It was the night of the stars and the stalwarts albeit those from the world of fashion and retail. The 10th India Fashion Forum organised by the IMAGES Group came to a glittering end with the India Fashion Awards (IFA) being presented to the achievers of the industry.
The emcees of the night, the smart Anish Trivedi and the stunning Mansi Scott began the function with great energy and continued the tempo till the last second. The award presentations were interspersed with songs, dances and performances. Mansi, in her signature style gave the audience a preview of her latest song ‘Farman’ and actually mingled with the crowd while singing it.
And if there is a song then a dance is never too far behind. Choreographer Terence Lewis’ troupe performed on jazz numbers from Chicago and kept the audience in great spirits. One of the most entertaining and unique performance of the night was by “Balloon Man” Bruce Airhead who was specially flown in for the awards night. This was his first performance in India and he kept the audiences enthralled and amused with his tricks with a giant green coloured balloon.
The awards honoured different fashion and retail brands from all over the country and the winners were visibly elated on receiving the trophies. The first set of awards was handed out to the ubiquitous independent regional retailers of India from east, west north and south. The ‘Most Admired Independent Regional Retailer (East)’ award was bagged by Sohum from Guwahati. Jade Blue from Ahmedabad, HI Style from Chennai won awards in the same category from west and south regions respectively while Ritu Wears won from the north.
In the ‘Most Admired Large format National Fashion Retailer of the Year’ category the competition was tight between the nominees Shoppers’ Stop, Lifestyle, Pantaloons, Reliance Trends and Central. However, the honours went to the 5 year old Central for outstanding growth, expansion, profitability and branding. Kishore Bhatija, MD of In Orbit Malls accepted the same award for outstanding achievement in consumer recognition and loyalty.
In the category ‘Most Admired Private Label Fashion Label Retailer of the Year’, the winner was none other than Westside which has 90% of all its merchandise as in house brands and has seen a growth of 28% in the retail space. Next up were the ‘Benetton IFA Most admired Retailer of the Decade’ awards which were presented by MD Sanjeev Mohanty of Benetton India to G&B Fashions, Marda Fashions and Kapsons.
Kamal Watch Co., which has 4 staores in Hyderabad and 1 in Vizag bagged the ‘Titan IFA Most Admired Multibrand Retailer of the Year Award’ while Rakesh Biyani of Central accepted the award for the ‘Titan IFA Most Admired Large Format Retailer of the Year’ category.
The Gini & Jony awards for the ‘Most Admired Franchisee of the Year’, the ‘Most Admired Multi Brand Retailer of the Year’ and the ‘Most Admired Large Format Retailer of the Year’ were bagged by Peanuts Retail (Siliguri), Baby Bell (Mumbai) and Shoppers’ Stop respectively.
The lingerie brand Triumph presented awards in 7 categories at the function. Triumph MD, Thorsten Allenstein, gave away the trophies to Shoppers’ Stop, Lifestyle, Ritu Wears, Ankur, Mizbah, In vogue and Passion Feast.
Shoppers’ Stop was declared the winner once again in the ‘Gitanjali IFA Most Admired Large Format Retail Partner of the Year’ category. Finally, the ‘IFA Most Admired Fashion Retail Professional of the Year’ award was bestowed upon Govind Srikhande, CEO, Shoppers’ Stop. Shrikhande who incidentally also completed 10 years in the company this year, was seen humbly accepting the trophy. Said Shrikhande, “Such recognition of ones hard work in the chosen field is always an overwhelming experience. I am grateful to the IMAGES Group for giving me this award and owe it all to Shoppers’ Stop. Now, my primary ambition is to make Shoppers’ Stop the most exciting and enduring fashion retail chain of India. Thank you very much.”
This has been the 10th year of the India Fashion Forum and over the decade the IMAGES Group has been successfully organising the event as a strong platform for retailers and fashion brands from all over the nation. Mr. Amitabh Taneja, CMD, IMAGES Group, whose brainchild the forum is, said “I am extremely happy and satisfied with the response we have been receiving over the years. The support of the fashion and retail industry is crucial for the success of such an event and we have received it from the companies and people involved in the industry in India. I look forward to an increased participation next year and welcome all deserving candidates.”