BackBombay Shirt Company targets the Middle East, to open store in Dubai
Bombay Shirt Company, which sells tailor-made shirts for both men and women, is open to a franchise model in Indian metros
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New Delhi: Bombay Shirt Co., the country’s first online custom shirt brand that allows customers to call a tailor home to get measured for customized shirts, is set to step into the Middle East market, starting with Dubai, in January.
The Mumbai-based company, which started as an online customized shirt brand in 2012 and then opened physical stores in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi, is finalizing plans to open its first store outside India, said founder Akshay Narvekar.
Bombay Shirt Co. currently has two stores in Mumbai, one in Bengaluru and one in Delhi. “We would not have many stores in a particular city," added Narvekar. The company is, however, open to a franchise model in Indian metros.
Retail outlets are for marketing and order management purposes, and the company processes all its orders from its sole factory in Mumbai.
Narvekar, who had worked with BCBG Max Azria, apparel and accessories collection line, and Everstone Capital, a private equity firm, initially started Bombay Shirt Co. following the business model of US-based online ventures like J. HilBurn and Indochino.
Bombay Shirt Co. sells tailor-made shirts for both men and women, starting at ₹ 1,000.
The company has so far raised about ₹ 10 crore in tranches from a bunch of investors, including Patni Group’s Amit Patni and Arihant Patni. The company will not look for a fresh round of funding soon, said Narvekar.
Bombay Shirt Co. competes with Raymond Made to Measure, a company owned by Raymond Group. Raymond Made to Measure has over 89 stores in 20 cities and plans to open 20 more this year, according to a company statement. Raymond Made to Measure, however, only makes clothes for men.
The size of made-to-measure apparel market in India is undefined. The entire apparel market is projected to touch $200 billion by 2025, from around $45 billion in 2014, according to a study by consulting firm Wazir Advisors.
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