Indian Women Set to End Denim Blues

By: Shramana Ganguly Mehta

Market Share for Ladies Category in India to Jump Three-Fold in Four Years

The rugged fabric is desperately seeking female attention. With women constituting only 8% of the `4,700-crore Indian denim market, the fabric is keen to drape the fairer sex. Denim makers say men led the 10- fold jump in consumption over the last 15 years and now, it is over to women to lead the next growth phase. At present, for each 100 men who own a pair of jeans, there are 15 women. This ratio will change to 100:30 by 2015, predict garmenters, even as designers work on newer trends that would appeal to women.

Latest Trends/Designs in Women's Jeans:

Lightweight denims and front pleating are in
Vintage fits, such as the "mom" jeans, continue to be popular
Dungarees and denim short-alls are shaping up to be a key festival staple
Authentic denim colours are in vogue with an emphasis on warmer colours with worn and laundered looks
Traditional labelling, personalised embroideries are in
Pockets are a key detailing focus
Chunky, contrast zip accents adorn side seams and pockets. Vintage fits, such as the "mom" jeans, continue to be popular

Vital Statistics:

India has the capacity to produce 650 million metres of denim per annum
Close to 300 million metres of denim fabric is consumed by Indians annually
In US, the per capita per unit purchase stands at 1.9 jeans
In India, the per capita per unit purchase of denim stands at 0.3 in 2010
Men comprise 75% of the denim market in India against 8% women
In US, the per capita jeans ownership stands at 8 while in case of woman it is 7
In India, the per capita jeans ownership is between 0.25 metre-0.30 metre

Ashish Dhir, head, Fashion Practice at Technopak, says women's denim category would grow 23% much faster than men's 15% annually. The market share of women's denim too would grow from 8% t0 25% by 2014.

So, be it a pair of jeggings (skin-fit style), a coloured jeans for a flashy teenager or a denim trousers for a working woman, retailers expect women to end saturation in the market.

The Indian consumers are still far away from their American counterpart, but are fast catching up. Denim exponent Sandeep Agarwal of b2b portal denimandjeans.com says: "While an American purchases 1.9 pair of jeans per annum, Indians buy 0.3 units currently, a ten-fold jump over 1995 levels. Further, with Indian women yet to accept jeans, there is ample opportunity for the category to grow. While in case of men, the urban-rural ratio of denim consumption is 70:30, in case of women it is 100% urban. In cities, women in the age group of 15-45 purchase around 1.7 jeans per year, against 1.9 jeans bought by men annually, adds Dhir.

Subir Mukherjee, marketing head of India's largest denim-maker Arvind Ltd, says denim is awaiting a trigger which could come from C and D (towns and villages) pockets.