Marking a significant milestone in its 130-year-old journey, Nusli Wadia-promoted Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing Company has opened its first concept store in Mumbai. The company plans to open 100 company-owned stores in the next two-three years. Meanwhile, it will also look to open 15-20 franchisee stores per year.
SK Gupta, executive director, Bombay Dyeing, told Indiaretailing: “The company has initiated a major retail makeover through new-look stores, with an investment of around Rs 60 crore over the next 3 years. Our target is to have over 500 stores in the near future providing easy accessibility to our consumers across the country.”
“The opening of our first concept store is an accomplishment and a momentous occasion for us. I believe that this concept store will be a trendsetter in the fast-changing retail industry, and mark a significant development in the evolution of the Bombay Dyeing brand,” Ness Wadia, joint MD, Bombay Dyeing, told reporters during the launch of the store.
At present, the company runs over 400 stores with close to 26 stores in Mumbai alone. The company is also planning to extend the network to surrounding countries, beginning with the United Arab Emirates in the near future. “The company is planning to take its textile brand to the Dubai market, and will sell its branded sheets to speciality retail chains,” Gupta confirmed.
Recently, Bombay Dyeing forward-integrated its dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) plant to polyester staple fibre (PSF), by setting up a 165,000 million tonne PSF plant at a cost of Rs 350 crore. It is situated next to its DMT plant at Patalganga, Maharashtra. The project is likely to achieve optimum utilisation during this quarter. Meanwhile, the company has also shifted its home textile operations from Mumbai to Rajangaon near Pune, which has facilitated doubling of its home textile capacity to 25 million meters.
For the year ended December 31, 2007, Bombay Dyeing clocked a total income of Rs 526.40 crore.
– Vishnu Rageev R, Bengaluru Bureau
