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The heights of great men reached and kept, were not attained by sudden flight,but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upwards in the night. -Winston Churchill

“Always try to do something that you are passionate about and live for. This isvery important because just living an indifferent life will neither help you as anindividual nor the society and the industry. Have a goal in life and pursue it withpassion and dedication.” So says P R Agarwala, Chairman of Rupa & Co. Ltd., thecountry’s largest manufacturer of hosiery and innerwear brand. In a way, theyreflect the attitude of the man himself, known to be passionate about work.

Rupa & Co. Ltd.

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P R Agarwala

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His corporate office at Metro Shopping PlazaComplex in Kolkata is near to Victoria Memorial, oneof the greatest architectures of all times. Theexpanse and vastness of this ‘mammoth’ architectureis mirrored against the activities inside his office.

So even before meeting the man, we know why he’smade it big, the biggest name in Indian hosiery andinnerwear, because Agarwala thinks ‘Big’.

But things were not that rosy for this down-to-earthand simple gentlemen from Sikar in Rajasthan. Afterfinishing his initial schooling from Rajasthan, hepursued Classes IX and X from Kolkata and latergraduated from Kolkata’s City College and LLB fromCalcutta University. During those days, he had toeven pass through financial hardships.

Formative Years

Later he joined his father’s business of textile andhosiery trading. But his urge and vision to get intomanufacturing prompted him to set up his ownhosiery company– ‘Binod Hosiery’ way back in 1957.

Agarwala, the eldest of the three brothers andChairman of the Board puts it in this way: “In 1957,we floated a very small trading business in Kolkataunder the banner of Binod Hosiery. But the desire tocreate our own product was always there, besidesthere was a steady demand for quality products. So,we nurtured and crystallized the idea of setting up‘Rupa’ in 1968.” His two brothers too joined him atRupa.

Initially, Rupa started manufacturing at Tirupur andKolkata. But within a short span of time it felt thatthere was untapped potential in the femaleinnerwear sector and thus expanded its productbasket to include female innerwear.

It was not an easy task, during those days the marketwas dominated by unorganized players and localbrands and our products were doing well only inBihar.

But then things improved, the brand grew and ourvisibility increased. In the late 70s, riding high on thesuccess of the ‘Rupa’ brand in the East, theAgarwalas decided to make it a national brand withpresence throughout the country.

Growth Trajectory

The vision and foresight with which Rupa was set upwere not unfounded.

Today, Rupa has emerged as the country’s largest

manufacturer of hosiery and innerwear brandcapturing more than 21% of the Rs 2,500-crorebranded hosiery market.

The Limca Book of Records has been recognising thisfact and honouring Rupa & Co. Ltd.as the country’slargest manufacturer of knitted innerwear for the lastSix years.

Now, not only ‘Rupa’ has evolved as parent brand forthe Company but its slew of sub-brands likeBumchum, Frontline, Macroman, Softline, Footline,Kid Line, Jon, Thermocot, & Euro are all marketleaders in their own right.

It has introduced another premium sub-brand ‘AIR’ toits product basket.

So, what has been the crux of this success story?Agarwala says, “At Rupa we believe in providing‘value-for-money’ products that target all thesegments of the society. We have always givenmuch emphasis on customer satisfaction, as webelieve in the cardinal rule that ‘Customer is King’.Customer satisfaction and customer comfort are ofprime concern for us. We have just concluded adetailed analytical study on the trends of the industryto help us chalk out our future growth strategies. ‘Tomaintain our leadership position we have to innovate,inculcate new ideas, come up with new products andhas to be in close touch with our customers.”

Brand Promotion

Agarwala also believes that spreading the rightmessage to the end users is also very important forthe growth of the brand.

So, Rupa has entailed a huge amount on brandpromotion and publicity. Rupa has roped in some ofthe leading celebrities in the country to endorse itsbrand in the market.

Agarwala said roping in popular brand ambassadorswill do the magic for the Rupa’s brand promotionand visibility and this has proved to be correct.

Since 80s and 90s, Rupa has roped in Bollywood starslike Govinda, Aishwarya Rai, Celina Jaitley, KoenaMitra, Sanjay Dutt, Karan Grover, and Rajpal Yadavto endorse its range of men and women innerwear.

Recently, Rupa got Bollywood heart-throb HrithikRoshan to endorse ‘Macroman’, a premium sub-brand under the Rupa’s stable. After receivingtumultuous response from the consumers, theCompany renewed its contract with Hrithik.

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Initially, Rupa started manufacturing at Tirupur andKolkata. But within a short span of time it felt thatthere was untapped potential in the femaleinnerwear sector and thus expanded its productbasket to include female innerwear.

It was not an easy task, during those days the marketwas dominated by unorganized players and local

brands and our products were doing well only inBihar.

But then things improved, the brand grew and ourvisibility increased. In the late 70s, riding high on thesuccess of the ‘Rupa’ brand in the East, theAgarwalas decided to make it a national brand withpresence throughout the country.

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Today, the Rupa & Co. Ltd. is Rs 530 crore plus business conglomerate, and the largestmanufacturer of hosiery and innerwear products in the country for the past 6 years ina row – a fact which has been recorded in the Limca Book of Records. It has a 21percent market share of the Rs 2500 crore branded hosiery undergarment market inIndia, with a reach, spreading across the length and breadth of India and overseasmarkets too.

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In 2007, they roped inBollywood superstar HrithikRoshan as their brandambassador of MacroMan, apremium sub-brand underRUPA’s stable. Today RUPA’smarketing budget hastouched Rs. 30 crore.

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Rupa is undoubtedly India’s largest hosierymanufacturer with an annual turnover ofover Rs. 530 crores. It is now the first Indianinnerwear manufacturer to become alicensee of SUPIMA, the premierorganisation of American Pima Cottongrowers. The coveted SUPIMA certificationis given only to very select manufacturers ofhigh-quality apparel, whose products aremade from 100% American Pima Cotton.

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The premium inner wear industry is growing at therate of 13 per cent annually and Rupa with its brandMacroMan has found huge growth potential in thepremium segment of male innerwear, MacroMan atpresent is growing at the rate of 35 percent per year.Today, Rupa with its impeccable standards boasts ofan extremely large customer base with over 6 lakhsRupa products being sold every day.

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Tthe crux of Rupa’s success storyaccording to Agarwala is, “At RUPA webelieve in providing ‘value-for-money’products that target all the segments ofthe society. We have always given muchemphasis on customer satisfaction, aswe believe in the cardinal rule that‘Customer is King’. Customer satisfac-tion and customer comfort are of primeconcern for us. We have just concludeda detailed analytical study on the trendsof the industry to help us chalk out ourfuture growth strategies. To maintain ourleadership position we have to innovate,inculcate new ideas, come up with newproducts and have to be in close touchwith our customers.”

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Improving Customer Satisfaction -Organizationsneed to retain existing customers while targetingnon-customers;. Measuring customer satisfactionprovides an indication of how successful the organi-zation is at providing products and/or services to themarketplace.

Policy, Processes, People, Premises, Product/Services,as well as performance measurement. The imple-mentation of a customer service standard shouldlead to higher levels of customer satisfaction, whichin turn influences customer retention and customerloyalty. We have always

Taken into account Customer perception & accord-ingly designed our Business Module which is the Coreof Rupa‘s essence.

Way Ahead

“Our endeavour will be to work hard and maximisecustomer satisfaction. In order to do that we haveput in place the latest equipment to produce the bestproducts,” said Agarwala. Though he declined tocomment on the figure he is eyeing to touch tenyears down the line but it is visible that he is aimingsomething big and desires to emerge as the biggestKnitwear Manufacturing Multinational Company inthe coming years. Rupa’s turnover touched the Rs.530-crore mark in March 2010.

Rupa has extended its footprints across the bound-aries of the country. The Company is already presentin Middle East and now plans to go to SoutheastAsia, Middle East and parts of Europe.

Focus on Quality

Since the beginning, Quality has remained the key-stone towards its success. The manufacturing unitshave state-of-the-art machinery that run on importedtechnology. A team of experienced experts com-pletes the man and machine equation to produce theimpeccable standards that signify our uncompromis-ing quality. From the raw materials to the qualitycontrol measures, in every step, Rupa products haveto pass the “test of excellence”.

The product portfolio reflects these inputs – innerand casual wear for men, women and children,classic sportswear, socks and winter wear. Rupa nowhas a product range, wide enough to cater to thedemands of various individual preferences. Aggres-sive marketing strategies, celebrity centred advertis-ing supported by an extensive and highly attuneddistribution network, ensure that its products reachthe remote corners.

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Fresh new designs, innovativetechnology, a dynamiccorporate philosophy and anhonest mission to give themgood value for moneycombine to provide us thatcutting edge. The updatedoperating systems, extensiveresearch, and the invaluabletrust of the end-users havehelped Rupa to maintain aleading position in the ever-evolving market.

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Rupa has always provided highest standard of quality products toits consumers. It has believed in modern technology and latestmachinery. The manufacturing facilities of the company areequipped with state-of-the-art machinery backed by a sophisti-cated in-house laboratory and R & D facilities. Computerisedequipment has also been installed to check fabric and colour. Theaccent in the quality management system is to provide to therapidly changing fashion conscious consumer with products whichhas a blend of comport and style. It is as a result of the efforts andinvestments made for maintaining highest quality standards thatRUPA’s name is synonymous with quality.

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Since undergarments are construed as afashion accessory rather than a necessity,Rupa has become extremely design con-scious and are constantly on the lookout fornew styles and colours, as a result of which,new products are being launched at regularintervals. Additionally, existing products arebeing upgraded at par with global standardsto provide maximum value-addition for theconsumers. Its marketing strategy ofadvertising even in the smallest villages hasmade consumers to shift from unbrandedgoods to its branded products.

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Fresh new designs, innovative technology, a dynamiccorporate philosophy and an honest mission to givethem good value for money combine to provide usthat cutting edge. The updated operating systems,extensive research, and the invaluable trust of theend-users have helped Rupa to maintain a leadingposition in the ever-evolving market.

Rupa’s product portfolio today includes innerwear,socks, casual wear and classic sportswear for ladies,gentlemen and children. They continue to strivetowards excellence, to gift the consumer the verybasic in body wear and to cater to an ever-expandingconsumer base. With constant learning, innovationand refinement of its operations, Rupa has transitedseamlessly from a production driven to a customerdriven enterprise and is fully prepared to face thechallenges of total customer satisfaction at a globallevel.

Since undergarments are construed as a fashionaccessory rather than a necessity, Rupa has becomeextremely design conscious and are constantly on thelookout for new styles and colours, as a result ofwhich, new products are being launched at regularintervals. Additionally, existing products are beingupgraded at par with global standards to providemaximum value-addition for the consumers. Itsmarketing strategy of advertising even in the smallestvillages has made consumers to shift from unbrandedgoods to our branded products.

The company has always provided highest standardof quality products to its consumers. In its endeavorthe company has always believed in moderntechnology and latest machinery. The manufacturingfacilities of the company are equipped with state-of-the-art machinery backed by a sophisticated in-houselaboratory and R & D facilities. Computerizedequipment has also been installed to check fabric andcolor. The accent in the quality management systemis to provide to the rapidly changing fashion con-scious consumer products which has a blend ofcomport and style. It is as a result of the efforts andinvestments made for maintaining highest qualitystandards that today the very name ‘RUPA” is icon forquality.

Focus on R&D

At Rupa, innovations have always been a part of theCompany’s growth strategy. To further enhance theconfiguration of our dyeing, processing and finishingof fabric, a unit was established at Domjur (WestBengal). The main idea behind this unit was to make adifference in the world of knitted fabrics and durable

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Brand Recognition

For any FMCG company like Rupa itsbrands such as Frontline, Jon,MacroMan, Thermocot, Footline,Softline, Bumchum, Kid Line & Euro,etc are household name for hosieryproducts. Each brand has uniqueproduct features and design. TheCompany has always recognisedthe value of brand and endeav-oured to promote it aggressively.The company’s expenses onaccount of advertisement in allforms of media, campaigns andcelebrity endorsement have paid-off and as a result of which thebrands are omnipresent in themarket and consumer mind-space.

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dyeing by providing a multifarious range of finishingand processing services. This unit has a capacity ofhandling 5 tonnes of knitted fabrics a day, in anydesired finish. It is equipped with the latest machin-ery, backed by a superlative in-house laboratory andR & D facilities, to develop high quality fabrics, whichwill meet the requirements of world standards.Special purpose computerized equipment forchecking the fabric and colour parameters have alsobeen installed.

SUPIMA, the premier organization of American PimaCotton growers – which uses the best cottonavailable in the world (crop available only in America).SUPIMA stands for superior pima cotton, exclusiveextra-long staple (ELS) cotton that is cultivatedespecially in the rich, lush fields of Arizona, California,New Mexico and Texas. Often lauded as “thecashmere of cottons”, American Pima cotton isfamed for its longer staple length, greater tensilestrength and better ability to retain colour – ascompared to regular cotton fibre. This results in aluxurious fabric that is unmatched in its softness,lightness, lustre and durability, with the brilliance ofits colour never fading.

Rupa Air Vest is made from American Pima Cotton -they are lightweight, having a silky finish, and allowmoisture and air to pass freely. Extremely wearer-

friendly and easy to care for, such garments let theskin breathe freely while ensuring freshness through-out the day.

The coveted SUPIMA certification is given only to veryselect manufacturers of high-quality apparel, whoseproducts are made from 100% American PimaCotton. Rupa is the first Indian innerwear manufac-turer to enter this elite international group.

With each product, technical know-how and superiorfabric are used to bring the final result. This cus-tomer-orientation makes Rupa the brand that isclosest to the hearts of millions of Indians. The namethat has become synonymous with the best inhosiery products – which includes four decades ofhard work along with constant up gradation of R & Dand Machinery facilities to bring to the discerningcustomer; the finest in undergarments and casualwear. The company has successfully wedded state-of-the-art machinery with the latest fashion trends tobring about a product that is the first and the lastword in comfort.

The Euro Fashion Inners one of the premier brandsegment’s of Rupa are made from the best quality,fine-textured, stretchable fabrics sourced from allover the world. The range comprises the latest,trendiest cuts and designs in men’s briefs, boxers,

PR Agarwala with his Brothers

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vests, undershirts and loungers – in line with designconcepts that are prevalent in places like London,Milan and Paris. Each Euro product is designed onstate-of-the-art imported machinery to retain betterfit and shape throughout, making your luxuryexperience an enduring one. Tag Line of Euro – “GetPrepared to be Assaulted” is well taken by Consumer& they feel uniqueness while viewing this Ad always.

Diversification Drive

The Group has also diversified into Steel making withthe setting up of Neo Metaliks Ltd., a high capacitySteel Plant in Durgapur manufacturing ingots.

Manufacturing/Infrastructure Facilities

Domjur (Howrah) Unit

The Company has one of the most modern dyeingplants in India, this unit is located 8 km from Kolkata,and produces over 30 tons of dyed fabric daily .Equipped with state-of-the-art machinery this plant isbacked by sophisticated in-house laboratory and R &D facilities. Computerised equipment has also beeninstalled to check fabric and colour.

Tirupur Factory

State-of-the-art plants has been set up at Tirupur(Tamil Nadu) with the latest machines for fabricchecking and layering, cutting and stitching andironing and stain removing, among other functions.

Retaining & Attracting Talent Pool

Attrition rate of the industry is very high, but thecompany is offering the best of facilities / packagesand growth prospects to the right candidate. Withthe pressure to retain leadership position in thehosiery segment RUPA believes in maintaining astrong talent base to maximize its growth potential.Most importantly and despite being a family runorganization, it is now focussing heavily on profes-sional managers to substantiate the growth momen-tum.

The Burgeoning Market

During the past few years, there has been a signifi-cant rise in corporate interest towards the inner wearsegment for various reasons. One of the reasonsbeing the huge domestic market that today demandsfor better quality products and also the growingexport prospects, especially to Europe.

Inner wear is increasingly being looked upon as afashion accessory. The future of the inner wearmarket looks hot and positive as more MNC’s are

GP AGARWALA

KB AGARWALA

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stepping into the arena with their unparalleledmarketing strategies and their latest product rangethat is in tune with fashion trends the world over.

But the undergarment sector in India, till recently wasone of the few markets that did not witness the entryof multinationals. However, with globalization of theIndian economy, international Brands / Companyentered Indian markets. Thus, the market, with theentry of new brands is set for a buoyant trend. Alsothe role of the media cannot be ignored.

Then came the various beauty contests and manhuntshows, where our folks sashay down the rampdressed in their scantiest for that glittering piece ofmetal. And in the process serve as inspirationalmaterial to scores of dreamers. So popular are thesecontests and shows that inner wear companies havestarted launching their product range at exclusivelingerie shows.

In a market like that of India, where competition is onthe uptrend, the role of effective communicationplays a vital role (apart from design innovations,quality and distribution) in making the brand asuccess.

Strategy

The company is concentrating on brand promotionfor ensuring growth in terms of turnover and marketshare. Focus is primarily on:

♦Strengthening its brand image

♦Design and product development

♦Further strengthening of its marketing and

distribution network

♦Enhancement of geographical presence

♦Efficiency improvement and pursuit of cost control

Pursuit for enhancement of volumes of both domes-tic and export sales is being vigorously followed.With rapidly changing scenario, the accent is not onlyon product quality but also on style and modernity.Many of the existing brands have already beenrevamped and new ones will be introduced to caterto fashion conscious consumers. Packing andadvertising has also received new attention andcontinued efforts will be made to keep the brandsfresh and contemporary.

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With each product, technical knowhow and superiorfabric are used to bring the final result. This cus-tomer-orientation makes Rupa the brand that isclosest to the hearts of millions of Indians. The namethat has become synonymous with the best inhosiery products – which includes four decades ofhard work along with constant upgradation of R & Dand Machinery facilities to bring to the discerningcustomer; the finest in undergarments and casualwear.

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The Men behindRupa & Co. Ltd.

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The YThe YThe YThe YThe Youououououng Gng Gng Gng Gng Guuuuuns of Rns of Rns of Rns of Rns of Ruuuuupa & Cpa & Cpa & Cpa & Cpa & CoooooRamesh Agarwal,Director

MukeshAgarwal,Director

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Vikash Agarwal,Director

Rajnish Agarwal,Director

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Corporate Social Responsibility

Agarwala like his family is interested in social activi-ties. He is associated with several philanthropic andeducational organisations like Manovikas Kendra inRajasthan, Heritage Institute of Technology andHeritage School. He has been helping the cause of50 handicapped children.

Besides, he and his brothers have recently floated‘Rupa Foundation’ to further augment the socialinitiatives. ‘Presently, my thrust will be on promotionof education among the economically backwardclasses,’ Agarwala said.

In Order to Service to Society, The Group has alsoforayed into education by setting up the SobhasariaEngineering College in Sikar, Rajasthan. The Collegeoffers degrees in Engineering, Management and isaffiliated to the Rajasthan Technical University.

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The company is concentratingon brand promotion forensuring growth in terms ofturnover and market share.Pursuit for enhancement ofvolumes of both domestic andexport sales is being vigorouslyfollowed. With rapidlychanging scenario, the accentis not only on product qualitybut also on style and moder-nity.

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Inner wear is increasingly being looked upon as afashion accessory. The future of the inner wearmarket looks hot and positive as more MNC’s arestepping into the arena with their unparalleledmarketing strategies and their latest product rangethat is in tune with fashion trends the world over.

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Rupa’s marketing strategy of advertising evenin the smallest villages has made consumers toshift from unbranded goods to our brandedproducts.

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With rapidly changingscenario, the accent is notonly on product quality butalso on style and modernity.Many of the existing brandshave already been revampedand new ones will beintroduced to cater to fashionconscious consumers.