Indian textiles is one of the most unique industries as compared to those of other countries. This sector dates back to several centuries and duly carries the culture and tradition of textile making in India, even today. One of the earliest players to enter the rapidly growing market almost a century ago continues to reign supreme.
From a humble beginning as a carpet manufacturer, OCM has become one of India’s largest fabric manufacturers, offering premium quality pure-wool and wool-blended fabrics in the country as well as overseas. It also manufactures a range of fabrics, from mass-premium to high-end fabrics, for shirts, trousers, jackets, suits and other wool-based accessories at its factory in Amritsar. OCM services its customers through a network of over 1,500 MBO and 70 wholesalers. Their ownership rests with the Donear Group.
Mr. Vikram Mahaldar, Managing Director & CEO of OCM Private Ltd., tells us about the company’s rich heritage, including its original name, Oriental Carpet Manufacturers. This was so as the company initially began as a carpet manufacturer in a small town called Smyrna in Turkey way back in the early 1900s and had British owners. After the First World War, new factory units were set up and a new base of operations was founded in Amritsar.
Before selling their products to the local markets, they entered the fabric industry by becoming one of the first suppliers for the Defence troops fighting in the Second World War.
“In our terminology, we call the domestic market as ‘civil business’… Whatever was not for Defence, it was called civil, and this terminology still continues,” says Mr. Mahaldar with a light-hearted chuckle.
After the British rule came to an end in India, the company was acquired by Birla Group in the early 1970s. A major shift in technology took place during this period. OCM ventured into men’s worsted fabric space. The woollen technology was replaced by worsted, a revolutionary step in men’s wear. Expansion plans were put in place. Increase in weaving capacity was given priority. In no time, OCM progressed ahead in the market swiftly. By the end of 2006, Birla’s sold the company to American private equity investor Wilbur Ross, the owner of WL Ross & Co., a private equity company. Under this change of ownership, further expansion and development took place smoothly.
In 2017, the company was acquired by Donear Industries Ltd. which had only a few months before also bought Grasim Bhiwani Textiles (now GBTL), a company owned by the Aditya Birla Group. This has made Donear one of the biggest branded textile manufacturers and conglomerates in the country.
OCM is currently one of the biggest brands in the fabric industry of the country. It has the capacity to produce 8 million meters of fabric every year. Its factory unit is spread across almost 37 acres of land with large open spaces in the green city of Amritsar in Punjab. Its vast variety of products add to its credibility, ranging from coarse jacketing to the finest suiting available in the country. The products are available in different high-end materials as well, such as 100% wool, wool-polyester blends, premium polyester-viscose blends, giza cottons, etc.
Mr. Mahaldar says that the company is a market leader in niche premium categories, such as flannels and tweeds, or even the trending Nehru-Modi jackets. Along with the domestic market, the company still continues to render its services to Defence establishments, corporates and several export customers across the globe.
Along with providing a vast category of products, the company also stands true to its colloquial abbreviation – Original Colour Masters (OCM). More than 5,000 SKUs every season with products like flannels offering more than 100 colours.
The company doesn’t hold back on design either. OCM throughout the years has tied up with many Italian designers to seek inspiration for its renowned collections. Teams are assembled and sent to Italian studios, fairs and fashion events in order to understand the latest trends in the market, and how they can adapt these trends to the domestic market. They had even associated themselves with Ashish N Soni for the Lakme Fashion Week 2019 held in Mumbai.
All this valuable information is collected, assembled and sent to the central design team, responsible for preparing a 6-months forecast. Mr. Mahaldar provides the detailed process that goes behind releasing OCM’s collections which comprise of over 5,000+ SKUs season after season. Two collections are made every year, the one beginning in December for Spring-Summer and the other in June for Festive-Winter. The winter collection designs are frozen in May, and orders are booked from early June. This continues till August. The deliveries for these orders then commenced from June and ended in December. As for the summer collection, it is designed in December, and orders are booked from December till May.
The apparels industry depends on the services provided by companies like OCM. Being the leading premium fabric supplier, its products are sought by large-scale apparel businesses of top players across the industry, like Madura Garments, Blackberrys and Raymond apparels, apart from many others.
When asked about the country’s fabric market, Mr. Vikram Mahaldar proceeded to explain it as a pyramid – pure wool and wool blends occupy top 0.5% sales of the country. There are only two or three players at the peak of this pyramid, and OCM is one of them. The product that dominates this niche market is wool & wool blended products along with fine linens and premium cottons, in which it holds the position as one of the market leaders, under the name of GRADO from the house of OCM.
In jacketing – flannels & tweeds, which is pure wool, it has set a gold standard and is a definitive market leader.
Being a Woolmark-certified partner, OCM provides products with premium quality goods made from Australian Merino wool, which is considered the best wool quality to be offered in the market. The other fine fibers such as cashmere, silk and linen are also blended with the wool products.
That being said, the wool business across the globe has shrunk. Competitors present in the market a few years ago have now shut shop. This, however, is surprisingly also one of the reasons why the business is doing well for OCM. Due to the shrinking space, there is an ever-increasing demand for its products.
“In 2018 alone, the company’s demand upped by 20%, and in 2019, they are expecting the business to grow by 25% further. The company has made elaborate plans to meet this increased demand of customers.”
Sustainability
Now all this is great, but in this time and age, the question of sustainability is on everybody’s lips. When asked about what OCM is doing to be a sustainable unit, Mr. Mahaldar responded: “The Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) based on a ‘physico-chemical followed by biological process’ was upgraded to the best version as recently as two years ago. A good amount of capital and investment was put into it to make it the best in all of Punjab. This method is very efficient for having reduced levels of BOD and COD.”
So how does OCM keep its identity unique from the rest? The products it offers to the trade.
He said: “We are not selling the same products. For example, for cotton. Everybody typically buys the normal Indian cotton. We sell Egyptian Giza & Supima cotton…the product in itself is the best. Similarly for wool, the products like tweeds, flannels and fine suitings are outstanding because of their feel and finish; hence they are in the top category and customers find delight in this offering.”
When such products are consistently offered in the market, it helps in developing a perception amongst the customers for a particular brand. The customer base, according to Mr. Mahaldar, perceives OCM differently, and so there is no clash with any other business.
The company’s impressive portfolio so far and its vision for the future give one an idea as to how a brand can manage to stay at the top of the market for so many years. In the next three years, OCM plans to double its business, both organically and inorganically. The aim for now is to increase orders and meet demand by outsourcing services. Another plan is to introduce new products such as the Egyptian Giza cottons that were widely appreciated across the country. The summer range typically lacked products, but it is now being filled with innovative products.
Change is an inevitable part of society, and adapting to these changes is what leads to the survival of any business. This is something that is clearly engraved in the very foundations of the company, and passed down to those who take up the mantle to lead the company further up the market pyramid. For OCM, with its eyes on expanding the global footprint, the aim is to become the leading manufacturer in this ever-growing fabric industry.