The India Fashion Forum 2009 (IFF), saw distinguished national and international speakers. Speaking on the first day of IFF Kishore Biyani, CEO, Future Group, emphasised that the need of the hour for retailers was to create and sustain demand. "India is a market catering to an emerging fashion that is recession proof.

The new mantra for business is to make money by returning to the basics and inducing consumer buying patterns. The pace of expansion is relatively slower as product creation is not a pre-requisite anymore. One needs to focus on facilitating a strong distributory network which according to me implies product innovation."

He further added, "Indian fashion is heterogeneous and we need unified thought leadership that can be created by producing fashion that speaks the language of the masses like jeans or salwar kameez, and that is why we explored 'Ethnicity', the retail shop which caters specifically to ethnic wear from across the Indian region, in our private brands which has shown a 40 per cent increase in sales compared to other brands in our retail formats over the year."

The forum was anchored by Anish Trivedi, chairman and MD, Banyan Tree Communications and Jayant Kochar, MD, Go Fish Retail Solutions, the panel also included Rajive Ranjan, MD, Wehmyer Lifestyle, Germany and Sudhir Dhingra, Chairman, Orient Craft.

Speaking at the inaugural session, Gautam Singhania chairman, IFF '09 and chairman and managing director, Raymond Ltd, said, "India will grow at a steady rate of 7-8 per cent in the following year. A fundamental change in lifestyle patterns has given birth to a generation that is cost-conscious and gives more product per rupee instead of more marketing per rupee."

Speaking on the topic, "India: The Big Hope for the World", Rajiv Ranjan, MD, Wehmeyer Lifestyle, Germany, said, "Mainstream brands should reach to smaller cities. India should map international opportunities in a shorter span of time, the way foreign brands have done in India."

Added Arvind Singhal, chairman, Technopak, "Recession is a time to reinvent. I derive my conviction from being in the industry for 23 years. Due to my company's diversification I can compare what happens in the fashion industry v/s food and retail industry. India needs a value retail format and we need to focus on those internal problems that hamper growth."

The session ended with Prem Malik, chairman, BTRA and immediate past president, Texprocil, echoing the sentiments of the other speakers, "Joint venture within India is a definite growth factor and Indian designers should look at going overseas."

The highlight of the morning was that India is a land of immense opportunities with a young population with disposable incomes. But the consumer here seeks value-added services which can be achieved through co-operation between different associations.

The first half concluded with a preview of Triumph 2009 couture Collection.