Woodland plans a new identity for Woods

Plans to reposition it, give it a seperate identity

Aero Group, known for its flagship Woodland brand, is planning to give a spin to one of its old brands, Woods. The company is planning to open around 30 Woods stores in the year in a new avatar.

Managing Director Harkirat Singh said the eight-year-old brand would play out with the fashion quotient, rather than the typical outdoor, rough and tough image of Woodland.

“This would focus more on the fashion needs of women. Sixty per cent of Woods would be focused on women, while the rest would be for men. We will slowly introduce an apparel range in Woods as well,” said Singh.

The branded footwear market is estimated to be about Rs 30,000 crore.

“Though the luxury segment is still not that big, it is growing significantly. Out of that, the segment for women has been growing more than that for men,” added Singh.

Woods started as a footwear brand for men; it was later extended for women. Woods contributes around 20 per cent of total sales.

Singh said the contribution of Woods would scale up to around 30 per cent in three years and there were plans to invest Rs 50-60 crore for carving out the new identity of Woods. Woods products would cost Rs 4,000-8,000.

Woodland had a top line of Rs 850 crore in FY13 and is looking to close the current year with an over Rs 1,000 crore top line.

Apparel share
According to Singh, going forward, the apparel segments' contribution would see a greater role in the next two to three years. Currently, 70 per cent of sales are in footwear for Woodland, while the rest comes from apparel.

“We have witnessed that when people come to get our shoes, if offered , they also buy clothes and accessories. A lot of impulse buying takes place. Thus, the pie of apparel will grow bigger in two-three years to the tune of 40- 50 per cent,” he added.

There are a total of 400 Woodland stores in the country at present.