody
wants to be a star.” Their desire to provide such a luxurious experience to the customer became the bedrock
of their luxury brand in the years to come. Both Jani and Khosla were college dropouts with no formal
training in fashion design, and the label marked the fruition of their joint sensibilities. With the ₹50,0002
that each had received from their parents to invest in the business, they would go on to create one of India’s
best-known luxury brands.
Jani and Khosla were early revivalists in India of the ancient Mughal forms of embroidery: the zardozi (gold-
thread embroidery; see Exhibit 1) and the intricate chikankari (shadow work; see Exhibit 2). They also pioneered
the concept of double saris, the use of crushed cotton and silk, and the iconic “Miniatures” collection, which
consisted of embroideries in the form of necklaces. Their signature lookcrushed silk garmentshad an
interesting origin. When one of their tailors accidently spilled liquid on a silk garment, a resigned Jani washed it
himself and left it to dry, believing it would be a write-off. The next morning, he was amazed to discover that
the fabric had acquired a stunning new character, and this led him and Khosla to create an entire line of garments
in crushed silk. Another of their singular contributions was popularizing the colour white for festive wear.
Previously, white had been considered inauspiciousit was associated with grief and austerity and was a colour
worn by widows, an idea deeply embedded in the Indian psyche. Jani and Khosla upended this concept and were
responsible for the colour’s exalted status in the Indian fashion world.
At one of their exhibitions, Jani and Khosla were introduced to Jaya Bachchan, wife of the reigning
superstar of Indian cinema, Amitabh Bachchan. They formed an association that would last for over three
decades. A fortuitous encounter with Sunita Pitamber, a priestess of Mumbai high society who was known
for her refined taste, led to her introducing them to high flyers in international society, including Bianca
Jagger, Sean Connery, and members of European royalty. The designers maintained, “We have made
friends through our clothes; all the celebrities [clients] became friends . . . we were two unknown boys who
came in from nowhere without any connections.” The AJSK brand thus grew amidst friends and celebrities
who shared a deep appreciation of their work and art.
NURTURING CREATIVITY DURING THE EARLY YEARS
Jani and Khosla’s revival of chikankari led the exquisite and intricate centuries-old hand embroidery form
from Lucknow to unimaginable standards of style and finesse. The embroidery form had been brought to
2
₹ = INR = Indian rupee; US$1 = ₹75.3677 on March 31, 2020.
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India by Persian nobles who visited the Mughal courts, and it was believed to have been popularized by
Nur Jahan, the wife of Mughal Emperor Jahangir. Unfortunately, over the years, the embroidery form had
been reduced to mass wear and had lost all connection to its royal roots. Jani and Khosla travelled to
Lucknow to restore and reinvent chikankari’s ancient techniques, and they were helped in this endeavour
by Khosla’s aunt Sita Sondhi and her friend Shanaaz Kidwai. They met the artisans in Lucknow and trained
them to work on sheer and pure luxury fabrics such as chiffon, georgette, and organza, rather than cotton.
At first, it seemed like an exercise in futility, as the needle pierced through the fine fabric and made the
embroiderers’ fingers bleed, staining the fabric. But almost two years and many failed attempts later, the
artisans got the embroidery right. Jani commented, “Chikankari embroidery is a thing of pristine beauty. It
is also the most time-consuming technique of embroidery.” Jani and Khosla’s chikankari garments soon
attained the exalted status of an Hermès Birkin bagthere was a waiting list of eager patrons aspiring to
own a chikankari garment. Only about 100 of the garments were made each year, which meant that no
sooner did a garment reach the store from the workshop than it flew off the rack.
Scalability was an issue with chikankari garments, as their creation was a long, drawn-out process. For
instance, saris typically took up to six months to craft, whereas a bridal outfit could sometimes involve two
years of work, considering everything was painstakingly hand-crafted, requiring both precision and time. The
crafting of a chikankari garment involved keeping an almost 400-year-old tradition alive in its purest form
and propagating it in the world. Even decades later, the pair’s chikankari outfits retained their magic, so much
so that Deepika Padukone, an A-list Bollywood superstar, chose to wear an Internet-breaking classic AJSK
chikankari outfit at her wedding reception. It was an outfit that had taken 16,000 hours of labour to create.
The off-white lehenga (full ankle-length skirt; see Exhibit 3) that Bollywood actor Sonam Kapoor wore for
her pre-wedding festivities had taken 18 months to craft, while international and Bollywood star Priyanka
Chopra opted to wear a dreamy yellow AJSK number when announcing her engagement to Nick Jonas. Jani
and Khosla also created Western gown silhouettes incorporating chikan (embroidery), which were the
glamorous, bodycon manifestations of the traditional embroidery. Khosla stated,
We were determined to make chikankari haute couture. To not merely restore it to its Mughal glory
but to elevate it to an even higher standard of finesse where it became ramp, red carpet, and wedding
wearthe epitome and zenith of couture. The purity of white-on-white embroidery, the delicacy of
its stitches and jaalis [intricately embroidered trellis], [and] the history of chikankari being the chosen
wear of the nobles all whetted our creative appetite. It is so gratifying to have put it on the high fashion
map. We are proud to say that this exquisite technique is quintessentially Abu Sandeep [AJSK].
The business was going well, but after more than 20 years of establishing AJSK and of the brand being
perceived as classic and timeless, the brand perception had morphed into AJSK clothes being more suitable
for older women. The duo quickly caught on to this, and they were quick to restate their brand and mission.
As Khosla stated, “Our brand stands for classical elegance [and] timelessness, and reinvention is our sacred
mission. To us, it’s about impeccable craftsmanship and unsurpassed quality. We believe in being current,
but we also believe that fashion isn’t worth its salt if it doesn’t remain relevant in the future.” They dressed
younger Indian fashion icons such as actor Sonam Kapooryoung, hip, and known nationally for being
fashion forward in her sartorial choices. Her appearance at the Cannes Film Festival in a ruffled AJSK sari
and at a BMW India fashion show in an AJSK creation went a long way in terms of changing perceptions
about the designers. As Jani and Khosla consistently maintained, “One’s sensibilities remain written in
stone, but one’s expression must always be fluid.” Internationally, their garments were sold at uber-luxe
stores such as Harrods, Harvey Nichols, and Fenwick of Bond Street, which were patronized by several
international A-listers. Actress Dame Judi Dench wore their creations to all of the James Bond movie
premieres and accepted her Oscar for Shakespeare in Love wearing a handcrafted AJSK ensemble. She had
gone on record stating that “not only are Jani and Khosla’s clothes works of art, but they are the most
May 2023.
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exquisitely feminine clothes I have ever worn.”3 Popular singer Beyoncé wore an outfit designed by AJSK
in the music video for the band Coldplay’s song “Hymn for The Weekend.” In addition, French actress
Sophie Marceau wore AJSK clothing in the James Bond film The World Is Not Enough, while Game of
Thrones actress Sophie Turner and country singer Carrie Underwood also patronized the brand. However,
this recognition at the international level was event-based and thus infrequent.
GROWING THE AJSK DESIGN AND WORK PHILOSOPHY
The AJSK design philosophy was unabashedly maximalist and “voluptuously extravagant.” This, coupled
with the incredibly intricate and exquisite embroidery, meant that each garment was pure drama, designed
to evoke gasps. AJSK was the only couturier in the country to have dressed three generations of the same
family. Always ahead of the design curve, Jani and Khosla’s creations were innovative and path-breaking.
As Khosla explained,
Whenever we come up with a concept, honestly it catches up only after two to three years, because
it is too avant garde, with sceptics dismissing it and only a few people buying it. Then it becomes
very popular all over; for instance, gota [metallic ribbon] work has been around for years, but we
made it mainstream, or the ruffle sari [see Exhibit 4]. Basically, it was a three-year curve—
designing a garment and selling it—the chikankari of course, remains impervious to all the shifts,
it is a classic—that has absolutely no shelf life.
The designers were particularly pleased that their garments were still being worn even two decades after
they were released. In their minds, that was the true essence of luxurytimeless and absolutely purist. As
Nita Ambani, wife of India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani and an entrepreneur in her own right, put it,
“Through their incredible chikan work and zardozi, they [Jani and Khosla] have specially enhanced the
beauty of ancient Indian arts. And when we know that they didn’t have the benefit of formal training in
their beloved craft, the value of their work becomes much more praiseworthy.”4 India remained the
designers’ constant muse, as encapsulated by Bachchan: “What has remained most attractive to me has
been their signature proximity to tradition and the culture of our country, India.” As an integral part of
India’s contemporary design history, Jani and Khosla firmly believed that the country’s legacy had to be
cherished, protected, and built upon. Their unabashed and overwhelming love for all things Indian had led
them to commit wholeheartedly to resurrecting the country’s moribund artisanal forms. Jani and Khosla
also ventured into costume design when they designed clothing for the romantic film Devdas, for which
they were awarded the prestigious and coveted National Film Award for Best Costume Design.
A key factor that contributed to AJSK’s success was Jani and Khosla’s people skills. They loved being
surrounded by people. Their clothes were magnificent, but it was also their relationships with the people
who bought those clothes that contributed to their success. Their early clients, who had gone on to become
India’s new billionaires, became their friends and continued their patronage over the years. Khosla was the
more gregarious and extroverted of the two, while Jani was the reticent one. The duo epitomized luxe living
at its best. The Diwali parties they threw at their Juhu home were legendary, with loyal clients flying in
from across the country for the one evening. Even their regular parties were famous for drawing the best-
looking and most charismatic people from Bollywood, industry, and the creative fields. The duo’s special
touch with people extended to their employees as well. AJSK employees had all been inexperienced when
3
TNN and Iti Sree Misra, “Judi Dench in Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla’s Gown at BAFTA,” Times of India, February 14, 2012,
accessed May 21, 2021, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/english/hollywood/news/judi-dench-in-abu-jani-
sandeep-khoslas-gown-at-bafta/articleshow/11884295.cms?from=mdr.
4
Abu Jain and Sandeep Khosla, India Fantastique: Fashion, page 7, (London, UK: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 2012).
May 2023.
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they first joined AJSK, but they picked up the ropes very quickly and imbibed the brand philosophy within
a year, choosing to remain with AJSK for years. For instance, Mukherji started with the brand straight out
of college and had been with it for 32 years; Juhi Rais, head of design, had been with the brand for 20 years;
Sanjay Mhatre, in charge of embroidery, had been with AJSK for 25 years; and Mejoo Khan, head of its
diffusion label, ASAL, had been with AJSK for 10 years. As Mattu explained,
Everything has to pass muster by Khosla, [and] by now even the craftsmen know what won’t; it is
a close and tight clique of people who have been with AJSK for years, who know exactly the design
philosophy, which has percolated to every person who works for them [Jani and Khosla]. Watching,
learning, and imbibingit is all part of the creative process in which both are super involved. After
they give a brief, then Juhi and Sudarshan Sharma, Juhi’s reportee, step in . . . embroidery, colours,
silhouettes, [and] hand-drawn samples are done, and the process goes on.
Khosla added, “Our core team has now become a monster for us; they have an idea, they successfully execute
it and want to move ahead. I have to hold them back and ask them to slow down, saying this idea is not worth
five garments alone; let’s make more because by the time it matures there are already copies in the market.”
Jani’s and Khosla’s backgrounds were uncannily similar: both came from wealthy families, and although
by the time they were in their teens both families’ riches had scaled down considerably, the two had lived
within reach of luxury, which had shaped their vision. As they stated, “Luxury for us is excess, whether it
is beauty, food, style, drama, all rolled into one. Luxury is an experience; it is a lifestyle. As Indians, our
inspiration comes from the Maharajas. As a culture, we eat in multiple courses, order numerous dishes.
Nothing in our country conforms to minimalism.” With an enormous appetite for all things fine and
beautiful, their keen eye for design was not restricted to clothes and fashion but spilled into other realms.
Segueing into interior design was a natural and organic extension of their creativity. Again, as with their
garments, the inspiration for their interior designs was always Indiait was the recurring theme in all of
their work and creations. The first few interior design clients were friends who had been buying their clothes
for years. Jani and Khosla’s own home was indulgent, and their personal collection of art and antiques was
envy-inducing. In their words, “Our home is not designed like a home, nor is our office designed like an
office; it is designed like an experience: you sit down and then you discover what is happening.” Stating
that in their lexicon there was no such thing as a plain wall, they paid a large sum of money for silver
collectibles such as masks and statues. Indeed, their homes in Mumbai and Goa were crammed with
stunning objets d’art they had sourced over the years (see Exhibit 5).
Some of the most spectacular homes in India bore the AJSK signature touches—lavish, uber-luxe, with an
Indian-ethos-meets-European sensibility, and replete with exquisite paintings in the Pichwai [painting on
cloth] and Tanjore [South Indian painting] styles, gargantuan silver bibelots, crystal candelabras, vintage
chandeliers, antique Persian carpets, and priceless art. Ascribing to the credo of “We see space as a story,
it is important to see it as a gradual unveiling,” their passion for creating gorgeous spaces transcended the
mundane. Torchbearers for luxurious opulence, Jani and Khosla achieved grandiosity by practising zero
abstinence from luxury, for which Khosla was unapologetic: “We never design with a budget in mind and
believe that there is a buyer for everything in the world. We make things that appeal to our own selves first.
The larger-than-life idea is translated in every sphere of our lives.” He continued, “We ourselves are larger
than life in our sizes.” Bachchan’s daughter Shweta Bachchan, the proud owner of one of the most beautiful
homes in India, which was designed by Jani and Khosla, said, “In my home, an onyx lotus pond makes up
one of the walls, the effects of which are staggering. Oversized etched-glass jewel boxes take pride of place
as coffee tables, while antique brocade skirts dress up side tables.”5 In short, the AJSK design narrative was
one of grand theatrical drama, combining diverse elements and textures, such as wood, stone, mirror, metal,
5
Ibid. [Abu Jain and Sandeep Khosla, India Fantastique: Interiors, page 7, (London, UK: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 2012).]
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and glass, and weaving them into a rich tapestry, which made for an amplified experience in terms of visual
consumption (see Exhibit 6). Typically, Jani and Khosla were very choosy about the clients they took on
for interior design projects, as their sensibility was not for the faint-hearted. However, over the years, there
had been a slight shift in perspective. Leera Khanvilkar, who headed AJSK’s interior design and wedding
decor vertical, admitted that Jani and Khosla were looking at muting the scale ever-so-slightly to get their
designs in sync with smaller apartments in Mumbai, which lacked the epic blank canvas of a Delhi or
Hyderabad home.
Although their calling card had long been their garments, interior design became an important driver of
AJSK’s growth. The duo had served as the design consultants for the award-winning Terminal 2 at Mumbai’s
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, where they had reinterpreted the magnificence of Indian
craftsmanship and given it a contemporary slant. AJSK’s growth story also extended naturally into wedding
decor. Decor was a key element of the Indian wedding industry, which was considered to be the second largest
in the world, with a market value of US$50 billion in 2018. Statista reported that 10 million weddings took
place annually in India, with as much as ₹50 million being spent on a single lavish wedding.6 As Khosla put
it, “It is just not your wedding, it is about inclusivity, getting your family involved: it is your father’s proudest
moment, it is your mother’s proudest moment, so it is all about the family. See, in India, we are talking about
the ‘Big Fat Indian Wedding’ so let us just keep it there.” Like every other initiative undertaken by Jani and
Khosla, there was no strategy involved in the team’s wedding decor business; it had grown organically when
their patrons requested Jani and Khosla’s creative input and services. The jaw-dropping Ambani (India’s
wealthiest family) wedding and the wedding of Chopra to Jonas had both been completely conceptualized by
the duo, and the details were splashed all over social media.
Changes at the House of AJSK
AJSK enjoyed annual sales of approximately ₹842.16 million for its fashion vertical and ₹224.78 million
for its interiors vertical for the financial year 201819. While the fashion vertical employed 266 people
across various departments, the interiors vertical employed seven full-time team members. Amidst all the
creative highs over the years, Jani and Khosla had refused to be burdened by the monotony of running a
business; their passion was creating and giving life to their opulent and audacious ideas. However, to fuel
growth and innovation, finances had to be managed and cash flows had to be considered. They realized that
they had to put a great deal of thought into bringing in both structure and processes. Khosla’s niece, Mattu,
armed with a degree in psychology, stepped into the business side of AJSK in 2011, and following her
arrival, processes, structure, and teamwork slowly became more organized. She formed a core team and
formalized the structure at AJSK. There was an interior design department with two artists. In fact, Shashi
Singh, a master of business administration graduate in human resources, had moonlighted as an assistant to
Jani and Khosla before they hired a trained interior designer in 2014 to head that vertical. There was also a
production department, which was overseen by Mukherji, and an embroidery division, which was headed
by Mhatre. The opening of AJSK’s various stores in Delhi and London meant the business had to have
systems, processes, and documentation in place, with specific roles assigned to each team member—all of
this occurred after Mattu had taken over, as she had brought a certain amount of professionalism to the
business. It was largely a women-centric organization, with the founders firmly believing that women were
better at grasping ideas and managing projects.
Mattu’s arrival also changed things up in other ways. For instance, she thought it was time for the House
of AJSK to appeal to a wider demographic. Additionally, the fashion house was tired of seeing knockoffs
6
Brandon Gaille, “17 Indian Wedding Industry Statistics and Trends,” BrandonGaille.com, December 2, 2018, accessed
January 24, 2021, https://brandongaille.com/17-indian-wedding-industry-statistics-and-trends/.
May 2023.
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of its collections. As Khosla explained with a laugh, “So, when we started something new [the diffusion
line], we thought we’d name it ASAL, the real thing.” He revealed that the diffusion line also stemmed
from the need to create a line that was slightly more affordable than AJSK’s couture, to cater to an
aspirational clientele. “People would walk up to us and say, ‘I wish you were more affordable.’ They loved
the AJSK story but found it too expensive because everything was handmade. We wanted to create this
line to give people the quality they deserve in a cost-effective manner so that they stop reaching out for
knock-offs,” he said. This led to the creation of spinoff brands, each with a distinctive thought process
behind it. ASAL relied on both hand and machine embroidery, with Khosla insisting, “We don’t do
computerized designs. It’s still a craftsman who’s doing machine embroidery, but there is absolutely no
compromise on quality and finish.” AJSK’s signature techniques, such as the mirror work, found their way
into ASAL, which bore all the hallmarks of AJSK’s couture and had its roots in classical techniques, despite
being younger and edgier. Gulabo, a ready-to-wear line with a resort vibe, followed soon after, which
explored the designers’ love for whites, cotton, and khadi. The line was a feast of fun for the young and
free-spirited, and it featured separates in fluid silhouettes and interesting detailing in the duo’s
mainstaymirrors and gota. “We would like more and more people to wear our clothes and experience our
world. Not just the couture wedding or occasion wear but also casual wear. Every day is occasion for an
Abu Sandeep [AJSK garment],” explained Jani. Mard, the latest offering from the House of AJSK, was
an edgy, ready-to-wear, off-the-rack label for men. Tweaking the classic look with their characteristic
flamboyant touch, Jani and Khosla designed the line for men who wanted to have fun. The launch of
these diffusion brands led to the interesting concept of trunk showsessentially, a trunk show was an event
at which designers presented merchandise directly to store personnel or customers at a retail location or
another venue such as a hotel room.
Gia Sharan, head of business development at AJSK, had a clear mandate: to extend the design philosophy
of the brand to the diffusion labels. The locations for the trunk shows were selected after extensive research.
London, Los Angeles, Singapore, New York, and Dubai shared the honour with Kolkata, Hyderabad,
Raipur, and Ahmedabadessentially, these were places where there was already a certain level of
awareness of the AJSK brand, in addition to a concentration of high-net-worth individuals. Sharan
maintained, “I give a lot of thought to the selecting [of] the locations; I mean the ultimate clincher for me
is does this place have the potential for an AJSK store sometime in the future.” Through her extensive
network of contacts, Sharan largely zeroed in on the wealthy and well-networked wives of industrialists
who could assure a large but select turnout to view around 50 outfits from ASAL, Gulabo, and, in recent
times, Mard. It was a winwin situation both for her and her chosen partner, who got a more than generous
commission from the sales. Sharan spent a great deal of time conceptualizing each event to create the entire
AJSK experience, which was a veritable treat for all five senses. To give a flavour of the brand, she insisted
on several imperatives: the venue for the private viewing of the clothes had to be the best banquet room in
a five-star hotel, there had to be cascades of the best blooms (only whites and greens, at that) nestled in
large urns, and the backdrop had to be yards and yards of crushed cotton on which strings of fairy lights
were strewn. One of AJSK’s known vendors in the relevant city would be contacted, and with the ballroom
furniture removed, some stunning pieces would be arranged to give the room the look of a private, exclusive
salon. The clothes bought by the clients would be packed in AJSK’s signature wrapping: thick, handmade
cream paper with gota used instead of staid ribbons. While recreating the AJSK signature experience
worked well for a mature, well-connected, and wealthy luxury buyer, Sharan often wondered how the
experience could reach younger, up-and-coming, brand-conscious customers within and outside of India.
May 2023.
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Challenges and Opportunities
Eager to make a mark internationally, Jani and Khosla launched the Khosla Jani label in 2016 in London,
focusing primarily on extravagant party and Western wear for an international clientele. The two designers
reinterpreted and reinvented every fashion staple, ranging from the little black dress to the tailored
jacket, and lent it their distinctive ethos. They appointed two agents in London and launched a couple of
collections that had their distinctive embroidery but also an entirely Western sensibility. However, Khosla
Jani did not achieve the success the designers had hoped for. One of the reasons for this was that the label
did not use the wholesale model. More importantly, there was no face for the Khosla Jani label to connect
with the customers buying the outfits, which were priced at £10,000–20,000.7 It was a luxury label
competing with the likes of Dior, Gucci, and Alexander McQueen, but Khosla Jani remained faceless, with
no advertising, and people were not sure where to buy the garments from. Finally, Jani and Khosla did not
have the patience to withstand the initial bleeding costs in London and so withdrew from the city. They
staunchly believed that Indian designers had the potential to make a mark internationallythe world loved
Indian designs and was even influenced by thembut they were unable to do so because they were not
backed by any industry. All of the big international designers were backed by massive companies. For
instance, French luxury group Kering represented Gucci, Alexander McQueen, and Balenciaga, while
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE owned Dior, Givenchy, Fendi, Emilio Pucci, and Marc Jacobs.
For a while, Mattu was haunted by the company’s withdrawal from London, particularly when after a
successful fashion show journalists badgered her with questions such as, “Why is it that such exquisite
work is not showcased in international markets? What has stopped you from taking on the Western
designers on their home turf? When Japanese designers have made a splash thanks to their splendidly
constructed silhouettes, what is it that has inhibited you from making your presence felt internationally?”
In India, the fashion landscape had undergone a change, with stylists jumping on the fashion bandwagon
and procuring clothes for stars to choose from. Jani and Khosla had refused to provide their garments at no
cost but soon realized that dressing Bollywood stars would yield rich dividends, particularly in the northern
Indian market, where clients would insist on having the clothes worn by their favourite stars. The designer
duo proudly maintained that they rarely advertised and did not market themselves in a strategic or planned
manner. Yet, plagiarism was becoming an issue that would have to be addressed. As Jani fumed,
“Plagiarism is an epidemic, it isn’t just the housewives and small-town high-street outlets ripping off our
designs, but also the well-established designers who have no ethics.” Mattu consciously worked toward
putting a strong team in place to combat blatant plagiarism, but she was hamstrung by the fact that legal
recourse in India was very time consuming.
Mattu also came up with the idea of providing creative inputs to affiliated brands. For instance, AJSK’s
association with Needledust, a team of highly skilled artisans and craftspeople who focused on women’s
juttis [footwear common in North India], had been a fruitful one, as was its collaboration with SKO, a
young men’s footwear brand for Mard. However, one of the biggest challenges for AJSK was safeguarding
against its workers being poached by rival designers in Lucknow and Mumbai. Mattu would need to devise
an approach for dealing with such a threat.
As she looked ahead, Mattu was deeply aware of the winds of change sweeping across the luxury market
space. According to the database Statista, the revenue in the Indian luxury apparel segment amounted to
US$ 923 million in 2021, while the market was expected to grow annually by a compound annual growth
rate of 11.15 per cent from 20212025. The Statista report on luxury apparel also highlighted that India
was now the world’s second largest textile and clothing exporter, and was also witnessing a steady growth
forecast. This was mainly due to a growing organized apparel sector and rising income levels. As the
7
£ = GBP = British pound; US$1 = £0.80438 on March 31, 2020.
May 2023.
Page 9 W25137
working women population in India had increased, it had driven the projections of the women’s apparel
market to nearly ₹3 trillion by 2028, with ethnic wear having the largest market value within the sector,
driven by buying for festivals and special occasions.8
Across the world, luxury brands had been carefully recrafting their strategies in response to several
emerging trends, such as the rise of the high earners, not rich yet (“HENRYs”) consumer segment. India
was also seeing a similar trend with a favourable demographic dividend. This segment of young potential
customers was socially and environmentally conscious and showed growing loyalty toward conscious and
responsible brands, causing high-cost, high-effort, and high-waste luxury brands to become increasingly
conscious of their actions and alignment with social causes.9 Cross-product collaborations, such as Fendi
and Fila, Gucci and Gucci Ghost, Louis Vuitton and Supreme, and Adidas and Yeezy, were especially
successful in appealing to younger customers.10 Additionally, the luxury products sector was deeply
impacted by emerging technologies and tools that eased the buying process, even in India.
In light of these tumultuous and incessant shifts in the luxury market, Mattu’s thoughts returned to her uncle
Khosla’s oft-repeated words:
We believe in hard work. Blood, sweat, tears and big dreams. We have never allowed our
circumstances to contain our ambition. But we haven’t planned or predicted paths, either. It is
highly gratifying to know that we have been blessed with a wide and loyal clientele, who have
loved our creations and bought our work in both India and across the globe. It is wonderful to have
your work appreciated and coveted by so many discerning people.
For Mattu, however, carving out the company’s next steps in a post-pandemic world was both urgent and
critical, as it was important to not lose sight of the growth and mission of AJSK.
8
“Luxury Apparel,” Statista, accessed August 31, 2021, https://www.statista.com/outlook/cmo/luxury-goods/luxury-
fashion/luxury-apparel/india#revenue.
9
“Global Powers of Luxury Goods 2019: Bridging the Gap between the Old and the New,” Deloitte, 2019, accessed June 16,
2021, https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/ar/Documents/Consumer_and_Industrial_Products/Global-Powers-of-
Luxury-Goods-abril-2019.pdf.
10
“2019 True luxury Global Consumer Insight, 6th edition”, Boston Consulting Group, 2019, accessed August 31, 2021,
http://media-publications.bcg.com/france/True-Luxury%20Global%20Consumer%20Insight%202019%20-%20Plenary%20-
%20vMedia.pdf.
May 2023.
Page 10 W25137
EXHIBIT 1: ZARDOZI EMBROIDERED PANEL
Source: Company documents.
EXHIBIT 2: CHIKANKARI PANEL
May 2023.
Page 11 W25137
EXHIBIT 3: GLOSSARY
Banarasi: The art of textile weaving on looms practiced in Banaras or Varanasi in Northern India.
Bandra: A suburb in Northwest Mumbai.
Bollywood: The Indian popular film industry, which is based in Mumbai (Bombay).
Chikankari: Embroidery work done with white cotton thread on fine white cotton material.
Dhakai: Textile weaving with roots in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Gota: Metallic ribbon in which badla (flattened gold or silver wirework) forms the weft, while silk or cotton
forms the warp.
Jaali: Intricately embroidered trellis.
Jamdani: A weaving technique traditional to the towns of Tanda, Jais, and Dacca, which is used to produce
figured muslins and organzas.
Juhu: An upmarket area of suburban Mumbai in the vicinity of Juhu Beach, which is on the shores of the
Arabian Sea.
Jutti: A type of footwear common in North India and neighbouring regions. Traditionally made of leather
and featuring extensive embroidery in gold and silver thread. Inspired by Indian royalty over 400 years ago.
Khadi: Indian hand-spun and hand-woven cloth.
Lehenga: A full ankle-length skirt worn by Indian women, usually on formal or ceremonial occasions.
Maharaja: In the past, the male ruler of an Indian state.
Pichwai: A form of painting on cloth used in temple worship, especially behind the icon of Shrinathji. Vegetable
and mineral colours are traditionally used to create beautiful illustrations of events from the life of the Hindu god
Krishna.
Sari: A strip of unstitched cloth worn by females draped over the body, with a traditional length of five and
a half yards (approximately five metres).
Tanjore: A classical South Indian painting style that originated in the town of Thanjavur.
Zardozi: Gold-thread embroidery, sometimes using mirrors and precious or semi-precious stones.
Source: Created by the case authors.
EXHIBIT 4: THE INNOVATIVE RUFFLE SARIAN AJSK CREATION
Note: AJSK = Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla.

May 2023.
Page 12 W25137
EXHIBIT 5: THE MUMBAI HOME OF ABU JANI AND SANDEEP KHOSLA
EXHIBIT 6: A CLIENT’S HOMEAN AJSK CREATION
Note: AJSK = Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla.

May 2023.

Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla: Sustaining An Indian Luxury Brand

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ABU JANI SANDEEP KHOSLA: SUSTAINING AN INDIAN LUXURY

Copyright © 2021, Ivey Business School Foundation Version: 2021-09-01

COMPANY BACKGROUND AND HISTORY

NURTURING CREATIVITY DURING THE EARLY YEARS

GROWING THE AJSK DESIGN AND WORK PHILOSOPHY

Changes at the House of AJSK

Challenges and Opportunities

EXHIBIT 1: ZARDOZI EMBROIDERED PANEL

Source: Company documents.

EXHIBIT 2: CHIKANKARI PANEL

Source: Company documents.

EXHIBIT 4: THE INNOVATIVE RUFFLE SARIAN AJSK CREATION

Note: AJSK = Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla.

EXHIBIT 5: THE MUMBAI HOME OF ABU JANI AND SANDEEP KHOSLA

Source: Company documents.

EXHIBIT 6: A CLIENT’S HOMEAN AJSK CREATION

Note: AJSK = Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla.

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