Sahiba Fabrics… Expanding their product range

Vertically integrated, Sahiba Fabrics known for their range of fabrics, apparels and home furnishings, has recently stepped into the manufacturing of garment trims with their multi colour chemical laces. Established in 1985, the Surat based company is now all geared up to deliver these laces produced using the latest technology to the industry. In conversation with Team AO, Sarabjeet Saluja, Director, Sahiba Fabrics, talks about their new product category and investment in future plans…

Already in the market with their latest product offering of high-end laces, Sahiba Fabrics is currently supplying around 50,000 metres of lace per day to the industry, catering both to domestic players and garment exporters as well. With a total manufacturing capacity of 1 lakh metres, 50 per cent of the lace manufactured by the company is consumed in-house for their own production of saris, suits and tunics. Working with 16 colour change machines to make multi colour schiffli laces, Sarabjeet claims that Sahiba Fabrics is the only organization working with such a huge capacity under one roof with such technology in India.

“Chemical laces have good demand in domestic as well as the export market. With its ability to be used for various applications from apparel to lingerie, it’s a huge but good investment for increasing business. Also, as quality laces have more demand than supply, the sector provided an opportunity to enter a growth segment. Further, we have an edge over our competitors as Sahiba Fabrics is the only company making multi colour schiffli laces at present,” reasons Sarabjeet, expanding on their growth strategy in the current market scenario.

Even with the advantage of a new product category in the market, the company is working towards better technology and new designs for their product. “To ensure that we retain our edge, a team is being sent to Switzerland for training on constant basis, especially for design inputs,” shares Sarabjeet. Apart from making good order sizes for the domestic market, the company has already received good orders from export houses working for world renowned brands and buyers, claims Sarabjeet. “Our buyers can rely on us because all our operations take place in-house. As most of the lace manufacturing companies making likewise products depend on outsourcing for washing and dyeing, they cannot promise their buyers the quality we give. Dyeing needs special technology which is rarely found in India, and we already have the expertise in the area, so we become the preferred manufacturers,” argues Sarabjeet.

[bleft]“Chemical laces have good demand in domestic as well as the export market. With its ability to be used for various applications from apparel to lingerie, it’s a huge but good investment for increasing business.” – Sarabjeet Saluja Director, Sahiba Fabrics[/bleft]

The company with 200 multi head embroidery machines and 50 schiffli machines also manufactures women’s wear with a setup of 1000 sewing machines. Maintaining to having the highest capacity in printing polyester with a production of 50 lakh metres per month, the company is a supplier to many lifestyle brand and has recently started its own home furnishing brand ‘Shahi Décor’, which is available in many chain stores.

The growth strategy for the company is well in position and the management is confident of growth. “We are focusing on both the export and domestic markets. On the domestic front we have started our own retail stores in Surat, and will grow as per the market and demand. Our online sale is also doing very well. Moving forward we want to backward integrate further and are planning to enter spinning as part of our expansion plans, but it is still too early to detail how and when we will actually initiate the project,” concludes Sarabjeet with a positive outlook.