How you sell an outfit as important as what you sell: Sabyasachi Mukherjee

As many as 63 pieces of art, 57 hand painted chandeliers, 732 ittar bottles, 112 antique carpets, five rare Tanjores, 214 vintage Dutch plates, 42 pieces of calendar art, colonial style furniture and more -- designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee's new flagship store exudes a vintage aura. The couturier says right packaging is as significant as one's product.

"How you sell an outfit is as important as what you sell because it creates a perfect 360 degree brand story about what you are trying to tell about your product and about your vision of the brand. A flagship store that doesn't say that, is akin to a product with bad packaging," Sabyasachi told IANS.

The designer, who started an eponymous label in 1999, has opened gates to his flagship store in Mehrauli here on March 1. It is spread over two wings and 13,500 sq ft, divided by a heritage monument with a grand staircase.

Hand-fired Portuguese tiles, antique mirrors, an impressive collection of vintage photographs, lithographs, rich carpets and rugs add to charm of the store, where turn of the century antique furniture, hand painted chandeliers lend extravaganza.

Also, some marvels from the Sabyasachi Art Foundation adorn the walls of the store, where block printed chintz, eclectic crockery and ittar bottles painstakingly collected from the bylanes of old Delhi, Lucknow and Kolkata, vintage curios and organic smells and essences of India, create a mesmerizing experience.

In all, it encapsulates everything that Sabyasachi envisioned for his flagship store.

"People have a misconception that I didn't have a flagship store here. I always did, but the store outgrew the demands of my increasing business. We wanted to have a separate section for men, a separate section for jewellery, a separate bridal section, and it was not possible with the space constraints in our previous store," he said.

The store's two wings have different offerings.

Wing one houses women's bridal wear, jewellery by Kishandas & Co. for Sabyasachi, and trunks and luggage by Trunks Company, Jaipur; while Wing two houses ready-to-wear, saris and kurtas with a separate floor for menswear. Supporting the clothing collection is Sabyasachi's now iconic accessory line and trunks and luggage by Trunks Company, Jaipur.

An organic prêt line of clothing and revival of 'Chota Sabya' will soon find their way into the store.

Sabyasachi says the idea of exploring such a detailed store -- much like the work on his bespoke ensembles -- in the capital, made a lot of sense.

"The Delhi market has always been exciting for a couture designer because of the fact that Delhi loves dressing up, Delhi loves entertaining and I think the culture of clothing, food and good living is very prevalent in Delhi," he added.

The store apart, Sabyasachi is looking forward to the forthcoming summer wedding season and predicts that "the big trend will be a lot of organics, where you are going to see a lot of cotton and muslins in pale, neutral colours, and the focus will be on delicate hand embroidery rather than something that's high on bling".