The slick, hardbound black catalogue bears just two gold-embossed words?Club Italia. In a much smaller font, the subtext reads: by invitation only.
Welcome to the new definition of exclusivity in men?s fashion wear. Launched by a consortium of Indian importers?Ashok Satiya of Mumbai-based Tushar Textiles, Ramesh Kothari of Modern Collection in Bangalore and Prem Bisani of Capital Clothing, Chennai, to name a few?Club Italia?s fabric is priced between Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 a shirt length. Targeted at consumers who are willing to pay a premium for exclusivity, the brand finds takers among celebrities such as Shah Rukh Khan and Bijay Salarpuria, scion and head of the Salarpuria Group of companies.
It?s worth noting that the men?s wear segment in India is estimated at Rs 36,740 crore and it grew by 12.7% in 2006 (over 2005) in value and 4.6% in volume. Incidentally, the biggest contributor to this growth was the shirt segment (Rs 13,510 crore) followed by trousers (Rs 9,430 crore), ethnic bottoms (dhotis, lungis etc: Rs 2,680 crore), innerwear (Rs 2,565 crore) and T-shirts (Rs 2,485 crore). With the arrival of a few foreign labels, domestic players have also evinced interest in making inroads in premium formal and party wear segments. As a result, as IMAGES-Technopak 2007 study indicates there is a gradual migration (15.1%) of customers to the super-premium labels.
The company is quick to point out that designers are not its competition. In fact, they are an ?inspiration for creation?. ?We have no plans for mass media point of contact,? informs Ramesh Shah of Bangalore-based RK Fabrics, the convener of Club Italia. Club Italia has handpicked a few well-networked retailers in the metros?Gabbana, Kachins, Babhubhai Jagjivandas in Mumbai; Prestige and Guptas in Bangalore; Meena Bazaar and Silk Centre in Hyderabad; Kachins, Sayed Bawker, Nalli Silks and Kumaran Silks in Chennai; Breeze Designers in Coimbatore; Jade Blue in Ahmedabad and Bhagvandas and Cocity in Surat?who have a distinguished set of clients for whom they can set up private exhibition in the comfort of their homes, informs Shah.
The idea struck the group of young importers after the response generated by a small trousseau collection (for men) that they brought to the country, a couple of years ago. Today, all that a potential customer has to do to own an exclusive piece of shirt is pick up the phone and dial one of these retailers for the brand?s brochure from which to choose a fabric.
?Our first consignment of 30 shirts (60 metres) valued at over Rs 3 crore has been a complete sell out. We are working on establishing distribution channels that will ensure a prompt launch, so the latest trends in hot couture get delivered to our clients,? says Shah.