Over the period of time, the Indian kids' wear retail industry has matured thereby entering the organised pedestal. It has grown on to become one of the major retail markets in India. TFW finds out the leading kid's wear brands and opportunities in store
India with 450 million child population and eight million being added annually, the kids retail sector is bound to grow more.
As per a study of ASSOCHAM, one of the apex trade associations of India, the Indian kids-wear market is expected to reach Rs 80,000 crore by 2015. The fashion for kids has infiltrated into tier-II and III cities, including Dehradun, Chandigarh, Pune, Nashik, Indore, Varanasi and so on, the report adds.
The study finds kids’ wear market is growing at the rate of 17 per cent, making it one of the most attractive categories. The report is based on children in the age group of three to 13 years. Increased media exposure, double-income parents and peer pressure for children becoming more fashion and brand conscious, are among the reasons the study points out for the growth.
Big players in kids' domain
With children's apparel and accessories becoming a very important segment for the Indian marketers, several major players have entered into this segment. Be it Mahindra Group's brand Mom & Me, Chhota Bheem, Firstcry.com or any other brand, all have made it big in this category. With these specialised kids' stores doing well, the brands are eyeing pan-India expansion in a big way.
Highlights:
Strengths of online kids' retail
Weakness
Opportunities
Threats
Source: Technopak and Assocham
Mom & Me
Mom & Me is a retail venture of the Mahindra Group, that caters to needs of moms and moms to be, from the time of start of pregnancy till post delivery upto the kid is six years of age. It covers a huge range of products under maternity & ethnic fashion, infants & kids apparel, mother & baby wellnes, infant furniture, toys & games.
Mom & Me is exploiting the opportunities in the franchise sector and offers full support to its franchisees. Its spokesperson says, “We provide support to the franchisees by helping them with the designing of outlet, fit-outs, equipment sourcing at the best possible price, production and staff recruitment (if required). Extensive training programs are organised and there are various marketing programs to help the franchisees with day-to-day business operations. The marketing program is devised such that the company does the national level marketing activities focusing on brand awareness and development.”
Franchise Facts
Investment: Rs 35-45 lakh
Area: 1000-1100 sq ft
Expansion: Pan-India
Green Gold Store
GREEN Gold Store, which has products and merchandise of Chhota Bheem, is gearing up to pick up more speed in 2015. Kids' retail has been growing since the last few years and Chhota Bheem has immense power among the kids and this presence does open a lot of opportunities for the franchisee to explore in his/her market.
Realising the vast importance of online space in the kids sector, Green Gold is also getting its act together to make a mark in the e-commerce section too.
Sudeesh Varma, Head, Green Gold Store, says, “E-commerce has picked up and would be shining in the years to come. Online shopping is the next big thing and today the consumers are slowly moving towards shopping from the comfort of their homes. For Green Gold, we are working on building this platform with our website, which is the online hand for exclusive kids merchandise of Chhota Bheem, Mighty Raju and Arjun.”
Franchise facts
Investment: 12 lakh to 15 lakh
Area: 300 sq ft
RoI: 24%
Breakeven: 2 years
Expansion: Pan-India
Firstcry.com
Firstcry.com was founded by Supam Maheshwari and Amitava Saha in 2010. Eight years ago, when they used to travel abroad in their earlier jobs, they would pick up a lot of things for their kids because the quality of products available abroad could be trusted and more so, because the choices for baby products in India were limited. Looking at these lacunae as a business opportunity they conceptualised Firstcry.com.
Today, in less than four years, the company is a the leading name in the online space for kids products. Firstcry.com is like a megastore for parents. With a focused vision, the brand plans to uphold the position as a top baby products portal and continue to grow stronger.
Supam Maheshwari, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Firstcry.com, says, “Ofcourse, our online success is only one part of the story. It's even greater success lies in the fact that it has managed to create a hybrid online+offline model to cater to the needs of all our customers.” Firstcry.com believes strongly in the franchise model of retail. In fact, all its existing stores are franchise stores and we intend to continue that in the future too.
Supam Maheshwari further adds, “Baby and kids industry in India is massive with an estimated turnover of nearly Rs 50,000 crore. With a large part of this being unorganised, the potential to organise this industry is immense. Even more encouraging part about this industry is that it is ever growing. The high birth rate in India, coupled with the ever growing middle to upper income class will ensure that this industry keeps growing at a rapid pace.”
Franchise facts
Investment: Rs 3000 per sq ft
Area: 1000-2000 sq ft carpet
RoI: 30-36 months
Breakeven: From start
Current presence: 100
Expansion: Pan-India
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