The first moves have begun by mega players, both Indian and international, to tie up with fashion designers and bring the ramp to the market. This is in tune with the business model followed internationally that has made global giants of fashion designers.

Reliance Industries and Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH), Madura, Birla and Wills Lifestyle are said to be exploring arrangements with top designers, including Rohit Bal, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Tarun Tahiliani, J J Valaya and Ritu Kumar.

The idea is to ramp up Indian fashion — currently at an annual turnover of just over Rs 500 crore — via “strategic alliances” with designers, or even to buy out their labels, especially since retail is the new gold, courtesy the hyper invasion of the mall culture.

This is the primary reason the Fashion Design Council of India was set up in 1999, the organising body of the India Fashion Week, to aim for a corporate hand that will help designers move from their homegrown, private incorporated or even garage companies to the mass market.

“Without adequate finance, the fashion industry will not be able to realise its potential. Financial infusion will lead to growth of the fashion industry resulting in the establishment of luxury brands,” says FDCI’s executive director Sumeet Nair.

What this means is, depending on the agreement, the mother company is the majority partner of the designer’s label. It provides factories, shops, money for advertising and even a CEO to run the show. It means mass production of clothes, set-ups to manufacture accessories and perfumes (the main driver of the fashion industry internationally).

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