Rajesh Batra shares the success story of Proline and discusses how it plans to garner footfalls in the festive season
As consumers get ready for some festival shopping, retailers gear up their plans for the season. The festival season, which starts with Ganesh Chaturthi and extends into Navratri and Diwali, stretches over two to three months. While consumers are excitedly planning their shopping list, retailers and manufacturers are also looking forward to promote their brands. With the economy boom in India and the vast exposure available, consumers are very well equipped with the information on latest trends, styles available in the market. As Indian brands gear up for the competition posed by international retailers, an extensive range of brands and attractive packaging today lures the Indian consumer, thereby shifting buying choices towards Indian brands. The festive season thus offers a wide array of options for the consumer to choose from. Rajesh Batra, Chairman of Proline India Limited, India's leading knitwear company gives his perspective on retailing moods during the festive season.
With rising competition, it is essential for brands to create their unique differentiators and thereby carve a niche for themselves. Marketing strategies benefit the brands in promoting the new range, the store and its location, resulting in greater footfalls and higher chances of convertibility. On the business front, innovation and customer service will be the prime differentiators. Retailers who are flexible and 'fleet of foot' will be best able to tweak their propositions to suit the market. However, it will always be product and price that will get the consumer vote.
Proline over the years has created unique strategies for festive seasons. Proline operates through 20 exclusive stores in India and is also present in management of objectives (MBOs) and large format stores like Lifestyle, Shoppers' Stop, Piramyd and Globus. The brand is also very successful in the Middle East and Sri Lanka. Moreover, it has consciously engaged itself in promotional activities to promote the retail stores. We focus on in-store communication and advertising as it plays a vital role in communicating the product and its arrival through point of sale (POS), window displays and visual merchandising. As advertising promotes the store externally, visual merchandising advertises the store internally. With colour, depth and mood the display of merchandise is just as much a medium of sales as television, radio or the daily newspaper. Yet, unlike the traditional media, POS and window display advertises the store all the time. The customer and the product are the primary concern for everything we do at the store. The product
is always the most vibrant element of the display. It is the focal point of all displays. Displays serve a dual purpose by guiding customers to their selection as well as by highlighting merchandise. Thus visual merchandising is used to create an ambience and environment in which the customer would feel comfortable and stimulated. For this festival and autumn winter season, Proline has unleashed three styles, which are as follows:
R3 Sports - active wear line
Inspired by light in space, this range reflects energy with a radiant mood and reflex action. A concept active wear line with a metallic appeal.
Paint Can Media - casual wear line
'Money and Paint Art' on the public walls is a crime but who minds getting paid for this form of art. This range revolves around the graffiti splashed in day-to-day life on the urban streets. A young and careless yet determined and 'ready-to-go' attitude with cultural influence from music and street skateboarding.
AV8R - work wear line
Inspired by the aviators - a redefined futuristic range for the neo urban flyer with bright highlights, aviation insignias and work wear detailing, moving away from usual camouflages and muted uniforms.
The merchandise comprises T-shirts, sweat shirts, sweaters, jackets, tracks, shorts, mufflers and caps. Proline introduces new product lines during the festival season, which includes special and value pack products, which can be purchased for regular and gifting purpose. These special festive products will be marketed at retail stores through effective POS, visual merchandising and window display with festive themes, events and promotions, outdoors campaign and print media. It is very important for any retail brand to know the pulse of its consumers. And during festivals the consumer has more choice in today's competitive environment. He shops for a brand that provides the best product offering, attractive prices or schemes, good ambience, product availability and best service. We ensure that these elements are fulfilled at our retail stores to satisfy a customer to the best extent. Customer expectations are too high today due to more number of options that are available for them. Every retailer must ensure that he satisfies a customer with the right product, price, good ambience, service and so on. Proline has built a name for itself in the market and aspires to be India's top retailer offering stylish casual wear at affordable prices. The brand innovates and develops new designs and styles in the fast-changing fashion industry keeping its target group in mind. Each of its collections every season has something new and different with a lot of style detailing in every product.
Proline consists of leisurewear and sportswear for men and women and is aimed at the 25-35 year age group. It is sold through over 400 retailers, departmental stores and company-owned and franchised stores spread all across India also exported to Middle East. Proline operates through 26 exclusive stories- in India and 500 MBOs and large format stores like Shoppers' Stop, Lifestyle and Globus. Proline is sold through 400 independent retailers using a campaign based on endorsements from high profile cricket, tennis and squash professionals. The campaign proved so successful that in the 1990s the Company seized the opportunity to develop the brand by opening franchised outlets across the country that exclusively retail the entire range. Currently, leading department stores that feature the shop-within-a-shop concept, also sell Proline products. In the Middle East, Proline is distributed through an agreement with the Landmark Group and currently sold in 'Splash', their branded fashion retail chain, which holds a significant position in the region.
The author is Chairman, Proline India Limited. He can be contacted at proline@prolineindia.com