Fashion Pakistan Lounge: The shopper’s stop

CEO Rima Farid and director Bilal Ali talk about running a fashion retail operation in Lahore.

LAHORE: Multi-label retail stores have become a common fixture in popular shopping districts in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Most designers stock at these stores, which give customers a one-stop shopping experience. One of the newer stores in Lahore, Fashion Pakistan Lounge (FPL), has carved a niche for itself despite being situated only a few yards away from the established PFDC Boulevard store. Its CEO Rima Farid and director Bilal Ali talk about running a fashion retail operation.

Why open a retail store in such close proximity to PFDC Boulevard?

Rima Farid: Maheen Khan and Ayesha Tammy Haq were behind the store’s concept. They were looking for a place to represent Karachi designers in Lahore. We had this space in a central location so we capitalised on the idea. But I felt that Lahore’s designers began to keep us at arm’s length after FPL opened, given its proximity to the Boulevard. The biggest difference between the stores is that designers place clothes at the Boulevard which they have relegated to their closest, are runway pieces or are from previous seasons. They place clothes just for the sake of it.

FPL has a 90-day return policy if the stock doesn’t move and all clothes are new. None of them are borrowed or old.

Bilal Ali: Stand-alone studios or boutiques are becoming too expensive for upcoming designers and a multi-label store offers more choice to customers.

How are you coping without a background in fashion?

RF: I was an event manager so I had links with the industry. Maheen Khan and Ali approached me to find someone for the position. Instead, I offered myself and capitalised on my connections.

BA: Fashion is a business and needs to be taken care of professionally. I have a background in business and we have several other companies so it’s like managing any other enterprise.

What challenges did you face from the industry?

RF: I knew most of the designers personally before starting FPL. Managing the Lahore side wasn’t difficult. I didn’t know the Karachi designers that well, but they extended themselves in helping us. Established designers know how to manage their operations and are conscious of how their brand is promoted. Newcomers have no experience of stocking, quality control or time management. These are teething problems and they’re learning, so we educate them through the process.

What does the industry need to do to spur the business of fashion?

RF: Stop copying each other! Designers need to retain their individuality. Some lose their personal aesthetic when they start stocking at multi-label stores, since they get conscious about sales and will copy whatever design palette seems to sell more.

BA: We need to make fashion more affordable and start designing within the Rs3,000 bracket which brands like Teejays and Khaadi do. We need more of the Khaadi philosophy to really impact fashion. Designers also need to stop calling collections ‘exclusive’ because they do not have the production capacity to create more pieces.

Any advice to new designers?

RF: Let go of your egos! This new breed thinks that they are all born designers from the moment they graduate. Secondly, they must retain their individuality. Recognition will only come to those who are unique. Thirdly, there’s no such thing as overnight success. It takes consistency, originality and hard work to develop a brand and become a true fashion star.

BA: Designers need to be willing to jump the gun when it comes to experimenting with trends. When you go to London, you see three different trends dominating the fashion scene. Here it’s just the frock that everyone keeps replicating. We need to develop a ‘less is more’ approach and work on fabric construction.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 6^th, 2010.