Tong, a high fashion western wear brand for women, will ramp up its India presence by launching 10 exclusive stores in Mumbai in a year. “We want to expand Tong’s retail presence by opening exclusive outlets in Mumbai before moving to other places within India. We are also building an e-commerce platform, once it is formally launched, we will tie up with other e-shopping portals,” states Panaj Agarwal, Director, Unifying Fashion Conclave that retails Tong products in India. Targeting women 18 to 25 years, the brand focuses on fast fashion to cater to its target audience. Sprucing up EBO network: The brand opened its first store in Mumbai’s Bandra’s Linking Road. It’s a 275 square foot company owned and company managed boutique. “This will be our average store size. We are planning one more store at Mumbai’s Peddar Road. We will have stores in cities because that’s where fashion sells. We will have 10 company owned and managed EBOs in a year in Mumbai alone. From each store, we are expecting sales worth Rs 2 crore a year,” Agarwal explains. The company will shift to a franchisee model when it moves beyond Mumbai. It is looking at exploring Varanasi, Bangalore and Hyderabad in its next phase as potential destinations. “Our web store is under construction, after its launch, we will move to third-party online sites,” states Agarwal commenting on the immediate retail plans. Production and products: The brand uses fabrics like linen and flax as well as imported fabrics, which are converted into Indian styles. “We don’t have imported styles, which other brands do. Right now we have skirts, denims and dresses. We have a factory where we produce multi-coloured flat knit dresses. Our USP is flat knit dresses but soon we will have flat knit tops and T-shirts,” explains Agarwal. The company’s production happens in Mumbai and Delhi. In one season, it shuffles its products every week. As Agarwal says, “Evert season we follow 10 to 12 cycles. Women in India have changed and they have become experimental and willing to flash skin.” Agarwal says they would like to bring fashion to India faster than others. “We want to be on par with the international brands and supply to many buyers in European markets,” he opines. Source: http://www.fashionunited.in/
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