Hyderabad's The Kaftan Company opens first physical store
Founded with a vision to celebrate leisure and luxury in everyday wear, this brand has carved a niche for itself in the fashion landscape over seven years
HYDERABAD : If you are a follower of contemporary fashion, where comfort meets elegance, Hyderabad-based The Kaftan Company stands as a fine example of relaxed sophistication. Founded with a vision to celebrate leisure and luxury in everyday wear, this brand has carved a niche for itself in the fashion landscape over seven years.
At the launch of their first physical store, the Co-Founder of The Kaftan Company, Prakruti Gupta Rao, shares insights about their omnichannel presence. “Our flagship store is located in Banjara Hills, a prime location within the city of Hyderabad. We are happy that we have been able to open in such a premium location where there is so much happening. Hyderabad as a city has been very good for us. We are quite popularly known since our online presence has continued to grow, and Hyderabad is one of the top five markets for us across the country. The store itself is built on 770 square feet overall, and we’re just happy that we’ve been able to start our offline journey now, having been an online brand for the last 7 to 8 years. We look forward to this as a stepping stone towards continued growth, with the possibility of expanding our network with an omnichannel presence, both online and offline, across the country,” she says.
For the fashionistas, there is a special collection that they created for the launch of the store called Silk Bandhani Collection. “These delicately tailored handwork pieces are adorned with beautiful ornate pearls, symbolising Hyderabad and its renowned pearl heritage. We felt that incorporating pearls into our Bandhani collection would make it uniquely meaningful and resonant with the city’s rich cultural inspiration,” explains Prakruti. Further elaborating on how they ventured into the fashion industry, especially kaftans, she says, “Transitioning from bulk manufacturing, we ventured into the fashion industry with a focus on kaftans. It’s a bit of a unique brand story: We were looking at starting our own brand and were inspired by the fact that kaftans are versatile, comfortable, and offer an infinite number of digital print options. Our goal was to combine comfort and style, leading to the inception of The Kaftan Company and our journey into the world of kaftans. We’ve had a fair bit of ups and downs. We’ve not only survived through COVID-19, which was a challenging period for most, but we’ve continued to thrive and grow. Our maternity wear was some of the first designs for the kinds that we do. As we continue to innovate, most recently, we’ve also launched nightwear, a men’s loungewear brand called Twilight, which is gaining a continued positive response.”
The company further informs that launching the Hyderabad store is just the beginning of its expansion plans. “We are resolutely committed to establishing our presence in every major metro city across India within the next 2-3 years, solidifying our position as the foremost Kaftan brand in the country.”
At The Kaftan company, they are most known for their digital prints. “Apart from our unique digital prints, the fabrics that we choose are also mostly natural fabrics—cottons, modals, viscose based natural fabrics,” she shares.
As a label, Prakruti is planning to have a national presence within the next two to three years. “We are going to also have specific collections of kaftans and other products only for our offline stores so we can offer the customers a unique product line that is more exclusive and premium,” she concludes.
Publication : New India Express
Author : Reshmi Chakravorty
Source : https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/hyderabad/2024/Jul/03/hyderabads-the-kaftan-company-opens-first-physical-store
