The company’s fashion & lifestyle business reported a growth of 17 per cent in revenues at Rs 1,613 crore for the second quarter ended September 2013. For the half year ended September 2013, the revenues were up 32 per cent year-on-year at Rs 2,907 crore.

With retail presence expanding to 1,587 stores across 3.9 million sq. ft. as of September 30, 2013, the EBITDA during the Jul-Sep 2013 quarter also rose to Rs 155 crore from Rs 137 crore in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal.

Revenue break-up for the second quarter shows that “branded apparels and accessories” segment contributed most to the growth during the quarter. Revenues from branded apparel were up 19.5 per cent at Rs 1,303 crore as against Rs 1,090 crore in the year ago period.

Building up momentum in the company’s branded apparel segment is recent acquisition of Pantaloon Retail which almost doubled ABNL’s retail presence and also provided an entry into categories like ethnic and children wear.

For the half-year ended September 2013, Pantaloons’ revenues almost doubled to Rs 832 crore from Rs 450 crore a year ago. The company launched 3 new Pantaloons stores during the September quarter and also introduced Madura brands like Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly & Peter England in those stores. ABNL said “Pantaloons is in investment phase and is strengthening its retail presence, brand positioning and merchandize to enhance sell through.”

“Pantaloons’ EBITDA margin to remain muted in the short run, business being in the investment phase. Finance costs optimized through debt refinancing,” said ABNL in a statement.

Meanwhile, Madura Fashion, whose brand portfolio includes product lines that range from affordable and mass-market to luxurious, high-end style, reported a 30 per cent growth in revenues during the quarter at Rs 840 crore, driven by strong volume growth across brands and products.

Sales in Madura’s retail channel grew by 27 per cent, led by store expansion and 7 per cent like-to-like growth. Sales from Wholesale Channels also grew by 39 per cent and EBITDA surged sharply by 82 per cent at Rs 118 crore. The company’s ROACE (annualized) increased to 82 per cent from 32 per cent a year ago.

Going forward, the company says it will focus on building brand leadership, scaling up retail space & enriching product portfolio in the apparels business.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India