Best of silk sarees to woo Chennaites

Retailers get ready to meet the wedding season demand

The wedding season, beginning mid-January, is all set to usher in a fierce competition among the leading players of silk sarees in Chennai.

Some of the prominent names like Pothys, RMKV, Nalli, Sri Kumaran Silks and Chennai Silks are going all out to attract customers with their out-of-the-box offers.

There would be new and unique designs to pick from and that too at competitive prices. Besides, customers can spell out their affinities, and a specially-made six-yard wonder would be ready.

In the last one-and-a-half years, retailers such as Pothys and RMKV have been in the forefront of innovations in the segment, which include even customising colours to the choice of customers. The latest to join the bandwagon is Sri Kumaran Silks, which introduced a three-dimensional saree during Diwali.

It all started with RMKV coming out with the longest woven saree, which made it to the Guinness Book of World Records. The retailer, with this exclusive piece, announced its presence among traditional players such as Nalli, and Sri Kumaran and new players like Pothys and Chennai Silks.

K Vishwanathan, managing director, RMKV, points out that the competition comes not just from the players in the segment, but also from other attires such as salwar kameez and chudidaars, that have become increasingly popular, especially among young girls.

Also with the ready-mades and the other modern attire becoming the preferred everyday wear, the saree has become the attire of special occasions, and it needs to be customised and marketed for such special occasions.

Says S Ramesh, managing partner of Pothys, "Saree is saved for special occasions such as weddings, festivities and formal functions." This calls for more attention to make it stand out, he adds.

The wooing doesn't stop here. A lot of effort is being put in to ensure that the message gets across to the customers and the footfalls come in in huge numbers. So, the purse strings are wide open for advertisements and publicity. RMKV and Pothys, the two largest spenders on advertisements in the garment retailing sector in Chennai, spend about Rs 4 crore on marketing and publicity.

According to Vishwanathan, weddings are special for all and a lot of attention is paid to the wedding attires of bride and bridegroom.

He estimates the wedding-wear market in India to be around Rs 1,500 crore, which includes the clothes purchased for the entire family as well. Vishwanathan says that RMKV has taken a conscious decision to create a niche in the silk saree segment, though it sells other kinds of clothing too.

Says a media planner, "Gone are the days when people stuck to a particular garment retailer for special occasions such as weddings. Now, the retailer will have to grab the attention of the customers by offering a unique selling proposition, be it design or colours."