Arvind acquires Indian business of Debenhams, Next and Nautica

Acquisition signals its entry into the department store segment & also the globally fast growing apparel speciality retail segment

Arvind Lifestyle Brands, a subsidiary of Ahmedabad-based denim major Arvind Ltd, has acquired the business operations of British fashion retailer Debenhams and Next as well as American Lifestyle brand Nautica in India from Planet Retail.

"The acquisition signals our entry into the department store segment and also the globally fast growing apparel speciality retail segment. American sportwear lifestyle brand Nautica makes us the dominant player in the sportswear segment. With this we have taken a big step towards strengthening our position in the Indian fashion industry. This acquisitions will accelerate our growth and contribute to our vision of achieving sales of Rs 5000 crore over the next five years," said Sanjay Lalbhai, chairman and managing director, Arvind Ltd, which is one of the largest players in the apparel brands and retail space.

We have strong menswear portfolio, which will get further strengthened with Nautica. Debenhams and Next will substantially strengthen our position in womenwear and kidswear. We plan to achieve Rs 500 crore revenues over next five years from current Rs 70 crore by investing Rs 150 crore in these three brands," said J Suresh, managing director and CEO, Arvind Lifestyle Brands Ltd.

The company termed the acquisition of Debenhams significant mainly because it gives Arvind an entry into the bridge to luxury department store segment. Arvind plans to increase the current number of Debenhams stores in India from 2 to 8 over the next three years. While, through acquisition of Indian businesses of Next, Arvind will enter into the fast growing segment of apparel specialty retail. The Indian apparel giant plans to increase the number of Next stores from 3 to 12 in the next three years.

Commenting on the acquisition, Next spokesperson said, "We are very positive about the new franchise partnership and we are looking forward to Arvind Brands re-launching the Next brand in India."

The licensing arrangement with Nautica is believed to further strengthen Arvind's position in high potential sportswear segment of the market. The company plans to set up additional 30 Nautica stores in India taking the total number of free standing Nautica stores to 41 and 71 shops in shops in the next 3 years.