The Tamil Nadu Handloom Weavers Cooperative Society, known popularly as Co-optex, has begun region specific marketing in it's newly-inaugurated boutique in the city. The boutique has categorised sarees based on the regions they come from, a strategy that aims to target a more discerning cosmopolitan crowd. The new line of boutiques has also been stocked with their export-targeted home furnishing line.
In a major deviation from its marketing strategy, Co-optex's new boutique on Crosscut Road, which opened on Thursday, displayed sarees on shelves titled Salem light weight sarees, Arni Temple border sarees, Koorainadu sarees, Coimbatore cotton Sarees and Chinnalapalli tie & dye sarees. "We resorted to this style of marketing to showcase entire Tamil Nadu's strength in weaving," said managing director of Co-optex, T N Venkatesh. "So we have sarees from literally every nook and corner of the state where weaving takes place like Paramakudi, Dindigul, Ponnai and Arupukottai, and they have been displayed under the districts and villages they are from," he said.
The move is also aimed at giving each of these unique weaving styles a separate identity, a brand tag in the future and create a sense of familiarity among the customers who walk in to shop, says Venkatesh. "Every customer who walks into the store will identify with the sarees from their native or birth place or village and feel a sense of pride, which may tempt them to pick something up," he said. "If it could be done with Kancheepuram silk sarees, why not the others," he added. The shops' sales personnel have also been educated in detail about the history and differences in weaving styles of sarees from different regions. This is the second "boutique" to be opened in the country.
Customers, who walked into the boutique in the heart of the shopping district, seemed to enjoy the display style. Many of them were found to be asking the sales staff the difference between Arupukottai cotton and Dindigul cotton. "Co-optex is very trustworthy and is at least 20% cheaper than other saree outlets," said Varshini Das, a co-optex regular who visited the boutique on Saturday. "This boutique has a lot of products like organic cotton and Koorainadu sarees which are not there in other outlets," she said. Keeping in mind the lull in the export market caused by the global recession, Co-optex has also decided to try marketing their export-targeted products in the domestic market through these boutiques. Some of the new products are bags, kitchen apparels like aprons and mittens, table mats, floor mats and other home furnishings.
" Despite recession, in January when we participated in a fair in Germany, we got orders worth 1 crore," said Venkatesh. " We are introducing these products to cities like Chennai, Bangalore and New Delhi because of the cosmopolitan club which likes to keep changing their upholstery. So we thought export products which are good quality, modern but not very expensive will have many takers in big cities," he said.
In a major deviation from its marketing strategy, Co-optex's new boutique on Crosscut Road, which opened on Thursday, displayed sarees on shelves titled Salem light weight sarees, Arni Temple border sarees, Koorainadu sarees, Coimbatore cotton Sarees and Chinnalapalli tie & dye sarees. "We resorted to this style of marketing to showcase entire Tamil Nadu's strength in weaving," said managing director of Co-optex, T N Venkatesh. "So we have sarees from literally every nook and corner of the state where weaving takes place like Paramakudi, Dindigul, Ponnai and Arupukottai, and they have been displayed under the districts and villages they are from," he said.
The move is also aimed at giving each of these unique weaving styles a separate identity, a brand tag in the future and create a sense of familiarity among the customers who walk in to shop, says Venkatesh. "Every customer who walks into the store will identify with the sarees from their native or birth place or village and feel a sense of pride, which may tempt them to pick something up," he said. "If it could be done with Kancheepuram silk sarees, why not the others," he added. The shops' sales personnel have also been educated in detail about the history and differences in weaving styles of sarees from different regions. This is the second "boutique" to be opened in the country.
Customers, who walked into the boutique in the heart of the shopping district, seemed to enjoy the display style. Many of them were found to be asking the sales staff the difference between Arupukottai cotton and Dindigul cotton. "Co-optex is very trustworthy and is at least 20% cheaper than other saree outlets," said Varshini Das, a co-optex regular who visited the boutique on Saturday. "This boutique has a lot of products like organic cotton and Koorainadu sarees which are not there in other outlets," she said. Keeping in mind the lull in the export market caused by the global recession, Co-optex has also decided to try marketing their export-targeted products in the domestic market through these boutiques. Some of the new products are bags, kitchen apparels like aprons and mittens, table mats, floor mats and other home furnishings.
" Despite recession, in January when we participated in a fair in Germany, we got orders worth 1 crore," said Venkatesh. " We are introducing these products to cities like Chennai, Bangalore and New Delhi because of the cosmopolitan club which likes to keep changing their upholstery. So we thought export products which are good quality, modern but not very expensive will have many takers in big cities," he said.