Spykar on expansion spree

Incepted in 1992, Spykar fashion apparel and accessories epitomises global fashion and is a beacon of effortless style. Ever since, Spykar, one of the best denim jeans brands in India, has been synonymous with fashion for the youth. At Spykar, one can choose the way of expressing the personality with the clothes offered. Whether keeping it simple, being stylish, or having funky designs and making it fashionable, Spykar caters to one and all. Sanjay Vakharia, COO, Spykar Lifestyle Pvt Ltd, speaks on Spykar’s plans for future.

Spykar is aiming to double its sales to Rs 700 crore in the next four years. How do you plan to achieve the target?

We would be seeing a natural growth of 15 per cent CAGR. Additionally, we are planning to enter into women’s wear and also increase the contribution from online channel.

What are your expansion plans and how many of your upcoming outlets would be franchised outlets?

We are planning to expand our retail network and are likely to open another 150 outlets in the next four years. The focus is on tier 2 and 3 cities too.

Also, what is Spykar’s selection criteria to choose the franchise partner?

There is no fixed criteria for identifying the franchise partner. A partner should be one who is willing to put his efforts in the business and ensure that the maximum potential is achieved. Anybody who is doing a good business in the region or has got the potential to grow the business would be Spykar’s ideal franchise partner.

How do you build a long-term relation with franchise partners?

Some of our franchise partners have been with us for more than a decade. We do support our franchise partner in case of any requirements by them and there is a frequent interaction between the management and franchisee to ensure both benefit from the partnership. A good marketing support is provided to each of them, based on the local needs.

What makes you enter women’s wear segment? How will you position yourself differently with the existing players in this segment?

Though the share has been less, Spykar has been catering to women’s wear since long. Now we are looking at this segment with a renewed focus. With more and more women force getting empowered, rising aspiration to look fashionable, the comfort and styling offered by casual wear, the demand for women’s wear is rising day by day. We would targets customers who want to adapt and speed up with the latest fashion trends and high fashion products at fair prices and good quality to accommodate their style quotient.

Any other new categories in pipeline?

Yes. We are planning to enter the footwear segment.

What’s your go-to-market strategy?

Spykar has a very good presence across all retail formats, including online presence. As mentioned earlier, we plan to expand our EBO set up – by adding 150 stores in the next four years. Our USP – fashion denims has worked well for us. We are focusing on women’s wear and accessories too to offer wider range to our customers.

Spykar went through a re-branding exercise. What was the rationale behind this move?

Being a brand that identifies with the youth, the communication of Spykar has always reflected their choices and preferences. In the contemporary landscape, the youth has become more assertive, affirmative and independent. They intend to exercise their free will and do what they love to and want to do. To be uniquely observed and known for their style and form of expression is a very big driver for them. And there lies the inspiration of the new tagline: Spykar, For Freedom.

This reflects the youth’s quest for absolute liberty in all walks of life. It’s a promise, to offer them the freedom to express themselves through fashion and empower them to be themselves.

With this new tagline, Spykar is also unveiling its new brand identity. The new logo is the culmination of a more fluid, dynamic and contemporary position of the brand. Evolved from the ‘Boomerang’ that served as an identity for all these years, the new symbol talks about the ‘Flight of Freedom’. Connecting seamlessly with the Spykar, For Freedom, the new identity is aspirational, inventive and bold. It opens a newer dimension of visual communication which Spykar, as a brand intends to follow in the years to come.

Is India ready to go fully cashless?

According to RBI data, people used debit cards to make nearly 1.2 billion transactions worth Rs1.6 trillion across India in FY16. Credit cards recorded 785 million transactions on PoS terminals, where an amount of over Rs 2.4 trillion was spent. A factor that works against cashless transactions is the perceived security problems. Last month, details of about 32 million cards were likely to have been compromised due to a security breach in an ATM network. This led to State Bank of India (SBI) issuing 6,00,000 new cards to customers who could have been victims of this. With the Government having de-legalised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes, there is mounting interest in electronic payment mechanisms, with mobile payment firms Paytm, Ola Money and Mobikwik reporting increased downloads of their apps.