Pothy's Outlets In Coimbatore By 2009 End
After nearly a decade of making its presence felt in Chennai city, textile retail chain Pothys, which brands itself as the ‘aalayam (temple) of silk’, is looking at expanding its footprint near home turf Tirunelveli. It has firmed up plans to set up outlets in Madurai, Tiruchirapalli and Coimbatore in the next year and a half. “Work has already begun at Madurai and it should be ready by next August. The other two would be up and running before the end of next financial year,” Pothys managing director S Ramesh told. Each of the three showrooms would be spread across 70,000 sq ft, he said. A budget of Rs 150 crore has been earmarked for this. Despite the slowdown, there has been no reduction in offtake from NRIs, who contribute 10-15% of Pothys’ revenue, Mr Ramesh said. “It is typically NRIs from Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Singapore who come down to the city to make wedding purchases.
It’s a one-time expenditure. I don’t see revenue from this segment taking a hit.” A third of its revenue come from silk products and the brand is trying to appeal to the younger generation, that seems to be slowly moving away from traditional attires. It has come up with three distinct Kanchipuram lines — parampara, samudrika and vastrakala — endorsed by different celebrities. The MD said the company diverts 2% of its annual turnover towards brand spend. While ace vocalist Sudha Raghunathan is the Pothys ambassador for its parampara range, actor Meera Jasmine promotes the samudrika collection.
“What sets us apart is the fact that we launch different collections to suit different occasions,” Mr Ramesh said. He added that they were still looking for a face to sell the vastrakala range. Founded 90 years ago by KV Pothy Moopanar to sell cotton sarees, dhoties and towels, it was his son KVP Sadayandi Moopanar who branded his showroom in Srivilliputtur as Pothys in 1977. Subsequent generations ensured the brand established itself in the competitive markets of Tirunelveli in 1986, and later, in Chennai, in 1999.
