Mens fashion and style interests men more today than ever, as they realize that looking good is an asset in every aspect of their lives: Business, personal or, social.
The fact is, a well groomed man will get a second look, your personality may be great but first impressions count.
If you are serious about making the right impression you need to check out men’s fashion and adapt it to your own personalized style.
Get a stylish look your comfortable with
Some men feel confident enough to do this for themselves, for those who are less confident an image consultant can be employed, to give help and advice.
Fashion & Style
In today's world, to stay one step ahead, it's important to look your best. That means developing your own sense of style and this does not simply mean following fashions and trends for the sake of it.
There is a big difference between being stylish and just following the latest men’s fashion trends for the sake of them.
A fashion victim is someone who wants follow all the latest men’s fashion trends regardless of whether they suit their body shape looks or, age and is someone who can't put his look together.
Looking your best does require a certain amount of effort, but ultimately, your clothes have to fit right, and suit your style, image and personality.
Keep in mind, it's not about the clothes you wear -- it's about how you wear them.
The most important aspect of developing your own style is remaining true to yourself. Just because something looked great on a model doesn't necessarily mean it's for you!
There are enough styles out there, so that everyone can be comfortable finding their own.
Be yourself
Wear what you think looks good, not what others believe is trendy.
You should always feel comfortable with what you're wearing, so stick to items that suit your personality and style, while keeping the occasion and setting in mind.
David Beckham may be able to get away with wearing a sarong but this probably is not be the best look for you!
The key with men’s fashion is always to match it to your personality, age and personal features.
Don’t Overdo It
Don’t try and make to much of an effort to look fashionable that you end up overdoing it.
You don't have to wear every single trendy item you own, all at once.
By all means buy fashionable pieces, if they suit you and mix and match them with the basics in your wardrobe.
Maintain balance
Keep a good balance of basic and fashionable clothes in your wardrobe.
As a rule of thumb, not more than half of your wardrobe should not consist of trendy clothes, or worse, clothes that are out of style.
Don't Be A Slave To The Media & Brands
Don't base your look solely on what you see in magazines and on TV.
Celebrities and models often overdo trends for attention and media exposure, and their look will not necessarily work well in the real world or for you.
Finally, don’t be influenced by brand names just because a brand has a great reputation, doesn’t mean it will look good on you.
More information & FREE men’s fashion & style guides
For further information on men’s fashion and style, as well as FREE fashion guides on how to look your best contact:
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Men's Fashion - Developing Your Own Individual Style
Mens fashion and style interests men more today than ever, as they realize that looking good is an asset in every aspect of their lives: Business, personal or, social.
The fact is, a well groomed man will get a second look, your personality may be great but first impressions count.
If you are serious about making the right impression you need to check out men’s fashion and adapt it to your own personalized style.
Get a stylish look your comfortable with
Some men feel confident enough to do this for themselves, for those who are less confident an image consultant can be employed, to give help and advice.
Fashion & Style
In today's world, to stay one step ahead, it's important to look your best. That means developing your own sense of style and this does not simply mean following fashions and trends for the sake of it.
There is a big difference between being stylish and just following the latest men’s fashion trends for the sake of them.
A fashion victim is someone who wants follow all the latest men’s fashion trends regardless of whether they suit their body shape looks or, age and is someone who can't put his look together.
Looking your best does require a certain amount of effort, but ultimately, your clothes have to fit right, and suit your style, image and personality.
Keep in mind, it's not about the clothes you wear -- it's about how you wear them.
The most important aspect of developing your own style is remaining true to yourself. Just because something looked great on a model doesn't necessarily mean it's for you!
There are enough styles out there, so that everyone can be comfortable finding their own.
Be yourself
Wear what you think looks good, not what others believe is trendy.
You should always feel comfortable with what you're wearing, so stick to items that suit your personality and style, while keeping the occasion and setting in mind.
David Beckham may be able to get away with wearing a sarong but this probably is not be the best look for you!
The key with men’s fashion is always to match it to your personality, age and personal features.
Don’t Overdo It
Don’t try and make to much of an effort to look fashionable that you end up overdoing it.
You don't have to wear every single trendy item you own, all at once.
By all means buy fashionable pieces, if they suit you and mix and match them with the basics in your wardrobe.
Maintain balance
Keep a good balance of basic and fashionable clothes in your wardrobe.
As a rule of thumb, not more than half of your wardrobe should not consist of trendy clothes, or worse, clothes that are out of style.
Don't Be A Slave To The Media & Brands
Don't base your look solely on what you see in magazines and on TV.
Celebrities and models often overdo trends for attention and media exposure, and their look will not necessarily work well in the real world or for you.
Finally, don’t be influenced by brand names just because a brand has a great reputation, doesn’t mean it will look good on you.
More information & FREE men’s fashion & style guides
For further information on men’s fashion and style, as well as FREE fashion guides on how to look your best contact:
The fact is, a well groomed man will get a second look, your personality may be great but first impressions count.
If you are serious about making the right impression you need to check out men’s fashion and adapt it to your own personalized style.
Get a stylish look your comfortable with
Some men feel confident enough to do this for themselves, for those who are less confident an image consultant can be employed, to give help and advice.
Fashion & Style
In today's world, to stay one step ahead, it's important to look your best. That means developing your own sense of style and this does not simply mean following fashions and trends for the sake of it.
There is a big difference between being stylish and just following the latest men’s fashion trends for the sake of them.
A fashion victim is someone who wants follow all the latest men’s fashion trends regardless of whether they suit their body shape looks or, age and is someone who can't put his look together.
Looking your best does require a certain amount of effort, but ultimately, your clothes have to fit right, and suit your style, image and personality.
Keep in mind, it's not about the clothes you wear -- it's about how you wear them.
The most important aspect of developing your own style is remaining true to yourself. Just because something looked great on a model doesn't necessarily mean it's for you!
There are enough styles out there, so that everyone can be comfortable finding their own.
Be yourself
Wear what you think looks good, not what others believe is trendy.
You should always feel comfortable with what you're wearing, so stick to items that suit your personality and style, while keeping the occasion and setting in mind.
David Beckham may be able to get away with wearing a sarong but this probably is not be the best look for you!
The key with men’s fashion is always to match it to your personality, age and personal features.
Don’t Overdo It
Don’t try and make to much of an effort to look fashionable that you end up overdoing it.
You don't have to wear every single trendy item you own, all at once.
By all means buy fashionable pieces, if they suit you and mix and match them with the basics in your wardrobe.
Maintain balance
Keep a good balance of basic and fashionable clothes in your wardrobe.
As a rule of thumb, not more than half of your wardrobe should not consist of trendy clothes, or worse, clothes that are out of style.
Don't Be A Slave To The Media & Brands
Don't base your look solely on what you see in magazines and on TV.
Celebrities and models often overdo trends for attention and media exposure, and their look will not necessarily work well in the real world or for you.
Finally, don’t be influenced by brand names just because a brand has a great reputation, doesn’t mean it will look good on you.
More information & FREE men’s fashion & style guides
For further information on men’s fashion and style, as well as FREE fashion guides on how to look your best contact:
Saturday, August 11, 2007
How To Pick Up Women - Compliment Her Fashion Sense
What’s the best thing to say to a woman you are attracted to when you first approach her? Something nice. Sounds simple and it is. What I am talking about is compliments. Pay a girl a nice compliment and she will be thinking about it (and you) for the rest of the day. But remember to give her the correct compliment and not one that will have her leaving with a feeling she has just been hit on.
Some people think a compliment is a compliment and that is it. Say something nice about a person and that is that. Job done. Well, to a certain extent, in all other parts of life, this may be true. People pay each other compliments all the time and they are just accepted or ignored as the receiver sees fit. But you want to make a lasting impression with your compliment, that is why it is better to avoid the cheesy line like “Wow, what beautiful color eyes you have” or “Your smile is beautiful” and go for something a little more customized. Chances are she will have heard the latter before (whether true or not) and will recognize it for a line. You want her to remember you as the guy who really made her day.
Better to hit her with, for example, a comment on her fashion. Women love fashion and spend hours reading magazines, shopping and then deciding what to wear before going out. They really seek acceptance on what they have chosen to wear and although other women will recognize the effort they have put in, men rarely do. Tell that the dress she is wearing looks great. Tell her you think you saw her blouse on TV (don’t worry if you have no idea about it. It is a great conversation starter). Or if you really want to hit the bull’s-eye compliment on her bag, shoes or accessories. Women love these things as they add her personal touch to her look and by spotting it you have affirmed her choices. Bingo!
To sum up. Drop the clichés and follow fashion – her fashion, when giving compliments. Step back and notice what she is wearing and tell her how great it is.
Some people think a compliment is a compliment and that is it. Say something nice about a person and that is that. Job done. Well, to a certain extent, in all other parts of life, this may be true. People pay each other compliments all the time and they are just accepted or ignored as the receiver sees fit. But you want to make a lasting impression with your compliment, that is why it is better to avoid the cheesy line like “Wow, what beautiful color eyes you have” or “Your smile is beautiful” and go for something a little more customized. Chances are she will have heard the latter before (whether true or not) and will recognize it for a line. You want her to remember you as the guy who really made her day.
Better to hit her with, for example, a comment on her fashion. Women love fashion and spend hours reading magazines, shopping and then deciding what to wear before going out. They really seek acceptance on what they have chosen to wear and although other women will recognize the effort they have put in, men rarely do. Tell that the dress she is wearing looks great. Tell her you think you saw her blouse on TV (don’t worry if you have no idea about it. It is a great conversation starter). Or if you really want to hit the bull’s-eye compliment on her bag, shoes or accessories. Women love these things as they add her personal touch to her look and by spotting it you have affirmed her choices. Bingo!
To sum up. Drop the clichés and follow fashion – her fashion, when giving compliments. Step back and notice what she is wearing and tell her how great it is.
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Fashion Industry Boost Digital Photographers
Working on digital fashion photography runs far off different than doing photos on films and television footages. The ultimate aim to capture every inch of details in the ramp; serving to focus the figures of the beautiful people donned in the most magnificent, fancy, weird, wild, and most outrageous fashion outfits, creates new sensitivity to multiple tasks in digital photography, with aims to capture the many aspects necessary to cater acceptance in global fashion trends.
Fashion capitals of the world such as Paris, London, and New York are full of designers allowing digital photographers to flourish. They linger around in make-believe world where a meticulous change in fashion is a vogue each year, as changes in designer's creation covers every aspects in motif, hairstyles, touch (designer's), color, and everything that goes with fashion culture of the moment.
While the digital fashion photographer circulates in high-end ease, filled with luxury, glamour, and beauty, he compensates position to get into a profession that is not as simple as you think, it is. Everything demanded of the glamour world is a vital move to make photography finish, its best in coping with fashion's best photographs.
Points to Consider When on Ramp Shooting
1. Take time to concentrate
2. Be sure your camera is on hand always
3. Define your objective
4. Embrace the opportune moment
5. Visualize on how you could put up interesting elements on your picture to make it unique and interesting
6. Set your goals
7. Use different angles and distance for each shots
8. Apply contrasts by giving sharp emphasis and blurry parts over your pictures
9. Compose your subject
10. Pay attention to variety
11. Put emphasis to lines and shapes of interest
12. Create an impression that you are relaying information to your viewers
Always be aware that whatever output you'll deliver from photo sessions determines the readiness, care and awareness of numerous important tips to remember before taking out your time on getting pictures.
Factors Surrounding a Successful Digital Fashion Photograph
1. Lighting - (a) Midday reflectors and curtains are a must, (b) if in low light, without flash, hold a firm grasp of your camera, or use tripod, (c) position lights at 45 degree angle to the left or right side of your subject, (d) avoid glares, otherwise, use polarizing filters, (e) never expose the entire photograph, underexpose other parts, (f) if subject's dimension is important let the light comes from the right and left of your subject.
2. Harmony in Color - Use background materials to emphasize color and tint. Use filters, see-thru transparency, reflectors, and diffusers to devaluate or neutralize strong colors. Use white and gray for backgrounds.
3. The Artist Eye of a Photographer - As an expert in picture taking, others can't see what you see. Amateurs pay importance to the subject and not the background. It should relate each other.
Fashion capitals of the world such as Paris, London, and New York are full of designers allowing digital photographers to flourish. They linger around in make-believe world where a meticulous change in fashion is a vogue each year, as changes in designer's creation covers every aspects in motif, hairstyles, touch (designer's), color, and everything that goes with fashion culture of the moment.
While the digital fashion photographer circulates in high-end ease, filled with luxury, glamour, and beauty, he compensates position to get into a profession that is not as simple as you think, it is. Everything demanded of the glamour world is a vital move to make photography finish, its best in coping with fashion's best photographs.
Points to Consider When on Ramp Shooting
1. Take time to concentrate
2. Be sure your camera is on hand always
3. Define your objective
4. Embrace the opportune moment
5. Visualize on how you could put up interesting elements on your picture to make it unique and interesting
6. Set your goals
7. Use different angles and distance for each shots
8. Apply contrasts by giving sharp emphasis and blurry parts over your pictures
9. Compose your subject
10. Pay attention to variety
11. Put emphasis to lines and shapes of interest
12. Create an impression that you are relaying information to your viewers
Always be aware that whatever output you'll deliver from photo sessions determines the readiness, care and awareness of numerous important tips to remember before taking out your time on getting pictures.
Factors Surrounding a Successful Digital Fashion Photograph
1. Lighting - (a) Midday reflectors and curtains are a must, (b) if in low light, without flash, hold a firm grasp of your camera, or use tripod, (c) position lights at 45 degree angle to the left or right side of your subject, (d) avoid glares, otherwise, use polarizing filters, (e) never expose the entire photograph, underexpose other parts, (f) if subject's dimension is important let the light comes from the right and left of your subject.
2. Harmony in Color - Use background materials to emphasize color and tint. Use filters, see-thru transparency, reflectors, and diffusers to devaluate or neutralize strong colors. Use white and gray for backgrounds.
3. The Artist Eye of a Photographer - As an expert in picture taking, others can't see what you see. Amateurs pay importance to the subject and not the background. It should relate each other.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Fashion and Identity
For hundreds of years people have put some message in the type of clothing they wore. Long ago people started wanting to stand out from the “crowd” and be different from other people by means of changing their clothing. Some examples of these “standing out” became very popular and were followed by more people. This was the moment when fashion appeared. Nowadays, fashion is sometimes defined as a “constantly changing trend, favored for frivolous rather than practical, logical, or intellectual reasons”. Nevertheless, it is necessary to say that at the present moment fashion has a deeper influence on the life of people and possess more than just frivolous reasons for its existance. Clothing has become an integral part of self-realization of every person. It is no longer just an “external shield” and a frivolous attitude towards it may cause loosing a very important physical, psychological and social aspect of a person’s life. The harmony attained by the combination of the inner world of a person and his “exterior” makes it very hard to say not even being a professional in this sphere that fashion is just about looks. Clothing is basically a covering designed to be worn on a person's body. This covering is a need, a necessity that is dictated by the norms of social conduct. This “necessity” brings a lot of variety into the lives of people and makes their image more complete. It is not about people serving fashion; it is about fashion being a slave of people.
Fashion and identity
The type of clothing completely depends on the person who is wearing it; therefore it becomes a reflection of his perception of himself, which leads us to the term – personal identity. Lately a lot is being heard about personal identity and its meaning in the life of every single person on the planet. The choice of clothing and accessories (clothing that is worn or carried, but not part of a person’s main clothing) is as important as identification through the color of hair, height, skin and gender. Clothing nowadays is a media of information about the person wearing it. It is a cipher; a code that needs a decryption in order to understand what kind of person is underneath it. The present time offers a great variety of these “ciphers” and therefore gives people a large number of opportunities to reveal their identity. As every cloth carries a strong message about its owner, every owner “nests” a certain value in it depending on his temperament, mindset or today’s mood. Therefore, the clothing of a person is a mean of communication with the outside world. It is the way of telling people about the “state” and the “status” of it owner.
Fashion and identity
The type of clothing completely depends on the person who is wearing it; therefore it becomes a reflection of his perception of himself, which leads us to the term – personal identity. Lately a lot is being heard about personal identity and its meaning in the life of every single person on the planet. The choice of clothing and accessories (clothing that is worn or carried, but not part of a person’s main clothing) is as important as identification through the color of hair, height, skin and gender. Clothing nowadays is a media of information about the person wearing it. It is a cipher; a code that needs a decryption in order to understand what kind of person is underneath it. The present time offers a great variety of these “ciphers” and therefore gives people a large number of opportunities to reveal their identity. As every cloth carries a strong message about its owner, every owner “nests” a certain value in it depending on his temperament, mindset or today’s mood. Therefore, the clothing of a person is a mean of communication with the outside world. It is the way of telling people about the “state” and the “status” of it owner.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Home Fashion: The Fashion Of Modern Occupants
Home furnishing or soft furnishing is the latest trend in the business of fashion today. The desire to redecorate everything around us has lead people to become fashion centric with reference to the interiors of their work place or their home or perhaps it is the compensation for our hectic life that we generally seek relaxation through the colours and designs in our furnishings. Generally, we try to please our visual and tactile senses by the soft and beautiful fabrics around us.
In the last 3-4 years, people have begun changing their home furniture like they change their wardrobe according to the changing fashions. Lifestyle furnishing has become a mix of aesthetics, comfort, colours and designs. For instance, brown sofas have become outdated and people now prefer lively colours like blue and red. Though brand awareness in this segment is low but at present the scenario is changing, a few years ago consumers never stressed on purchasing branded home furnishing products, but now they are aware about new products and brands.
The list of furnishings includes bed linen like bed sheets, pillow slips (pillow shams), bed skirts, duvet covers, quilts and cushions; for giving the complete look to the bedroom matching curtains, tie-backs and also mats can be included in this list. This bedroom could be with an attached bathroom making the list even bigger. Towels and floor mats, shower curtains, same soap cases, toothbrush holders, soap dispensers, mugs and rugs can offer the attractiveness of a bathroom. Water in this room, evokes memories of sea and ocean, shells and fish, and hence these are major patterns in the design making of bathroom accessories. Bed-and-bath themes are also combined together by designers.
The bedroom that we are talking about could be that of an adult, or a child, or two adults, or two children and hence the look of every bedroom in a house is unique. The appearance of any room has to be in relevance to the psychological and physical requirements of its occupants.
Bed sheets aren't just utilitarian things; they make style statements while reflecting your personality and moods. As people are becoming more aware about fibres, fabrics, feel, colour and size of bed sheets, pillow slips, quilts, etc, it gives added responsibilities to the designers and manufacturers to ensure quality supply of the same.
Cotton is the most favored fabric for bed sheets, particularly those with a greater thread count. Exporters have an increasing demand for cotton bed sheets, though some also demand silk made-ups. Generally, many export houses are given the designs to work on, or they make their own varieties from which the buyers put up orders. They emphasizes on colour and design. For new born babies soft basic colours are used, where as for grown up children complimentary colour schemes with cartoon like motifs are mostly used. There are a variety of prints to select from. The prints for curtains vary from animals, to soft toys, cartoons and candies; the same is applicable for rugs, bed sheets, duvet covers and cushions.
Teenagers have different preferences like pink which is mostly preferred by girls, whereas blue is a preferred colour for boys. Adults chose from a wide range of colours and motifs including traditional Indian motifs to modern compositions. In fact, the selection of colour and design depends on the fashion trend of today.
One step out of the bedroom and you reach the most happening room of the house - the living room. A combination of huge variety of colours and its relevant coordinates are particularly made to cater to people's physical and psychological desires. Sheer curtains to bring in sunlight, heavy lined curtains to prevent it, embroidered curtains and valences with lace trimmings flaunting luxury and a taste for design, make the room look more appealing and beautiful. Curtains can surely make the room look more attractive. Generally fabrics for sewing curtains are 54 inches wide or extra wide at 110 inches or 118 inches. Extra¬ wide fabrics are normally made for unlined sheer curtains, and are intended to be railroaded or run sideways with the selvage at the top and bottom of the curtains, permitting the curtains to be made without seams.
Curtains with well-designed features like noise and light reduction are being particularly produced for exports. The dyes used for these need to be sunlight resistant as curtains receive direct sunlight and might start looking dull and faded very soon. They are made in combination with the cushions and other furniture in the room.
The options are many; curtains are available in every size, colour, fabric and designs like stripes, checks, floral, woven, printed, etc. One can chose the fabric from the cottons to linens, velvets, tapestries etc. There are many alternatives in decorative accessories: rods with decorative finials, ornamental brackets, and pleats at the top, holdbacks and tiebacks. The alternatives selected depend on whether one needs to camouflage the windows or show them off, as they are architecturally special, whether one needs privacy or needs to visually enlarge a small room will ascertain the type of curtain one opts for.
In case you want extra light without spoiling your privacy, you can get transom window curtains. This two-part curtain possesses a sheer fabric at the top and privacy panels below. Tab-top curtains have fabric loops on the top to which a rod is fixed. Tie-top curtains possess fabric on the top of the panel that is fixed to the rod. And, grommet-top panels have metal eyelets on the top which is fixed with curtain rings. Tap-top curtains are a latest trend that is common in modern homes.
Many traditional Indian weaves and embroideries are being done all over India on the home furnishings products. Traditional Indian embroideries like 'kasida' from Kashmir, 'kantha' from Bengal and 'chikankari' from Uttar Pradesh are in demand for bed covers and curtains. The tie-and-dye methods of Rajasthan and Gujarat are also widely used for making colourful bed sheets and quilt covers. Many of these are available in cheaper rates in print.
Many home furnishing companies are making these products with handlooms. Normally, high quality silk and cotton are used for these products. While traditionally curtains were either produced with heavy jacquards or luxurious prints, at present a wide range of fabrics covering embroidered fabrics are being used. The attractive display of colours can also be seen in plain sofas with striped and spotted cushions or plush heavy pile carpets with designs varying from geometricals to florals and abstracts.
Occasionally it is appealing themes instead of sorting by room that the designers go for with areas designed by mood like femme fatale, eclectic, delicate, timeless and wild. In fact it includes the accessories like rugs, throws, frames, cushions, etc. Unique linen for the kitchen and other soft furnishings for lawn chairs have also gained remarkable popularity. Tapestries, chenille, cotton and linen prints, stripes and checks, toile, crewel work, plains of all types covering linens, silks, suede, voiles and muslins, and towels, be it for bath or the kitchen, all are included in this segment. The showrooms for soft furnishings provide the customers with a collection of designs to select from.
The Indian home furnishings market is around Rs 15,000 crore, of which the organised market is about Rs 1,000 crore. Earlier, Bombay Dyeing was the only leader in this segment. The major carpet manufacturing areas (including all types of floor coverings and durries) are Agra-Bhadoi belt in Uttar Pradesh, Kashmir, Bikaner-Udaipur belt in Rajasthan, West Bengal, Haryana, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh. In India, there are 1215 carpet production units recorded and of that 190 are in the organized sector and the rest are in small scale industry sector.
The Mirzapur-Bhadohi belt in Uttar Pradesh stands as the major contributor for the carpet weaving industry in the India with nearly 90 per cent of the total production of carpets in India.
Panipat has witnessed high growth in handlooms during the last two decades with the number of looms holding 50,000 are well known for producing acrylic blankets, bed sheets, bed covers, tapestry, upholstery, table mats and table covers. There are above 310 shoddy spinning units in Panipat having a production of 4 lakh kg per day and a turnover of more than Rs 600 crore. Panipat also possess a woolen carpet industry, which is now almost thirty years old, with around 150 units. There are about 60 carpet woolen spinning units in Panipat with an annual turnover of Rs 175 crore making a variety of handloom products such as durries, mats, table covers, bed sheets, curtains and carpets exported to various countries, including Canada, Japan, Germany and Australia.
Benefiting from this booming market and the increasing new and young homemakers, department stores make their home furnishings space by creating well organized living spaces that sell the products very effectively. Many popular companies working with soft furnishings products in India are Welspun, Gujarat (which started first 'Spaces Home & Beyond' store in Mumbai); Handfab, Panipat; Highness Exports; In Vogue Buying, New Delhi; Indian Exporters, Kolkata; Shabari International, Kerala; Cannanore; Amber Textile; and Reliance Industries, and there are brands like the decades-old Bombay Dyeing and just stated like Spaces, Portico, Season's, Yamini etc.
Raymond provides the widest range of colours to satisfy the various colour requirements of interiors in Home furnishings. Home Solutions Retail (India), a 100% holding of retail leader Pantaloon Retail, intends to close its third year of function with about of Rs 1,000 crore. Home Solutions is establishing chain of home stores, committed to all things that would be required for setting up, decorating and furnishing a home. In the first step, the company will be establishing six Home Towns, the company's umbrella store, in Noida, Hyderabad, Gurgaon, Pune, Thane and Bangalore, which will start by June 2007. Each store, covering an expense about Rs 14 crore, will be allotted about 120,000 square feet.
To achieve its brand recognized in the big commoditised home furnishings market, Welspun is investing in retail stores and increasing its capacity to serve the domestic market. Besides its own brand the company recently received the marketing rights of Tommy Hilfiger home furnishing products.
Welspun is also coming up with the concepts to educate and guide customers about issues like hygiene, because most of us are comfortable with replacing our bed sheets once in two weeks. Likewise many families utilize only one towel between themselves. None of us have ever understood that if the same towel is utilized the entire family, each member of the family may get infected. All these maters will be undertaken through various media for which the company has allocated about Rs 10 crore. At present it is searching for an agency to handle its communication activities.
As per the company's retail strategy, which is setting the core of its brand-building practice, in the next three years they are coming with 125 stores across the country with an investment of Rs 50 crore. Amongst the 125, 100 would be standalone Spaces stores. Extended with an area of nearly 2,000 sq ft, the Spaces showrooms would provide furnishings for each room of the house. Besides furnishing items, the showrooms will also provide home décor products such as candles, curios and so on.
Recently, Portico, a premium Home Decor & furnishings brand introduced its premium and 'Sparkly' range.
Besides this, various small players in the market cater to every taste and pocket of the population. For those who do not need to spend in professionally decorating their rooms, many options are available by India's department chain stores like Ebony, Shoppers' Stop, Lifestyle, Pantaloons, Westside and even Big Bazaar.
Because of huge demands, many fashion designers have also forayed in this segment. At present the home furnishings segment is considered a flourishing sector in the textile industry. Domestic and export markets are both booming for home furnishings.
According to experts, to make brand awareness home furnishing companies have to put more emphasis on the overall shopping experience. Retail ambience, coordinated product ranges; in-store display; point-of-purchase promotional literature on the product features as well as the company's lineage and superior in-store service are some of the primary actions that home furnishing companies must take. In fact this has to be made in connection with innovative product and brand advertising and new promotional efforts.
While some experts believe that as the sector is largely commoditised, the main target would be to set the category to constantly develop, which can only be done through customer education.
However, some feel that it is a slight too early to introduce new collections each season. While it could support in making fashion consciousness in India about home furnishings, as well as the designs, colours and prints are contemporary, and the packaging and labeling are as per the good quality standards, home furnishing companies need not be bothered about making more complication in their business by creating repeated changes in their product offering at this stage. In fact, in the next few years, with more competition and more demand, it would be essential to introduce at least two major collections per year.
We require building up more colour and design sensitive people to work in this segment. For those who intend to begin a home furnishing venture, whether for exports or for the domestic market, it is appropriate to begin with just one or two products and then add on to it slowly. Cushion covers and curtains are the more demandable products. If proper plans are made using appropriate color combinations as expected in the colour forecast, and ever new designs are made, then definitely one will get success in this segment. The key point to note here is that trends change fast, so the process of designing and creation should keep on preventing stagnation and making guaranteed success.
Conclusion
In the last few years, people have started spending on furniture and furnishings like they perform with their clothing. For them lifestyle furnishing is turning out as a mix of aesthetics, comfort, colours and designs. Brown sofas are outdated; people need lively colours like blue and red. A few years ago consumers never demanded highly branded home furnishing products, but now they are very well aware about new products and brands in the market, though brand awareness in this segment is still low. Many companies are adding two to three products in their product lines every year and many are comings with innovative concepts in this segment. But, for this segment's growth still it requires a proper planning or strategy, more efforts and educate to customer as well.
In the last 3-4 years, people have begun changing their home furniture like they change their wardrobe according to the changing fashions. Lifestyle furnishing has become a mix of aesthetics, comfort, colours and designs. For instance, brown sofas have become outdated and people now prefer lively colours like blue and red. Though brand awareness in this segment is low but at present the scenario is changing, a few years ago consumers never stressed on purchasing branded home furnishing products, but now they are aware about new products and brands.
The list of furnishings includes bed linen like bed sheets, pillow slips (pillow shams), bed skirts, duvet covers, quilts and cushions; for giving the complete look to the bedroom matching curtains, tie-backs and also mats can be included in this list. This bedroom could be with an attached bathroom making the list even bigger. Towels and floor mats, shower curtains, same soap cases, toothbrush holders, soap dispensers, mugs and rugs can offer the attractiveness of a bathroom. Water in this room, evokes memories of sea and ocean, shells and fish, and hence these are major patterns in the design making of bathroom accessories. Bed-and-bath themes are also combined together by designers.
The bedroom that we are talking about could be that of an adult, or a child, or two adults, or two children and hence the look of every bedroom in a house is unique. The appearance of any room has to be in relevance to the psychological and physical requirements of its occupants.
Bed sheets aren't just utilitarian things; they make style statements while reflecting your personality and moods. As people are becoming more aware about fibres, fabrics, feel, colour and size of bed sheets, pillow slips, quilts, etc, it gives added responsibilities to the designers and manufacturers to ensure quality supply of the same.
Cotton is the most favored fabric for bed sheets, particularly those with a greater thread count. Exporters have an increasing demand for cotton bed sheets, though some also demand silk made-ups. Generally, many export houses are given the designs to work on, or they make their own varieties from which the buyers put up orders. They emphasizes on colour and design. For new born babies soft basic colours are used, where as for grown up children complimentary colour schemes with cartoon like motifs are mostly used. There are a variety of prints to select from. The prints for curtains vary from animals, to soft toys, cartoons and candies; the same is applicable for rugs, bed sheets, duvet covers and cushions.
Teenagers have different preferences like pink which is mostly preferred by girls, whereas blue is a preferred colour for boys. Adults chose from a wide range of colours and motifs including traditional Indian motifs to modern compositions. In fact, the selection of colour and design depends on the fashion trend of today.
One step out of the bedroom and you reach the most happening room of the house - the living room. A combination of huge variety of colours and its relevant coordinates are particularly made to cater to people's physical and psychological desires. Sheer curtains to bring in sunlight, heavy lined curtains to prevent it, embroidered curtains and valences with lace trimmings flaunting luxury and a taste for design, make the room look more appealing and beautiful. Curtains can surely make the room look more attractive. Generally fabrics for sewing curtains are 54 inches wide or extra wide at 110 inches or 118 inches. Extra¬ wide fabrics are normally made for unlined sheer curtains, and are intended to be railroaded or run sideways with the selvage at the top and bottom of the curtains, permitting the curtains to be made without seams.
Curtains with well-designed features like noise and light reduction are being particularly produced for exports. The dyes used for these need to be sunlight resistant as curtains receive direct sunlight and might start looking dull and faded very soon. They are made in combination with the cushions and other furniture in the room.
The options are many; curtains are available in every size, colour, fabric and designs like stripes, checks, floral, woven, printed, etc. One can chose the fabric from the cottons to linens, velvets, tapestries etc. There are many alternatives in decorative accessories: rods with decorative finials, ornamental brackets, and pleats at the top, holdbacks and tiebacks. The alternatives selected depend on whether one needs to camouflage the windows or show them off, as they are architecturally special, whether one needs privacy or needs to visually enlarge a small room will ascertain the type of curtain one opts for.
In case you want extra light without spoiling your privacy, you can get transom window curtains. This two-part curtain possesses a sheer fabric at the top and privacy panels below. Tab-top curtains have fabric loops on the top to which a rod is fixed. Tie-top curtains possess fabric on the top of the panel that is fixed to the rod. And, grommet-top panels have metal eyelets on the top which is fixed with curtain rings. Tap-top curtains are a latest trend that is common in modern homes.
Many traditional Indian weaves and embroideries are being done all over India on the home furnishings products. Traditional Indian embroideries like 'kasida' from Kashmir, 'kantha' from Bengal and 'chikankari' from Uttar Pradesh are in demand for bed covers and curtains. The tie-and-dye methods of Rajasthan and Gujarat are also widely used for making colourful bed sheets and quilt covers. Many of these are available in cheaper rates in print.
Many home furnishing companies are making these products with handlooms. Normally, high quality silk and cotton are used for these products. While traditionally curtains were either produced with heavy jacquards or luxurious prints, at present a wide range of fabrics covering embroidered fabrics are being used. The attractive display of colours can also be seen in plain sofas with striped and spotted cushions or plush heavy pile carpets with designs varying from geometricals to florals and abstracts.
Occasionally it is appealing themes instead of sorting by room that the designers go for with areas designed by mood like femme fatale, eclectic, delicate, timeless and wild. In fact it includes the accessories like rugs, throws, frames, cushions, etc. Unique linen for the kitchen and other soft furnishings for lawn chairs have also gained remarkable popularity. Tapestries, chenille, cotton and linen prints, stripes and checks, toile, crewel work, plains of all types covering linens, silks, suede, voiles and muslins, and towels, be it for bath or the kitchen, all are included in this segment. The showrooms for soft furnishings provide the customers with a collection of designs to select from.
The Indian home furnishings market is around Rs 15,000 crore, of which the organised market is about Rs 1,000 crore. Earlier, Bombay Dyeing was the only leader in this segment. The major carpet manufacturing areas (including all types of floor coverings and durries) are Agra-Bhadoi belt in Uttar Pradesh, Kashmir, Bikaner-Udaipur belt in Rajasthan, West Bengal, Haryana, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh. In India, there are 1215 carpet production units recorded and of that 190 are in the organized sector and the rest are in small scale industry sector.
The Mirzapur-Bhadohi belt in Uttar Pradesh stands as the major contributor for the carpet weaving industry in the India with nearly 90 per cent of the total production of carpets in India.
Panipat has witnessed high growth in handlooms during the last two decades with the number of looms holding 50,000 are well known for producing acrylic blankets, bed sheets, bed covers, tapestry, upholstery, table mats and table covers. There are above 310 shoddy spinning units in Panipat having a production of 4 lakh kg per day and a turnover of more than Rs 600 crore. Panipat also possess a woolen carpet industry, which is now almost thirty years old, with around 150 units. There are about 60 carpet woolen spinning units in Panipat with an annual turnover of Rs 175 crore making a variety of handloom products such as durries, mats, table covers, bed sheets, curtains and carpets exported to various countries, including Canada, Japan, Germany and Australia.
Benefiting from this booming market and the increasing new and young homemakers, department stores make their home furnishings space by creating well organized living spaces that sell the products very effectively. Many popular companies working with soft furnishings products in India are Welspun, Gujarat (which started first 'Spaces Home & Beyond' store in Mumbai); Handfab, Panipat; Highness Exports; In Vogue Buying, New Delhi; Indian Exporters, Kolkata; Shabari International, Kerala; Cannanore; Amber Textile; and Reliance Industries, and there are brands like the decades-old Bombay Dyeing and just stated like Spaces, Portico, Season's, Yamini etc.
Raymond provides the widest range of colours to satisfy the various colour requirements of interiors in Home furnishings. Home Solutions Retail (India), a 100% holding of retail leader Pantaloon Retail, intends to close its third year of function with about of Rs 1,000 crore. Home Solutions is establishing chain of home stores, committed to all things that would be required for setting up, decorating and furnishing a home. In the first step, the company will be establishing six Home Towns, the company's umbrella store, in Noida, Hyderabad, Gurgaon, Pune, Thane and Bangalore, which will start by June 2007. Each store, covering an expense about Rs 14 crore, will be allotted about 120,000 square feet.
To achieve its brand recognized in the big commoditised home furnishings market, Welspun is investing in retail stores and increasing its capacity to serve the domestic market. Besides its own brand the company recently received the marketing rights of Tommy Hilfiger home furnishing products.
Welspun is also coming up with the concepts to educate and guide customers about issues like hygiene, because most of us are comfortable with replacing our bed sheets once in two weeks. Likewise many families utilize only one towel between themselves. None of us have ever understood that if the same towel is utilized the entire family, each member of the family may get infected. All these maters will be undertaken through various media for which the company has allocated about Rs 10 crore. At present it is searching for an agency to handle its communication activities.
As per the company's retail strategy, which is setting the core of its brand-building practice, in the next three years they are coming with 125 stores across the country with an investment of Rs 50 crore. Amongst the 125, 100 would be standalone Spaces stores. Extended with an area of nearly 2,000 sq ft, the Spaces showrooms would provide furnishings for each room of the house. Besides furnishing items, the showrooms will also provide home décor products such as candles, curios and so on.
Recently, Portico, a premium Home Decor & furnishings brand introduced its premium and 'Sparkly' range.
Besides this, various small players in the market cater to every taste and pocket of the population. For those who do not need to spend in professionally decorating their rooms, many options are available by India's department chain stores like Ebony, Shoppers' Stop, Lifestyle, Pantaloons, Westside and even Big Bazaar.
Because of huge demands, many fashion designers have also forayed in this segment. At present the home furnishings segment is considered a flourishing sector in the textile industry. Domestic and export markets are both booming for home furnishings.
According to experts, to make brand awareness home furnishing companies have to put more emphasis on the overall shopping experience. Retail ambience, coordinated product ranges; in-store display; point-of-purchase promotional literature on the product features as well as the company's lineage and superior in-store service are some of the primary actions that home furnishing companies must take. In fact this has to be made in connection with innovative product and brand advertising and new promotional efforts.
While some experts believe that as the sector is largely commoditised, the main target would be to set the category to constantly develop, which can only be done through customer education.
However, some feel that it is a slight too early to introduce new collections each season. While it could support in making fashion consciousness in India about home furnishings, as well as the designs, colours and prints are contemporary, and the packaging and labeling are as per the good quality standards, home furnishing companies need not be bothered about making more complication in their business by creating repeated changes in their product offering at this stage. In fact, in the next few years, with more competition and more demand, it would be essential to introduce at least two major collections per year.
We require building up more colour and design sensitive people to work in this segment. For those who intend to begin a home furnishing venture, whether for exports or for the domestic market, it is appropriate to begin with just one or two products and then add on to it slowly. Cushion covers and curtains are the more demandable products. If proper plans are made using appropriate color combinations as expected in the colour forecast, and ever new designs are made, then definitely one will get success in this segment. The key point to note here is that trends change fast, so the process of designing and creation should keep on preventing stagnation and making guaranteed success.
Conclusion
In the last few years, people have started spending on furniture and furnishings like they perform with their clothing. For them lifestyle furnishing is turning out as a mix of aesthetics, comfort, colours and designs. Brown sofas are outdated; people need lively colours like blue and red. A few years ago consumers never demanded highly branded home furnishing products, but now they are very well aware about new products and brands in the market, though brand awareness in this segment is still low. Many companies are adding two to three products in their product lines every year and many are comings with innovative concepts in this segment. But, for this segment's growth still it requires a proper planning or strategy, more efforts and educate to customer as well.
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