If fashion retail is growing phenomenally anywhere, it is in India!

The Indian apparel retail market is expected to reach US $ 88.48 billion, making it the third largest after USA and China and, if all goes well, by 2026, it would reach a whopping US $ 106.93 billion.

The strong build-up of consumer confidence backed by a burgeoning middle-class with ever-increasing spending power, which once led multinationals to come, establish and expand footprints in Tier-II and Tier-III cities to exploit the opportunities that are on offer here in India, is now resulting in the next level of market maturity where consolidation and acquisitions have become the name of the game.

Names like Reliance Retail, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, Future Retail, Shoppers Stop, V-mart, Westside, Shoppers Stop, V2 Retail, Mandhana Retail, Provogue, Cantabil Retail, Raymond (Park Avenue), Spencers Retail, Benetton India have not only expanded even during the pandemic period, many of them have also acquired and invested in renowned fashion brands and designer labels with an aim to reach a wider audience, to add a new dimension to the market.

One manufacturing destination which is gaining the most from this is Bangladesh, which in 2021, accounted for 40 per cent of India’s total apparel imports even if according to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India imported US $ 1.16 billion worth of apparels during 2021 from Bangladesh, noting a 30 per cent Y-o-Y growth, leaving behind China, which could ship a mere US $ 279.18 million worth of garments, conceding a 7.48 per cent decline in 2021 (on yearly basis).

Further analysis of the data by Apparel Resources (AR), the proud organiser of ASW ’22, found apparel import from Bangladesh valued US $ 474.71 million (highest amongst all importing destinations) noting a massive increase of 58.54 per cent in 2021 over 2020 and 19.10 per cent over 2019.

Catering successfully to the global brands and retailers operating in India already, Bangladesh garment makers have now found a new growth avenue in the home-grown Indian brands.

Considering the huge population of base 1.35 billion, even if the organised domestic apparel manufacturing sector stands only at US $ 30 billion, it is not sufficient enough to cater to the needs of the Indian fashion retail sector, thanks to which all the domestic bigwigs are now following the footsteps of the global retailers to source more and more from Bangladesh.

Reliance Retail, Aditya Birla, Arvind and the list continues to grow by the day. That Bangladesh is next door to India with improved connectivity and logistics support not to speak of duty-free benefits and the strategic Indo-Bangladesh ties, give further impetus to mutual trade, allowing the former to make further inroads in India provided it taps the right potentials.

ASW '22 gives you the opportunity that you have been looking for to meet and interact with the who’s who of the Indian fashion retail sector and foster meaningful business relationships for an enriching experience and a promising future in India.

Hope you have marked the dates of Asia’s most premier sourcing event...Yes it’s on July 1 & 2, in the picturesque city of Bengaluru.