The Zaz group on Friday launched its mobile shop in the city to catch the Puja shopping craze that has already gripped the city. Armed with the state government's clearance for grabbing roadspace, the "Mobile Footwear Retail Outlet" (MFRO) expects to save customers the parking hassles created by new traffic rules.

The MFRO, designed by auto stylist Mr Dilip Chhabria and showcasing the entire Zaza range of shoes, will be parked at vantage points across the city on scheduled dates.

The next stops are New Delhi, Pune and Mumbai. Beginning with one designer van (cost: Rs 30 lakh), the Zaz group will expand the fleet to 20 throughout the country within the next six months.

Speaking on why his company chose Calcutta for the launch, the managing director, Mr Ashraf Husain, said: "We are offering value-for-money products and Calcuttans are ideally suited for this."

Zaza shoes will initially sell footwear for men, with shoes for ladies and children on the anvil. The range is priced between Rs 695 and Rs 1,495. The range includes formalwear as well as casuals. The shoes are eco-friendly and made with recyclable materials.

The Zaz group is a family-run business house which claims a turnover of Rs 100 crore. Its export-oriented footwear manufacturing unit in Kanpur has a capacity to manufacture 20,000 shoes each day. The group has been exporting footwear for the last 20 years, according to Mr Husain.

With Durga Puja round the corner, the company aspires to do it "big" in the lucrative Rs 140 million domestic footwear market.