Co-optex to tap new buyers via online sales

Tamilnadu Handloom Weavers' Co-operative Society Ltd, popularly known as Co-optex, which sells the products of some 254,000 small and medium-sized weavers in Tamil Nadu, has drawn up a strategy to tap more customers, especially youth, through online sales and diversified products.

This comes amid the backdrop of a higher retail sales target of Rs 500 crore by 2017-18. With its countrywide network of 203 showrooms, Co-optex has an annual turnover of around Rs 1,000 crore, including retail sales of Rs 301.44 crore in 2013-14. The balance came from government orders for various free schemes including school uniforms and dhotis.

Now in its eightieth year, Co-optex plans to open more retail outlets in existing locations and new stores in tier-II and tier-III cities. It will hold 'Weaves from Tamil Nadu' expos in these cities to tap their potential, said T N Venkatesh, the company's managing director.

"If you want to make your presence felt in the main cities, you should have at least two or three stores, but as real estate costs are going up, it won't be viable," said Venkatesh, adding that textiles is a seasonal business and there is no point in having showrooms throughout the year.

The first expo in Mysuru clocked sales of Rs 22 lakh in five days. Expos were subsequently held in Pune, Thiruvananthapuram, Secunderabad, Bhopal and two other cities. The target is 25 expos by the end of 2015. "New business alone is not the target, we are taking the brand to newer areas," Venkatesh said.

Educational institutions are other targets, said Venkatesh. A pilot held at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) realised sales of Rs 20 lakh in one week.

"We want more youths, especially in the 25-35 age group, to buy our products and such expos help us to take the brand to them," he said. Recently, Co-optex introduced kurtis, ready-made and designer shirts for young customers. With its traditional focus on sarees, and later home furnishings, the company's client base comprises largely those over 45.

Venkatesh is also betting big on e-commerce. Last month Co-optex started selling its products through its portal and in less than a month such sales amounted to Rs 2.5 lakh.

"We are also talking to some of the largest e-commerce websites and multi-brand retail outlets to sell our products," said Venkatesh, without disclosing names.

Co-optex exports home furnishings worth Rs 4-5 crore a year to Europe and the US, and is looking at new markets, including Japan and South East Asia.