Bombay Shirt Company (BSC), an online custom-made shirt brand, has drawn up plans to expand its geographical footprint across the country, said a top executive.
“We have seven physical stores and plan to open 18 offline stores in 18 months,” said founder Akshay Narvekar. “Most of it will be through the franchise route as franchisees have very good local knowledge.” Each store would measure 400-500 sq.ft. requiring an investment of ₹20 lakh each by the franchisees, he said.
BSC started five years ago as an online retailer and opened retail stores in Mumbai in 2014, eyeing an omni-channel presence. Today, sales from online and offline stores account for 50% each. The firm has four production units in Mumbai and that would expand, with the opening of more retail stores coupled with growth in sales volume, Mr. Narvekar said. “Before spending, people prefer to touch and feel the fabrics. While the listings in the online stores are limited, retail stores display more than 3,000 fabrics that are sourced from different parts of the world such as India, Japan, Turkey and Europe. With well-trained and knowledgeable store staff, we render guidance through stylists with a master tailor at hand to help customers find the perfect fit according to their body type,” he said.
“Recently, we raised funding of ₹10 crore from a bunch of investors and we don’t need any funds right now. We opened a showroom in Dubai recently and plans are on to enter New York next year. Our shirts are priced from ₹1,700 to ₹70,000. There is a good response from the public. We will be entering Hyderabad, Gurugram, Pune and other cities soon,” he said.
