Magppie International, a design-led brand for premium home accessories, targets to grow 4 times in the next 12 months. Talking exclusively with Avinder Batra, Sr. Correspondent, Images Retail, Vinod Jain, MD, Magppie International said: "Witnessing a trajectory growth of 200 percent y-o-y, the next 12 months are very crucial for Magppie. With the growing demand among the Indian customers, the company is expected to grow four times bigger."
Magppie is planning to consolidate its retail footprints in the domestic market and overseas. Jain added, "Currently, we have 16 stores in India and have plans to open 4 more in October. We are also planning to have one store in Munich, Germany next year. In total, we are hoping to have around 100 shops globally in the next 3 years."
The company plans to open four stores in October — one in Mumbai, two in Delhi, and one in Chandigarh. Magppie already has one store in Sydney, Australia. The brand enjoys presence in 25 countries and has a vision to be present in the top10 cities of the world.
Customizing the products according to the Indian taste was a big learning for Jain. He admits that his biggest challenge was to search the design schools which were not present in India 10 years ago. Lot of investments had to be made to come out with unique designs. For example, the craftsmen were sent to Italy and Germany to learn how to polish the stainless steel. "European style designs do not work in India. So the designs were then customized according to the Indian tastes, like puja thalis," he said.
Being in the stainless steel business for almost 30 years, expanding the business to the next level came naturally. Jain conceptualized the idea of entering in the premium home accessories market in 1999-2000, foreseeing the demand for premium home accessories in the next 10 years. While most of the raw material is sourced from Germany, the "product cost" can mainly be attributed to 20 percent R & D, 50 percent in material, and 30 percent in processing. Jain believes that Magppie as a brand stands for design and gift products.
Talking about his long-term vision for the brand, Jain further added: "We want to establish ourselves as a brand synonymous to ‘design’."
Magpie International also recently extended its product portfolio from home accessories to modular kitchen concept (Rs 15 lakhs to 60 lakhs) and home artifacts (between Rs 1 lakh and 20 lakhs) which will be available in the stores this Diwali.
When asked about his take on FDI, Jain replied: "We will not be affected by the entry of international players in the domestic market as we are already an established brand among Indian consumer with specialized products, customized to suit the special needs of the customers, and there is no brand as powerful available to replicate us. Also, the brands have to go through a rigorous learnings what we had gone through in the initial stage of business in India."
-Avinder Batra
