Premium apparel maker Van Heusen, known mainly for its men’s formal wear range, is looking to shore up its presence in both ladies wear and casual offerings.

While ladies wear – that include a mix of formal and semi formal offerings – are sold as “Van Heusen Woman”; men’s casual wear offerings are through “VDOT” (mostly club and party apparels) and “Van Heusen Sport”.

According to Vinay Bhopatkar, Brand Head – Van Heusen, apart from doubling its store presence (in its ladies and casual wear segments) would also focus on introducing new variants in the women’s wear category.

One such instance is its recent tie-up with actor Deepika Padukone to launch the premium women’s wear range under the “Limited Edition Spring Summer Collection”. Similarly, it is also looking for tie-ups with Hardrock Café chains and MTV for promoting the (men’s) casual wear range.

“We intend to set up 20 to 25 stores; 10 for Van Heusen Woman and 10-15 for VDOT in 2014-15. Stores will be a mix of franchise and company-owned formats,” Bopatkar told Business Line.

Of the 250-odd stores, 10-odd are Van Heusen Woman stores; while, VDOT has around 10 exclusive outlets.

Marketing spends, he added, will be between 4 and 5 per cent of the total turnover.

Women’s Wear

Van Heusen, which introduced its women’s wear range in 2005, has been trying to capitalise on the office wear segment. Currently, the segment contributes 8-10 per cent towards the company’s net turnover.

“Considering the market potential, we would like to increase our share in the segment in both Tier-1 and Tier-2 towns. As a result, you will see a number of brand building activities taking place,” Bopatkar maintained.

Focus would, however, remain on the office wear category and accessories. There are no immediate plans to introduce either Indian ethnic dresses or expand the accessories portfolio to include fragrances and watches.

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