BSL LTD, a legacy brand and one of the most prominent players in the textile business has planned a multi-faceted exponential plan. The Company is planning to double its sales to over Rs. 900 crore by 2023 -24 from the current Rs. 440 crore.
BSL LTD. delivered a robust performance in the FY ended 31st March’22 with a PAT of Rs. 11.48 crore and operating profits of Rs. 41.43 crore. The company has a global presence in over 50 countries along with a pan-India presence and expects its sales to grow by 30-40% YOY with a quantum jump in the bottom-line.
For the past decade, IKEA has been a major business and growth driver for the company, and this business is likely to continue to grow. BSL is IKEA’s sole provider of furniture fabrics from South Asia, and its products are sold in all 450 IKEA stores around the world.
Talking about the year’s performance and expansion strategies, Managing Director, Mr. Nivedan Churiwal says: “We are glad to announce that our business grew across all segments both in domestic and export markets and we have delivered good results in the last FY. Despite a sharp increase in all input costs, we have been able to pass on the prices and deliver good results. In the current FY, we expect good growth in all segments and we are targeting a turnover of close to Rs. 600 crore with a very healthy bottomline.”
Expansion Plans
BSL Ltd. has planned Rs. 200 crore of Capex, with Rs. 150 crore dedicated to the establishment of their cotton spinning unit. The facility will have 30,000 spindles and will be capable of generating 700 tonnes of cotton yarn every month. This project is scheduled to begin in December 2022. The remaining funds will be used to expand the company’s PV spinning, weaving, and processing capabilities. The state-of-the-art production facility is equipped with the best machinery in the world coming from various countries such as Japan, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland etc.
In addition, the company owns two domestic brands, BSL and Geoffrey Hammonds (GH). GH is the premium range, whereas BSL is for the mass market. BSL has significantly improved its product range and market offerings, particularly for domestic customers. It now provides a very expansive range, especially under its premium brand GH where they expect to more than double the sales between 2022 and 2024. The current focal products are pure wool and poly wool fabrics, as well as ethnic wear in the form of Jacquards. The luxury market is being given special attention, with the launch of GH-Insignia, a new direct to retail brand.
Towards Sustainability:
The company is transitioning away from fossil fuels towards sustainable resources. This is being executed by making a shift from coal to sustainable biofuels like rice husk etc. It is also working to expand its capacity for generating alternative and renewable energy sources. The organisation is committed to environmental sustainability and is one of the few to have reached milestones such as ‘Zero Discharge Certification,’ ‘OE- KO-TEX,’ and numerous certifications such as ‘Vegan Certification,’ among others.
Journey till now…
Having excelled for more than a quarter of a century in the industry; BSL is currently credited with producing over 18 million meters of fabric annually. Steered by the company Managing Director Mr.Nivedan Churiwal along with his competent team, BSL today is a market leader and a household name, boasting of an annual turnover to the tune of Rs. 450 crore.
The inception of BSL was in 1971 at the small town of Bhilwara in Rajasthan, where it is currently headquartered. In those days, the manufacturing of poly-viscose suiting was still a unique concept in India. The journey so far has been nothing less than prolific. Riding on the exemplary leadership skills, futuristic vision and the belief of the top brass that there are no shortcuts to excellence, the company has moved from strength to strength and currently serving 1,500 MBOs. By dint of its exponential growth, it has spread its wings to being present Pan-India as well as in 60 countries across the world now. The company has enhanced its Capex plans and, in the process, revised their targets.
BSL, with constant innovation vis-a-visits products, training, new technology and reducing wastage of natural resources, follows the acronym “GRIP” as part of its corporate ethos. GRIP denotes Giving back to society, Respect for individual, Integrity and Passion. All the members of the Group adhere to uphold these core values in all respects of their work. The company strives to continuously invest in technology, research and development with a single objective of being the best in product manufacturing and service. This is followed with one core mantra: ‘People before profits’ and ‘product innovation before prejudice’.
The extensive product range covers wool, wool-blended premium lightweight fabrics to wool modal, Trevira wool and other specialised fabrics blended with Lycra, Silk, Linen, Tencel, etc. The strong inhouse quality assurance team ensures all these top-of-the-line products are manufactured under the ambit of the necessary accreditations – it is a ISO 9001: 2015 certified company for quality regulations, OHSAS 18001: 2007 for health and safety compliance and ISO 45001 for environmental safety. The target group for the expansive range of suitings is mainly men, aged between 25-55 years, across all states. This includes the rural areas of the country where the Group has a strong presence.
Besides this, it also boasts of a wide variety of products at affordable pricing as well as a premium range for the niche segment. The furnishing arm of BSL has earned a feather in its cap through its long-standing association with Swedish home furnishing giant IKEA – it is one of the few distinguished companies in the world to manufacture and sell furnishing fabrics to IKEA and notably the only company in South-East Asia to enjoy this high-profile business deal. The exhibition of the Group products on the digital platform as #lifeisnotreadymade has also met with stupendous response from the market.
The dynamic BSL is continuously striving for business development based on heritage, ethics and an unflinching passion to be a leader in the industry. To maintain its growth saga, the company has robust plans to capture a growth of 25% on the top line and 20% on the bottom line in the near future. Plans are afoot to ramp up the product supply to 6000 MBOs in the next two years. Consolidation in the states where it has a significant presence as well as focusing its attention to newer domains like east UP, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal is also on the cards. The major impetus for garnering wider outreach is expected to be concentrated through key activities like product innovation, new product launches, brand building and other promotional activities.
