Turtle set to foray into eyewear retail

The eyewear market is projected to reach Rs 43,000 cr by 2015, at a CAGR of 30%

Turtle Limited, a Kolkata-based men’s lifestyle apparel brand, will be entering the men's eyewear retailing market during January-February 2013, according to director Shitanshu Jhunjhunwalla.

“Plans to foray into eyewear retailing, sunglasses and optical frames to begin with, are in the finalisation stages. Targeting customers between the age groups of 23 and 30, the Turtle eyewear range will be priced between Rs 2,000 and Rs 3,000. While we expect this business to account for 1-2% of our revenues in the first year of launch, the contribution may go up to 3-4% in the next year,” he told Business Standard.

According to the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), the eyewear market in India is currently pegged at Rs. 21,000 crore, and is projected to touch Rs 43,000 crore by 2015, at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 30%.

Currently present in India and the West Asian markets, including countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain, the company is looking at expanding its international footprint by going to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the first half of the next calendar. At present, exports account for 3-4% of the company’s total sales.

“We feel that there is still a lot of scope and potential in the domestic market, which we want to fully tap into. Exports will remain at about 5-6% of our total sales at least for the next couple of years,” Jhunjhunwalla said.

Turtle, which has its apparel manufacturing facilities in Bangalore and Kolkata with a capacity of 200,000 units per month, clocked a turnover of Rs 123.5 crore in the 2011-12 financial year, with a target to continue to grow at a CAGR of 30% during this fiscal and the next.

Plans 6 exclusive stores in AP

Turtle, which currently operates 65 exclusive stores pan-India, including for its men's final apparel brand London Bridge, is aiming at having 100 stores in the next one year, each with an investment of between Rs 20 lakh and Rs 30 lakh. Turtle’s opened its third exclusive store in Hyderabad on Thursday,

Jhunjhunwalla said that the company was planning to open 5-6 more stores in Andhra Pradesh, including in Tier-II cities like Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada during the current financial year.