Shocking in style

What will you do if your business collapses and you find yourself out on the street? If you are Hiro Harjani, you'd achieve your goals and open 17 fashion stores across the world, and have the sense of humour to brand them 'Aftershock.'

For someone who had Anil Ambani as his classmate in school and a successful textile business (Harjani's father was a textile agent for Reliance) that went bust in the early 1980s, recovering lost ground meant going to London in 1985 and opening a roadside garments stall. "It was a learning experience," he recalls.

By 1992 Harjani managed to open the first Aftershock store in London. "The name was conceived after receiving several shocks in my life; I thought I could insulate myself now," laughs Harjani.

The store stocked expensive outlandish clothes with gaudy colours for women. However, he quickly learnt the ropes of the business. He also began to stock brands like Little Buddha and Rene Derhy which made his store popular.

Aftershock's first store in Mumbai at Nariman Point's CR2 Mall opened last year. It stocks stuff similar to what Harjani sells at his stores in Stockholm, Israel and Madrid.

The kind of stock that Aftershock keeps is said to be its unique selling proposition. "It was meant to be like this for the store is competing against fashion houses like DK NY, Dolce Gabbana and Calvin Klein," he says.

The success of the first store in Mumbai has prompted Harjani to open two more stores in Delhi and Bangalore. Says Harjani: "India has arrived and women here are as demanding as in the West; we are spending $ 5- $10 million to expand in the next five years."

The investment will ensure presence in markets like Bulgaria, Moscow and Greece. Currently, the company posts a turnover of $50 million globally.

Aftershock has a designer team in the UK and Italy and the clothes are manufactured in India, China and in Europe. The stores follow a 30-day stock cycle and there are seasonal sales as well. However, the brand does not have a single store in the US as Harjani believes the retail boom is happening outside the US, including India.