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Though, the summer season is far from over, the trends so far indicate better sales than last year. While overall apparel retail sales this summer has increased by 10-12 per cent over last year’s season, the online apparel retail has grown by 30-40 per cent during the season.
For instance, Kewal Kiran Clothing Limited, which owns apparel brands such as Killer, Integriti and Lawman, this year debuted at e-commerce platforms such as Flipkart and Jabong only to see its summer season sales register double digits growth rate as compared to last year. “As compared to last year, the growth rate has so far been better despite KKCL not being so aggressive. The growth in sales can be attributed to both better market sentiments as well as increased presence online,” said Ashish Barodia, brand - head, Easies at KKCL.
While the online apparel retail sales is registering a higher growth rate this summer, the share of online retail is still estimated to be around 5 per cent of the total Rs 50000 crore organised apparel retail in the country. “The online apparel retail segment is still only 5 per cent of the total branded apparel retail industry. Overall, the apparel retail sales growth this summer season has been around 10-12 per cent as compared to last year’s season. This may get better by the end of the summer season,” said Rahul Mehta, president of Clothing Manufacturers’ Association of India (CMAI).
Industry experts also attribute the growth to increased expectations of improved economy. “Today it is not so much about launch of new products. The growth in apparel sales is driven more by sentiments. There is a lot of purchase happening due to increased confidence in economy,” said Prashant Agarwal, joint managing director of apparel consulting firm Wazir Advisors Pvt. Ltd.
