Fab at Fifty

From the jholawallah to the fashionista,the college student to the politician,when Indian women and men need retail therapy that is not about shiny sequins or polyester prints,they turn to Fabindia,a brand that turns 50 this November. And one that is so much a part of urban Indian wardrobes that its presence is no longer even remarked upon. Fabindia made ethnic fabrics and clothing chic way before anyone else. They were responsible for ensuring that Indian handwoven fabrics become a part of our wardrobes. And they managed to do this by pricing their products reasonably, says designer Nachiket Barve.

It is also Indias most successful fashion enterprise. The Fabindia map now covers 46 cities and 123 stores; from Kochi to Guwahati,Dehradun to Patna the first store opened there last week. It also has stores in Rome and Dubai,and a franchise in Nepal. And though you could end up wearing a beautifully cut kurta only to find the same fabric adorning the dining table of your best friend,Fabindia is as much an Indian staple as the Godrej almirah.

The beginnings were humble. In 1958,John Bissell,a former buyer at Macys New York,came to India on a Ford Foundation grant to advise the All India Handicrafts Board and Cottage Industries on creating a market for handloom fabrics. What he saw of Indian handloom heritage convinced him to stay on. In 1960,he set up an export firm for Indian handwoven textiles in Delhi. He called it Fabindia.

It took 16 years more for Bissell to turn his attention to the Indian market with the firms flagship store in Delhis Greater Kailash market it stocked home furnishings. In 1981,almost as an afterthought,came the innovation that would define Fabindia. A single rack was stocked with mens kurtas and shirts. Even these were made only because whenever John would return home to the US,he would carry shirts made in handloom fabric and his friends would love them, says Prableen Sabhaney,head of communications and public affairs,Fabindia. The kurtas were a hit,both with men and women.

That led to the other eureka moment: Bissell realised that the Indian woman was waiting to be wooed away from the caprices of her darzis craftsmanship to stylish,ready-to-wear clothes. Thus began their line of clothing for women.

For the first decade or so,Fabindia was sold only in Tier-I cities the second store opened in 1992 in Delhis Vasant Kunj. The clientele then: definitely the jholawallah,the liberal intellectual. 1998 was the turning point,when Johns son William took over and focused more on the domestic market and extending the product line. There was a niche clientele when we started out,but over the years,weve become a mainstream brand,to the extent that college students now put together Fabindia garments and brands like Reebok or Nike to create an individual look, says Sabhaney.

Which explains why Delhi University student Kaavya Reddy drops in at the Kamla Nagar store near her college often. Or Sasikumars endorsement: Theyve kept up with the times and gone beyond stocking just Indian wear I can find skirts,linen trousers,dresses and even handbags now, she says.

Radhika Singh,who has just written a history of the company,The Fabric of Our Lives: The Story of Fabindia,calls herself the quintessential Fabindia customer. I have been going to the store in GK 1 for 34 years. I started wearing Fabindia khadi kurtas when I was 22. Since then I have worn the Fabindia white kurta pajama every night to sleep in. When I bought my flat in Delhi in 1994,I furnished it almost completely with Fabindia products durries,upholstery,curtains,linen,and later in 2004,even crockery and furniture. I am surrounded by the weaves,textures and colours of Fabindia.

Not all customers are as enthusiastic. And over the years,the number of naysayers has grown. Sometimes a print fades too soon or the stitching comes apart after a few uses, says Jain. For banker Kunal Trivedi,its the repetitiveness that gets tiresome. Theyve tried to update their designs,but they all end up looking the same. You can tell that someone is wearing a Fabindia shirt or kurta from a distance, he says.

Fabindias success has also spawned a host of cheaper lookalikes in metros and small towns. And brands like Anokhi,which has taken the Fabindia idea and gone further in terms of style and variety,have posed a challenge. Sabhaney disagrees: Among private companies,there is no one that offers the kind of variety we do,and has a reach similar to ours.

The companys greatest achievement,says William Bissell,managing director of the company,is that it has managed to maintain its two bottomlines of profit and public good. Its a privately owned company,so we have always been keen on profit, says Bissell,But we have been equally clear in our aim of doing good for the community. Fabindia engages with craftsmen through its 17 companies,managed and owned by communities of craftsmen,who are direct shareholders in the enterprise. The companies also act as aggregation points where products from different states Rajasthan,Uttar Pradesh,Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu,among others are collected. A concept that is now a Harvard Business School case study.

Bissells biggest disappointment has been the failure of the organic food line. It was something we put a great deal of heart into,but its not done as well as it should have, he says. Its easier to induce people to spend Rs 40,000 on a handbag than spend a little more on organic food,because after all,food is not something you can show off like a handbag.

Bissell says he first became aware of Fabindia as a lifestyle when he read a newspaper article that referred to someone as a Fabindia person. It struck me then,that Fabindia is not just a brand anymore, he says,Its a lifestyle. He may be right. If you are a Fabindia woman,for example,you can tell your Chanderi from your Maheshwari. And never be caught alive in a Swarovski-smothered zardosi monstrosity.