Inside Out

Thorstein Allenstein is convinced that he has the coolest job in the world. This 41-year-old is managing director of Triumph International,a European lingerie and swimwear label. Having helped set up the business in India in 2005,Allenstein recently introduced a limited collection and a line of Swarovski-encrusted lingerie which retail for Rs 49,000 upwards at the brand’s outlets in Delhi and Mumbai. “Perceptions about lingerie are slowly changing in India. Women are becoming creative,and experimenting with inner wear. Five years back they treated lingerie like another commodity. Now,I get requests to introduce our fashionable collection at the stores,” he says. He has worked for 19 years in the fashion industry,first with women’s accessories,then with men’s inner wear and now with a women’s lingerie label. He has one advice for both men and women. “Shed your inhibitions,” he says. “Even men should talk openly with their spouse about lingerie”. It’s an advice he himself has followed,he adds. “My Indian wife trusts my advice now.”