Today's to foray into high-end stationery

Today's Writing Products Ltd, a company so far associated with low-end (Rs 2-12) ball pens, is planning major expansion. It is going to roll out a line of high-end writing instruments in the above Rs 100 category. These pens would be sold under a new brand, Wordsworth, and not under Today's.

Ronald Netto, director, Today's Writing Products, said, "We would have an exclusive supplier arrangement for these (new high-end) products, and these should be out in about four months."

Netto admitted that Wordsworth would be more of a "high visibility-low volume" brand, especially if compared with Today's that sees a daily volume of about 1.5 million pieces. The upper limit, as far as the pricing goes, could be as high as around Rs 4,000.

These pens would also be retailed through exclusive pen boutiques, which would be a part of the larger stationery chain, Today's Stationery Shop, which the company plans to set up over the next two quarters. "We have our plans in place, but finding a suitable location is taking a little long," said Netto.

The first of these stores is likely to come up in Ahmedabad with Mumbai and Delhi being other two cities the company has identified.

Today's Stationery Shops would stock all kinds of stationery products such as office stationery and kids' products like crayons. The company would either source the products from other suppliers or take up agencies for them. "We will initially set up a few stores on our own, after which we will look at giving out franchisees. The company already has a network of 1,500 distributors, which should make it easier to roll out these plans," he said.

Besides, the company's EOU (export-oriented unit) in Daman is also expected to become functional in about three months.

The world export market is pegged at about Rs 500 billion, of which the country shares about 2 per cent.

"We have already started exports to countries such as the UK, Japan, the Middle East and Thailand, among others," said Netto. The UK-based Poundland, a major retail chain of Europe, is one of the largest buyers of Today's pens sold under the Today's brand.

The company is planning to float its IPO, of Rs 40 crore, by March.