Turtle eyes mass brand

Kolkata-based Turtle Ltd, the Rs 48 crore menswear readymade garments company, plans to introduce its economy brand ‘London Bridge’ nationally by the end of this month.

Turtle also plans to invest close to Rs 5 crore in increasing its production capacity from the current 1.5 million pieces per annum.

According to Amit Ladsaria, director of the company, “We have rolled out the brand in most places but just have a few other cities to cover like Delhi, mumbai, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, etc.”

The company also plans to set up standalone stores of London Bridge in another six months. Currently it is sold through multi-brand-outlets.

The company will also launch new lines of products under its existing 'Turtle' brand.

For one, it will introduce denimwear this year priced between Rs 995 and Rs 1495.

“We test-marketed London Bridge with 100 retailers in Bengal. Within six months of its launch, we recorded sales of Rs 1.8 crore, a figure that took Turtle five years to achieve,” Ladsaria said.

He added, “We have therefore decided to roll out the brand nationally in July this year. Currently, London Bridge has only shirts, t-shirts and trousers, but we will add new lines of products under it.”

The London Bridge shirts are priced at Rs 399 and Rs 499, while the t-shirts are priced at Rs 199 and Rs 299. The London Bridge trousers are priced at Rs 499 and Rs 699.

In contrast, Turtle’s formalwear is priced between Rs 695 and Rs 995, while its casuals are priced between Rs 795 and Rs 995.

“The difference between London Bridge and Turtle is in price points. Also, London Bridge is blended fabrics while Turtle products are only cotton,” Ladsaria explained.

The company is also foraying into men’s suits, priced between Rs 1995 and Rs 7995, under its Turtle brand.

The manufacturing of suits will be outsourced to another leading suit manufacturer. Initially, the company plans to produce 20,000 suits for this year.

Turtle, at present, offers shirts and trousers in business as well as leisurewear. It also offers accessories such as cufflinks, ties, socks, belts, wallets, and innerwear.