Jealous 21, the Indian jeans brand that caters exclusively to teen girls, is planning a major expansion by establishing 85 retail points across the country by the end of this fiscal. Jealous 21, which recently entered the Middles East markets, intends to strengthen its presence and expand its retail operations across the Middle East markets.
Speaking to Indiaretailing on the sidelines of the launch of Jealous 21’s Hip Fit range, Bina Mirchandani, brand head, Jealous 21, said: “We already have 70 retail points, which includes shop-in-shops and exclusive stores, across the country. We have set a target to have 85 doors across the country by the end of this fiscal. The company also plans to strengthen its base in the Middle East, which is also a major money driver for the brand.”
Recently, Jealous 21 has tied up with the Bahrain-based Al Jazeera Group for the Middle East operations. The jeans brand, which runs one exclusive store each in Doha and Bahrain, is learnt to have been scouting for more space across the Middle East. The brand is also retailed through MBOs in the Middle East.
When asked about the positioning of Jealous 21 as an exclusive brand and not as a private label from Indus-League’s stable, Mirchandani commented: “Earlier, Jealous 21 was considered as a private label from the Indus-League stable. Today, the strategy has changed and our endeavour is to make the brand name more visible and the brand more distinguishing. Although it is still a small brand, Jealous 21 has become a respected brand among teenagers. The brand has a different positioning, which is why we are fast evolving as a trendsetter in women’s denimwear segment. The brand is witnessing a 100 per cent year-on-year growth. And we expect the growth rate to continue in the future as well.”
At present, Jealous 21 offers ranges of clothing in party, casuals and denim. Recently, the brand added a host of accessories to its existing portfolio, which includes bags, leggings, belts and jewellery. About its target audience, Mirchandani explained: “Jealous 21 targets fashion-conscious teenagers in the 17-24-years age group, and this necessitates incorporating the latest international fashion trends with excellent quality and strong brand commitment, at reasonably good prices.”
“Our survey found that Indian women are usually curvier around the hips, so finding a pair of jeans that look just right can become a nightmare, as when the jeans fit around the hips, they generally need to be taken in at the waist. Each pair of our jeans has 3 hip sizes for each waist size, in the categories of Hottie, Hourglass and Bootilicious,” said Mirchandani while launching the new collection labelled Hip Fit.
While the initial launch happened in Bengaluru, the Hip Fit range will soon be launched across the country. The company’s marketing spends for the new campaign in Bengaluru stood at Rs 5 lakh.
Launched by the Mumbai-based Jealous Fashion Wear in the early 90s, Jealous 21 was acquired by the Bengaluru-based Indus-League Clothing Ltd in May 2005. Earlier on, in January 2005, the Kishore Biyani-led Pantaloon Industries had acquired 68 per cent stake in Indus-League Clothing Ltd.
Currently, Indus-League brands – Indigo Nation, Scullers, Urban Yoga, Urbana and Jealous 21 – enjoy a significant presence in the GCC countries and Sri Lanka.
– Vishnu Rageev R, Bengaluru Bureau
