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Woodland is finally ready with products that will shape up its diversification that it has been discussing for more than a year. Homing in on adventure gear as the next frontier, the outdoors apparel and shoe company has been rolling out products such as tent, helmets and sleeping bags; mountain bikes would follow soon.
But first, Woodland needs reach. It is sprucing up its distribution not just on the ground, there is a new online retailing strategy too.
While Woodland exclusive stores have stood it in good stead since its retail partnerships with Indian shoe brands did not work out in the early-90s, it is now adding franchisees to cater to more cities as it prepares to become a one-stop shop for adventure seekers and outdoor activities.
It is planning to add 50-60 stores ever year, over the next 24 months. It would invest Rs 1.5-2 crore in each store. Harkirat Singh, the managing director, says, that in addition to these, "this year, we are also looking at starting 10-15 franchisee stores, mainly in smaller cities".
Woodland sales have an urban skew and the franchise route could help it go deeper. Woodland is present in 4,000 retail outlets, of which 485 are its exclusive stores owned by it. Singh says that as more of the youth seek out the outdoors for leisure, Woodland would find more scope with its set of products.
For example, it recently got its surfing boards and other water-sports gear sampled in Kerala and Orissa and the response has led to the brand displaying them in its stores. Singh, in Chennai to launch technology-enhanced winter jackets, says that at least three-four new product categories would be launched soon.
"We have identified a manufacturer for mountain bikes. By early next year, we will start selling the bikes," says Singh. The heavy-duty winter jackets that he launched are limited edition with technologies such as heat lock etc. to suit rough weather experienced during mountaineering and trekking.
Singh says that Woodland clocked a turnover of over Rs 1,000 crore in 2013-14. Adventure gear and wear market which comprises footwear and apparel as well has a huge scope for accessories, says Singh. In 2013, Singh had claimed that it enjoys 80-85 per cent share in adventure footwear, which was 5 per cent of the Rs 20,000 crore total branded footwear market.
While footwear contributes over 60 per cent to sales, Singh says that apparel would contribute 50 per cent in the next two years, because of more and more consumers purchasing adventure wear.
e-Commerce bid
While consumer brands are grappling with the dilemma of being present online and discounting their products, Woodland is lining up a plan that Singh says will help it work around the problem. With three plants, Woodland will start selling products offline and online that would be exclusive of each other. E-commerce contributes only 10 per cent to Woodland's earnings now.
However, Woodland is increasing the number of variants in footwear so that what it sells online through multi-brand portals can be kept exclusive to the channel. This would not hurt the chances of its merchandise sold in brick and mortar shops since it would not create consumer expectation of online discounts on the stock that they peruse offline.
Woodland's exports operations in Mauritius, Nepal, Bangladesh, Singapore, West Asia, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia contributes 25 per cent of its turnover.
The The New Delhi-based Aero Group, Woodland's owners, is planning to expand to Australia, South Africa, East Europe, Italy and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries. "Soon we are planning to enter China, as well, through multi-brand outlets," says Singh.
Woodland's ambition to become a one-stop-adventure gear shop would put it in a collision course with retailers such as the Indian arm of French sports goods retailer, Decathlon. The first sports goods retailer to invest in single-brand retail trading last year after it got approval for 100 per cent FDI (foreign direct investment), it has reportedly set aside Rs 700 crore to open stores in the next five years. Sportswear brands such as Reebok, too, have been increasingly getting into accessories besides apparels and shoes.
Analysts say that demand for sports and adventure gear is on the rise. Various sports leagues and rising adventure tourism are fuelling the consumer demand for sport/activity-specific gear and clothes. While sportswear is getting crowded with brands, players like Woodland and Decathlon would be betting on adventure sports gear flying off their shelves sooner than later.
