Mutiyaar eyes bridal wear

‘Mutiyaar’ by Ridhi Arora is a new venture launched Ridhi Arora on MG Road. A Delhi based fashion designer Ridhi launched her flagship store. On display were the Spring Summer 2013 and Signature collection. In a candid interview with Ridhi Arora, she shares her views on the fashion industry and what impact retail makes on it.   

Baibhab Das (BD): Indeed a catchy name, how would you describe your brand?

Ridhi Arora (RA): The brand is named ‘Mutiyaar’ which in Punjabi means young, beautiful girl. The concept of the brand lies in stylising a person. The target age group is typically between 16-50 years. Every woman is beautiful in her own way and the idea is to enhance that beauty.  Ridhi Arora is all about customised styling and 80 per cent of the wear available is trousseau wear.

BD: Moving into retail is a gradual forward integration but for you what was the focus? Kindly share.

RA: The idea of moving to retail is to be at par with other competing brands and be on the map of retail. Yes, for sure it does bring in new audiences and a store is very much required for displaying seasonal collections. Gone are the days when a studio was enough to proliferate the brand name and image.

BD: What’s the USP of the brand?

RA: The brand focuses on trousseau wear featured in many colours. Moreover, being designer wear, it is ensured that every outfit is different from the other. As mentioned earlier the concept is customised designing and therefore the dress has to be made considering one’s age, height, figure etc in accordance of which the drape, dye and design is made.

BD: What are the retail plans of the year?

RA: Mutiyaar is a new entrant in the market and therefore as of now the idea is just to remain here and making our presence felt at an era of cut-throat competition. We will be entering the bridal market in August and also setting up new clients. Our positioning will be that of couture and we will be introducing new dress materials considering the season.

BD: Why MG gallery as a location for a flagship store?

RA: Gallery on MG Road is at a prominent location at the city and is therefore set to bring in more customers and ensure more footfalls. Our aim is to position ourselves as one of the premium brands. “To be a label, one has to be amongst the labels”.

BD: What changes have been made in terms of price range for a larger audience?

RA: The prices have been decided in accordance keeping in mind the spending capacity of the middle and upper middle class segment. While retail shops mostly cater to either the masses or the absolute top end segment of society which is opulence in terms of the aspiration crowd of the country. Exclusive dresses and designer wear should be made available for these people and prices have gone up a little bit since the inception of our brand. The difference is only marginal and products of our brands are still available at only 60-65 per cent of other labels.

BD: What’s the best product category?

RA: The best product category is Indo-Western fusion especially when there are engagements and receptions. People nowadays want the Indian attire with hints of Westernisation and therefore customisation is the key. For example, a gown with embellishments or semi-bridal dresses.

BD: What are the challenges of retail?

RA: The major challenges of retail are meeting the overheads. There are on-season and off season but the business still has to go on. Creating a balance is the key. We are constantly accountable to our employees and thus maintaining a balance throughout the year is a key.

BD: How are you promoting your brand?

RA: Promotion lies majorly on social media. There are plenty of Media and PR activities. To top it all there are regular exhibitions. In the midst of competition we have co-branded and tied up with a jewellery designer. There is also a tie-up with a spa. Moreover, there exist a sea of opportunities abroad namely the USA, UK and UAE. However, as of now we are concentrating on setting ourselves up over here.