Woodland to enter premium market, eyes expansion in Canada and Africa

 

Moneycontrol News

Known for their rough and tough merchandise and other adventure gear, footwear, apparel and accessories brand Woodland is all set to debut in the premium market with their new leather collection for both men and women.

Starting with high heels to fancy purses and party wear Woods a sub brand of Aero Club (the owner of the brand Woodland) will have dedicated stores for their new collection. Most of the collection would be designed and even manufactured by experts in places like Italy and others.

“For long we have been known for being the adventure gear makers but the luxury market is growing with a rise in demand for premium products and Woods is an initiative to cater to the segment,” said Harkirat Singh, Managing Director, Aero Club.

With 6 dedicated Woods stores spread across Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore, Singh is upbeat about taking the number up to 15 in a year's time. Given investments to the tune of Rs 10 crore have gone into putting up the six stores another odd Rs 15 crore would be put in for the new additions in the chain.

As for adding more categories to their existing collections, the premium line is not the solo entrant; there is inner wear and leisure wear for men, too. The range would be sold through all their 1,000 retail outlets globally, including those in Hong Kong, Russia and Dubai.

A micro-unit in Delhi NCR (Noida) has been set up for production of this new inner-wear collection and a capex of Rs 50 crore-Rs 60 crore has been ear-marked for technology development, implementation as well as cost of entering new market domestically as well as internationally.

With more plans in the pipeline Singh said, "We are also in the process of launching a series of wearables including watches, fitness bands and eye-wear. This invites a stand-alone announcement and thus, will share this development in due course while the product-lines are being finalized and shipments getting ready for display.”

Growing at 15 percent YoY, Woodland plans to open another 40 odd stores this year in India. The brand that already has 600 outlets in the country and is now also looking at setting foot in the Canadian and African markets.

Already operating in Hong Kong, UAE and Russia belt, the brand is upbeat about its international expansions. As a part of their globalizing initiative Woodland has already tied up with Aokang International earlier this year. As per the arrangement Woodland would be selling their footwear at the Chinese company’s multi-brand outlets.