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G. Srinivasan

Demand for home furnishings in the US got a real shot in the arm after the terrorist attack on September 11, with more and more people beginning to pay attention in decorating their home. Cashing in on this new-found interest, Orchids, has doubled its export sales to the lucrative US markets.

Ms Deepa Jain and Dr Nalin Jain of Orchids with the trophy that the company bagged last month.

NEW DELHI, Aug. 11

SOMETIMES, even tragedies lead to some positive developments which open a door to growth and prosperity. The September 11 attacks on the US are no different.

Demand for home furnishings in the Western markets in general and the US in particular got a real shot in the arm after the terrorist attack on September 11, with more and more people beginning to pay attention in decorating their home.

Cashing in on this new-found interest, an Indian exporting company of home furnishings, Orchids, has doubled its export sales to the lucrative US markets.

Talking to Business Line here, Dr Nalin Jain and Ms Deepa Jain of the company said Orchids has been one of the market leaders in home furnishings for over a decade.According to them, in the textile industry, after garments, home furnishings have emerged as the second most important segment, even as the country holds a minuscule 0.05 per cent share in the high value-added category of furnishings with China and other South-East Asian countries competing fiercely in the global market.

Recalling Orchids foray into the export market, Dr Jain said that way back in 1987, the company took its first halting step by participating in the international trade fair for home furnishings called "Star Fair" in Italy. From there, "we never looked back as orders began pouring in".

He said that over the past five years and particularly after the devastating terrorist attack, people increasingly felt the need to stay at home and enjoy the cosy warmth of settled life which have directly benefited the home furnishings industry. He said that Orchids enjoyed a period of rapid yet controlled growth, which basically revolved around affiliations with reputed companies abroad and chain of stores worldwide.

Its range of products include bed linen (quilt, bed spreads, pillow sham, duvet cove, bed skirt, euro sham), table linen (table cloth, table runner, napkins, placemat), window coverings (door curtains, window panels, valance, shower curtains) and miscellaneous items such as pillow covers, throws, fabric photo-frames.

He said that the company has a medium term plan to increase its exports to $4-8 million, and accordingly, its production base and research and development wing are being strengthened.

She said that the company is in a position to manufacture any fabric and made-ups from any part of India with its R&D wing keeping itself engrossed in engineering new fabrics regularly.

Orchids has also been conferred a citation and trophy by Business Initiative Directions (BID) in New York, the contents of which serve as signposts to business leaders to improve processes and systems.

Both Dr Jain and Ms Deepa Jain feel that a lot of support could be extended by the authorities, particularly in terms of providing export finance with limited collateral guarantee from banks and less harassment from customs in shipment of export cargo.

This, coupled with basic minimum infrastructure facilities such as power and water for manufacturing centres need to be provided on a continuous basis so that home furnishings export could make a difference to the country's overall exports.

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