Tailoring a turnaround: Satyaki Ghosh takes the helm at a struggling Raymond

Ghosh, who most recently led Grasim Industries’ Cellulosic Fashion Yarn division, takes over the branded apparel company with immediate effect, bringing a resume that includes stints at L’Oreal, Spencer’s Retail, and PepsiCo.

Ghosh enters a role that has seen significant churn since 2020. He follows Sanjay Behl, who stepped down that year, and Joe Kuruvilla, who took over shortly after only to quit by the end of 2021. In 2022, Sunil Kataria was appointed CEO and MD; he steered the business through its demerger but resigned in April last year. Since then, Gautam Singhania, chairman and managing director of Raymond Ltd, has been running operations.

Raymond Lifestyle’s revolving-door leadership highlights the strain India’s apparel makers face as aggressive store expansion collides with high rentals, tax changes and uneven consumer demand.

Raymond Lifestyle is turning to fresh leadership to navigate a darkening retail landscape, appointing Satyaki Ghosh as CEO—the fourth executive to hold the mantle in just five years.

Ghosh, who most recently led Grasim Industries’ Cellulosic Fashion Yarn division, takes over the branded apparel company with immediate effect, bringing a resume that includes stints at L’Oreal, Spencer’s Retail, and PepsiCo.

Ghosh enters a role that has seen significant churn since 2020. He follows Sanjay Behl, who stepped down that year, and Joe Kuruvilla, who took over shortly after only to quit by the end of 2021. In 2022, Sunil Kataria was appointed CEO and MD; he steered the business through its demerger but resigned in April last year. Since then, Gautam Singhania, chairman and managing director of Raymond Ltd, has been running operations.

Raymond Lifestyle’s revolving-door leadership highlights the strain India’s apparel makers face as aggressive store expansion collides with high rentals, tax changes and uneven consumer demand.

Tough backdrop

The new CEO takes charge at a challenging time both for Raymond Lifestyle and the broader apparel industry. The company has had a difficult first half of FY26, with net profit falling 25% year on year even as revenue grew 12%, led by branded textiles and branded apparel.

However, Ebitda for the branded apparel business fell sharply as the company rapidly expanded its store network—many of which turned out to be unprofitable—while also overspending on marketing.

Raymond’s apparel portfolio includes men’s westernwear brands Raymond (and its sub-brands), ColorPlus and Park Avenue, as well as Ethnix, its men’s Indianwear brand launched in 2017. In mid-2024, the company launched Sleepz by Raymond, a sleepwear brand, and also extended Park Avenue into innerwear in 2025.

Store reset

“Ethnix and the newer ventures are taking a longer gestation period than we expected but it is happening," Singhania told Mint in an interview. “Retail costs are very high and you can do volumes but you are not going to make money. It takes time for the pull (of consumer demand) to come."

He added that retail real estate costs have been rising steadily across metros and smaller cities, as the supply of quality shopfronts has failed to keep pace with demand.

In the first half of FY26, Raymond closed 66 stores across its apparel brands.

“We closed stores because we expanded too quickly," said Singhania. “And some stores were probably in the wrong location. This is why some correction happened. It was across all brands."

Demand drag

By September 2025, Raymond Lifestyle’s net working capital days had risen to 105 days from 97 days a year earlier, largely because of rapid store additions and inventory build-up even as demand softened.

“The wedding season has been strong and post mid-January, we expect it to pick up," Singhania said. “Consumer demand in September to October and a part of November was good, but there was a little slowdown in December."

He also pointed to the impact of tax changes. As GST rate revisions kicked in in September, taxes on apparel priced above ₹2,500 rose from 12% to 18%, hurting demand for high-value purchases such as wedding trousseaux.

He added that retail real estate costs have been rising steadily across metros and smaller cities, as the supply of quality shopfronts has failed to keep pace with demand.

In the first half of FY26, Raymond closed 66 stores across its apparel brands.

“We closed stores because we expanded too quickly," said Singhania. “And some stores were probably in the wrong location. This is why some correction happened. It was across all brands."

Demand drag

By September 2025, Raymond Lifestyle’s net working capital days had risen to 105 days from 97 days a year earlier, largely because of rapid store additions and inventory build-up even as demand softened.

“The wedding season has been strong and post mid-January, we expect it to pick up," Singhania said. “Consumer demand in September to October and a part of November was good, but there was a little slowdown in December."

He also pointed to the impact of tax changes. As GST rate revisions kicked in in September, taxes on apparel priced above ₹2,500 rose from 12% to 18%, hurting demand for high-value purchases such as wedding trousseaux.

Sector strain

Raymond’s struggles mirror broader pressures in India’s apparel market, particularly in men’s western, ethnic and innerwear categories.

Vedant Fashions, the parent of ethnicwear brand Manyavar, is among the worst-performing stocks of 2025, with its shares down nearly 57% over the past 12 months. The September 2025 quarter was especially weak, with sales, Ebitda and profit after tax all declining year on year. While sales for the first half of FY26 rose over 7%, profit after tax fell 2.4%.

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd (ABFRL), which houses several ethnicwear brands, reported an 11% year-on-year rise in sales but slipped deeper into losses in the first half of FY26, flagging “sluggish" demand and trouble in its TMRW vertical of online-first brands. Its sister company, Aditya Birla Lifestyle Brands, which houses innerwear and westernwear brands, fared better, posting 3% sales growth and a marginal profit of just over 1%.

Analyst bets

Despite the near-term pressures, Raymond Lifestyle continues to find favour with analysts. Only three analysts track the stock, but all have a ‘buy’ rating.

“We anticipate FY26 to mark a steady recovery phase for the company with the second half of FY26 benefitting from [the] wedding and festive season," Systermatix Research said in a note in October. The brokerage expects revenue from branded apparel to grow at a 17.2% compound annual growth rate between FY25 and FY28.

“The company remains in a high-investment phase for the next 2-3 quarters, driven by continued marketing and store-related costs. Early double-digit Ebitda margins are expected once the annual revenue run rate reaches ₹23-25 billion, projected over the next 2-2.5 years," it added.