Celebrating 25 years of its journey, Trident Group from Ludhiana has risen to become the world’s largest manufacturer of terry towels. Not many textile companies can claim to be world leaders, but this US $ 1 billion Indian business conglomerate, whose almost 46 per cent share is coming from home textiles business, is looking to increase the share to 70 per cent by 2018. Confident of the future, Rajinder Gupta, Chairman of the group shared his views on the global and Indian home furnishing industry, as well as the strategy forward for his home business, with Apparel Online.
Being an industry leader in home furnishing, Rajinder Gupta’s views really matter to other players and it is quite heartening to see positivity and enthusiasm in his observations. He is not only enthusiastic about 2017, but even for the long term he has a positive outlook for the entire industry. “The coming years would be laden with opportunities in the home textiles space. Currently, the global home textile market is estimated to be worth more than US $ 75 billion and by 2020 it may touch US $ 100 billion mark. In advanced economies, the main drivers of this growth will be an increasing preference for smaller households, as well as stronger demand for value-added and easy-to-use products. In emerging countries, the drivers will be a rising middle-class that prefers affordable prices and convenient shopping opportunities,” reasons Rajinder Gupta.
The company is equally enthusiastic about India’s opportunities, especially for products like bedsheets and terry towels. “As far as India is concerned, over the past few years, the country has emerged as a preferred supplier and is currently among one of the top exporters in this space. Our country accounts for a 7 per cent share of the global home textiles trade. The growth in the home textiles segment would be supported by growing household incomes, increasing population and growth of end-user sectors like housing, hospitality, healthcare, among others,” predicts Rajinder Gupta. As of now, India, China and Pakistan contribute more than 85 per cent of the home textile exports to the US, and India enjoys a dominant position in cotton bed sheets and terry towels, with a total US imports share of 50 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively.
In anticipation of business growth, Trident, which has recently added a new product category, is completely geared up to grab major share in this growing market. “Given our experience in the terry towels segment, we are very well positioned to capture the growth opportunity in bed-linen in the years to come. Bed-linen will further boost the overall home textiles portfolio. Our focus is on increasing our global scale capacities in the home textiles segment,” shares Rajinder Gupta. Over the past few years, Trident has focused on moving up the textile value chain with a view on rising share of high-margin business to emerge as the largest integrated home textiles manufacturer in the world. By 2018 it expects that the home textiles segment will contribute around 70 per cent of total revenue, up from 46 per cent in FY 2016.
With regard to textile products, the company has recorded revenues of Rs. 29,043 million, out of which 70 per cent is earned through export business. For towel, the company has installed 688 looms with a production capacity of 88,775 metric tonnes of towel per annum at optimum utilization with a balanced product mix. It recently commenced production at its integrated bed linen facility, which is capable of producing 43.2 million metres of bed linen per annum and also added 1.9 lakh yarn spindles to produce 14,400 tonnes per annum of high count compact yarn for captive consumption. [Source: Trident’s Annual Report, Trident 2015-16]
Rajinder Gupta strongly believes that innovation, product development and design solutions will be key pillars of growth for the Indian home furnishing industry. Believing in the same, the company has established an in-house design studio to develop products that have an aesthetic appeal and rank high in terms of functionality. “Towels made with Air Rich Technology have been a huge success and taking a cue from this, we are extending the same technology to our bedsheet range,” he adds.
Competition from Asian countries, according to Rajinder Gupta is another big challenge which would need to be overcome as some countries get huge benefits under Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). “We understand that our Government is also working towards procuring a level playing field in the near future. Excluding these barriers, Indian players who have the wherewithal can compete effectively with any domestic or international player, as we have built global scale capacities,” says Rajinder Gupta.
Trident has been able to maintain its leadership position in the home textiles segment because of its continuous focus on innovative and value-added products combined with highest service standards for global clientele. Its world class infrastructure and vertical integration give the edge to be globally competitive. The capabilities have allowed the company to service buyers from different segments of the retail chain. Trident’s customer base spans 100 countries and 6 continents comprising of leading global retailers and brands like Ralph Lauren, Vera Wang, Macy’s, JCPenney, Bloomingdale, Kohl’s, Target, Walmart, House of Fraser of UK and Myer’s of Australia among others. “Our newly launched home textiles products segment, themed around sustainability, besides offering a soft feel, has already generated a lot of excitement in the overseas and the domestic markets and we expect this momentum to continue further,” concludes Rajinder Gupta.
