24th September 2021, Mumbai:

On Thursday, French Connection announced it had received a buyout offer from a consortium of buyers that included its second-largest shareholder, pushing the ailing UK fashion retailer's London-listed shares up 15%.

According to Reuters estimates, the offer of 30 penny shares from a consortium including Apinder Singh Ghura, Amarjit Singh Grewal, and KJR Brothers Ltd puts the formerly dominating player in British fashion at around 29 million pounds ($39.6 million).

The offer price is 30% more than French Connection's closing price on Wednesday.

According to Refinitiv statistics, Ghura is the company's second-biggest stakeholder with a 24.95 percent interest, while founder and CEO Stephen Marks remains the company's largest shareholder with a 41.5 percent stake.

The consortium is still being talked to, according to French Connection. After investment companies Spotlight Brands and Gordon Brothers withdrew out of early discussions to buy the company, it began looking for new bidders earlier this year.

French Connection, previously famed for its daring "FCUK" apparel line, has not been profitable in a decade, and the COVID-19 epidemic has further exacerbated sales.

TOP 5:

1. 'CMAI' urges government to review GST rates increase on fabrics and garments

2. Raymond launches new collection with designer 'Suket Dhir'

3. Amitabh Bachchan roped in as 'VKC Group’ new brand ambassador

4. 'Manyavar-Mohey' receives flak for advertisement featuring Alia Bhatt

5. GOVERNOR OF MAHARASHTRA HONOURS KAPIL PATHARE WITH BUSINESS EXCELLENCE AND VIP INNERWEAR AS BEST BRAND 2021-22

Return to homepage

23rd September 2021, Mumbai:

Men’s fashion and lifestyle brand Villain Lifestyle plans to soon launch a campaign featuring its Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt as new brand ambassador.

The men’s lifestyle brand plans to make deeper inroads in the fashion market by entering new product categories like footwear and accessories. It currently offers perfumes, hoodies, and t-shirts.

A D2C (direct-to-consumer) brand, Villain is exploring synergies with major e-commerce players to widen its reach in the country. The brand is the latest venture of entrepreneurs AshutoshValani&Priyank Shah, in partnership with KGF-famed Rocking Star Yash.

Return to homepage

22nd September 2021, Mumbai:

On the strength of strong holiday season sales, Woodland, the top footwear and performance gear brand, expects sales to recover in the current fiscal year.

The Aero Group owns the brand, which intends to expand its offline network to boost sales and anticipates more foot traffic following the lifting of pandemic-related restrictions across the country.

Woodland has approximately 500 company-owned stores and 5,000 multi-retail outlets across India and will celebrate three decades in the industry next year.

By the fiscal year 2025, it aims to reach revenues of Rs. 2,500 crore (US $ 346.2 million).

In FY2019-20, the firm made about Rs. 1,200 crore (the US $ 163 million), but in the pandemic-hit FY2020-21, the figure was closer to Rs. 700 crore.

It is now evaluating its offline retail strategy and plans to open more locations beginning next year.

“If the Diwali season goes well and our online partners like Amazon and Flipkart, who have big plans for the upcoming festive season, also do well,” Harkirat Singh, the company's MD, told a news agency, “then the business will be back to normal and we will try to achieve the same target that we achieved in FY2019-20.”

Return to homepage

23rd September 2021, Mumbai:

Kidswear brand Chiccohas launched its new Autumn/Winter collection catering from newborn kids to 5 year olds. It is designed keeping quality and comfort of the child as paramount hence leaving parents assured.

As per Textile Value Chain report, Chicco’s new range is made up of soft, high-quality fabrics such as interlock, velour, fleece, faux fur, woolen blends exclusively available in the cheerful colors like red, yellow, navy, green, pink and blue etc. The collection comprises of outfits such as trendy t-shirts, jeans, dresses, convenient sets, babysuits along with a wide range of winterwear apparels such as sweaters, sweatshirts, jackets and accessories, all catering to the needs of a fashionable yet functional wardrobe for your baby.

The range also has vivid designs and prints, embroidery, appliques, fur trimmings, bows and designs which are developed to the smallest of the details keeping in mind the comfort of the kid. We believe that a parent always looks for the most delicate, soft and natural fabrics that the little one can wear all day long and feel comfortable. Therefore, the collection features styles made with Bio-cotton which is environment friendly and supports sustainability at large.

Since inception, Chicco has been working towards offering premium and safe products in baby care industry; it brings certified quality of Oekotex Standard 100 which ensures complete comfort and safe to wear clothing. The brand ensures that all the clothes are extensively tested before reaching the stores making it the best-in-class choice for your kid’s sensitive skin.

Return to homepage

14th September 2021, Mumbai:

American Eagle Outfitters launched its first American Eagle brand store in Kolkata under the license of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail. Spanning 1,200 sq ft, the store is located in the South City Mall.

American Eagle Outfitters. is an American lifestyle, clothing, and accessories retailer headquartered at SouthSide Works in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1977 by brothers Jerry and Mark Silverman as a subsidiary of Retail Ventures, a company that also owned and operated Silverman's Menswear. The Silvermans sold their ownership interests in 1991 to Jacob Price of Knoxville, Tennessee. American Eagle Outfitters is also the parent company of Aerie.

Foraying into India in 2018, American Eagle (AE) operates 17 stores across NCR, Hyderabad, Pune, Chandigarh, Chennai, Mumbai, Bengaluru and now in Kolkata. Ashish Mukul, Brand Head, American Eagle, India says, the brand will continue to strengthen its position in the youth centric lifestyle space and prove to be a fashion haven for today’s millennials.

Return to homepage

22nd September 2021, Mumbai:

Material subsidiary of Future Lifestyle Fashions, Future Specialty Retail (FSRL) has received notices for termination of agreements for use of Brand Lee Cooper for apparel and footwear. The notice has been sent by the license owner on account of default in financial impact amid pandemic. The license owner has denied FSRL’s request to restore license.

In turn, FSRL has negotiated with present licensee to continue to have distribution rights for Indian territory to distribute products under the Brand Lee Cooper through its owned and third-party (excluding licensee) offline stores The company’s management team observed that all adequate steps are being taken to restore the equivalent size and scale of business and re-align its operations under the proposed distribution rights. The management envisaged that the termination notice would not have any significant impact on its business operations.

Return to homepage

21st September 2021, Mumbai:

Zodiac Clothing Company (ZCCL) has launched the VivaceCollection under its brand Zodiac. Comprising stripes and checks, the collection is carefully crafted from the Egyptian Giza 86 cotton, woven to a single 60s yarn of an unusually long fibre length. With an exceptionally luxurious silk touch hand feel and, the legendary Zodiac attention to detail, the collection is a must-have festive acquisition in every gentle man’s wardrobe.

Zodiac Clothing Company is a vertically integrated, trans-national that controls the entire clothing chain from design, manufacturing, distribution to retail sales. With a manufacturing base in India & sales offices across India, UK, Germany and USA, ZCCL has almost 2.500 people in its fold. The company operates a 5,000 sqft Italian inspired design studio at its Mumbai Corporate office which is a LEED Gold certified building.

ZCCL has 3 premium, menswear brands, each clearly positioned to address a specific target consumer. These includes brand Zodiac for the classic yet contemporary male's corporate wardrobe, ZOD! Club Wear for the trendy, fashionable male and Z3 for the man who does not need to wear a tie to work. The brand is retailed across India at premium prices through over 100 company-managed stores and 1.200 multi – brand retailers.

Return to homepage

23rd September 2021, Mumbai: 

Metro Brands’ sub-brand Mochi Shoes has launched a new collection of sustainable shoes made from recycled plastic. Titled, 'Ecoz', the collection is made by converting discarded PET bottles into recycled yarn which, is converted into fabrics to manufacture shoes, reports Fashion Network.

Priced Rs 2,890 onwards, the collection will available be in over 100 stores across India. It will also be available on leading e-commerce platforms across the country.

First opened in Bengaluru, Mochi has over 104 outlets spread over more than 50 cities throughout the country. It offers a wide range of shoes. Customers can also find boots, loafers and corporate casuals to wear for semi-formal events and office team outings.

They are available in shades like black, brown, white and even blue denim.

Apart from this, Mochi also offers comfortable floaters in leather designs, casual floaters with midsoles and sandals in ethnic materials to wear with sherwanis and other Indian outfits.

TOP 5:

1. 'CMAI' urges government to review GST rates increase on fabrics and garments

2. Raymond launches new collection with designer 'Suket Dhir'

3. Amitabh Bachchan roped in as 'VKC Group’ new brand ambassador

4. 'Manyavar-Mohey' receives flak for advertisement featuring Alia Bhatt

5. GOVERNOR OF MAHARASHTRA HONOURS KAPIL PATHARE WITH BUSINESS EXCELLENCE AND VIP INNERWEAR AS BEST BRAND 2021-22

Return to homepage

22nd September 2021, Mumbai:

Mochi Shoes, a sub-brand of Indian footwear retailer Metro Brands, has developed the 'Ecoz' range of sustainable shoes manufactured from recycled plastic.

The Ecoz line, according to Mochi, is produced from discarded PET bottles by turning them into recycled yarn, which is then turned into materials to make shoes. “We thought about what we can do as a brand to be more sustainable and came up with this concept to manufacturing shoes out of recycled plastic,” Alisha Malik, vice president of marketing and e-commerce for Metro Brand Ltd said in a statement.

We think that saving the future may be accomplished by recycling the present. The Ecoz range of shoes is all about appreciating the environment, so let's all be wonderful and rescue the earth together.” The Ecoz collection will be sold at over 100 outlets throughout India and will start at Rs 2890 ($40).

The collection will also be sold on major e-commerce sites around the country.

Return to homepage