JCT forays into ready-made men's wear biz, eyes Rs100-cr sales

Textile firm JCT Ltd has decided to foray into the ready-made garments business by launching men's range of 'Ready to Wear' outfits through 100 exclusive outlets and is eyeing a turnover of Rs 100 crore within the next three years from this new venture.     

"Since we are a vertically integrated textile company, venturing into branded ready-made garments business by its retailing is the next step for us to drive the company's growth," JCT Director (Operations) Rajmohan Singh told PTI.     

Having decided to operate through the franchise model, the company plans to open 100 exclusive branded outlets (EBO) for marketing of ready-made garments for men in two years.     

"Initially, we will be targeting to open our EBOs in tier II cities to capture growth and afterwards we will be switching over to big cities for opening outlets," he said.     

Post expansion, the company expects to garner Rs 100-crore turnover from the ready made garments business, he said.     

JCT Limited, a Thapar group company, is expecting to reach total sale of Rs 700 crore in 2008-09 against a turnover of Rs 600 crore achieved in 2007-08, he said.

JCT would be rolling out casual range of garments for men and would target middle-income group for its garments. "The pricing of the product is still to be worked out but we will target middle-income people," Singh said.     

However, he was not concerned over the company's timing of foraying into ready made garments sector against the backdrop of gloomy market scene triggered by economic slowdown. "It (recession) is a cycle and we are hoping that the situation from now onwards will improve," he asserted.     

The company has three manufacturing facilities in Punjab and has production capacity of 4.5 million metres per month.