Turms Wear

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Turms is the first online brand which has introduced innovative and intelligent nanotechnology in
the production clothing line. The company has patented nanotechnology in the manufacture of
odour-resistant, strain repellent, 4-way stretch, and many other innovative clothing styles.

Founded in December 2016, Turms offers intelligent apparel with special properties like stain
repellent, odour resistant, cooling and wicking by applying its proprietary nanotechnology
during the production process. Turms apparel does not need to be washed as frequently as
normal clothing and requires less water and detergent. Turms merchandise range includes
jeans, t-shirts, shirts and track pants for men and t-shirts and leggings for women. These clothes
are high on comfort and low on maintenance.

Turms has disrupted the apparel industry by creating a niche market for themselves with their
unique offering of intelligent apparel. The company has shown exponential growth in the last
one year while maintaining quality and consistency. Turms have witnessed a significant
traction in the last one year from new and repeat consumers and is on the path to break even in
the next 6-9 months.

The company is led by a team of experienced e-commerce, apparel and nanotechnology


executives including Vineesh Chadha, former COO, Color Plus and Brand Head Louis Philippe
and Allen Solly, Alok Sharma, ex-McAFee and Quikr,Subhraneel Saikia, Sandeep Kataria and
Anil Dhondalay. The mission of the brand is to offer intelligent apparel at an affordable price.
They believe that the world is moving towards functional and low maintenance apparel that
can simplify our daily lives. Turms is committed to pioneering that revolution and habit
formation in Indian consumers.

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1.1 Brand Story:

 Dec 2016: Turms Brand was born as a fast fashion brand with performance.
 April 2017: Turms entered apparel market with the first product, Turms Denims.
 Oct 2017: They crossed the milestone of INR 10 million in sales.
 Nov 2017: Turms products were available in all 29 states and 7 Union Territories in India.
 Dec 2017: They crossed the milestone of INR 20 million in sales.
 Dec 2017: Launched their second product line T-shirts and increased the existing denim
styles.
 Jan 2018: New categories are developed in men’s segments.
 Jan 2018: Crossed the milestone of INR 30 million in sales.
 Feb 2018: New Product Technologies are materialized on apparels.
 April 2019: New product lines launched for men
 Nov 2019: Added women’s wear

Mission

The mission of the company is to discover, develop and deliver technologically advanced
wearable to create better everyday life for the consumer at affordable prices. The company
vision is to attain market leadership through design, innovation, sustainability and unmatched
quality with highest morals and professional values.

Vision

Turms believe in the vision of making everyone dress smarter. Turms is a technologically
advanced apparel brand which creates high performance clothing for highly motivated and
performance oriented individuals.

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1.2 MARKETING MIX

Marketing Mix of Turms analyses the brand/company which covers 4Ps (Product, Price, Place,
Promotion) and explains the Turms marketing strategy.

Product
Turms specializes in products for mostly teens and young adult groups and has product line for
Men. Recently turms has ventured into Women’s wear (Just one product group). The company’s
apparel line can be divided on the basis of fabric into Heat, Cold and All Season wear. Heat
wear has moisture wicking properties and is worn when it’s hot, Cold wear is for cold weather
and All Season wear which consists casual wear.
Following are the broadly available product categories on Turms website:

Price:
Turms uses value-based pricing strategy for its products as they are known for their advanced
quality. Although the company has a lot of well established brands as competitors but still it is
able to charge a little extra than them for its products on the basis of superior innovative
materials and fabrics. They focus more on the functionality aspect pertaining to fabric

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technology and product quality rather than the price or even design. Given the market position
and its pricing strategy, the company charges slightly lower to the similar products from
competitive brands in the market.

The price points of Turms is as follows:

PRODUCT CATEGORIES PRICE(INR)


Menswear
Shirts 1299-1599
T-Shirts 799-1499
Jackets 2499-3499
Sweaters 1599-2199
Hoodies 1799-1999
Sweatshirts 1499-1999
Jeans 1999-2399
Chinos 1699-1799
Joggers 999-1799
Briefs 249
Socks 399
Womenswear
T-shirts 599

Place:
Turms products are sold only through online platform. They have their own official website
which is the key place from where most of their sales takes place. Apart from this they also sell
through Amazon and Flipkart.

Promotions:
Turms, unlike most of the other brands, does not outsource marketing to outside agencies,
instead keeps all of its marketing strategy in-house. Its promotional mix consists of everything,
Google advertisements, YouTube and online social media campaigns, magazine ads. Turms

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also has a very innovative marketing campaigns followed in their Instagram page, which is
further mentioned in the document.

1.3 SEGMENTATION, TARGETING AND POSITIONING:

Market segmentation

It is the process of dividing a market of potential customers into groups, or segments, based on
different characteristics. The segments created are composed of consumers who will respond
similarly to marketing strategies and who share traits such as similar interests, needs, or
locations. The main focus area under segmenting:

 Geographical Segmentation: Geographic segmentation creates different target


customer groups based on geographical boundaries. Because potential customers have
needs, preferences, and interests that differ according to their geographies,
understanding the climates and geographic regions. Turms have differential products
for climatic condition. (Cooling t-shirts and winter wear collection)

 Psychographic Segmentation: Psychographic segmentation takes into account the


psychological aspects of consumer behaviour by dividing markets according to
lifestyle, personality traits, values, opinions, and interests of consumers. Turms sells a
good variety of products based on different people’s interest.

 Behavioural segmentation: Behavioural segmentation divides markets by behaviours


and decision-making patterns such as purchase, consumption, lifestyle, and usage.
Turms wear focuses on the youth (Especially bachelors), therefore making products
that are preferred by this particular target audience. It also targets those people who
want to try more innovative clothing.

Targeting:

Market targeting is a process of selecting the target market from the entire market. Target
market consists of group/groups of buyers to whom the company wants to satisfy or for whom
product is manufactured, price is set, promotion efforts are made, and distribution network is
prepared. The brand Turms targets the youth population of India who are interested in

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innovative fashion and who have a much laid back lifestyle. Target Market under Geographical
Segmentation –

 Metro Cities
 Tier 2 & Tier 3 Cities
 Target Market under Psychographic Segmentation –
 People with an interest in innovative apparels
 People who are interested in sports and fitness
 People with laid back lifestyle

 Demographic Segmentation
 Age : 16 – 40 years
 Gender : Male and Women (Just started)

 Benefit Segmentation
 People seeking out of the box apparel which doesn’t require much
care and yet comfortable clothing.

Positioning:
The positioning of a brand or Product is a strategic process that involves marketing the brand
or product in a certain way to create and establish an image or identity within the minds of the
consumers in the target market. Turms has positioned its brand as a high quality and innovative
technology infused brand.

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1.4 BRAND IDENTITY PRISM

1.5 PORTER’S 5 FORCES ANALYSIS:

 Competition in the Industry

While there are countless numbers of online apparel companies that compete with Turms in
certain market niches, only a few companies have the sheer size and established distribution
channels to compete across all the product lines, especially the technology based products that
turms offers. Some of these competitors are Athlos, the impervious collection, Hyperkewl, HRX
etc. Apart from these competitors Turms also have the three large players that is Nike, Adidas
and Under Armour all of these competitors are older companies with higher total annual sales
than Turms.
While this disparity is enormous, it's important to note that Turms has achieved a significantly
higher value since they have all the technologies involved clothing under one roof. Although it
does not possess the same diversification of products or the international market penetration,
Turms has been successful in its technology driven apparel.

 Potential of New Entrants

In general, the barriers to entry for an innovative based apparel company are medium to low.
It takes a significant amount of innovation and human capital to develop products, manufacture

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them with quality and affordability, and push products into the appropriate distribution
channels.
It is highly possible for new companies to enter tech based clothing industry. For example, a
new entrant may find success in marketing an innovative product to one particular technology.
It is more likely for certain segments of the industry to be susceptible to new competitors than
the entire industry, at least in the near term.

 Power of Suppliers

Suppliers in the apparel industry often sell materials to competing companies as well. Larger
buyers obtain cheaper prices from these suppliers by ordering larger quantities than smaller
companies can. For example, any large t-shirt brand producers may be able to buy
exponentially more cotton for T-shirts than Turms and negotiate a substantially lower price.

But Turms has been extremely innovative in the materials it uses by creating various
proprietary fabric blends it sources from third parties, creating product differentiation from the
competition, and also avoiding the disadvantage of buying the same materials at a lower
volume and higher cost than competitors.

 Power of Customers

Customers certainly have a wide range of choices when it comes to buying clothing. In the
world of online shopping, customers also can quickly and easily shop for the lowest price for
a similar product. With that in mind, it becomes critical for a company such as Turms to create
products for which customers are willing to pay a premium over mainstream, price-competitive
goods.

Turms tries to update their product line based on the innovation factors which makes it slightly
different from other brands in the same category. Customers also buy based on brand
recognition and association. This is why Turms keeps their social media very active and also
use interesting offers in order to attract more customers.

 The Threat of Substitute Products

Clothing is a staple item that is always in demand. As worldwide interest in more comfortable
or convenient style of clothing continues to rise, the demand for the following is expected to

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grow. For each product, there is always the threat of a more innovative version entering as a
substitute. However, in Turms it is difficult for a company to create many such substitute
products across various categories successfully.

1.6 SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengths:

Development and launch of new products and a growing portfolio viz. Turms has a broad
product portfolio and has strengthened its standing especially when it comes to innovative
fashion apparel. Cold wear, Heat wear, All season wear, Stain repellent, anti-odour, 4-way
stretch, wicking and wash care, are some of its products which makes them very unique from
other brands in the market. Turms has been certified by GOTS (global organic textile standard),
IAS (International Accounting Standard), OKEO TEX.
The company is also very active on social media’s and is carrying out very innovative
marketing and promotional strategies, thus making it not only an intelligent apparel brand but
also innovative marketing brand.

Weakness:

Limited presence: Turms is only present online as of now, thus making it leave out a large set
of audience who would want to feel and buy the products. Also by expanding their brand offline
it could generate more revenue. Expanding the online presence and delivery in international
market is quite low. This is necessary to sustain the company’s growth.
No product variations for women’s wear and having no kids wear and accessories. Also
venturing into more sports related goods is lacking.

Opportunities:

Opening up to kids wear and more variation under women’s wear.


Venturing into more sports and fitness related goods. By venturing into these, turms can also
build up a fitness app.
Expanding their geographic exposure.
Tech-related shoes can also be ventured.

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Threats:

Increased competition, when it comes to more tech involved fashion apparels its major
competitors are Nike and under armour which have higher brand recognition, presence and
better operational experiences. Apart from these higher level brands, there are also other brands
that are coming up with similar technologies.
The fabrics used by Turms are primarily synthetic fabrics and involve raw materials, including
petroleum based products that may be subject to price fluctuations and shortages.

1.7 THE IDEA BEHIND THE BRAND

Turms is a company founded by motivated individuals aiming to create India’s 1st


performance wear company. The team has worked for a year to understand the apparel
industry and how they can make it technologically smarter. They care about the customer and
environment, therefore, they always focus on sustainable outfits which can cater to a variety
of smart apparels

They believe that the world is moving towards functional and low maintenance apparel that
can simplify daily lives. Turms is committed to pioneering that revolution and habit
formation in Indian consumers.

Founded in December 2016, Turms apparel does not need to be washed as frequently as
normal clothing and requires less water and detergent. The range includes jeans, t-shirts,
shirts and track pants for men and t-shirts and leggings for women.

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1.8 INNOVATIVE STRATEGIES FOLLOWED BY TURMS

 Stain Repellent

The latest and innovative clothing line launched by Turms.com is its stain repellent clothes
which are powered with a Nano finish. This latest technology increases the liquid contact angle
of the fabric to more than 90 degrees, which causes the water to form round droplets and hence,
does not get absorbed into the fabric.

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 Odour Resistant

Sweating is a process which is caused by the bacteria breaking down the secretions from the
sweat glands and Turmss.com has
solved this common problem and
introduced odour-resistant clothes
enriched with silver ions that disrupt
the cell division process of these
sweat-causing bacteria. This
technology is completely safe for the
body and does not have any side effects on the skin as well as the environment.

 4-way Stretch

4-way stretch fabric introduced by


Turms.com can stretch both
lengthwise and width wise, as the
company has manufactured the fabric
with an exact amount of elastane to
introduce flexibility and resilience.

 Cooling

The highly innovative and intelligently manufactured apparels ensure that the sweat is
evaporated quickly so that the body temperature is always maintained at comfortable levels.
Also, the special knit and yarn twist of Turms.com apparels maintains the permeability and the
capillary pressure to ensuring that sweat moves away from your skin.

 Wicking

The special knit and yarn twist of Turms


apparel maintains the capillary pressure
and permeability of the fabric, ensuring
that sweat moves away from your skin as
it is released from the sweat glands.

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 Wash Care

Wash the garment with an additive-free detergent or soap. You can use regular laundry
detergent, but you may have to give it an extra rinse or
two to get rid of any residue. Do not use liquid
detergents or delicate detergents as they contain fabric
softeners that can impede the effectiveness of the
DWR finish. Machine wash your garments using the
machines complete cycle. Repeat the rinse cycle once
or twice to ensure all soapy residue is removed. Dry at
medium-hot setting, and let the garment cycle for 15
minutes after it's dry to revive the original DWR
finish. If you have an iron with a cool synthetic setting, you can lightly iron the garment to perk
up the DWR treatment.

1.9 COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS:

In the apparel and innovation categories Turms is up against not only the new entrants but also
the well-established giants which have greatest resources and strong brand recognition as
compared to Turms. Few new entrants and some established brand have been taken for
comparison.

Company Product Diversity Innovative Geographic


Name Ideas Coverage
Turms Men’s wear: Stain repellent Pan India
Top-wear Anti-Odour through Online
Bottom-wear 4-way stretch retail
Winter-wear Wicking
Briefs Cooling
Socks Soltech
Women’s wear(Just
started with basic tee’s)

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The Men’s wear: Water Repellent Pan India

Impervious Only Top-wear Odour free through online


retail
collection
Athlos Men’s wear: Anti-Odour Pan India
Top-wear Bamboo Fabric through online
Bottom-wear retail
Accessories
Activity based clothing’s
(ex: Yoga, Gym, Treks,
etc)
Women’s wear:
Consists of the same
categories such as Men’s
wear and Bra’s
Hyperkewl Climate control apparel, Evaporate International
Animal cooling/heating cooling, air
products and Military activated, Battery
gears powered heating
Wildcraft Top-wear Hyper dry International
Bottom-wear
Clothing accessories,
Winter wear, Footwear,
Rainwear, Technical and
Travel gear, Bags (Both
Men’s and Women’s
wear)

Cult.fit Active wear for both men Wicking Pan India


and women, footwear and Bamboo cotton
gears.

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Under Top wear, bottom wear, Cold black, cold International

Armour foot wear, accessories, switch, Iso-chill,


sports gears for Men, Heat gear,
women and kids Breathable fabric,
Micro Thread,
Thermo
conductive
coating,
Primaloft,
charged cotton,
reflective, winds
stopper,
Thermostat,
charged
cushioning and
anafoam.
Nike Top wear, bottom wear, Nature amplified, International
foot wear, accessories, aeroloft, Dri-fit,
sports gears for Men, therma-fit, clima-
women and kids fit, aero react,
nike- sphere pro,
cool, dry, Zonal
cooling and hyper
adapt shoes

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1.9.1 PERCEPTUAL MAPPING

The mapping is done with respect to innovation and the diversity of the products. This is being
carried out to understand where Turms fall when compared against these brands. Also this
gives an idea to bring out the best.

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CHAPTER 2

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES OF TURMS WEAR – In Detail

 Water/stain repellent using Nanotechnology

Swiss chemists have developed a water proof Nano-fabric that does not get wet. Researchers
from the University of Zurich made this fabric from polyester fibres that are coated with minute
silicone filaments. They also claimed that this fabric is the most water-repellent clothing
material available till date. The principle behind the fabric’s water resistance is that the 40-nm
wide silicone Nano filaments are extremely hydrophobic in nature. Moreover, their spiky
structure enhances this surface chemistry and forms a protective coating on the fabric to prevent
water droplets from entering or soaking the cloth. The coating’s nanostructure and the
hydrophobic property together produce this super-hydrophobic effect in the fabric. The coating
traps a fine layer of air in the fabric and help in keeping water at bay. This layer is known as
plastron and can reduce drag when inside water, which paves the way for interesting
applications in swimsuits and athletic swimwear.

Interestingly, this whole idea has been inspired by naturally water-repellent surfaces such as
lotus leaves, which have a similar combination of tiny nanostructures and hydrophobic
substances. As of now, the coating is most effective on polyester, though it can be tried on wool
and cotton too. The coating is made using a single-step process involving the condensation of
gaseous silicone into fibres giving rise to Nano filaments. The coating has also been found to
be durable compared to other hydrophobic coatings. Plasma processes help improving surface
wetting in synthetic polymers through hydrophilic treatment, which also serves as dirt repellent
and anti-static finishes. Siloxane and perfluorocarbon plasma treatments provide hydrophobic
finishes for cotton and polyethylene fabrics.

 Anti-Odour

The antimicrobial agent can eliminate or reduce the level of bacteria in a garment. Particularly
bacteria present as a result of sweating. Hydration and its derivatives can be used as
antimicrobial agents. One particularly suitable hydration derivative is N-Hal amine. An N-Hal
amine contains a halogen atom which can be effective at eliminating E. coli and other bacteria
such as Proteus mirabilis (P. mirabilis). The N-Hal amine can be obtained by exposing
hydration.

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 Wicking

The fabric is reinforced with high performance Twaron or Technora para-aramid fibres for
superior strength and durability. Garments made with Teijinconex Coolnex super wicking
fabric not only retain their protective properties after thermal exposure, but they also remain
comfortable and service worthy longer.

 Quick dry

Quick dry fabric is made of polyester, which is moderately hydrophobic, so it absorbs little
fluid and dries relatively quickly (compared to absorbent fibres such as cotton). The cross-
section is non-round, increasing surface area by an estimated 20% (over round fibres) in order
to produce a wicking effect via capillary action.

 4 way stretch

4 way stretch fabric is made of the fusion of a hollow crimped fibre and a kind of low melting
point fibre. When reintegration, fine high strength rubber is added. So the ingredient of cotton
4 way stretch fabric is 98% cotton and 2% rubber. Elastane fibre has the property of stretching
and so it is used in making stretch yarn. Fabric with stretch yarn provides the wearer comfort,
durability, wrinkle resistance and freedom of movement. Therefore, such fabrics are in high
demand.

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2.1 INNOVATIVE MARKETING STRATEGY

 Turms uses their customers as their brand ambassadors:


As the products are new to the market and it is very important to convince the
customers. Turms uses cost effective approach of using their customers for marketing
off their products. Word of mouth marketing, being the most effective form of
marketing, has helped Turms strengthen its customer base.

 Referral contest

Contests always keeps the customer


engaged. Apart from the normal
referral programs used by other
brands, Turms has used an
innovative idea to even boost that
strategy. They provide a free Goa
ticket to the winner of most referrals
and hence most sale maker. The
score table shown in their website
makes the contest even more
transparent, encouraging and competitive.

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 Event sponsor targeting the youth

Turms targets the youth as their main customers. The sponsorship of Spectrum 2019, a
NIFT Bengaluru cultural fest, can itself be taken as an example of their strategy of targeting
the youth. They have successfully brought a sense of inclusiveness among the youth
customers. Moreover, they also sponsor live events.

 Turms uses their marketing strategies in such a way that they market the brand at the
same time educate the customers about their products.
Turms keeps special care in taking every opportunity to educate the customers. They
engage in all the festivals through posters.

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 Games that engage the customer at the same time rewarding the winners with
discounts/points.

 Marketing through designs. Destination theme based designs.


In order to attract customers from all over India, Turms have products designed and
marketed in such a way that it helps the customers to relate to the brand.

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2.2 GROWTH STRATEGY – TESTING AND DEVELOPING

In the beginning, Turms has very carefully used slow product expansion to study the consumer
behaviour and to educate the consumers about the brand. Started with only White round neck
and a single jeans, Turms now have over 1500+ products. They have successfully applied the
feedback received from customers and implemented them.

2.2.1 Environment effect

 Affordable and low maintenance would mean less use of water, less detergents to
address pollution and heat/cold tech to address better health.
 Less washing leads to more savings of electricity
 Longevity of the garments will ensure less dumping of clothes
 Less purchasing of garments leads to a better environment with less carbon footprints

2.2.2 Certifications

In this era consumers are well aware of the marketing gimmicks, so they prefer certified
products for better assurance and reliability. Turms have successfully gained the trust by
qualifying four main certifications in the textile industry. As a performance wear brand, rather
than just trying to sell the products, turms focuses on gaining the trust of the customers as well.
This strategy of getting certified by recognised certification agents has helped Turms build trust
among their customers and stand out as an ethical brand too.

 Oeko tex certification

Oeko-Tex textiles and fabrics are certified free of harmful chemicals and are safe for human
use. Organic certification means that textile and fabric products are grown according to strict
guidelines on the use of petroleum based fertilisers, pesticides and synthetic products.

Certification according to STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® can ensure a decisive


competitive advantage for manufacturers. It is performed uniformly around the world by the

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independent OEKO-TEX® institutes and is applicable to textile products of all processing
steps, from the thread to the end product.

 REACH certification

REACH Certificate of Compliance is a document certifying that a product is compliant with


the EU REACH regulation (EC) No 1907/2006. It can be a testing report or statement issued
by a third-party testing organization. It could also be a self-declaration. It covers different
articles of REACH regulation (registration, SVHC and restriction). In addition to that, it
demonstrates compliance with other legislation in EU such as RoHS.

 (UQAS)Universal Quality Accreditation Services

UQAS Limited is an Independent, International Accreditation Body and non-profitable board


responsible for providing accreditation for Certification bodies/ Agencies in the fields of
Management system certifications, Training Organizations, Inspection bodies, Testing and
Calibration bodies. UQASL Accreditation demonstrates the impartiality, competence and
independence of these organizations. UQASL does not perform certification.

Universal Quality Accreditation Services is a nationally and internationally recognized,


nongovernmental, independent, limited company. UQAS operates voluntary accreditation
services.

Universal Quality Accreditation Services is an independent, international accreditation body


and non-profitable board responsible for providing accreditation for Certification bodies/
Agencies in the fields of Management system certifications, Training Organizations, Inspection
bodies, Testing and Calibration bodies. UQASL Accreditation demonstrates the impartiality,
competence and independence of these organizations. UQASL does not perform certification.

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UQASL is Independent, Impartial organization formed to help certification and third party
inspection bodies/ agencies to improve their services at very competitive fees.

UQASL accredit certification bodies/ agencies after achieving compliance to ISO 17021 and
thereby improving their management system. This help the CB’s to maintain the quality of
Management system certification has been restored.

 Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is the worldwide leading textile processing
standard for organic fibres, including ecological and social criteria, backed up by independent
certification of the entire textile supply chain.

Version 5.0 was published on 1st of March 2017, 3 years after the Version 4.0 was introduced
and 12 years after the launch of the 1st Version. The high ecological and social requirements
as well as worldwide practicability and verifiability were considered in the revision work, in
order to achieve a reliable and transparent set of criteria.

The information in this section provides an overview of the content and basic requirements of
the standard. It does not reflect all criteria of the standard and can therefore not be used for any
official purpose.

The aim of the standard is to define world-wide recognized requirements that ensure organic
status of textiles, from harvesting of the raw materials, through environmentally and socially
responsible manufacturing up to labelling in order to provide a credible assurance to the end
consumer.
Textile processors and manufacturers are enabled to export their organic fabrics and garments
with one certification accepted in all major markets.

The consensus of the Founding Organizations was that a clear and unambiguous understanding
of the content required that the Global Standard itself focuses on compulsory criteria only. The

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standard covers the processing, manufacturing, packaging, labelling, trading and distribution
of all textiles made from at least 70% certified organic natural fibres. The final products may
include, but are not limited to fibre products, yarns, fabrics, clothes and home textiles. The
standard does not set criteria for leather products.

2.3 RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

 Raised Rs 2 crore from Raveen Sastry, Sree Unnikrishnana, Far Eye Co-founder
Rahul Gautam Kumar, Rahul Garg and Atul Gupta of PremjiInvest, and former
Flipkart executive Sanjay Ramakrishnan.
 Last October, Turms raised Rs 6.3 crore from Girish Mathrubootham, along with
Reliance Retail Lifestyle President Bijou Kurien, Ambareesh Murty, One Assist
Founder SubratPani, and former Flipkart executive Mekin Maheshwari, along with
angels from Lets Venture and Angel List India.
 Also individually funded by angels who participated in the round include Sumit Jain,
co-founder Open talk, Krishnan Akhileswaran, Group CFO at Apollo Hospitals,
Prabhakar Sunder, ex CFO - Voonik & Myntra, and Amit Lakhotia, formerly with
Tokopedia and Paytm.
 Turms is also partnering with Manchester University to work on graphene technology.
They are trying to build an active or dual-functionality t-shirt. The fabric will keep you
cool or warm depending on the outside temperature.
 The company has also partnered with IIT-Delhi to develop anti-ageing technology for
apparel.
 On Holi this year, Turms launched its 'skin protector' t-shirts that minimise the amount
of chemicals coming in contact with the skin and didn’t stain permanently with the
colours.

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CHAPTER 3

DESIGN THINKING

Design Thinking is an iterative process in which we seek to understand the user, challenge
assumptions, and redefine problems in an attempt to identify alternative strategies and solutions
that might not be instantly apparent with our initial level of understanding. At the same time,
Design Thinking provides a solution-based approach to solving problems. It is a way of
thinking and working as well as a collection of hands-on methods.

Design Thinking revolves around a deep interest in developing an understanding of the people
for whom we’re designing the products or services. It helps us observe and
develop empathy with the target user. Design Thinking helps us in the process of questioning:
questioning the problem, questioning the assumptions, and questioning the implications.
Design Thinking is extremely useful in tackling problems that are ill-defined or unknown, by
re-framing the problem in human-centric ways, creating many ideas in brainstorming sessions,
and adopting a hands-on approach in prototyping and testing. Design Thinking also involves
ongoing experimentation: sketching, prototyping, testing, and trying out concepts and ideas.

Design thinking phases:

 Empathise – with your users


 Define – your users’ needs, their problem, and your insights
 Ideate – by challenging assumptions and creating ideas for innovative solutions
 Prototype – to start creating solutions
 Test – solutions

Phases of Design Thinking

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3.1 THE TOOLS USED (BRAINSTORMING, EXPERIENCE MAPPING)

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a group creativity technique by which efforts are made to find a conclusion
for a specific problem by gathering a list of ideas spontaneously contributed by its members.

Consumer Experience Mapping

An experience map is a tool that helps our clients understand the experience a customer has
with their product or service. ... Showing how customers think, feel and behave at each stage
of their journey is also a powerful way to help organisations prioritise what's important to
their business and customers

As a team of six members, the group decided on brainstorming as a design thinking tool, to
understand the market and find market gaps keeping in mind the vision and mission of the
brand Turms and experience mapping to discover any opportunity for the brand to improve
their products.

CONSUMER EXPERIENCE MAPPING

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3.2 GAP ANALYSIS

 No retail/Experience store

It is very important for Turms, as an innovative technology wear brand, to have their presence
in brick and mortar stores either as a retail store or as an experience store. With the rise of
mobile, social and cloud technologies, customer expectations continue to increase. More
than ever, customers demand a more seamless experience. For many businesses, customer
experience is the new battlefield—a competitive advantage that attracts and keeps
customers. By selling directly to consumers, companies can envision how the customer
journey should take place and execute the tactics required to make that vision a reality.
Companies like Timberland, REI and Under Armour are finding success expanding their
DTC channels. It’s no wonder more brands plan to open their own retail shops and invest
in their mobile and e-commerce sites. As more retailers aggressively pursue this strategy,
the brands that can deliver the best experience—both to their customers and to their
partners— are in a position to win. So, it is imperative for Turms to reach their customers
offline as well.

 Filter/sort

Sorting and filtering are essential for helping users to find the products they're looking for.
Users' increasing levels of sophistication when shopping online means they're likely to 'flick'
between similar sites in a matter of seconds. Providing effective sorting and filtering for
product listings can play a major part in helping users find (and ultimately buy) the product(s)
they're looking for.

Regardless of which method is used, users will be presented with a product listing from which
to find the product(s) they want. This product listing can contain tens, hundreds or even
thousands of products, so finding the right product from this list can be a difficult or even
impossible task on any ecommerce site.
Getting sorting and filtering right improves findability and allows users to find the product
they want in less time, from this product listing. If users can't find the exact product they
require in the minimal time, there's a good chance they'll go to an ecommerce site where they
can.

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When the Turms website, through which they do most of the business, is observed, the absence
of filter and sort options limits the browsing experience and makes the searching of products
difficult. Users are also confused about what technology is suitable for a particular use.

 Product review and ratings

There are a number of parameters which contribute to define the success and credibility of an
Ecommerce store. However, one very important factor in elevating the reputation, standard and
evaluation of an Ecommerce store is Product Reviews. Not taken much into serious account,
Product Reviews provide an Ecommerce store with one of the most valuable resources
available: Customer Feedback. Merchants very frequently underestimate the importance of
Product Reviews for an Ecommerce store, while paying more attention and being preoccupied
by too many tasks to manage like, optimizing site designs, eliminating customer doubts,
helping opportune customers decide which product to buy, customer services and
administrative tasks.

Nowadays, customers have shifted to online shopping. So, product reviews and ratings play an
important role in a customer’s purchase decision. The Turms website does not have the product
review and ratings and hence, misses on this crucial aspect of product reviews, which leads to
potential customers bouncing off from their website.

 COD

Even though there has been a significant rise in online payments over the last few years since,
Cash on Delivery (COD) continues to remain the most preferred mode of payment for
consumers in India.

According to Nielsen’s Global Connected Commerce Survey about 83% consumers in India
preferred using cash on delivery as a mode of payment for online purchases. Consumers still
dither to use credit cards due to online fraud risks. A report highlights that majority mode of
payment made by consumers for online sites like Flipkart, was COD, 72% from major cities
and 90% from smaller towns.

Turms has a capping of Rs. 6000 for COD, which is a very major drawback because bulk
purchases will give more in sales compared to occasional single products purchases. Also,

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buying four or more Turms products will easily cost around Rs. 6000, thus limiting a regular
customer from purchasing according to his wishes.

 Cart

Normally, in E Commerce, customers always add products to their cart and buy whenever they
have a chance or if any new offers come up. The point of adding to cart is that they can easily
check out without reading the products description or seeing the products again.

But, in the Turms mobile site, the products cannot be viewed in the cart, hence leading to doubts
at the point purchasing and making the user go over the products once again.

 Wish list

Wish lists are among one of the very most important features of E-commerce nowadays. This
counts for customer satisfaction and also increases the user friendliness of your E-
commerce website. Wish list also allows a person to send an email to his/her friends or
relatives with the product details and buying option.

Turms website can perform much better and increase customer friendliness if the option of
wish list is made available.

 Turms About us Page

Every brand website necessarily has to have an ‘about us’ page, so that visitors can get a clear
idea of the brand, its history, vision and mission. Turms, being an innovative e commerce
brand, is more entitled for an ‘about us’ page so build trust among the customers and educate
the customers as well. But surprisingly, Turms does not have an ‘about us’ page in their
website.

 UI/UX

Since UI and UX Development largely focus on the users’ satisfaction and pleasure, it plays
an important role in the business’ success. From a business’s point of view, it is essential to

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emphasize on the users’ satisfaction in order to build the brand value and reputation of the
business. With IT being the competitive field, the need of UI UX design service to grab the
consumers’ attention and revenue from the company’s products is quite crucial.

The Turms website has good scope in improving their UI/UX and get their customers hooked
to their site. It will also help increase their SEO rankings and get more clicks to their website

 After sales service

When studying the customer feedbacks of Turms, it is noted that most of the complaints is
regarding their lack of after sales service. The response time and returns and refunds take longer
times than usual. This makes the customer to think twice in future purchases.

 Gender categorisation of products

As an apparel manufacturer, it is important to cater to both genders equally. Turms, being an


innovative company, is missing out the opportunity to tap the women’s wear market. In the
past 24 to 36 months, there has been an explosive growth in women coming online and in
mobile penetration. Consequently, a raft of new ventures are focused on this opportunity and
several older ones tweaking their business model to chase after it.
Turms, right now is clearly catering to the male segment of the market. The website has only
one link showing only two products catering to the female segment. Even though it is known
that they began their men’s wear similarly, the women’s wear has to be marketed more and the
visibility has to be increased in the home page of the website.

 Chat bot

They improve the brand-customer interaction by: Identifying customer requirements and
conducting personalized conversations. Analysing previous actions and suggesting products.
Saving time while providing most efficient solution to the query.

Turms could better focus on the customers if a chat bot service was available on their website

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 Customer Interaction

The customer educating posts, description and videos seems to be less for an innovative and
new technology product brand like Turms. This ensures your customers are more comfortable
when purchasing products. They are happy with their decision to buy the product, and might
even share their experience with others. Videos are now considered an important tool for
many effective e-commerce websites.

 Search box results

The position of the search box on the site can influence the user's decision to make use of it to
look for products. Navigation should be clear across the entire site, including the site search
boxes. This is so that visitors can move around easily, whichever page they happen to arrive
at.

In the Turms website when searched for white shirt, the search displays wrong product images.

 Multi-platform selling

Instagram enables a business to sell something more than just products. It can help to build
up a better word of mouth. Reaching out to the audience through a platform
like Instagram makes the relations with the target audience friendlier. Instagram Insights
provides businesses all of the essential data they need to know about their account and how
their posts perform. It helps provide insight into what content works and what doesn't. It gives

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you information about your followers to help you build a picture of those who take an interest
in you.

Turms is selling through Flipkart and Amazon, but the presence in Instagram business will
boost the sales tremendously.

3.3 SUGGESTIONS

 Setting up a retail/experience store:

The brand essence or the technology being water repellent, quick dry, etc. cannot be better
experienced than from a retail store/experience store where the customers have a chance to
have first-hand experience to touch, feel and experiment the products.

 Include the option of product filter and sort in the website:

This will improve the browsing experience of users and help users search for products
easily. Users can search for products according to their preference of price, latest arrivals,
and popularity through sort option. The filter option will help customers search for
particular types of products based on the technology used, size, colour, etc.

 Include product review and ratings:

Users browsing for products online depend on other users’ ratings and reviews to know
more about products and their performance on a long term basis through pictures and videos
posted by customers. They can then make an informed purchase decision.

 Add the option of wish list:

Users browsing for products like to wish list their shortlisted options so that they can refer
to them later and make a purchase. Wish listing would also allow the customer to connect
and share the products with friends.

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 Remove the capping of Rs. 6000 for COD:

The current capping of Rs. 6000 should be removed to enable customers who want to pay
through COD to order for higher value.

 Introduce a mobile application:

A mobile app makes accessing and browsing products much easier and also help the
company push out notifications to its users. It can also address the glitches of browsing the
website on mobile and offer a seamless experience to users.

 Improve UI/UX of the website by adding elements of design such as


 Top of page: This feature will help users to directly navigate to the top of a page when
they have searched for many products by scrolling.
 Limit product display per page: This feature will ensure that users can keep track of the
products they are searching for and also give an idea of the total number of products
offered by the company for a particular category.
 Display product price in the home page: Users can directly buy a product from the home
page if they are convinced with the price. This will help in better and faster conversions
as users don’t have to the product page to know the price.
 Add a freeze function to the previous page while browsing which will take the customer
to the particular location where he selected the product: This feature will help users to
browse from the last point from where they clicked on a particular product.

 Decrease the response time of customer service

Ensuring a faster customer service not only keeps customers happy but also increases their
trustworthiness towards the company.

 Increase the visibility of women’s wear in the webpage:

Despite having a separate navigation link for women’s wear, Turms does not market any
women’s wear product on their homepage. Women browsing their website might be
misguided thinking that they do not sell any women’s wear.

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 Implement Chat bot in the website:

A chat bot can address simple issues regarding product, delivery, payment, etc. and keep
users engaged to the website.

 The innovative technology of Turms can be displayed through videos and GIFs

Turms being an innovative apparel brand should market their technology also through
videos and GIFs to make users aware of their innovation.

 Improve the search algorithm of the website

The search box in the website is not well integrated with the products to show the specific
results searched for. The search engine of the website should be improved so that users
would get results of exact products searched for if they are available in the website.

 Incorporate Instagram business:

Turms can integrate Instagram business in their account so that users can directly buy
products which they showcase on their Instagram page.

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CHAPTER 4

PRODUCT LINE EXTENSION

A product line extension is the use of an established product brand name for a new item in the
same product category. Line extensions occur when a company introduces additional items in
the same product category under the same brand name

Women’s and Kid’s apparel is growing into one of the largest segment in the apparel market.
Since 2015, India has enjoyed the position of the fifth largest market for textile and apparel
products in the world. The apparel market in India is currently growing at a CAGR of 8%,
which is the highest among the top ten countries by apparel market size, and is expected to
reach 97 billion USD by 2025. Women’s apparel currently constitutes a low 37% share of the
overall apparel market, valued at 19 billion USD. However, it is expected to outpace men’s
wear and occupy a majority 41% market share by 2025, growing at a faster rate than the overall
apparel market at a CAGR of 10%. And the same goes with the kid’s wear collection, even the
rate of change in the kids wear will be increasing in the future years as shown in the figure.
Apart from this study, a survey was also conducted in order to know the demand for kid’s and
women’s wear. Such as basic enquires on which of their technology would help the most for
the following.

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4.1 KIDS WEAR LINE:
More functional for the kids: Most of the features offered by Turms, such as stain repellent,
anti-order, wicking all are very relatable to the kids as they are more prone to wearing out and
making the garments dirty very soon.

Observing the crowd: Other factor to why venturing into kids wear would create an impact
for Turms is Some distinct factors like changes in the family system, increased spending on
children, growing brand awareness among kids, and greater focus on the kids wear market by
organized players have contributed significantly to the growth of the kids wear market. Urban
India today is characterized by a nuclear family with double income parents who are willing to
spend extra higher share of their wallets on their children. Consequently the spending on
children’s apparel, with better brand image and quality has received a boost. At the same time,
Indian kids in both urban and semi-urban India are increasingly exposed to various media and
are thus aware about brands which cater to them. They have also started participating actively
in purchase decisions relating to their apparel. Creating a greater demand for the kids wear
products.

Being different from the rivals: since most of their rivals have not ventured into kids wear
category. It would make Turms stand out from their rivals if they begin with kids wear
collection.
The innovative sales strategy that can be used under the Kids wear category:

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From the above mentioned list we can see that Uniforms and T-shirts/Shirts are the two major
categories especially within the boys wear market. Together, they contribute 57% of the total
market. However, Denims and T-shirts are the high growth categories within this segment and
are expected to register CAGRs of 15% and 11%, respectively, over the next decade.
Keeping this in mind Turms can come up with not just a line for Kids. But they can also venture
and collaborate with Schools to introduce a whole new Stain repellent and Anti-order uniform
collection.
Under the Kids wear line the product categories could be
 T-shirts
 Shirts
 Shorts
 Denim
 Hoodies
 Winter wear
 Inner wear

4.2 WOMEN’S WEAR LINE:


Why to venture into women’s wear:
Women’s wear is one of the most growing market when it comes to apparel industry. As
mentioned in the above graph it shows that women’s wear would increase largely. Turms
venturing into this category will increase their sales and would occupy larger market share.

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From the above graph it is visible innerwear and winter wear have a good share in the market.
Hence extending the product line to these categories would gain much sales.
Though turms has recently ventured into Women’s wear they do not have much visibility in
them. Increasing the visibility and expanding the product categories would give them better
stand in the competing market.

Women’s wear Product line:


 T-shirts
 Winter wear
 Jeans
 Hoodies
 Inner wear

4.3 TURMS 4 WAY WEAR – LINE EXTENSION WITHIN T – SHIRT


CATEGORY

Why to venture

 T- Shirt can be worn 4 different ways, so you can choose which works best for any
occasion.
 No more worrying about t-shirt's front and back, inside or outside

Suggestions: Turms 4 way wear – Line extension in t – shirts

 The Uztzu Q-Shirt can be worn 4 different ways, so you can choose which works best
for any occasion. With its multiple combinations, you can now optimise your wardrobe
space and enhance your look on your travels.
 Uztzu has filed 2 international patents and is the only brand in the world that produces
Quad-Face T-Shirts.
 Turms wear can partner with Uztzu to sell their product in India as the idea can help
Turms to build their brand stronger in the market.

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CHAPTER 5

BRAND EXTENSION

5.1 GAPS

5.1.1 TURMSGEAR – BRAND EXTENSION IN SPORTS WEAR

 Turms has entered the market by targeting only the consumers who would like to buy
casual/ semi – formal wear. Having a strong USP, the brand is unable to stand out of
the other competitors due to lack of product knowledge communication.
 Today, Consumers (who prefer technical advancements in their sportswear) looking for
casual wear does not relate Hi – tech advancements but rather have a mind set to expect
comfort and good aesthetics from a casual wear. Hence, Turms doesn’t come under the
priority list of many consumers.
 As Turms specializes in providing technical advancements, they can easily enter the
sportswear as well. This can lead to better brand recognition in consumers mind.
Consumers being sportswear would also get attracted towards their innovative approach
of introducing tech advancement in casual wear and hence, he/she can recall preferring
Turms when they are looking for casual wear.

5.1.2 TURMS HOME.CARE - BRAND EXTENSION IN HOME


TEXTILES

 The urban life has become very congested and the only place of rest is home which is
normally indicated by the flats and hence importance of the interior of our homes
increases geometrically.
 The home textiles industry in India is worth Rs.17, 000 crores. The home textiles such
as bed linen, towels, hand towels, carpets, rugs, quilts, mattresses, cushion covers, bed
sheets, etc. are the prime products of this market. The home-made textile market in
India is expected to grow as the demand both within the country and overseas is
expected to rise. Heavily unorganized market, Indian home textile market is an
untapped potential for the organized players in the trade.

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5.1.3 TURMS MEDI.TEX – BRAND EXTENSION IN MEDICAL
TEXTILE

 Medical textiles also known as Healthcare Textiles. Medical Textiles is one of the most
rapidly expanding sectors in the technical textile market. It is one of the major growth
areas within technical textiles and the use of textile materials for medical and healthcare
products ranges from simple gauze or bandage materials to scaffolds for tissue culturing
and a large variety of prostheses for permanent body implants.
 Textile products are omnipresent in the field of human hygiene and medical practice.
Their use is based on a number of typical basic textile properties like softness and
lightness, flexibility, absorption, filtering etc.
Advanced medical textiles are significantly developing area because of their major
expansion in such fields like wound healing and controlled release, bandaging and
pressure garments, implantable devices as well as medical devices, and development of
new intelligent textile products.
 Present day society is undergoing changes like large population size, need of increasing
his life span of every individual, various situations and hazards of human activity and
civilization including transport accidents, chemical materials, fire, cold, diseases, and
sports. Such factors increase the demand of medical textiles. So there are several
researching works are going on all over the world in medical textile materials and
polymers.

5.1.4 TURMS FUNCTIONAL – BRAND EXTENSION IN FUNCTIONAL


WEAR

 Functional clothing is defined as that specifically designed and engineered to ensure


predefined performance requirements and/or functionality for the user. This includes
protection under harsh environmental conditions during work or sporting activities and
protection against extreme hazards and environments.
 It may also include clothing for use in monitoring and evaluating hazards in conditions
under which conventional everyday seasonal clothing would not be adequate. The
functionalities required of clothing can be very different, depending on the end-use.

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5.1.5 TURMS PRO.TECH – BRAND EXTENSION IN PROTECTIVE
WEAR

 Protective clothing can be defined as clothing including those protectors which


cover or replace personal clothing and which are designed to provide protection
against one or more hazards.
 Particular clothing may be designed to provide protection against hazards
encountered during specific types of work.
 Examples include garments providing protection against cuts, abrasion, ballistic
and other types of severe impact, including stab-wounds and explosions, fire and
extreme heat, hazardous dust and particles, nuclear, biological and chemical
hazards, high voltages, static electricity and extreme cold. High-visibility wear also
comes into this category.
5.1.6 TURMS AUTO TEX – BRAND EXTENSION IN AUTOMOBILE
TEXTILES
 Automotive textile is an integral aspect of technical textile. Since it cannot be
classified in apparel textile, it is more of a techno mechanical application of textile.
Industrial textiles are widely used in transportation vehicles and systems including
cars, trains, buses, airplanes and marine vehicles.
 Approximately 50 square yards of textile material is used in an average car for
interior trim (seating areas headliners, side panels, carpets and trunk, lining, tires,
filters, belts hoses, airbags etc.)

5.1.7 TURMS FOOTWEAR AND OTHER PRODUCTS


 The emergence of smart shoes will be one of the critical footwear market trends
responsible for the growth of the market.
 The rising demand for smart shoes can be attributed to factors, such as the rising health
consciousness, increasing participation in sports, growing concerns about fitness, and
increasing engagement in fitness activities.
 The advanced technology and software in smart shoes help in monitoring the fitness
and performance activities of on-field players and athletes. The data collected by smart
shoes can be utilized by coaches or mentors of athletes to plan various fitness regimes
and exercises.

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 Smart shoes also offer easy connectivity with smart phones or tablets and track the
activity and performance statistics of users. Moreover, smart shoes, such as navigation
and positioning shoes track and alert users about obstacles on the way which makes it
highly popular among physically challenged people and the geriatric population.
 The increasing use of smart shoes in sports analytics and medical purposes will boost
the growth of the footwear market during the next five years.

5.2 SOLUTION

5.2.1 TURMS GEAR UP – BRAND EXTENSION IN SPORTS WEAR

 Sports textile is one of the branches of technical textile. Now a day’s sophisticated
technology are used in technical textile to produce sportswear. Textile has done it
successfully. Hi-tech textiles in sport are nothing new.
 In recent years we have seen the design of fabrics that can take moisture away from the
body, patches on all black jerseys so players can dry their hands for better grip, fabrics
that can sense high impact stresses on player’s joints and fabrics that can sense heart
rate, temperature and other physiological data.
 Turms being a pioneer to serve specialty fabrics for functional needs can enter the sports
textile market, where the technical advancements can serve to increase the performance
of the sports person.
 Keys factors for sports fabrics which are already fulfilled by Turms,
- Sports textile must have comfort ability, easy to wear, easy handling.
- Sports textiles fabrics have a very high electrical conductivity, so they can permit the
effectual dissipation of electrical charge.
- It should be light as best as possible.
- Filaments fabrics are made highly effecting in moisture management & thus they can
wick the moisture as known as sweat away from the body & keeps body dry.
- Sports textile should have good perspiration fastness.
- As this sports fabric has a special property well known as heat conductivity make
possible to feel the user cooler in summer & warmer in winter.
- Garments manufactured from sports textiles fabrics, keeps the normal stability of body
comfort, because these fabrics are ultra-breathable, fast drying and possess outstanding
moisture managing properties, which rapidly wick moisture away from the body.

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- These garments are also very less in weight & feature elasticity properties, which
provides immense comfort and independence of movement.
- Keeping a normal level of bacteria on the skin offers a high level of comfort and
personal hygiene, especially during athletic activities.
- Sports textiles fabrics remove UVA and UVB rays that are dangerous to the skin, and
guarantees an improved level of defence compared to the majority general natural and
man-made fibres.
- It also provides superior strength and durability.
 All the above properties are served by Turms in casual wear and hence, it will not be
difficult for them to introduce it in sports wear as well.
 Turms can also introduce sportswear with specific technical advancements, which will
be derived to serve only for specific category. For example, apparel for cycling should
have different properties than the one which is used for playing basket-ball.

 Turms can include different categories under sportswear for men, women, kids, footwear
and accessories.
 As Turms uses online portal, they can share product knowledge and guide the person, this
will aware the consumers as well about which fabric or which technical property is suitable
for which sport.
 Turms can also introduced customization for the consumer, where the consumer can browse
over the aesthetics and he/she can select the technical properties that they want in the
garment.

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5.2.2 TURMS HOME.CARE - BRAND EXTENSION IN HOME
TEXTILES

 Home textiles can instantly attract one with its style, colour, and variety. It adds a touch of
one's individuality to the ambience of one's home, and makes one feel warm and
comfortable. Today, innovative home textile products have been introduced which have
amazing features, utility, and gives utmost comfort to the user. These home décor
furnishings, accessories, and fabrics together make a house, a home.
 At present, one can find variety of innovative home décor textiles to suit ones preferences
and mood. A soft and warm blanket or a teddy bear can make one feel very cozy after a
long tiring day. It is the intrinsic quality of that fabric that makes one feel so relaxed and
comfortable. If the right textiles are used for home furnishings, it can restore the warmth,
and are available in various colors, likable prints, quality, and fabrics.
 Whether it's a soft velvet or shiny silk material, fabrics for home furnishing gives joy to the
eyes. One should not neglect the physical joy and a little luxury that these textiles bring to
our lives, when considering the options for home décor. However, selecting the right textile
to decorate different areas of the home which will portray one's style and also look
hospitable is a task.
 Talking about innovative home textiles, one cannot miss to mention about smart carpets.
Carpets give warmth and comfort to us but gradually it also attracts dirt and odour. With
the new technology, carpets are produced that can counteract bad odours before they
permanently settle in the carpet. This magic carpet has chemical components that absorbs
bad smell and counterbalance the odour. Besides neutralizing the odour, it is easy to clean
and is durable too. Also, cleaning the carpet does not reduce or remove its odour reducing
properties.
 Moreover, nowadays there are many novel curtains available in the market. Like solar
curtains, magnetic curtains, automated curtains. For people who want the heat of the sun to
remain out of the room at the same time using the solar energy, solar curtains are good
options. It does not block the outside view and keeps heat out of the room. These curtains
are translucent, flexible and use sunlight as electricity. They have solar panels on the roof
that can turn the heat into energy to power the air-conditioner in the room.
 Magnetic curtains are created by modern interior designers. It can take any shape or form
and stay the way one wants. This is because it has innumerable small magnets on its surface.
The magnets are integrated is such a way that it can stay in the shape; one push or pulls.

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Since, it can take any shape; it is very flexible and adjustable. They are durable and do not
particularly need maintenance. And the best part is, it goes well with modern as well as
traditional home décor.
 Further, there are automated curtains. As the name suggests they roll up or down just with
a button click. They make life easy and simple with many advantages. Also there are fire
and smoke curtains that can be used for fire safety. These curtains are made from fire proof
fabrics stitched with Kevlar and stainless thread. This innovative fire resistant curtain is
light and is used at places that needs fire safety.
 Smart living demands innovative furnishings. Gone are the days of using normal sofas.
Now functional sofas have come up. A multi-purpose sofa is widely used especially when
the living spaces are limited. There is a range of new functional furniture that transforms
small and ordinary spaces to look impressive. Nowadays, one can find a sofa that will turn
into a bed at night and into table to have lunch or dinner. They offer comfort and are of
great utility in modern living.
 Moving further, new inventions have developed cloud sofa that hangs in the air. It is really
something that would startle people and satisfy the desire to float in air with comfort. This
sofa would be very comfortable and would give extreme pleasure to the users. A magnetic
force is applied at the base of the sofa. The magnetic force generated from the base of the
sofa will push the sofa into the air and hold it steady even while a person is sitting or lying
on it.
 There is no doubt that the quality of the bed linens can make a huge difference to one's
sleep. With innovative home décor textiles, there are bed sheets that can keep one cool in
hot summers. It uses Nano technology which makes the fabrics superior with properties
like odour resistant, moisture resistant, and breathable fabrics. These bed linens support to
maintain the body temperature with its unique moisture absorbing system.
 Furthermore, a gel mattress has been developed that is made of special kind of gel. This gel
is permeated in the memory foam which provides seven times more cooling and twice the
comfort than the ordinary memory foam. It uses a new technology that has cooling
materials and duet coil support system so as to give support to the body while sleeping.
 In the past few years, many innovative mattresses have been developed to give comfort and
relieve the pain that is caused by using normal mattress. There are water beds, air beds,
memory foam mattress and latex mattress. Each mattress has its own unique features. Like

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the water bed can ease the back pain, reduces the body pressure and gives good support to
the spinal column.
 On the other hand air mattresses can maintain the firmness of the bed depending on how
much air is filled. Such levels of adjustments are not available in other types of bed.
Memory foam mattresses are used for medical conditions when a person is bedridden for a
long time. It helps to ease the pressure sores. Latex beds provide similar assistance as
memory foam beds but have a natural surface. Hence, it is advisable to understand the pros
and cons of the mattress before buying it.
 With availability of high end functional furnishings and home décor products, one can
transform an ordinary home into an extraordinary living space.

5.2.3 TURMS MEDI.TEX – BRAND EXTENSION IN MEDICAL


TEXTILE

 Nano-technique has acquired tremendous impulse in the last decade. Nano-fibre based
products as well as Nano-coated materials are present innovations in the field of medical.
So in our technical poster we have gone through latest medical textiles, Nano-based
products due to following features and wide range of application.
 Nanofibers are very attracted due to their unique properties, high surface area to volume
ratio, film thinness, Nano scale fibre diameter porosity of structure, lighter weight.
Nanofibers are porous and the distribution of pore size could be of wide range, so they can
be considered as engineered scaffolds with broad application in the field of tissue
engineering. Some other applications like wound dressings, bone regeneration and
nanofibers to be the carrier of various drugs to the specific sites, etc.
 The consumption of Medical Textiles worldwide was 1.5 million tons in 2000 and is
growing at an annual rate of 4.6%. The Indian market size of medical textiles was estimated
to be INR 14.8 billion in 2003-04 and is expected to grow to INR 23.3 billion by 2007-08.
Market is expected to grow by 8% p.a.
 The use of textile materials for medical and healthcare products can be classified into
following main areas
- Barrier material (for infection control)
- Bandaging & pressure garment
- Wound care material

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- Hygiene material
- Implantable material (sutures, art. Joints etc)
- Extra Corporal devices (like art. Kidney etc)
 Requirements of textile material for medical applications
- Biocompatible
- Good resistance to alkalis, acids and micro-organisms
- Good dimensional stability
- Elasticity Free from contamination or impurities
- Absorption / Repellences
- Air permeability
 Applications - Medical Textiles are the products and constructions used for medical
and biological applications and are used primarily for first aid, clinical and -hygienic
purposes. It consists of all those textile materials used in health and hygienic
applications in both consumer and medical markets. As such it comprises a group of
products with considerable variations in terms of product performance and unites value.
Because of the nature of their application many medical products are disposable items.
The increased use of textiles in composite applications will provide major growth fiber
consumption in terms of volume.
 Include wound care products, diapers, braces, prostheses and outhouses, wipes,
breathing masks, bedding and covers, ropes and belts etc.
 Innovative textile products can both add significantly to effectiveness of medical
treatments as well as patient comfort At the same time, new medical textiles, may
contribute to cost containment.
 Innovative products - Provide new treatment options (textile based implants instead of
scarce donor organs; artificial tissues, joints and ligaments), Speed up recovery after
medical treatment (innovative wound dressings; light, Breathable outhouses/
prostheses) . Enhance quality of life of chronically ill people (functional clothing)
 Surgeons wear, wound dressings, bandages, artificial ligaments, sutures, artificial
liver/kidney/lungs, nappies, sanitary towels, vascular grafts/heart valves, artificial
joints/bones, eye contact lenses and artificial cornea and the like are some of the
examples of medical textiles. Medical textiles are textile products and constructions for
medical applications. They are used for first aid, clinical or hygienic purposes and
rehabilitation

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 Examples of their application include:
- Protective and healthcare textiles
- Dressings, bandages, pressure garments and prosthetics
- Hygiene products
- Antiseptic wound dressings.

5.2.4 TURMS FUNCTIONAL – BRAND EXTENSION IN FUNCTIONAL


WEAR

 Functional clothing may be developed ‘in the round’ with design lines related to fit,
proportion, and the positioning of design features and smart attributes around the body,
directly responding to the particular demands of the body and end-use.
 In creating functional garments in relation to the contours of the body, both design lines
and ergonomic cutting lines often work in harmony and may merge into clean, minimal
styling.
 An awareness of human movement, the support of muscles, protection, and workload,
in combination with the application smart textile innovation, results in garments with
design lines that maximize efficiency coupled with meaningful aesthetics.
 It can help Turms to cater the audience in following segments
- School uniforms
- Infants care
- Job uniforms
- Safety wears

5.2.5 TURMS PRO.TECH – BRAND EXTENSION IN PROTECTIVE


WEAR

 Turms wear can penetrate in protective clothing by finding the need of protection and
the kind of cloth required for it. Listing –
- Protection against mechanical impact
Special work wear, which must be sufficiently shock-absorbent to prevent injury
resulting, in particular, from the crushing, etc., at last up an impact-energy level
Motorcyclists' protective clothing
Protective clothing for horse riders (protective jackets, body and shoulder protectors)

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Protective clothing for professional motorcycle riders (jackets, trousers, one-piece or
divided suits)
- Protection against physical injury (abrasion, perforation, cuts, bites)
Protective clothing again abrasion, protective clothing against perforation, cut resistant
protective clothing.
Aprons, trousers and vest protecting against cuts and stabs by hand knives
Protective clothing for abrasive blasting operations using granular abrasives
Protective clothing for users of hand-held chainsaws – resistance to cutting by a
chainsaw
- Protection of drowning
Lifejackets, lifesaving suit
Buoyancy aids clothing which will ensure an effective degree of buoyancy
- Protection against heat and/or fire

Protective clothing for protection against heat and flame


Protective clothing for firefighters
Protective clothing for use in welding and allied processes
Protective clothing for workers exposed to heat (excluding firefighters' and welders'
clothing)
Protective clothing against the thermal hazards of an electric arc
Protective clothing with electrostatic resistance –when the worker is exposed to
environments where a spark could cause explosions or ignite fires, e.g. petrol stations,
petrol tanker drivers, flour mills, clean rooms etc. Protective clothing can be classified
according to the type of fabric used: clothing with surface conducting fabrics, and
clothing with corona fabrics
Protective clothing for automobile racing drivers
- Protection against electric shock
Electrical insulating protective clothing for low-voltage installation
Conductive clothing for live working at a nominal voltage

Protective shielding clothing for live working

- Protection against dangerous substances and infective agents


- Clothing for protection against penetration or skin contact with hazardous chemicals,
toxic gases, body fluids:

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Protective clothing for protection against chemicals
Clothing for protection against liquid chemicals
Chemical protective clothing for use against solid particulates
Clothing for protection against contact with blood and body fluids
Clothing for protection against infectious agents

5.2.6 TURMS AUTO.TEX – BRAND EXTENSION IN AUTOMOBILE


TEXTILES

 Automobile textiles, which are non-apparel textiles, are widely used in vehicles like
cars, trains, buses, aircrafts and marine vehicles. Hence, the term automobile textile
means all type of textile components e.g. fibres, filaments, yarns and the fabric used in
automobiles.
 Nearly two third of the automobile textiles are for interior trim, i.e. seat cover, carpets
and roof and door liners. The rest is utilized to reinforce tyres, hoses, safety belts, air
bags, etc.
 Seat Belts
Now a days wearing of seat belt is become compulsory for drives and front seat
passengers. About 1 kg of textile fibre per car is consumed in seat belts. Seat Belts need
to be as soft and flexible as possible along the length direction but as rigid as possible
in the width direction so they can slide easily through buckles and to retract smoothly
into housing. The edges must be scuff resistant but not unpleasantly hard and the
material must be resistant to UV degradation and retain its strength for the life of the
car- otherwise it must be replaced some of the first seat belts were made from polyester
because of its superior resistance to UV degradation.
 Air Bags

Stringent government legislation, consumer pressures are the driving forces for the
massive growth and development of the air bags. In USA, the market for air bags is
very huge and it is still in a growing stage in case of Japan and Western Europe. The
requirement for an air bag material is high strength, resistance to ageing and abrasion,
compatibility with coatings and good impact absorption. Hence nylon 6, is the mostly
used material for the construction of air bags. Polyester is rarely used for this purpose
and this trend seems to continue.

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 Seats

The seat is probably the most important item in the car interior. It is the first thing the
customer seed when the car door is opened and he or she will probably instinctively
touch it. Textiles have become by for the most widely used material in seat coverings
and are beginning to be used in other areas of the seat in place of polyurethane foam.
They are also used in a number of specialist cases in place of metal springs and actual
seat pan and seat back. Now a day’s polyester is very popular material for making seats,
like polyester in the face fabric, Polyester non-woven in the cover laminate and
polyester non-woven also in the seat squab and Cashion.

 Textile materials are used in automobiles for interior trim and for ensuring comfort (e.g.
seat covers, carpets, roof liners, and door liners) as well as for reinforcement (e.g. tyre)
and filters. Textiles also offer weight reduction which in turn results in fuel economy.
 Airbags help to save lives, but at times they can also be a source of serious injury. The
search for a uniform smart airbag, which can perceive the size of the passenger or
whether the seat is empty and react in that manner, is in progress. Such a 'smart' airbag
will incorporate sensors to judge the weight, size and location of the car passengers and
hence deploy more appropriately.
 In addition, incorporated safety devices associated with the seat belt along with other
safety items, particularly for child passengers, are under development. The trend
towards uncoated fabrics is anticipated to continue and so is the improved trend towards
more airbags per car and full-size bags. There is also a technical challenge of producing
the bag by using more rational techniques and related specifications made by the
automotive industry.

5.2.7 TURMS FOOTWEAR – BRAND EXTENSION IN FOOTWEAR

 Technical textiles play an important role in footwear to fulfil the consumer's


requirements of lightweight, softness, injury-preventive thermos regularity, elastic,
anti-microbial, durable, and aesthetic characteristics.
 The trend is on breathable membranes and coatings, moulded polyurethane, air
cushions and various forms of gel capsule, elastomeric fabrics and phase change
materials. They produce different features like improved comfort, performance,
protection, support and shock absorbance.

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 The textile materials that are being used today include woven, knitted, non-woven and
braided materials. The shoes require different properties and features including water
vapour absorption pertaining to sweat disposal, water vapour permeability, low
flexural, tensile, area and shear moduli, thermal conductivity, good shape stability,
water penetration resistance, wind resistance, thermal conductivity, and good resistance
to snagging, cutting and bruising.

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