Arvind Fashion, Sachin Tendulkar launch menswear brand

Arvind Fashion Brands today launched a premium menswear and accessories brand True Blue in partnership with cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar.

The company expects to launch about 30 stores in five years, targeting a turnover of Rs 200 crore. True Blue is a joint venture between Arvind Fashion Brands and Sachin Tendulkar.

“As the partnership grows, True Blue will launch 25-30 stores in five years across India targeting a turnover of about Rs 200 crore,” said Rajiv Mehta, chief executive of Arvind Fashion Brands.

True Blue launched its first store in Mumbai today. While Mehta did not reveal the terms of the partnership, he said the apparel range has been designed keeping in mind Tendulkar’s persona, showcasing over 300 styles.

Menswear is the largest segment in India’s apparel market, accounting for approximately 42 per cent of the overall segment and is expected to grow at 8.5 per cent in the next five years.

Mehta elaborated that with True Blue, the company aims to make the menswear category “unboring and more content fashion driven”. True Blue is the third brand under this division, which was set up in early 2015.

The other two brands, Prym and Shuffle, are primarily digitally-driven labels, while True Blue will follow an offline and online model, Mehta said. The offline launch comes strategically in conjunction with Arvind’s recent launch of its omni-business initiative Nnnow.com.