OCM India tie up with Italian designer for winter collection

India's fabric manufacturer OCM India Limited has joined hands with Italian designer M. Cristina Fedriani for creating its premium winter collection, which will hit the Indian market September end.

Fedriani established and manages Progetto Stile - a service company working in fashion market for around 25 years.

"We have made around 850 designs, which comprise 5,000 shades. The designs are around three themes which are the gentlemen's club, urban style and essential daily wear," OCM India Ltd's global sales head Vikram Mahaldar told reporters here.

"We are working with Cristina from last three years now and we realised that right now, the urban part of the country understands the essence of Italian design and fabrics which may not be true for rural India. But in urban India, the taste has started changing towards Italian designs and it's globally true.

"Across the world made in Italy is considered to be premium...People want to buy imported Italian fabrics and seeing that trend, we tied up with Cristina. She is our design associate based at Turin, Italy," he added.

Fedriani started with a small pilot project and went on to create the winter one for OCM India Limited.

"She also had to understand Indian taste. We can't make collection that is completely Italian in nature. She has been coming here for the past two years. For the first time, for the winter she has made a large part of the collection and therefore, we are introducing her now," Mahaldar said.

It wasn't a cakewalk for the Italian designer, who is an architect by training.

"It was not easy, but OCM are open minded. Italy is the heart of creativity and fashion, for tailoring and quality. For each customer, I understand their concept and adapt my work only for their market and customers," said Fedriani.

Available in various shades of colours like red, green, blue and purple, the winter collection has wool-silk, lycra, wool-poly and much more.

OCM Indian are also set to launch women's wear range and ready-to-wear sweater and pure silk ties.

"The urban parts of the country, a lot of women want to get formally dressed because they are working with corporates. Fortunately for us, women in India come in different shapes and sizes and therefore, readymade garment generally don't fit them...

"They have to go to tailor and get customised. So, we thought of giving fabric solutions especially for corporate women so that they can choose fabric. We will give style guide also which will have various styles of garments for women and they can take that style guide and tell the tailor that they want the fabric in this cut. Having realised that demand, we have introduced this collection," said Mahaldar.

The company is known for its wool and wool-blended worsted fabrics.