Men?s fashion? The very words evoked a strange reaction in our country till 15 years ago. Fashion was understood and perceived to be strictly a woman?s ?thing?. And men who spoke about ?fashion? were almost looked upon with disdain, it was considered ?un-manly? to be fashionable. But thank god that?s a thing of the past. With the markets opening up, exposure is much greater.
The men?s apparel market has grown leaps and bounds in the last decade or so, making it one of the fastest growing segments amongst lifestyle products. Indian men have become notorious for their ?conspicuous consumption?! They are gobbling up everything from pens to shoes to perfumes and watches.
Not only are men big consumers they are also the fussier of the two sexes. And since I cater to both, I can vouch for the fact that they are much more quality conscious than women and that is what makes ?branding? very crucial for menswear!
In fact brand loyalty only exists in menswear. Once a man gets ?hooked? on to your product, you can have him for good, while women will run to a designer who is the flavour of the month! This is also a reason why you see the larger players only in the menswear and not the women?s wear sector. So while two decades ago there were less than a dozen brands for menswear, today there are more than two hundred of them! Such is the awareness of branded menswear in the country today.
Having said that, let?s look at how Indian men fare at following trends or even creating them.
One trend that they can claim partly is the bundgala or the ?Nehru? collar jacket, which has now been seen sported by several well heeled gentlemen ever since Armani launched it about a decade ago. The versatility of the bundgala jacket ? it can be worn for dinner at the White House and also over jeans, has made it very popular all over the world.
However I feel that Indian men in fact do not exploit its potential as much as they could have. A lot of people still see it as a silhouette worn by drivers and waiters? it?s a shame!
The sad thing about trends emanating out of India is that since Indian designers don?t really have any reach internationally, it takes a foreign designer to popularise it for us. Therefore, Armani sold more bundgala jackets than any of us here.
Indians are too price and quality conscious to follow trends blindly and that?s one reason that the trends that one sees here in sync with the west are usually in the ?younger? segments of apparel. For example: track bottoms can become trendy very quickly here but pointed shoes and fitted suits would take time as they are more expensive items. Also the generation ?now? is much more brand conscious than their older brothers. They would buy only branded goods even if they have to pay through their noses. They in fact are the real consumers! All the foreign brands of designers that have come in so far (with the exemption of Tommy) have entered at the very top of the market, and are more or less ?classic? designers.
We will have to wait and watch what happens when a Dolce & Gabbana come in with their ?shredded jeans? at 25,000, my mother for sure would have a minor stroke, seeing me pay all that money for ?tatters?!
So in terms of foreign labels coming to India, I feel the future is bright for either classic designers like Armani or Calvin Klein. They are deemed to be investment buys or trendier labels such as Zara or Mango because they bring trendy clothing but at a very affordable price, therefore attracting the young buyers who like the idea of wearing a ?foreign? brand. What I don?t see happening in India is the success of labels that are too fashionable. And for expensive clothes, either for men and women, because let?s face it, we Indians are far too prudent to throw away a perfectly good pair of shoes just because the shape is not ?in?!
The writer is a fashion designer