No child’s play this, kids now want couture too
Fashion is not just the forte of grown ups any longer. Starkids are as fashionable as their parents, and are inspiring others to follow suit. And this is in turn opening up the Indian kidswear market for designer clothes, like never before.
Since the age of three, Tom Cruise’s daughter, Suri, has been wearing leading fashion brands and her style has got her admiration from fashion lovers globally. Closer home, actor Aishwarya Rai Bahchan’s daughter Aaradhya is no less a fashionsita. Recently, when Ash went to Cannes, 5-year-old Aaradhya accompanied her and wore outfits designed by designers Gauri and Nainika and Nishka Lulla. “Aaradhya’s favourite colour is pink and she loves princess-like gowns,” says Lulla, who designed her outfit (in pic).
Designers are now coming up with stylish occasion wear for children that include frocks and gowns for girls, and three piece suits for boys. “New age kids are exposed to information and decide on their fashion choices. This has given kidswear tremendous potential and designers have recognised this,” says designer Rocky S, who is one of the pioneers of occasion wear for children.
Even parents are opting for couture for their kids. Clearly, cute isn’t good enough anymore. “We have customers who ask for similar gowns for their little daughters too. They even want exclusive pieces customised for kids,” says designer Pallavi Mohan who has recently started her kidswear line. No wonder the kidswear market is seeing a boom. “Orders for kidswear have grown 300% in the past two years,” says designer Siddhartha Tytler.
Talking about the trend, designers say occasion wear works more in India. Occasion wear vs casual wear: Designer Aneeth Arora has been making kidswear for the past six years. She says that while casual wear for kids has a huge demand abroad, that’s not the case in India. “Indian parents aren’t excited about spending a lot of cash on daily wear. The market for occasion wear is big here,” says Arora.
Designer Rocky S says, “There are fashion brands in India, both local and international, that cater to kids’ daily clothing needs. But they never offered occasion wear. To fill that gap, designers branched out to provide formal and occasion wear for kids.” No child’s play: Designing for kids is a serious task. There are important factors to be kept in mind. “The garment has to be comfortable. The fabrics have to be soft,” says Nishka Lulla, who makes 45-50 customised kidswear in a month. Siddhartha Tytler says the pricing is done keeping into account the fact that the kid will not wear the ensemble for years. “Kids grow fast and they grow out of the garment within months, hence we keep the pricing as low as possible,” he says. Boys vs girls: Designers say that girls are more fashion conscious from an early age. “We get orders for little girls, aged between six months to 14,” says Lulla.Tytler’s range of kidswear caters to five to seven years old.
The garment has to be comfortable. The fabrics we use have to be soft. NISHKA LULLA, DESIGNER
Kids grow fast and they will grow out of the garment within months, hence we have to keep the pricing as low as possible SIDDHARTHA TYTLER, DESIGNER