Jaipur has always been perceived as a manufacturing base for womenswear, accessories, jewellery, handicraft and furniture, but of late, the centre has caught the eye of buyers looking for home furnishings also. In fact, while doing this story, more than 18 home furnishing exporters shared that they were too busy to talk as they were sitting with buyers. Thanks to the reasonably good flow of orders which is keeping the Jaipur-based home furnishing exporters busy, the home furnishing (soft goods) industry has emerged out of the shadows of the garment manufacturing industry, creating an identity of its own.
One of the most encouraging features of the home furnishing export industry is that the players have moved beyond the ‘Jaipur look’ and buyers are coming here for traditional and unique techniques of Jaipur as well as for modern applications and routine products which are easily available anywhere. Exporters are involved with product development inspired from modern trends and are increasingly visiting international fairs for directions; these efforts are proving as a tool to attract the buyers.
Block print and embroidery on jute (for cushion), antique look by stone washing after printing and other innovative development are under process at the factory of Exotic Pods Creations. Marudhara Arts Inc. is working on plain dye as its buyers are now asking for modern look along with old block printing. Manglam Arts recently increased its focus on IT intervention; these are few examples that show companies are moving ahead to integrate traditional art and techniques like handstitch, block print, etc. with modern trends. The number of exporters working in the home segment is steadily increasing in the Pink City. “There are many companies that are into home as well as into garment manufacturing or any other segment, but that in no way takes away the strength of the home furnishing industry. In fact, we increasingly find that our work is a source of inspiration for garment people,” says Atul Poddar, Partner, Exotic Pods Creations. According to him, the demand for handstitch is from day one in Jaipur and now the use of multi-head embroidery machines has increased many times which proves that the city is getting an edge of traditional as well as modern trends. Same is true with hand block versus digital printing.
The most heartening fact is that even buyers who are dealing only into home segment too are going to Jaipur for sourcing. “Buyers come here looking for a mix of products and that too for every product, not only the traditional things because innovation, theme, story and integration of art are found in Jaipur. For example, we are working on print with patch, patch with embroidery, interesting mix of different materials, and this unique PD application has become strength of our city. Most of the exporters are doing it willingly, but buyers’ expectations, and increasing competition and awareness are compelling those who were not doing earlier to do so,” avers Atul. Indeed, Jaipur manufacturers are very sure about their edge. “Our strong infrastructure and flexibility help us to serve the buyers as per their demands. We are exporting fabric also to China, Italy and Brazil, and not just limiting to cushions, quilts and puffs. Earlier my buyers were asking mostly special prints of Jaipur, but now they are also sourcing plain dye from us which they could have sourced from any other centre,” informs Navneet Jhalani, Proprietor, Marudhara Arts Inc.
Combination of small orders sizes, high quality, and good margins is also one of the reasons for this growing trend and it is a kind of support in a slower market, as Europe is still placing orders to exporters offering continuous new elements and creativity in the products which keeps continuity with buyers despite less number of pieces per order. Atul has seen 20 to 25 per cent growth in his business in the last two years and is expecting 25 per cent this year also, just because of creativity and PD. “We are paying Rs. 700 per day to a specialized worker of block printing because buyer is paying that cost,” he adds. Comparatively lower cost of production is another reason for good order flow towards Jaipur, as Navneet feels that buyers who were earlier dealing with Delhi-NCR based exporters are now coming to Jaipur, especially over the last one year. “Reason may be increasing cost or other production-related problems of Delhi-NCR based exporters, but we are getting their share,” he admits. On the other hand, some exporters are equally enjoying the domestic market, working with stores and especially taking advantage of the online boom as there is no issue of fit in any home furnishing product.
Though most of the exporters are in sync with the above mentioned facts and developments, as the main reasons for growth in the home textile segment, there are other opinions also. “My focus on PD is same as it was some years ago, in both design and colours, but strength is still in block prints; buyers are coming and will come mainly because of this strength and cost advantage. Yes, we have new markets which were earlier not our focus, and I feel that is another reason for growth,” says Hira Nand Khatri, CEO, Khatri Texstyles offering multi products but getting good demand for table and bed cover as of now. He also believes that since Jaipur is still not as costly as other hubs and caters to every segment from basic to high-end; it continues to attract the buyers.
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