According to the Ministry of Commerce, in 2018, Indian exports were valued at US $ 15.91 billion, with the major exports being raked up by EU at US $ 6,285.72 million, closely followed by the US at US $ 4,004.76 million. Today, India ranks amongst the top exporting countries of the world like Bangladesh, China, Vietnam with its key strength lying in highly detailed womenswear. This can be credited to the wealth of years of artisanal crafts and traditional embroidery technique skills possessed by the clusters and craftsmen based out of the subcontinent.
Known for exquisite and intricate adda and ari embroidery, kaantha and machine stitch, decorative mirror and bead work, among many sought after handdone techniques such as tie and dye and block printing, India ranks as the go-to destination for brands and retailers worldwide to source pieces rich in embroidered detailing, embellishments and prints. Apparel Resources had the opportunity to meet five key players from the industry catering to major international brands and retailers, each varying in their product categories, production capacities and strengths. Read on to discover these top five Indian garment manufacturers that you can team up with for your next assortment.
ART & CRAFT EXCLUSIVES
Founded 25 years ago by Anil Sharma, Art & Craft Exclusives initially catered solely to women until Anushruti Sanadhya, Director, Kidswear, Creative and Design and daughter of the Founder, joined the company in 2011 and decided to variegate by delving into the kidswear segment.
At present, its product categories consist of womenswear, kidswear and a certain percentage of menswear, accessories and home furnishings.
Based in Mansarovar, the company’s manufacturing facility is spread over a whopping 1,00,000 square feet area. They also possess a contemporary laundry unit, in-house printing and in-house dyeing units.
Art & Craft Exclusives’ forte is embroidery and they strive to achieve creativity through innovation. They believe that embroidery is rapidly gaining ground. “Ten years ago, embroidery was somewhat of a statement which was not widely visible among various leading brands around the world, but today, even brands such as H&M adopt a certain percentage of embroidery,” Anushruti said. The company makes use of a diverse range of materials including adda embroidery, bead work, mirrors, sequins and many more but what sets the business apart is its use of geometric patterns to create conventional motifs of flowers and leaves.
The company forges groups of styles and fifty per cent of every new collection features bestselling items from the former lines.
“This practice increases the saleability of the entire group – if a buyer picks a particular style from a particular group, we immediately show them the whole group which helps them develop an interest towards other styles created by us as well,” affirmed Anushruti.
Art & Craft Exclusives employs techniques such as weaving, chikan embroidery, beaded embroidery and distinctive combinations of mixing print and embroidery together on Western silhouettes. Its sophisticated and futuristic machinery enables it to have a production capacity of 5,000 pieces per day. Furthermore the business is equipped with technologies that facilitate hand screen printing, block printing, digital printing, computer embroidery, laser cutting machine and so on.
The company has forged long-lasting relationships with several Japanese, South American, Australian and Asian clothing brands including large distribution companies. The firm has also been actively working with three NGOs to ensure employment to women in rural areas.
Going forward, it wishes to expand its range to include accessories as well, and explore its forte in the area.
WGS INTERNATIONAL
WGS International, a company founded in 2012, is based out of Noida, Sector 63. Sourabh Malhotra, an investment banker turned entrepreneur, decided to quit his job to enter the textile business and started this company.
The main product category of the business is high-end womenswear with state-of-the-art detailing. WGS International solely deals in valuable garments which are unmatched and superior in comparison to the clothing manufactured in run-off mills.
They play with different types of fabrics including dobby, jacquard, viscose, cotton among others, accentuating these pieces through techniques such as tie and dye, beading, embroidery and printing.
“We are selling dreams, we are selling garments which are unique. If our consumer is a girl, you know she can be rest assured to stand out in a crowd,” Sourabh told AR. The company’s latest collection can be described as bohemian chic inclusive of net, pompoms and laces
SHREE DAYAL FASHIONS
Based out of Jaipur, 25-year-old company Shree Dayal Fashions exports to major countries such as Japan, USA and many more in Europe. It also holds promotional events in countries around the world and actively participates in international and national trade shows and fairs of importance.
The company boasts of acing in techniques such as hand embroidery both with and without markings on fabric, machine embroidery, hand embroidery with kantha stitch, aari embroidery and adda work, hand block prints, plain dyes among many others. It also makes use of decorative pieces such as tassels, laces and beads.
Shree Dayal Fashions possesses an in-house garment production facility inclusive of 4-5 workers that specialise in bead work, whilst its export house uses a variety of machinery including single needle machines, smoking machines, button hole machines, pico stitching machines, over-locks, fabric cutting machines and so forth.
It also deals in the export of fabrics such as rayon, cotton and polyester, chiffon, crepes, poly georgette, poly satin, etc.
The fact that Shree Dayal Fashions uses patented prints, sets it apart from other competitors in the market.
The prints that the company produces are used as instruments for fashion forecasting. The brand manufactures several items in the same print and creates groups for each print. Its products include tops, dresses, blouses, skirts, trousers, garment sets, kaftans, shorts, shirts, coverups and pants.
“If a buyer comes to the store, he/she gets variety and also range.” said Mukesh Sharma of Shree Dayal Fashions.
The business also creates prints using the age-old tie and dye method in original and fresh ways.
“Customer satisfaction is of paramount importance to us and we take all necessary precautions to prevent any possible damage to the items by including wash care instructions as well as testing the tie and dye goods against bleeding,” Mukesh told AR.
For the upcoming season, the company is largely working with Indian prints. “Tropical prints are in fashion for the upcoming seasons; paisley in particular is a very important motif to consider,” Mukesh said, adding, “Hand embroidered garments contain designs such as flowers, paisleys and leaves, and computer embroidered pieces incorporate abstract shapes.”
The company creates unique pieces by banking in on mixing prints. It works with conventional body types to create silhouettes; however it is always looking for newer body types to elevate its designs.
CHEER SAGAR EXPORTS
After parting ways from its parent company Cheer Sagar, 13 years ago, Cheer Sagar Exports started out by seeking knowledge of global bodies and fusing them with Indian strengths.
Soon thereafter, the company understood global requirements and started manufacturing Indian embroideries in European colour fabrics meant to cater to European lifestyle but with an Indian edge to it.
This aided the company in growing its business from a basic to an unconventional business module.
Cheer Sagar Exports offers product categories such as lifestyle garments, home, bags and a small percentage of furniture and its key strength lies in techniques such as intricate bead work and mirror work. With the addition of digital printing, the company is also able to supply high-end garments to small boutiques and big retailers alike.
The garment segment makes up 60 per cent of the business and the home section makes up the remaining 40 per cent.
Cheer Sagar Exports has worked with brand owners, designer labels, trading houses and store chains in all the 6 continents with clients based in Japan, UK, Spain, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Brazil and various other regions. The factory is spread over an area of 1,25,000 feet. The enterprise sources material from all over the world and has offices in Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
With the current buzz around sustainable fashion and handmade accessories, the company recently ventured into the manufacturing of jute bags that stand out due to the wealth of embellishments, embroideries and structure provided by the manufacturer.
For Spring/Summer 2020, Cheer Sagar Exports is working with lurex in a big way. “We introduced the lurex collection two seasons earlier and experimented a lot with embellishments, which garnered a great response. We are expecting it to sell for another one or two years with experimentation in prints. We have also introduced a varied collection in linen and that’s going to be the future play of it,” Raghushree Poddar, Director, Cheer Sagar Exports, told AR.
CAN FASHION PVT. LTD.
CAN Fashion utilises the latest machinery to manipulate and create tasteful pieces of high-end clothing.
The business prides itself for supplying to major brands and distributors based around the world – but its predominant buyers are based out of Europe.
CAN Fashion caters to womenswear, kidswear and a small percentage of menswear segments, and the product categories that it offers include dresses, tops, kaftans, jackets, trousers, bottoms, among others.
The brand excels in a multitude of techniques such as digital printing, manual embroidery and computerised embroidery, all of which are executed in-house, and also produces handloom textiles.
Serving as a one-stop solution for most garment needs, the manufacturer also offers standout techniques such as quilting in combination with printed and embroidered pieces which it accentuates further by using sequins and bead work.
“Right from a small floral print to geometrical designs, we can do everything,” Amit Sahni of CAN Fashion said. “We have used machinery that assist in pattern making, grading and marker making digitally, which has brought the production cost down effectively.”
In its recent collection, it made use of fabrics such as lurex chiffon, lurex georgette, summerex, schiffli embroideries, statement denim and more. It applies different kinds of washes to denim including stone wash, hard wash and acid wash.
