Digital Deal

“Usually,selecting a bridal or a couture outfit takes a minimum of three visits. You make appointments with designers,choose from the outfits they have to offer,go through fitting and alterations,and have a final dress rehearsal. Over the last few months,we have had a lot of our NRI customers telling us how it would save them a great deal of time if the process could be compressed. Video conferencing is the answer to that,” says Hirani.

While virtual shopping has not found much success in the country so far; the only other notable effort,involving designers like Rajesh Pratap Singh,Rohit Bal,Rahul Khanna-Rohit Gandhi and Tarun Tahiliani,was the online portal http://www.bougan-villa.com in late 2005. The web portal died a natural death even before it was fully functional. So,is Hirani confident his move will pay off?

“We have always believed in merging technology with fashion. So we are also looking to make the process as close to real life shopping as possible. We plan to introduce screens as large as six feet,” he says.

As of now,the facility,targeted towards bridal couture and NRI clientele,is available in his Kimaya Avenue boutiques in Delhi,Mumbai and Dubai,where 42-inch screens have been set up for the interface. Hirani is also set to launch two other Kimaya couture boutiques in Chennai and Bangalore over the next fortnight,both of which will have the facility.