Ramraj Dhoti - Special
He gave the humble south indian dhoti, barely used by 2% of the population, a brand image. When proprietor KR Nagarajan of the Rs 200-crore Ramraj Cotton group started manufacturing dhotis, little did he dream that this traditional attire would turn into a brand. Ramraj dhotis is now the leading name in the market in the South. “We didn’t have any specific plan to promote the dhoti as a brand, but when customers came asking for our dhotis, we knew it had become one. So, we have registered the brand name and logo,” says Nagarajan. Having handled the entire operations — from manufacturing to sales — all by himself, he now leverages on the strengths a good brand can create. “Since we have branded our product, taking orders has become easier,” he explains. Started in 1983 with a single product — dhotis — the company’s product line now includes shirts, vests, trunks, briefs, panties, shimmies and children’s inner wear — all in white.
“White is a universal colour, hygienic and ecofriendly,” says Nagarajan. As of now, he has no plans to add ‘coloured’ clothing to this iterinery. To promote white dhotis, the company has also come out with a trunk-cum-brief for customers wearing dhotis. “Dhotis are a traditional costume and only 2% of population in South India wears it. To improve business, we are researching on ways to make it attractive,” Nagarajan said. The company is now testing the market to enter the pants segment. Ramraj has ten showrooms at Tirupur, Coimbatore, Pollachi, Karur, Erode, Madurai and Chennai. “King Fisher, Air Deccan, Green Park, Residency, Reliance, LIC and IT companies like Infosys give bulk orders for shirts and dhotis,” he added.
Having completed 25 years, Ramraj recently started an exclusive women’s wear store — Ramyyam. “Though we sell ladies undergarments and other products under the Ramraj brand, we thought a separate showroom for ladies wear would be better and thus came up with Ramyyam,” says Nagarajan. Since the maintenance of white dresses is difficult, the company plans to extend washing facilities at all their showrooms. “We are thinking of offering dhobi services to our customers,” Nagarajan said. The company has also invested in seven windmills in Tamil Nadu as part of its green agenda.
“We sell power to the electricity board,” Nagarajan said, adding that the company hopes to be the first in Tirupur to get carbon credits. It has applied for carbon credits for the windmills and the certificate is expected to be processed in a month’s time. For the upcoming Diwali, the company plans to produce dhotis and shirts ranging between Rs 1,000 and Rs 4,000. “We have produced permanent starch finished shirts with embroidery for the festival season,” he said.
