Carlton to hit Indian shoe market

29 Dec '05

2 min read

Carlton London, a shoe brand of UK, would soon be available in Indian market.

Stylo Plc of UK, the company that sells Carlton London in the UK, the UAE and Eastern Europe, proposes to start 10 stores in the country in the coming year to retail shoes, handbags and accessories.

Company would start its stores in A and B category cities. If the brand meets with success in these cities, company may start selling in C category cities.

Asked about investment, Michael Ziff, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Stylo said the company was outlining its investment plans in 10 cities.

Stylo would introduce only Shellys and Barrots chains in India from its `Shellys', `Barrots' and `Priceless' chain of shoe stores elsewhere. The company sources all its shoes from China, India, Italy, Brazil and Vietnam, among other countries.

Prices of the shoes would be lower than elsewhere because the company would be sourcing for its India sales from India itself, informed Ziff.

Stylo would form JV with Carlton Overseas and Mirza Tanners for the supply of footwear in the Indian market.

In 2005, Stylo's sale stood at around 18 million pairs worldwide. Of these, about 2.5 million pairs were sourced from India, said Ziff.

In 2006, company sets target of selling 20 million pairs of which four million could be from India, he said.

Stylo is the second largest shoe seller in the UK having about 600 stores. The turnover of the company was £250 million this year.

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