Sportswear brand FILA partners with Ace Turtle to strengthen presence in India

Ace Turtle’s enterprise level technology that has partnered with more than 50 fashion and lifestyle brands in their omnichannel journey will play a critical role in accelerating FILA’s aim towards building a unified brand experience for its customers across multiple channels.

In India, FILA has an exclusive license agreement with Cravatex, the global Retail, Brand Licensing, Distribution and Sourcing company with presence across India, UK, Europe, North Africa and Middle East.

Speaking on their association with Ace Turtle, Rakesh Singh Kathayat, Chief Operating Officer, Cravetex Brands.  said “Over the last few years, FILA as a brand has constantly endeavored in resonating with the demand of millennials seeking for stylish and sophisticated collections in the sportswear segment."

"While, we have managed to achieve that objective, engaging with our customers across the country consistently through the channel of their preference is something we are currently focusing on. Partnering with leading omnichannel enablers such as Ace Turtle is a step towards that effort to showcase the omnichannel strength of our brand and seamlessly connect with our customers," he said.

As part of the new Heritage Store format, Fila has been opening one store a month and expects to keep  through 2019. In addition to its core focus footwear segment, the brand also has launched collections for its apparel range in India.

Speaking on this partnership, Nitin Chhabra, CEO, Ace Turtle said “By 2020, sportswear segment is expected to grow at an annual growth rate of 12 percent with sales expected to reach $8 billion. Having a well-orchestrated omnichannel strategy will play a critical role in accelerating the growth of leading brands in this segment in India"

He said FILA, over the past few years has witnessed tremendous response from Indian consumer looking for highly sophisticated and premium sportswear collections. 

India’s Sportswear market has evolved from a niche segment, which was exclusively aimed at Sportspersons, to a burgeoning consumer sector, driven  by growth in income levels, changing lifestyle and the entry of foreign brands in the recent years. In addition to this, the trend of using sportswear as casual wear has expanded the definition of target consumers for leading brands, the company said.