Thailand is a traditional country with intricate knowledge of making laces; many players from the country are now eyeing India as the innerwear segment, showing growth with increasing demand for innovative laces. Having a great variety in laces, like Textronic, Jacquardtronic, Galloon, Schiffli, all manufactured with advanced machines of 95 bars, there are many lace companies in Thailand catering to top international brands like Victoria Secret, M&S and many more. With in-house design studios, quality focus, and experience of catering to top brands, these companies are confident of creating a dent in the Indian market with sizable share in the future. Team Apparel Online talks to some of these companies on their specialties and scope in India.
While most of the companies from Thailand have their manufacturing units in the country itself, some of them are also manufacturing in China. India is a relatively new market for them although a few are already present in India either directly or with some Indian partners/agents. Known for fashion wear, India is a big market for them, and the biggest category segment is lingerie. Pubudu Rajapakse, Sales Director of Brunet (BL Ltd.) entered India two years ago, and is already supplying to Enamor brand from the house of Gokaldas Images. “Fashion bra is a fast growing trend worldwide and Indian brands are noticing it. It is a good option for their growth. As they will enhance their focus on the same, our laces will get more and more demand,” reasons Rajapakse. The company has 95 bar machines for Jacquardtronic lace which is accepted in the market as the best for design elements.
[bleft]“We use polyester, rayon, lycra and create variety in our offerings. Reasonable price, premium designs and reliable service is creating more and more space for us in India,” says Phornthep Dahuja, MD of Meliora International, one of the major suppliers to the Lovable brand and many more such companies in India.”[/bleft]
Another major player, Vanity Export with specialization in lace mainly for lingerie, entered into the Indian market just 1½ years back and is targeting the wholesale market and garment manufacturers. Racha Khanijow, MD of the company is happy as Indian customers are going towards fashion lingerie which is a sign for the take off of the market for their products. “The knitted laces we are manufacturing, is rarely seen in India so we have an edge” says Racha. The company accepts minimum order of 3,000 yards.
One of the oldest lace makers with presence in India is Bischoff Gamma having two factories in Thailand and one in Sri Lanka. The company has been in India for more than a decade and is supplying to several lingerie brands in the country. “The Indian market is very competitive and we are offering quality, no matter the order is small or big. If you see our quality, we are not really more costly than China. We have Swiss technician who are known for their lace expertise,” says Sameer, Sales Head of the company. He feels that Indian lingerie players are not too concerned about fashion in their mass brands, while they should now add it as many international brands are vying for the space with fashion products.
As Thai companies are more into high-end laces they have many challenges also. Majority of sale in India is of their stock lot, although their target is to cater highly designed and even customized services. Rachna Narang, ED of Famina Lace International says, “As Indian companies are using Chinese laces, appreciation for original designs and quality laces is not as much as it should be, may be pricing is a big reason. Apart from high cost, higher duty is also a big barrier for us. ” The company has its own Indian representative in Ahmedabad.
Some Thai companies which are focusing on both high-end as well as basic, are getting good business for both like Mastex Co. Ltd. This 25 years old company claims that their factory is into both, embroidery as well as in lace, and that very few companies across the world have such facility. Vivek Bellie, Export Marketing Manager informed, “ We are targeting high-end as well as basic products in lingerie as basic gives us volume while fashion is already our forte but its prices are a little high for Indian manufacturers.”
