Daughter company of Jain Amar Clothing Pvt.Ltd., Madame was launched in 1993. With the brand’s first exclusive store in Mumbai in 2002, it has now expanded to over 155 stores all over India. With ever-evolving trends, Madame claims to be in sync with the times, and sometimes one step ahead. Be it adopting latest technology, intuitive consumer interface, compelling in-store experience, or serving the hottest global trends at accessible price points, Madame has always been counted among the top fashion brands in India. In an interview with Images Business of Fashion’s Bhavishya Bir, Akhil Jain, Executive Director of Madame discusses the company’s expansion plan, marketing strategy, product collection and more.
What is your retail strategy for the financial year 2023-24?
For the year 2023, we plan to continue to prioritize innovation, both, in our products, and our services. We bring looks for every season and styles for every reason at an affordable price and premium quality.
With a deeper focus on improving customer experience, and creating delight across various customer touch points, we are planning to add 70 more retail counters at pan India level and reach our customers in tier 2 and 3 cities. The brand aims to grow 40% YOY and hit the checkpoint of 500 Cr revenue in this very year.
What are the brand’s expansion plans in tier 2 and tier 3 cities?
We are already serving Tier 2 markets with strong retail presence via exclusive brand outlets (EBO), multi brand outlets (MBO) and large form retail (LFR) formats from the past 3 years, and we’re looking forward to strengthening our position in newer markets. If we look at the next 5 years, we’re confident of a strong pan-India presence in an EBO format, and an aggressive penetration via the LFR and MBO formats.
Tell us about your omni-channel retail initiatives.
Omni-channel presence is a key part of our growth plans. We are set to launch our omni-channel by second quarter of 2023-24 as this strategy will provide real-time inventory data that in turn help us meet customer demands, schedule timely deliveries, enable targeted promotions, optimize assortments, price the product, maximize profitability, and customer loyalty.
What branding strategy have you adopted that has proven to be successful?
The brand’s strategy is built on the promise of instant fashion – giving customers the styles they want faster than competitors at an affordable price and premium quality. The key promotion strategy is based on experience, exclusivity, affordability, and differentiation.
We’ve roped in Tara Sutaria as our Brand Face in line with our brand positioning. Other than this, our complete focus is on bestsellers, lookbook creation and collaboration with fashion bloggers. These marketing strategies have helped us connect to the young audience in a better way and build customer loyalty.
What game-changing retail technologies have you adopted that have helped you to reach your goal?
We have adopted predictive analysis tools to identify the likelihood of future outcomes based on historical data. Along with this, customer relationship management (CRM) and digital signage technologies like LED wall, projection and LCD monitors have proven to be beneficial.
Share your view of the industry in terms of changes.
As we are moving forward, fashion brands are becoming more digitized, making use of AI/ML, and are gradually shifting towards sustainability to make ourselves more relevant for conscious and aware customers.
What initiative has the brand undertaken to make it more responsible?
- Utilize all offcut fabric and material.
- Source raw material from sustainable suppliers.
- Host community events and CSR activities.
- Business has become more socially and environmentally responsible in its supply chain.
Are you launching any new collections?
MADAME is going to launch its Spring/ Summer’23 collection which talks about the vividness of the season enticed by fresh and exotic appeal. The silhouettes exude the charm with freshness and floral essence sitting at its core. The collection comprises flowy silhouettes in puffed and fluttery sleeves and eye catchy necklines. The fabrics include flowy, plain and textured accented by modern details.
Where do you see the brand in the next five years?
Over the span of next five years, I see Jain Amar Group as a leading conglomerate in India. With a well-established brand like Madame, a growing brand like Camla, a new brand like mSecret, and a fast growing shopping platform like Glamly, we are bullish about our exponential growth over the next 5 years – both within India, as well as outside it.
Newer categories like fragrances and cosmetics would be another area of growth for us that we’d explore over the next couple of years.
