Grey is the new black in Corporate India. After style icon David Beckham was spotted sporting grey suits during the recently concluded FIFA world cup in South Africa, corporate boardrooms across India seem to have taken to the new colour, with young turks shedding their boring blacks and blues in favour of the evolving shades of grey.

Grey suits, of course, have been around for ages and every man has, at some point of time or the other, owned a dull, rather musty, one. Not any more. With its more out-going, experimental, ?metalic? alter ego doing the rounds, grey suits are going through a major personality overhaul.

Says Nagesh C, creative director, Van Heusen, ?Grey is the new black for suits. The verdict was delivered at the runways of Milan early this year with the who?s who of the fashion fraternity defining menswear with grey silhouettes. Defined tones of grey works best for business and any other occasions.?

Contemporary textile blends like wool silk, wool viscose, shiny terylene rayon, chintz finishes done on tropical weaves and classic wool mohair chambray are inspiring designers to explore the cutting-edge, techno-chic look around grey tones.

Says designer Narendra Kumar, ?In men?s suits today, we see return of the check fabric with more narrower cuts and styling. Young corporates prefers double buttoned jackets, which are shorter in length and have narrower cuts. We are also seeing double-toned fabric in suits and jackets. There is a lot of demand for linen in the market too.? Fashion experts feel with grey making its mark, besides two-button, single-breasted cuts and single-button, single-breasted slim fits, three-piece business suits are again gaining popularity.

According to a report from RNCOS, a market research firm, men?s apparel industry in India is expected to increase at a CAGR of 14.86% during the two-year period from 2008 to 2010. And the men?s branded apparel industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 24% to cross Rs 25,000 crore by 2010. There is no break-up available for suits alone as a segment.

Aniruddha P Deshmukh, president (FMCG and retail), Raymond Ltd, says, ?Now, people in India are buying far more suits than they used to, unlike earlier, when most men owned maybe one or two. Therefore, people are willing to be more experimental. For the past few seasons, people have been looking at lighter, experimental shades, moving away from traditional black and navy blue.?

Fabric with sheen and shades such as lighter grey, silver grey, graphite grey, brush steel grey, blue grey, also known as sky, are in.

Says Rachna Aggarwal, chief executive officer, Indus League Clothing, ?In men?s suits, we are seeing a lot of charcoal these days instead of solid colours. Shades of lighter grey has replaced other sober colours like beige. There is also a lot of texture in the fabric nowadays; it?s no more flat. Attention is given to inner detailing.?

Future Group?s Indus-League, which makes brands such as Daniel Hechter, Indigo Nation, Scullers, John Miller, is targeting a growth of 40% in the suit and jacket segment this season. With the festive season around the corner, international label Paul Smith sees greys with sheen doing well.

?The dandy look is a trend that set to stay. This autumn-winter season expects to see velvet jackets, check jacket with velvet trimmings, suits with satin binding. All perfect for the party season ahead,? says Sonal Bhatia, brand manager for Paul Smith in India.

While designers and labels create and recreate with changing seasons and times, for a professional in the corporate world, grey will remain a symbol of refinement and sophistication.

Says brand expert Harish Bijoor, ?Corporate colours can?t change too much as it has to match with the mood of the boardroom. And grey is one such colour which goes with the seriousness of the corporate world. Earlier, for corporate wear, the dominant colours were black, white and grey for suits and power jackets. Today, we are seeing the reinvention of sober colours, and definitely grey is much in demand.?