Madura Fashion plans to launch retail portal

"In the next six to eight months, we would be looking at introducing an e-commerce channel," Madura Fashion & Lifestyle Chief Executive Ashish Dixit told PTI. Asked if it will start the new business with select brands or roll it across the board, Dixit said, "We are still evaluating how to go about it."

The company hawks premium brands such as Van Heusen, Peter England, Louis Phillipe, Allen Solly, Esprit. The Aditya-Birla Group company expects the e-commerce venture to drive its sales, especially in cities where retail penetration is quite low.

"Clearly there is a demand in lot of towns where brands and retail haven't penetrated enough. I do see that part driving the growth of e-commerce. In smaller towns we have seen rapid growth. They are driving large part of growth currently and that is likely to continue for some more time," he said.

The company is also betting big on its brick and mortar format, and will be expanding its outlets. "We keep opening 50 stores for each of our brands and that is something we will continue," he said.

On diversification plans, Dixit remained tight-lipped but said, "Van Heusen has launched shoes for men two-three months back. It is still early days. We will have to see how it does over a longer period, say six months or a year."

Asked if the company will hike prices, he replied in the negative saying, "There has been a slight increase in the raw material prices in the last few months but it is not significant enough to pass on to end-consumer."