We hope for bigger share in premium hometex

“Indian market is ready for high priced premium bed linen and furnishing textiles. And we found it right time to launch three new brands — Masterstroke, which is primarily an inspiration from painting and designing; Texzura with its printed structure and the Prime Gold. The collections had good buyers,” said Rajiv Merchant, MD and CEO of Indian Home Variations & Distributions LLP, Mumbai, in an interview with ITJ Editor, Samuel Joseph. The company is well-known for its Tangerine, which has made a name for itself in the bed linen market.

India’s home textile market is put at Rs 10,000 crore, of which bed linen alone has a share of about Rs 500 crore. “Our strength is the design team, which creates exclusive patterns and designs. Sometime we even buy good designs from abroad,’ says Merchant, which has already established the brand in over 300 retail outlets. He is keen to build the brand in a big way on the e-commerce platform. “In 6 months, our e-commerce wing will take off. Primarily, our Bhiwandi facility is a warehousing facility, and everything is done there. Now we have even got some good enquiries from the Middle East, and we will be entering the export market in 2018,” he says.

Though the home furnishing market in India is a bit crowded, he reiterates that Tangerine and his other new brands have an edge over competitors’. “Home textiles is a very niche market. At leas some 10 brands from big companies entered this market in the last decade but none of them survived. This a tricky business and it is a game of mind more than money. We have a wealth of experience,” says Merchant.

The company plans to go for the complete bedroom and bathroom solutions. “Home furnishing has been neglected for at least 25 years in India though we have excelled in exporting them. Its growth is tied to GDP growth and housing boom. Now it is happening within the country, but retail cost must come down and then only the growth will be faster,” Merchant emphasises.

Merchant, who has been in the industry for the last two decades, admits that cheaper import is hurting the industry, especially from China. Says he: “High technology including printing is not available in India. They continue to come from countries like China. China’s polyester is cheaper. For larger orders, India is good with its strength in cotton. For small quantities, China is better, and we even import fabrics wherever it is necessary.”

Tangerine has created a wide range of products that are fashionable and comfortable.The collection comprises of a chic array of bed sheets, comforters, duvets, pillow cases and even products like towels, napkins and shower curtains. In addition to bed and bath products. It also has a collection of mugs, handbags, bath mats that are coordinated to represent each colour.

Tangerine creates thematic furnishings and products for the Home. The nature of their products has been introduced with theme-based and colour co-ordinated designs keeping in mind ethnicity that appeals to everyone.With its state-of-the-art offerings the brand has moved forward taking home furnishing to another level of innovation and style altogether. Tangerine which is one of the fastest growing and touted as top seven bed and bath companies in India within five years of the launch.

Tangerine’s warehouse is located in Bhiwandi and has close to 50,000 sq. ft storage space. Tangerine is the authorised licensee to sell Sanjeev Kapoor-branded lifestyle products. Currently, with the market size growing at an average of 10 per cent plus and double digit growth is expected to exceed in coming 3-5 years.

Recently, Tangerine bagged award for the “Most Admired Brand For Lifestyle of the Year” by the 2016 Leaders Awards- The Most Authoritative Awards For Business Excellence In India. IHV has been awarded for Retailer Leadership by CMO Asia ,amongst other key players in the market, in its just second year of existence because of its unique style and personality. In 2015, Tangerine won The Most Promising Brand by The Economic Times based on the survey conducted by A C Nielsen.