On the growth part - if I normalize and take the average volume growth for the last two quarters, it comes to around 5%. Is that the expected normalized growth in volumes to expect, at least for the coming quarters? I know our aspiration is high single digits, but given how things are progressing, is that the better way to look at it?
Nihal, yes, our expectation is much higher growth. The general retail environment is not so buoyant. That is why we had a subdued quarter. For us, with all the actions we have taken, we are aiming for a double digit growth when things normalize. And I think we have to wait for that. But as far as brand is concerned, we are taking all necessary actions for that. One is not increasing the price, keeping the price under control, improving the products as far as the features are concerned, coming out with new and exciting products. Very concentrated expansion, which we are not looking at numbers, but a very productive expansion. Very, very focused intervention as far as marketing initiatives are concerned to create better awareness about the ranges and about the brand. So all these actions will definitely help us. And as a country, the future looks very bright. It is just a question of passing or going through this phase. And then the recovery will definitely happen.
In which segment are you seeing that pressure more? Is it the men's innerwear, women's innerwear, or the athleisure? Which segment are you seeing the intensity more?
No. So see, as a brand today, we cannot identify one other brand with whom we compete with. That is because of the nature of business for Jockey and in a way work with multiple consumer segments as well as multiple product categories. So a competition, to have a view on that, we will have to first break down Jockey into multiple parts and then look at who is competition there. And when we do that, there are players in all the areas that we operate in. It is just that they are not common. So for men's innerwear, there are different sets of competing brands which are very different from who we compete with for women's innerwear. Similarly, for athleisure. But intensity overall, from what it was about three years ago, is actually a lot better now in the marketplace.
You are targeting double-digit growth. But as of now, because the average has been about 5%, so current demand environment is sort of indicating a 5% kind of a trend in terms of consumption. Is that the right number?
Very, very difficult to predict this, Devanshu, because it is very volatile out there. It is anybody's guess with so many geopolitical things happening, tariff pressures. Now we see a lot of pressure in the IT sector. So we have to wait and watch about this. So it is anybody's guess. But as I told you in the opening commentary, we have been seeing month-on-month improvement. May was better than April. June was better than May. So that gives us hope. And one is because maybe because the market is slowly improving. Second is because of all the initiatives we are taking.
On the revenue growth - which part of the portfolio dragged the volume performance, was it innerwear-led or was it athleisure-led? And while you have indicated that no pricing changes have been made, feedback from the channel suggests that some hikes have been taken in part of the menswear portfolio. If you could clarify on that, please.
Thanks for the question, Videesha. We do not share category-level performance, but I would say that innerwear as a portfolio has been a bit more muted in terms of retail consumption when compared to athleisure in the bygone quarter. Not a big difference, but still a difference between the two. With regards to price increase, there has been no price increase taken. There have been a few changes made more to correct the ladder of our portfolio, which we would not really account to as price increase, which has had an effect of about 0.3 percentage points, 0.4 percentage points overall, if you look at it at a brand level. They were essentially price ladder corrections that were taken in a few steps.
On the EBITDA margin and gross margin efficiency - as a brand, why not take a price cut or a price correction at the entry level price point, not across the portfolio, because at the entry level, if you take some price correction, it basically helps the brand to gain market share? From a strategy point of view, why is that not a thought process?
See, there are two parts to this question. One is definitely the operating margin and whether it is right to reduce the price. Operating margin, I mean, we are in the range of 19%, 21%. Of course, it has been a bit higher in last few quarters. But as we have been telling and that is what is likely to happen, the subsequent quarter that we see, I mean, as we see, the margins will be within this range of 19% - 21%. This heightened or the increased margin of 21% plus is unlikely to be sustained. So we will come back within this range, more because our marketing spend will be in the range of 4% to 5%. And as we go ahead, our IT spends will be slightly on the higher side. So considering all these factors, it will be coming back within the range of 19% - 21%. Coming to your question of why not price reduction to take advantage of the market, see, we as a brand all along have stood for value for money. And we are focused always on driving value to the consumer. So the kind of products or features that we provide in our products, our prices are very much in line with those features. So we do not see a requirement that by reducing price simply to capture the market share, our value proposition will be enhanced or will be affected. So we will maintain our value proposition and towards the same objective, we do not see any requirement of price increase.
On the international business - we have had these territories, Middle East and Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, etc., for many years now. But we have not seen anything meaningful happening on the international front. It is still sub 5% as a percentage of sales. Are you limited in terms of bandwidth to explore waters outside India?
Honestly, I think for many years now, the focus has been India. India has been writing the growth story for Page, not just for Page, for any category you look at across brands. And I think it continues to do so. The promise that India gives is there. It is intact and we are very, very committed to building the business here. But about a year, year and a half ago is where we have actually consciously invested in infrastructure as well as resources to dedicatedly handle our international geographies. Now, some of these geographies are strategically not being entered into for reasons. But the areas that we have entered into, like we look at Middle East or Nepal, these are areas where infrastructure efforts and investments have been made in the last couple of years. We have invested now a lot into research and market understanding so that we can, in a way, get back into these territories with a new niche, so to speak, right, and look at it with all intent now that we have invested in that geography. So, yes, at this point in time, it is a very small contributor to the overall revenues of the brand. But we are seeing opportunities in each of these geographies to grow and contribute in a meaningful manner to the overall revenues of Page. So we will see change in this area this year and the next year onwards. Also, the entry into these areas has a long gestation period for us to actually launch or re-launch the brand to make it a success and have meaning in that business. And that is why you are seeing that lag. But yes, when we do choose to move in there and build the brand meaningfully, that time we will start seeing results.
Any target you have internally or whatever you can share as to what kind of contribution it should have, let us say, in five years from now?
No, I do not think we are targeting from a contribution point of view. Internally, there are independent business plans at a country level. That is the way we are looking at it based on the potential that the country throws at us, rather than looking at it as a contribution metric to the overall business.
You said you did an external study where the footfalls were lower at the MBO and EBO level. In the study, did you see a retailer like a Zudio is gaining share in the innerwear category? Or the study was only for innerwear?
Yes. Thanks, Ankit. No, it did not come out clearly in the study to be honest. And also from a price point at which the brand that you mentioned operates in, it would, I would imagine come directly and compete with some of the economy brands that operate in that price point. Both in terms of product quality, the spec as well as price point, I do not believe that would directly compete with or will be comparable with Jockey as a brand that we operate in. Of course, channel also is a play because for us, largely in the general trade and exclusive brand stores in the offline space where we operate whereas that would operate like any other private label so to speak. So, yes, I mean I do not have a clear answer to say yes or no, there is a possibility, but I am not sure whether that is what happened over here.
On GenZ, a younger audience product category - JKY Groove. What is the current distribution reach that you have reached in that product category? And where would you want to reach by the end of this year?
Yes. So I think we will have to take it one month at a time, one quarter at a time as far as this collection is concerned, because like I said, it is a test at this point in time. We need to see how it performs. The pilot itself was launched in 52 exclusive brand stores to be precise, as well as jockey.in. That is the level of presence that it had. It was not extended to the general trade market in the first season. We wanted to keep it really tight, that we have very clear understanding of the sell throughs, as well as who is buying it. And it was a line of about 14 different products, plus colors and sizes, to also get a sense of what is appealing to this audience when it comes from a brand like Jockey. So at this moment, it is a very, very contained distribution. But as we go forward, as we learn more about this space, we will gradually increase its presence in the country, both across exclusive brand stores, as well as multi-brand retail.
On margin - it is now four quarters since our margins have been higher than the guided 19% to 21% range. How to look at margins as a whole for the remaining year or is this a structural step up? When we are seeing such a strong margin environment, does not it make relevant sense for us to invest a decent portion of it back into improving demand?
Okay. So two aspects. We are very comfortable with the 19% to 21% margin. So, of course, there are some expenses, sometimes it is a question of timing, in certain quarters, the expenses can be higher because of payment dues or as far as projects are concerned, including IT expenses. But generally, we have been controlling costs without touching price and protecting margins. So it is not easy to do that, because it is continuous work on improving our operating efficiencies and making prudent investments. We will continue to focus on that. As far as the second part is concerned, I fully agree with you. While we are controlling expenses, we are not controlling investments because our long-term outlook is very, very positive. And therefore, be it the strategic investments in the IT side, be it on the distribution management system, SAP S4 HANA, or expanding capacities by way of new plants which are coming up, one in Odisha and one in Karnataka, coming out with new product ranges and investments in R&D, this will definitely continue unabated. And that is because we know the medium-term, long-term story is going to be very positive for us. And we will continue to stay invested. So to answer your question, yes, we will control expenses. But we will continue to make aggressive investments, which are prudent for the business.
If you look at the gross margin expansion, it is the gross margin which is seeing a very sharp expansion and flowing through the EBITDA line. What is leading to this gross margin expansion really, and how much of this is sustainable going ahead as well?
So, on the gross margin, while we compare the gross margin year-on-year, definitely, there is a sharp expansion, which is more of a reflection of the sewing efficiency over the years. So, we have been focusing on improving the sewing efficiency year-on-year for the last two years a or three years. And that is what we saw that the increase in efficiency, more specifically, the labor cost per minute. So that has reduced as a part of the product component. So that is what is reflecting on year-on-year increase in the gross margin. But if you look at the sequential gross margin, that is Q4 last year versus Q1 now, there is not much of a difference in the gross margin. And the gross margin that you receive now is largely sustainable, and that will continue.
Is there some variation in the gross margin on a quarterly basis because of the interplay between the subcontracting expenses and the gross margin? Because the employee costs this quarter around increased a bit sharply.
No, not much of a subcontracting part, while productions have slightly increased when we compare to the previous quarter, that is Q1 2025, there is an increase. But I think the major reason is the labor cost per minute has reduced over time. And that is reflecting in a sharper gross margin when we compare year-on-year.
On the overall volume growth - even if you look at a five year CAGR basis from the pre-COVID levels, the volume growth has really been in that high single-digit number only. So apart from the recent slowdown, is there anything else, like competition from certain other players, not only the listed ones? Like, Trent now have seen very sharp increase in their innerwear sales. So is there some share loss happening that is leading to the slower growth?
Yes. I mean, yes, I mean, we will have to put multiple things together to, in a way, respond to that. At a consumer level, yes, there is a possibility. But all the new entrants that you have spoken about are largely operating in the organized retail. Our trends, for instance, are in the form of private label, as far as innerwear is concerned, which has not directly come in play in the channels that we operate in. In fact, our observation as far as competitiveness is concerned for Page, we have seen multiple brands exit the general trade channels in the last year or two years. When compared to what it was immediately after the pandemic, the intensity in competition has kind of become easier now. We do not know what the future holds, but as we stand today, that is how it is moved, with regards to competition in some of the core categories that we operate in.
The volume has grown by 2%, but RM cost in absolute terms has declined by 8%. This actually implies that RM cost per piece has actually fallen by 10%. So wanted to check what is driving this. And this labor cost would be sitting in employee cost, right? So gross margin, if there is a lower cost of sewing from a labor perspective, then it would sort of aid your lower employee cost, right, not the gross margin.
No, let me clarify that. So when you speak about product cost, product cost is naturally, since it gets into the inventory cost and cost of things, we capture three components in product cost, which is my raw material cost, labor cost which is cost of production, and related overheads, factory overheads. Combination of all these figures into my product cost. So that is why when we say that the labor cost per minute has reduced, so this is because of the improved efficiency. It gets into my inventory cost or the product cost. So that is why any changes in labor cost per minute and the related overheads does impact my inventory cost. So that is why what we are seeing now is that, yes, the raw material cost has not reduced. It has remained stable over the last few quarters. The effect of higher efficiency, the sewing efficiency, is what reflects in my manufacturing cost, of which labor cost per minute is a component. So the higher efficiency is what is reducing my product cost. And that is what we meant. Definitely, as from a P&L perspective, employee cost is a separate line. But product cost captures all this thing. And over time, the way the labor cost per minute plays out, that does impact our product cost as well.
Distribution from general trade perspective, over the last three quarters - four quarters has remained at 1,10,000 odd outlets. So what is your target performance here for this current year?
Yes. So Devanshu, actually, we have expanded in the last couple of years as far as distribution is concerned. Of course, we had reached 110,000 immediately after the pandemic, because a lot of non-traditional hosiery outlets were in a way tapped into retail Jockey products, which was rationalized thereafter in 2023. But thereafter, year-on-year, we have been adding anywhere between 8,000 outlets to 9,000 outlets per year. The target we have taken upon ourselves this year is also in the similar range.
On margins - are these digital or IT spends going to be back-ended, which makes you retain the margin guidance? And also, what were the ad spends during the quarter?
So answering the second question, ad spend has been around 3.5%, which is slightly lower in this quarter. But I think for the entire year, we will still be in that 4% to 5% range. So definitely, the benefit of lower ad spend is affecting the margin to some extent. No, the digital and IT spends are based on the accrual concept, as and when we are incurring it or as and when the contractual liability starts, we do account them. So there is no back ended accounting of that.
In context of this Jockey Groove launch and focus on younger consumers, given that younger consumers are relatively less brand loyal, what gives you the confidence that they will display the similar stickiness as your older consumer cohort?
Good question, Videesha. I do not think the expectation is to have a similar stickiness as the older consumer. The way JKY Groove has been conceptualized itself is to have more frequent changes. It would be a fashion line, a very, very tight, limited line. But having complete change in the styling and design season after season, much like how many fashion brands operate. So that is still going to be a part of the portfolio, addressing this particular consumer. So we are not expecting stickiness to a certain product. But as long as the other consumer can come in and experience JKY Groove and come and find something new every season within that particular collection, that is the intent.
On growth statements made like May being stronger than April, and then June being stronger than May - typically, is this a phenomenon you see across the years that month-on-month, as you go from April to June, there is a month-on-month improvement or was this the first time you are seeing this trend?
See, there is no specific pattern. Obviously, quarter-on-quarter, the contribution to the overall number varies, but in terms of growth rates, there is no specific pattern. Last year, that is what we experienced. Quarter one for us was slower when compared to the subsequent quarters in the year. As the year progressed, our performance, both at a retail level as well and also at a primary level, improved for us. This year, we do not know. We have seen that within the quarter till June. It is also largely to do with a very muted April because of the festive impact. We have seen recovery in May and thereafter further recovery in June. So as of now in the quarter, that is how it is been. And if I take last year as a trend, yes, we have seen improvements quarter-on-quarter for the year as the year progressed.
On volume growth - 2% versus 8.5% last quarter. We have not seen such a slowdown for any other retail company so far which have reported. Plus, you mentioned innerwear has seen a slightly more subdued and this is a more staple category. Any study or handle you have as to track brand relevance, channel wise, if there is a problem, is EBO growing much faster than the GT channel?
Sure, Sameer. Thanks for the question. I think it is probably the first thing on our minds as well, right? So, in terms of brand health and relevance for men's innerwear as well as women's innerwear as a category, brand score seems to be still at an all-time high. Just to get you in on the details, right, our top-of-mind awareness for the brand for men stand at about 55% and for women at about 36% - 37%, which has been the highest that it is ever been. More importantly, we track a metric called MPB which is Most Preferred Brand. It is a general brand management metric where for men Jockey is at about 55% and for women, it is about 45%. Again, an all-time high that it is ever been since the time we have been tracking it. So, we do not have indications of the brand losing relevance amongst what we define as our target audience. In fact, the brand score seems to be on a high. This is through syndicated research. Also, from anecdotal research that we collect when we speak to retailers on the ground, this is multi-brand retailers, as well as the information that we have on system, on record as far as our EBS stores are concerned, there is a marked drop in consumers at the store level. That is what we have seen both in a multi-brand scenario as well as an exclusive brand scenario. And that is the reason we kind of push to attribute this more to the consumer level. And of course, the growth that are seen today is being aided by expansion. But at a consumer level, there seems to be stress at this point in time.
Any difference in the MBO versus EBO growth rate?
No, at a like-to-like level, there is no difference. Of course, when you add in expansion, we have been adding about anywhere between 140 EBS to 160 EBS year-after-year. And hence, we have seen better growth rates overall as a channel. But if that were to be discounted and looked at a like-to-like store level performance, MBOs and EBOs seem to be performing in a similar manner, but there is a definite difference in performance between offline and online. Online seem to be growing a lot more robust and healthy when compared to offline.
On the JKY Groove launch - is it coming after a feedback from the trade channels? Jockey is known for comfort and fit. Fashion is a different ballgame. It increases the risk of provisioning on inventory, dead stock, etc., and the competition here is much more intense versus your normal Jockey products. Also last year, we had experimented with jeans that have seen a limited success. So what exactly is the thought process behind launching this product?
Great question, Sameer. Thanks for the question. This is not a feedback from GT, not a feedback from retailers for the need for this. This is more to look at spaces for extending product portfolio within the brand ambit. That is where this is coming from. As you know, you have been following the brand over the years. We moved from innerwear to sleepwear, sleepwear to loungewear, loungewear to athleisure, athleisure to OneMile wear. We have also entered the performance activewear and we have seen large portions of success in all of these areas that we have gotten into. This is another space within apparel as a category and the apprehensions that you have are the apprehensions we have as well and that is the reason we have not gone out for a full-fledged launch from the get go. What we did this quarter was more of a pilot just to understand how this space operates and whether there are going to be risks like you had mentioned. So this particular launch was contained to just about 50 EBOs in the country and jockey.in and one other platform on e-commerce, just to assess what the response is going to be and also track business metrics in terms of turns, in terms of inventory, in terms of redundancy, etc., and this was launched about mid-May. So, as I am speaking to you, we have about 75 days of tertiary data compared to the primary that we made and/or the products that we made and hence, sell through information. So far, the performance has been really, really good and promising. That being said, I do not think tomorrow, this will become the mainstay of Jockey or the face of Jockey or we will expand straight away to 50,000 outlets - 60,000 outlets. That is not the intent. We will spread this area cautiously, look to expand in a methodical manner, season-after-season until we get a hang of this, get a clear understanding of what it means to business and how it affects our metrics. But it is an opportunity for us to talk to the younger audience. It is an opportunity for us to extend ourselves into a new space. That is how we are looking at it.
On manufacturing cost - the volumes have been low in the quarter. So did we get some benefit out of that, given that the manpower cost would have been low, apart from the efficiency gains? And by the end of the quarter, if the volume increases, will we get leverage on that front or it will be in line to the sales or volume growth?
No, definitely. I think there will be a benefit coming from manufacturing efficiency. There are two parts to it. If the volume increases substantially, and that is what we are hopeful, that volume will increase in the coming quarters. So with increasing sales volume, there will be a requirement of increasing the production, and maybe the requirement of recruiting more people will also come in, though efficiency is increasing. So if there is more recruitment of workforce, then the benefit of higher manufacturing efficiency will be, to some extent, diluted. But if you continue to leverage the existing workforce and produce more, then the benefit of further manufacturing efficiency or overabsorption of overheads will flow into the manufacturing cost.
From the Odisha plant, we had some benefits from the state government. Did we see some benefit of that also flowing? Given that we have set ourselves an Rs. 8,000 crore target, and this is a new plant, and another plant is expected to come in a year's time. So can both the plants be absorbed for the Rs. 8,000 crores of target you have set yourself or is these two plants for very long term in the future?
So both or even from our plans of expansion in the next few years, both these manufacturing facilities will be fully up and running. And also for a significantly longer term where there is more production requirements and more sales requirement, this will be good addition to our total capacity. At the same time, the Odisha facility as well as the new upcoming KR Pet facility, they are much more modern, much more I would say technically and even from sustainability perspective, it is a much more modern manufacturing facility. So that also helps. From the Odisha subsidy part of it, it is a bit early now because that is what the plan is while we have just started operations, the subsidies typically starts flowing in only from beginning of next financial year, nothing will flow in this year. So it is a bit early now.
When you say the innerwear got impacted, how was the growth in the modern classic category of men's innerwear? Because that pricing would be similar to the retailer whom we are discussing. So is modern classic growth more muted compared to P1, P2 category for us?
No. So interestingly, across price points, we have seen consistent performance in the bygone quarter. And specifically to the comparison, even modern classic will be priced premium when compared to the player in question here.
On growth in various channels - the MBO and EBO channel growth was similar and D2C continues to grow. What restricts the physical distribution channel on growth apart from retail environment not being that great? Is there any challenge on footfalls or in terms of attracting customers to the stores?
Yes. So like I said, whatever growth we have posted this year is on the back of expansion in a way. So where the growth is being muted is at a consumer level, like-to-like. So that is where it is being attributed to walk-ins or consumption being subdued this bygone quarter. But otherwise expansion in terms of number of doors, in terms of presence has definitely gone up when compared to last year same quarter and also gone up within the quarter from March closing to June. So that in terms of efforts or inputs is on. We continue to expand, but where we have seen a stress is largely at a like-to-like growth level.
Apart from product innovation, any customer engagement activities that you have ramped up? Could you give some instances over that?
Yes. We have a very robust marketing plan in place like we do every year in terms of strengthening brand with clear actionable call outs to make sure that we are able to drive consumption. That is how we are approaching this year as well. And over the last three years, our investment in marketing has gone up year-after-year and today, we operate anywhere between 4.5% to 5% in terms of investment in marketing. And that is the kind of investment that is going in as well this year. It is just that in quarter one, largely owing to timing and how the sporting calendar is out, we are seeing a muted investment in quarter one. That is because last year, we participated in the World Cup campaign, which happened to be in the month of June. And hence, we are seeing a difference over there as far as this year is concerned. But otherwise, when you look at it in totality, full year to full year, we have a solid marketing plan in place, backed with adequate investments for us to activate consumers.
On women and athleisure categories - your annual report talks about these categories being your focus going forward. What will be the key initiatives that you plan to take this year to improve the growth rate in this category?
I think largely it is going to be product, in terms of what we will see in terms of introduction in the portfolio in these two areas. We are going to have a completely new range a new range of elevated premium products coming in as far as the women's innerwear space is concerned. It is just in a way going in now, just in time for the festive season and that is going to be one of the key pillars for us. Also, in the athleisure side, we have done a lot of work in upgrading and elevating our existing products in terms of features, in terms of fits, to make it a lot more modern than what it is today to suit the younger consumer, at the same time, not alienate our existing loyal consumer set. So that is been a massive exercise that the product team has undergone with every product that is currently in the portfolio. And then, of course, Groove is going to be a pillar when it comes in season two. And then there are a few initiatives, which I cannot give away too much at this point in time for all of our benefit, but that is something that is planned sometime in quarter three of this year. So, a large portion of focus, which is disproportionate in this area when compared to the other categories is going to be on product enhancement.
On inventory - what is the status of inventory levels for athleisure? Has it started declining as mentioned in Q4 call? There was a difference of around 7 days between the inventory.
Yes. So we are seeing a decrease month-after-month as far as inventory days are concerned at a partner level. I think I had mentioned the last time as well, as far as innerwear as a portfolio is concerned, we are already where we want to be, which is our optimum inventory level. Outerwear still has, like I think I would mentioned this last time, we will be taking the whole of this year, at least the first three quarters for us to reach an optimum level. But I do not believe that is holding us back in a big way in terms of performing both in terms of primary and secondary. Of course, freeing up that level of capital at the partner level will help us introduce more relevant products for those markets, which should again help us in better secondary sell-throughs. But yes, it is a phase that we will need to live through, and I am hoping that in the next couple of quarters, we should be able to reach optimum levels with outerwear as well.
We are now at the scale where macro trends dominate performance. One possible solution is to create a portfolio organically or inorganically within the larger portfolio of low index categories or brands. Are there any bright spots in the portfolio clearly outperforming the average? When you do the sum total, you can say that 20% - 25% of our overall portfolio is growing way above what the company is today delivering number?
Tejas, thanks for the question, right? But this is the function of the lifecycle in which that particular space within the portfolio is at. So definitely, there are going to be areas within the portfolio, which is outdoing the average. It is got to do with what stage of the lifecycle is that portfolio at and it is also got to do with how we cut the portfolio. So I can straightaway say, for example, accessories is a portfolio where we sell socks, towels, caps, handkerchiefs as a portfolio is outdoing the brand average by a big margin. That is also because it is in a nascent stage. It is not completely fully distributed to the extent that we would like it to be, and hence there is a lot of inorganic opportunity for growth which is sitting over there. Further, if we had to dissect each of our portfolios further, right, let us say within men's innerwear, if you have to break it down further, or within women's innerwear, if you have to break it down further, either in the form of product types, either in the form of collections, either in the form of material groups, you will find parts of the portfolio that is outdoing the average, all of which are in a way opportunities for organic growth. That is also because unlike FMCG or the number of SKUs that we deal with, which are truly differentiated from each other, either in the form of fit or product type or material or price point, there is opportunity for us to grow. So, yes, there are many parts within the portfolio today, which is far outdoing the portfolio average and leading that inorganic agenda for us.
JKY Groove - though it is actually kind of extension of what we just spoke about, but launching it just in 50 EBOs and only in our portal, what markers will actually give you confidence from such limited launch actually will give you confidence to roll it further? And is it like targeting a certain category of audience at the price point?
Yes. So I think, I responded to a similar question just before. The markers that we are looking for is firstly consumer acceptance, because it is new for Jockey as a brand. Secondly, we are having a lookout for who is actually shopping this. Is it the existing Jockey consumer who is shopping this or are we attracting new consumers into the brand by making this available? The third is to see inventory turns itself and sell throughs, right? We had a certain plan. Obviously, because of the number of stores that we had planned for, we had planned limited quantities, but keeping in mind the number of stores, and hence store level performance of sell throughs is a very good indication of how things are happening. We are also keeping an eye because this is relatively high fashion when compared to what Jockey otherwise operates and what the kind of redundancy that is going to be left with at the end of the season. Are there anything that is going to be left at all? These are something that we are really looking out for so that we can build clear business metrics in this space before we can expand. And that is the reason it has been limited to the distribution that we have kept in mind. We believe it is sufficient width for us to get a clear reading of this part of the business. And then once we justify this to ourselves in terms of performance, kicking it would be relatively easier.
Regarding JKY Groove - this looks exciting. The product market fit which you talked about, the way you offer this in trade channel, is that a marker to suggest that you have established the product market fit? And the continuation of that is the success of various launches, extensions, which we have seen over the years has gone down. How does trade actually accept this kind of launches?
So see, there is already some level of inherent demand in trade for JKY Groove. We have been receiving a lot of requests from our partners in the general trade channels to extend the portfolio into their stores as well. Again, I am guessing this is because of the experience with which these retailers come. They deal with consumers on a daily basis. They have a fair sense of what will work with their consumers, what will not work with their consumers. Having considered all of that, if there is some level of latent demand for this, I am assuming that there is a market for this in general trade as well. Whether we will consider it successful the minute it goes into general trade, I do not know. We have always taken a phased approach. We are taking the similar approach now. Even within our organized retail space itself, out of close to 1,500 stores that we have, it was today this is only at about 50. So, there is a long way of expansion opportunity available here as well. And then, of course, general trade is a massive opportunity which is also there. Once we are able to establish the relevance of this product at this price point from this brand for consumers in that channel. Then we will go after expansion to make it available in as many test points as possible so that more consumers can come and experience this particular brand, which will flow into business as well.