The Juggling Act

But that doesn’t mean she takes any of her business ventures lightly. Her health and fitness centre,Clay,has developed a loyal clientele over the past five-and-a-half years. “The fitness centre was the result of a personal experience. After I had put on weight during my pregnancy,I was lucky to have worked with a fine team of health professionals to get back in shape. So I felt that others should also avail good service,” she explains,adding that she doesn’t really plan to launch more fitness centres anytime soon.

The Schokolaade venture,for which she joined hands with Mehul Bhuta to launch a cafe in her flagship store at Khar a few weeks back,has worked well too. “The concept of having a cafe in a shop is common abroad but quite new in India. I intend to provide my customers a complete experience rather than just a few hours of tiresome shopping. These days men accompany women during shopping,so a cafe is the perfect place to unwind,and the kids’ corner makes it more wholesome,” she reasons.

And if that is not quite enough,she is also eying the ever growing market for bridalwear and menswear. She will launch a 5,000 square feet store in Mumbai next February dedicated to bridal wear. The line will dwell heavily on Rajasthan-inspired old handwork. “So you can expect bandhini,gota embroidery and the like,” she says. The menswear line,on the other hand,will be simple and elegant with a made-to-order section.

Which brings us to the big question: with so much going on,how does she manage to hold on to the consumer’s interest in all of her labels — especially AND – a line that seems to be churning out the same silhouettes with little experimentation? “Each of my labels has its own USP. AND,for one,was always meant to be out-and-out everyday wear label that was practical (read: comfortable) and stylish. Also,while I do focus more on my couture line now,I haven’t lost my creative control over other labels. They are still my bankable labels,” she signs off.