US-based plus-size lingerie brand Parfait, with a network of 700 stores across US, UK, Hongkong and Canada, made its debut in India last year. The brand recently announced that it was increasing its SIS count in the country from the current 17 to 150 and also planning to embark on an EBO journey. Akhil Srivastava, Managing Director of Parfait India, shares with Retail4Growth, the brand’s journey so far, the market dynamics of a niche category and the plans going forward.

Parfait entered India last year. How has been your journey so far?

Parfait has recently made its entry in the Indian market and is at a very nascent stage in the journey. But we have already received superb response from customers from cities like Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Chandigarh, Allahabad, Lucknow, and Varanasi, amongst others. We are expanding rapidly and plan to soon mark our retail presence pan India. While our current focus is on the northern and western regions, we will soon be tapping the southern and eastern markets. In less than three months of starting retail, we are already present in over 30 SIS and 10 online marketplaces.

Why is India a favourable market for plus size lingerie?

Indian market has immense potential for plus size brands as the size inclusivity industry is becoming more global to adhere to customer needs. The struggle to find the right fit and styles for the plus size women made way for plus size lingerie brands in India. With the share of female population at about 48%, and being a land with so much ethnic diversity, it is it imperative for the market to have plus size brands that can cater to a particular segment of the population.

You are globally present in many other markets as well, including the US and Canada, UK etc. How different is the Indian market?

Indian customers are very different from their international counterparts. Indian women look more for comfort than style or look in their lingerie and one of the key factors in the minds of the Indian audience is the price point. So it is safe to say that India is a very different market and hence no comparisons can be made because the business model we follow here is also entirely different from what we follow in the other markets.