Existence of the lingerie datesback to the ages since Eve took a bite from the forbidden apple, and usedleaves to clothe herself. With the span of time, this piece of inner garmentunderwent several changes in form, color and the materials used in its making.Today, inner wears have spruced up to gain as much importance as outergarments. Lingerie is one of the most competitive areas of clothing with amultitude of genuinely international brands, in competition with big labelretailers. With innumerable, and renowned brands like YSL, Calvin Klein, Victorias Secret etc, flooding in the market; todays women have great many choices interms of style, design, fabrics etc.
GlobalLingerie Industry:
Global lingerie market iscurrently worth; approximately $30 billion USD, with a projected furtherdrastic growth of 9% over the next five years. Of this, bras constitute 56% ofthe total sales, briefs, and body wears constitute 32% and the remaining 12% ofother wears. Demand for lingerie is increasing by 5% every year. During 2007, WesternEurope and North America were dominating the scene constituting 65% of theinnerwear market. Based on the current trends, countries like China and India will have the engine for market growth. Still, plethora of branded lingeries liesin the Western Europe. In the retail sector, Victorias Secret of US,Knickerbox of UK, and Hunkemoller of Northern Europe have a special market. Retailgiants like Marks and Spencer, Wal-Mart, and Carefour who deal in clothing; tradeshuge quantity of intimate wears.
Indian Lingerie Market:
Indian womens obsession forattaining and maintaining a well groomed structure has triggered a sturdydemand for innerwears. Figure conscious Indian woman progressively seek to buyexquisite and high quality innerwear. Indian lingerie market is estimated to bearound Rs.3, 800 crore with a projected further growth of 12% per annum andreach Rs.6, 700 crore by 2011.
Today, 70% of the lingerie shopsin India are unorganized. This unorganized segment dominates the market withregional brands and accounts for 77% of the market share. This scenario mightchange in the future due to the rise of more and more malls. Exclusive lingerieboutiques are now springing up in the metros due to increased awareness amongwomen. Sale of lingerie in India has increased by 12% during the past fiveyears which is an indication of potential growth prospects in this industry inthe near future. Initialization of online shops and magazines exclusively forlingerie contribute to this growth to some extent by increasing productknowledge among women.
The increasing demand in theIndian lingerie market has resulted in the entry of multinationals likeLovable, Vanity fair, Triumph, Jockey etc. Its economic benefits and market sizeare drawing increased attention from foreign investors. Fast growth is being predicted by industry experts for branded garments. French lingerie brand Etam has made itsdebut in India in partnership with Pantaloons, followed by Italian La Perla.Raymond had captured its place through its flagship brand Park Avenue and ColorPlus. Reliance is also planning to enter into the Indian lingerie segment. Benettonhas been in the industry for more than 16 years and has to its advantage thedexterity to corner retail spaces for its brand. It is planning to tap themarket by concentrating on visual merchandising and large format retail stores. Switzerland based Triumph International is planning to launch its Indiansubsidiary by name Legacy shortly.
Branding, Costing, and Pricing:
Indian lingerie market is on a boom, and international brands are entering this segment. Fashion conscious damsels; today consider luxury, style, sex appeal and gorgeousness while shopping for their garments. To cater to this ever increasing demand, global giants are waiting at their wings to enter this segment in India. Global lingerie brands like Benetton and Etam have chalked out plans to take the cream of the Indian lingerie market. With international brands entering into India, competition started heating up.
Trends in Lingerie have been changing just like any other fashion industry. Both international and private labels are reassessing their positions to make optimum utilization of the market potential. Creative designers are showcasing their creations in fashion shows all across India. In the past, such shows met with problems due to the protest of modest models. In 2000, the first lingerie trade show was organized which brought an acknowledgement to the product.
International brands face competition from domestic players like Goversons, Red Rose, Daisy Dee, Chic, Vajolet etc. A few international brands like Jockey, Vanity, Bodyline, and Lovable are currently in the Indian market. However, international brands will face competition in terms of prices. There is a big scope for international branded lingerie in India provided the international companies concentrate on two vital points:
- They should establish their manufacturing units in India, so as to reduce their cost of production thereby reducing the sale price of the innerwear.
- If not, they should cut down their profit margin, so as to set their market in the Indian lingerie industry and sustain themselves in the cut-throat competition.
Concepts/ Key issues that will drive the Industry Forward:
- Maintaining anonymity: Despite modernization, only limited pickups are being made by the female customers. The thought of buying it from a shop, from a male is not appreciated by most women. Also cultural aspects come into picture while buying such products. Online lingerie shops will prove helpful to these people who would like to go ahead with the purchase and also maintain their anonymity.
- Change: Manufacturers are under the constant pressure to design and develop new inner garments to keep the consumers interest towards their product and spur the sales. Major market leaders like Zara come up with new designs every week to keep abreast of the competition. To keep pace with the market, more flexibility and agility to meet the changing expectations of the customer is needed.
- Spacing: In countries like Singapore, and Malaysia, the entire retail space in a mall is dedicated to lingerie, whereas in India, only limited retail space in a mall is provided and that is also for multi-branded lingerie merchandise. To enhance the growth of lingerie market in India, similar culture should be brought herein.
Indian lingerie market is exhilarating the standards of fashion over the past decades. It has an upcoming market for the industry, and needs to work with technology to conceptualize the existence of feminism, comfort and style. Companies must develop their own standards to survive in turbulent time periods. The consumers demand for dynamism and change puts increased stress in every aspect of fashion. Apart from the grey market, international branded lingerie face tough competition with established national brands as well. Indian industry is spiced up and is all set to offer a variety of brands in the near future.
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