That Lycra trick

Indian fashion designers are testing how wide they can stretch the appeal of their labels.

It's a philosophy that you extend," says fashion designer Deepika Govind, on our way to the second floor of her new store in Delhi's Khan Market that stocks not just apparel but also lifestyle products "" furnishings, furniture, objets d'art and other knick-knacks "" sporting the DG tag.

Govind is among the few fashion designers in India trying to stretch her designer label to encompass a wider spectrum of products, and thus cash in on the new craze for lifestyle products.

JJ Valaya's House of Valaya was among the first in India to extend its brand to lifestyle products, with a couture flower range Valaya.FNP Fleur. "Brand extensions are a natural process," says Valaya, "and the future of any fashion brand."

Apparel just happens to be intrinsic to fashion. There's plenty more that plays to the same sensibilities.

Why, Rohit Bal turned interior designer for his restaurant Veda, and Raghavendra Rathore designs chocolates along with lifestyle products under his signature line Rathore Jodhpur, apart from his famous bandhgalas.

Vijay Arora's store Anant sports his apparel along with furnishings. And Manju and Bobby Grover will be unveiling their home furnishing line at the ongoing Spring/Summer Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week.

But these are just a handful of designers in India trying to widen their product spectrum, in comparison to the West where designers like Armani and Versace have whetted demand for their signature on cosmetics, sunglasses and even hotel services.

Is this likely here? Says designer Bobby Grover, "The trend is catching up in India but it will take another 10-15 years to develop like the West."

In any case, clothes alone do not make for much business, especially when the clientele is kept limited to the few who "get it", and retail costs keep escalating (monthly running costs of Rs 3-4 lakh are not unheard of, and a new shop could take Rs 1 crore to set up). Stretching the label makes good business sense.

"For creative people, it's easier to branch out into related areas," says Rathi Vinay Jha, managing director, Fashion Design Council of India. Production can be outsourced, but the creative appeal has to be broadly consistent.

"Brand creation is an expensive proposition for most, but easy for fashion designers who don't capitalise on the exposure they get on Page 3 for their product range," says R S Roy, editorial director, Images Group, who pegs the market for designer products in India at Rs 250 crore.

Some designers, though, prefer tie-ups with lifestyle stores. Krishna Mehta, for example, has a deal with Zeba, a furnishings retail chain.

While other designers may find themselves under no compulsion to stretch their labels, they must surely wonder how much better they could do with a little more flexibility.