25 Years of Pan America With a merchandise value of Rs 500 Cr, makes a mark in men’s fashion

Starting as a small zonal brand in 1997, Pan America is celebrating its silver jubilee after a successful run as a leading mid-segment menswear value-for-money brand that offers stylish clothing. With a merchandise value of over Rs 500 crore, the company has an extensive men’s fashion portfolio that is ontrend, affordable and comfortable everyday wear.

Affordability, quality as its USP

Pan America, the mid segment men’s fashion brand from Royalex Fashion India was incepted by MG Reddy, Founder. He was later joined by Rajkumar Lalwani as co-founder

• Launched in 1997 with small office

• Has touched a merchandise value of Rs 500 crore

• Pan America growing at a CARG 12-15 per cent per annum

• A mid segment fashion brand for men, affordability, quality are its USP

• First EBO opened in 2000, now has 80

• 5,500 MBO’s, 250 shop in shops and 8 large format stores

• Has a presence in Dubai and Middle East and together they created the idea of a brand that would focus on delivering the American philosophy of value for money. Later, they were joined by Ashok Bhandari, who brought with him extensive knowledge of marketing, distribution and channel management. The brand set up its first EBO in 2000 and made its first international foray in 2009; had its first alliance with a large format store in 2010. Starting with shirts priced Rs 325 onwards the company went on to add trousers, jeans and T-Shirts over the years.

Pan America’s USP of affordable yet highquality clothing has attracted a big customer base, including those who may not have been able to afford more expensive brands. Having created more competition for other brands in the mid-segment, Pan America has led to better pricing and a more varied product portfolio and the overall expansion and growth of the mid-segment fashion.

With a production capacity of four lakh garments per month manufactured at its state-of-the-art factory in Bengaluru, which complies with the ISO 9001 standards, Pan America is rapidly growing at a CARG 12-15 per cent per annum. With a strong network of distributors in almost every state along with routinely undertaking regular research and feedback from trade partners to implement data for better product offerings, the strong brand equity has been built up over the years.

Focussed on absolute comfort and great quality trendy clothing at affordable prices, Pan America’s range has it all: formal, casual and party shirts, formal, casual, designer trousers, jeans, and T-shirts. “Reflecting the American philosophy of life to deliver sheer value in everything, we have created a varied portfolio of fashion lines with a focus on comfort and durability. We buy the finest fabrics from top-of-the-line mills that include: Vardhaman Fabrics, Birla Century, Baruche, NSL, Monte, LNJ Denim, Bhaskar Denim, Arvind Mills, Bombay Rayon Fashions, Raymond, Nahar Industries, Alok Industries among others,” says Ashok Bandari, Director. The brand gives great importance to the right wash technique in critical areas of garments such as seams, pockets, cuffs, and collars. “We also use the softest of bio-enzymes that give the perfect fall and fit for every garment and have a range of international accessories to add sheen to the design implementation for longer durability.”

Latest collections and innovations

Pan America recently launched its all-new winter collection with an exclusive range of men’s shirts, suits and blazers. “We keep

Ashok Bandari, Director

strengthening our portfolio with new designs and latest styles and trends. Currently, we are adding more athleisure elements into traditional and standard clothing styles in men’s garments,” says Bandari.

The brand’s designers are always experimenting with new and more durable fabrics and materials and adding new product lines such as a range of accessories to ensure that our garments stand out in this stiff menswear mid-segment competitive market. “The entire process is monitored by a group of in-house fashion experts who ensure that the latest fashions are delivered to the entire India and Middle East market faster and ontime,” Bandari opines.

Fast spreading retail footprint across India and beyond

Having started with just one EBO in 2000, the brand now boasts of an all India presence with 80 EBO’s, 5,500 MBO’s, 250 shop-inshops and 8 large format stores. “Along with this, we have a global footprint in Dubai and across the Middle East in counties such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait. We have a corporate office in Bengaluru, spread over seven floors to accommodate our employees and our rapid expansion,” Bandari points out.

The brand ventured into e-retailing as it saw significant increase in online shopping in India due to the pandemic. “To provide our customers with a seamless shopping experience, we will soon adopt an omnichannel strategy that will better serve them and boost our sales figures,” he informs.

On recent trends in Indian retail influencing the apparel segment, Bandari says, it’s a whole new world now with the blurring of urban and rural styles of men’s dressing. Post pandemic, omnichannel shopping with customers buying online has been growing rapidly although they still want the physical experience of in-store shopping.

“Most brands like ours are now adopting the omnichannel approach to deliver the same buying experience across multiple channels at different price points. This demand is more data-driven to tune product development as per changing needs and preferences of consumers.”

Also, the fast fashion model of constantly introducing new styles and trends has led to shorter product lifecycles, making it difficult for brands to forecast demand and manage inventory, he believes. “Consumers are becoming more conscious of the environmental and social impacts of their clothing purchases, leading to a shift towards sustainable and ethically produced apparel.”

Pan America prides itself on the fact that in the last two and a half decades, even as a leader in menswear segment, it has been able to maintain the same starting price for shirts. Even today, one can buy smart shirts at Rs 325 despite the ongoing inflation. Over the years, the brand has seen its popularity growing among professional men who want to look sharp but prioritize comfort and affordability.

Bandari says, the mid-market was a niche segment when the brand first started but its success like many others has helped it establish the mid-segment as a viable and desirable market for both consumers and brands.

“Pan America’s success story has potentially increased accessibility and inclusivity in the fashion industry with more urban and semi-urban professional men being able to afford on-trend clothing.” Having moved on from its original customer target of young men in their 20s, it now caters to a far broader age group, including men in their 30s and 40s with a more versatile product portfolio.

With the strong support of distributors and trade partners along with a strong employee and customer base, the brand’s philosophy of ‘Stronger together always’ is expected to see it through the current turbulent postpandemic years and beyond.