Deepa Chikarmane, a Banglaore-based designer and her husband Vineet have been in the business of manufacturing high-quality garments for designers and fashion houses like Anna Sui and Tory Burch for more than a decade. Deepa is the design and creative brain behind the business and Vineet is the management and technical guru.
A chat with the duo at their recent pop-up in Coimbatore revealed their passion to deliver luxury designer clothing at affordable price points to customers in India and abroad. This was the reason behind their brand Encrustd, which was born in August 2015. They believe that there is a gap in the Indian market for a luxury brand that retails at affordable rates and is accessible across all cities. Their vision is to bridge this gap. Deepa’s aesthetic sense was clearly visible in the clean and sophisticated silhouettes on display at their pop-up event hosted by Sangeetha Peter at Bird on Tree restaurant. The fit was both easy and luxurious. Her knowledge of fabrics is extensive thanks to their experience with international fashion houses. This has resulted in sourcing exquisite fabrics from all over the world. It was interesting to learn that they source lace from Italy, crepe from Korea and China and brocade from India.
Deepa says “The unique design aesthete of Ecrustd is how I interpret Indian embroidery as an embellishment on international fabrics like lace and crepe, and create modern silhouettes with them.” The colour palette at this pop-up was trendy with nudes and burgundy being very prominent. Vintage floral prints added to the whimsy of the collection on display. She had used traditional gara embroidery on modern garments like trousers and jackets.
When asked why they chose to go the online way to retail, Vineet said “A typical brick-and-mortar store will limit our market. We want to reach out to the tier-2 and 3 cities and the only way to do that was with an online store. The customer there has the same awareness and expectations as a customer in a metro.”
In addition to retailing online, both Deep and Vineet have come up with a business model of doing pop-up events in various cities. They have already done two pop-ups in Hyderabad and Bengaluru, where their collection was very well received. They chose Coimbatore for their third pop-up since they already had friends here and they felt that word-of-mouth was the best publicity.
Surprisingly, they had a strict no-trial policy at their pop-up. Also one couldn’t buy off the shelf at the event. They only took orders and promised delivery within 48 hours. Vineet was insistent that his team would help the customers find their sizes and was confident that this wouldn’t affect the customer’s decision to buy. His idea was to offer an online buying experience to the customer while allowing a touch and feel of the garments.
Unlike most designers, the couple’s vision is to constantly innovate and offer 4-5 collections a year. Both were quick to agree that, although Encrustd was a young brand, they have been fortunate to have had great word of mouth referrals and celebrities like Amy Jackson flaunting their designs.
Their future plans include taking the brand international. Their prices range from Rs.11,000- 25,000. The clothes are fashionable and well-finished and can be worn at and after work dinners.
To know more visit www.encrustd.com
