Denim Power
Numero Uno, one of India's first indigenously manufactured denim labels, has been selling denimwear in the domestic market for more than three decades now. Started as a purely men's jeans maker, Numero Uno now also caters to womenswear and casualwear category, offering a complete range of jeans, shirts, trousers, knitwear, outerwear and winterwear. Chairman-cum-managing director (CMD) Narinder Singh Dhingra speaks to Paulami Chatterjee about the growth story of the brand, the handling of the Covid crisis, and how it is trying to incorporate sustainability and circularity in its manufacturing processes.
When was Numero Uno established? What is the growth story of the brand?
Numero Uno, one of India's first indigenously manufactured denim labels, was incorporated in 1987 by Hi Fashion Clothing Co, the flagship brand of Numero Uno Clothing Ltd. Over the years, Numero Uno Jeanswear has transformed into a dynamic label for the youth. Today, it is one of the few power brands that fuses accessible pricing with global trends, innovative fabrics, washes, and treatments. It is now exploring licensing tie-ups in international markets.
If you are looking for vendors, what are the top 3 qualities are you looking at beyond the givens of quality, lead time, compliances etc?
Trust, compatibility and understanding of the trade.
Where are your manufacturing facilities based at?
We have our own manufacturing and washing facility in Selaqui near Dehradoon. Procured from the best and reputed mills of the country, almost 85-90 per cent of its raw materials (fabrics & trims) are indigenously sourced.
Which are the categories the brand is into?
Menswear I Womenswear I Footwear
Who are your target audience?
Young adults, age group 18+
How does your supply chain network work?
There has been a major shift in the way the supply chain is functioning in the post pandemic world. Starting from designing and product development, to trade shows and order bookings, and sourcing, Numero Uno has gone digital in almost all aspects of business. Most of our mills have integrated themselves with us and are offering their products through digital presentations and virtual catalogues, especially for initial shortlisting. Following this, the physical samples are called for final look, quality and hand feel. Although there is a big move towards digitising yet being in the business of fashion we cannot overlook the importance of physical touch and feel of the textiles and materials. Hence, we are moving ahead with a combination of tech as well as physical aspect of it. Adoption of new tech and digitisation has made things move faster and cost effective too economising on costs incurred in travels etc.
What is the annual production capacity?
We have an annual production capacity of approximately 12 lakh pieces.
What is the USP of your products?
The brand has a variety of merchandise that vibes with the modern age men and women. From denims to jackets, tees, and t-shirts one can get all the clothing under one roof.
Which category sells the most?
Denims, we have a wide range of denim jackets and jeans specially of different variety that includes one glass water denims, boro jeans, feather light denims etc.
What kind of machinery does your manufacturing facility boast of?
We have state-of-the-art manufacturing and washing facility with the latest wash technology and machinery required to produce world class denims, casual shirts, trousers, and outerwear.
Sustainability and circularity are the buzzwords today. How do you incorporate them into your product lines?
Numero Uno has always believed in being ethical and sustainable in its production processes and that has been further reinforced in the post pandemic world.
Sustainability has been on our radar since many years and as a responsible brand we have been investing towards this initiative in terms of installing and using laser machines to replace sand blasting much earlier in the day, for the benefit of workers as well as the environment. Further we have employed G2 / Ozone process, Eco wash / Nano bubble tech to reduce the consumption of water, and of harmful chemicals. The laundry has Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) as well as zero discharge technology wherein the entire water discharged is recycled and reused after getting treated ensuring minimal or no harm to the ecosystem. The design team works closely with the wash technologists of Jeanologia to create collections that have reduced impact on the environment besides being fashionable and hence more desirable to the customers. The brand is further consciously switching to using more and more blended fabrics (instead of 100 per cent cotton), using fabrics made from recycled and post-consumer waste yarns, Tencel and hemp blends etc as a step towards conserving the environment.
What are the price points for each product category?
Accessories - ₹99-1499; Blazers including waistcoats - ₹3199-6599; Jackets - ₹2499-5999; Jeans - ₹1899-3499; Shirtdress - ₹2099-2199; Shirts - ₹1399-2599; Sweaters - ₹2099-2799; Sweatshirts - ₹1299-2599; Trousers - ₹2199; T-shirts (F/S) - ₹1399-2799; Waistcoat - ₹2799-3799
What is your retail and online presence like?
We have 260 standalone stores across the country; have partnered with 500 multibrand outlets (MBOs) like Shoppers Stop, Central, and Lifestyle. We also sell through e-commerce marketplaces like Amazon, Myntra, Flipkart and many more.
What are your long-term sustainability goals?
We are always endeavouring to adopt sustainable technology into our design, production and washing systems. We are constantly working towards water and chemical management and investing in useful tech to make collections that are aesthetically appealing as well as planet friendly. (PC)
Which are your major markets?
North India, Bihar, Jharkhand, AP, Telangana, MP, some parts of Maharashtra. We are expanding to the Northeast, West and South India.
What is your market positioning?
The positioning emphasizes on product quality, good fit and designs, appealing to the fashion conscious middle-class young generation.
What are the steps towards brand building?
We believe in a 360-degree approach to make the brand stronger -- right from immaculate customer experience through physical and online stores to making brand presence felt through a healthy mix of digital marketing, social media, traditional marketing, and PR activities.
What has been the impact of Covid in terms of sales, staff cutdown, rentals, stocks etc?
Since the unlock began, stores opened very sparsely as somewhere it was evening, somewhere odd even days, and at some places it was weekend off. Hardly 10 per cent of the total stores opened in first month. Therefore, we hardly got any fresh orders and business partners waited for response from customers with inventory already stocked by them.
In the beginning the sales were not as we had expected due to severity of Covid. There were hardly any customers in the market. Malls had not opened and therefore many shops were not opened.
With respect to stocks, we had reduced the planned buying quantity by almost 30 per cent to cope with fall in sales due to the lockdown. Also due to lockdown lot of jobs were lost and salaries were cut, which resulted in change in the buying pattern. People only bought essential items.
