Dicitex Furnishings gets DECOSIT status

FIRST TIME DICITEX FURNISHINGS ENTERS  DECOSIT

Dicitex Furnishings Expands Made-Ups, Embroidery, Contract

MUMBAI, India – Defying the strong current of textile buyers flocking to China for their wares, Indian manufacturer Dicitex Furnishings Pvt. Ltd. is luring devoted fans world-over. Company principal Rajnish Arora said he expects his company’s yearly $25 million in sales to double within five years thanks to a growing customer base in the U.S., Dubai, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.

“Our customer is comparing Indian suppliers to the Chinese supplier, [but] we don’t feel the Chinese competition,” Arora said. “We maintain colors, get repeat orders, and have a design concept. Dicitex piece goods sell for $4.50 to $6 C.I.F. Americans who go to China to save a few cents per yard end up coming back to us. Indians are creative and can compete with anyone.”

Arora attributed Dicitex’s burgeoning popularity to the strength of the company’s embroidered curtains, contract fabrics, and made-ups.

“We received our first order for made-ups from an American converter during Deco-Contract,” Arora said, adding that he has since initiated made-ups business in England. “For starters, this business will account for five to ten percent of our sales and by 2005, it will be up to 25 percent of our sales.”

Dicitex outsources stitching work to a factory in Panipat – about one hour from Delhi – customizes packaging according to customer needs, and services both private labels and the local Indian market.

The company currently has 154 looms – each about 2 years old – with Staubli heads, and has 24 new Alpha models on order from Somet. Dicitex also owns a Motex wide-width finishing unit for 130-inch widths that will be used extensively to produce made-ups, which comprise bedspreads, throws, and cushions. Mr. Arora said a curtain line is in the works.

To accommodate Dicitex’s growth, the company plans to open a 4,000-square-foot store just north of Mumbai. Six months ago, Dicitex opened a 10,000-square-foot store in Mumbai called “Tresorie,” which sells piece goods and made-ups.

Dicitex will launch its made-ups collections at Heimtexil 2004 and will show them at the Dicitex showroom at 286 Fifth Avenue in New York.

Dicitex is also producing a line of embroidered 3-meter-width curtains to compete with Turkish suppliers. “We’re using fancy apparel yarns in the embroidered fabric for curtains,” Arora said.

The company is also making headway in the hospitality industry, supplying chenilles and flatwoven jacquards to the Ambassador hotel group, which owns 300-room hotels in Chennai, Mumbai, and Aurangabad; the J.W. Marriott, a 380-room hotel in Mumbai; the Carlton, a 120-room hotel in Bangalore; and the Ramada and Retreat, two 140-room hotels in Mumbai.

Arora and his brother Nimish are third-generation owners of Dicitex, and hope to hand over the company to their children. Arora’s grandfather, D.C. Arora, founded the business in 1956.