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Best fabrics and fits
Park Avenue is out with its ‘Autumn Winter Collection 2011’, an elegant range of stylish outfits and charming evening wear. The men’s range consists of formal and evening wear with the latest line being ‘Dress Casual’. While the women’s range consists of three lines — ‘Business Formal’, ‘Day Wear’ and ‘Formal Evening Wear’. Says Kiran Kalbag, Director, Sales and Marketing (Park Avenue), Raymond Apparels Limited, “Park Avenue’s positioning is as an office wear but we don’t want office wear to be boring. So we have added an element of elegance and style to it.”
The men’s ‘Dress Casual’ range is a step in this direction too. “It consists of washed garments, T-shirts and casual wear with an element of style,” explains Kiran. “This line address the emerging world of new corporates. Young professionals these days don’t wear stiff formals. They have their own style. For instance, they dress in layers,” he adds.
Speaking of the women’s line, he says, “The ‘Business Formal’ line consists of jackets, suits, trousers, skirts, shirts and tops. The ‘Day Wear’ is like the men’s ‘Dress Casual’ range. It is more relaxed and consists of fabrics like linen and corduroy and floral prints while the ‘Formal Evening Wear’ mainly consists of dresses that can be worn to a formal event like a gala dinner, ball or award function. The fabrics in this line are mostly lycra and lace.” Women can also go for accessories like scarves and bags. “These are the accessories that accentuate a woman’s dressing,” says Kiran.
The team has spent a lot of time developing the fit. According to Kiran, the USP of the women’s range is the fit. “For women, fit plays the most important role in an outfit. Unlike men, who walk in to a store and quickly pick out clothes, women like to try on every outfit before they buy it,” notes Kiran. “So we have given a lot of importance to the fit and the dresses for women are absolutely high on fashion,” he adds. Ask him about the USP of the men’s wear and he says, “We offer the best fabrics and the widest range of fits for men, be it ultra slim, slim or regular shirts and trousers.”
Kiran feels checks are in fashion now. “Also, the vintage washed and worn look is totally in. The button-down collars and ultra slim fit are in too,” he says. An advice he has for youngsters is to accessorise their look. “Even if you are wearing a T-shirt and jeans, just team it up with a formal jacket and you can have an exclusive look,” he sums up.
Shruthi Nalpet, III Year BE, KSIT, wore two scarves of similar shades, with one being plain and one printed, with a white and grey top and sleek grey pants.
Punchline: “The top is plain so the two scarves add to the look. The entire outfit is casual yet formal at the same time. I could wear it to office as well as mall. Besides, scarves are totally in due to the winter season.”
Price: Pants (Rs 1899), plain purple scarf (Rs 899), printed scarf (Rs 599), top (Rs 1399)
Md Shoaib Ali Khan, II PUC, St Joseph’s Indian Composite PU College, chose an extremely formal look by donning a suit, formal shirt and a tie.
Punchline: “The suit is of a great fit and is perfect for business occasions. Plus it keeps you warm during winter as well.”
Price: Suit (Rs 12,099), tie (Rs 1400) and shirt (Rs 1999)
Rashmi Devaraj, III Year BE, KSIT, chose a green top and contrasted it with a bright pink scarf. She wore elegant black trousers to complete the look.
Punchline: “The trousers are really comfortable. The scarf is mild and elegant at the same time while the top is simple and nice.”
Price: Trousers (Rs 1899), scarf (Rs 899) and top (Rs 1899)
Lavanya, II Year BCom, St Joseph’s College of Commerce, looked stunning in a black and white formal dress and a black stole.
Punchline: “I generally don’t get dresses of my size. But this one fits well and looks really nice. The black scarf goes really well with the dress.”
Price: Dress (Rs 2299), scarf (Rs 999)
Vinay DJ, II Year MBA, AMC College, was all set for the cold season with a grey muffler tucked inside a casual collared shirt. He wore a jacket on top and teamed everything up with a pair of Italian fit trousers.
Punchline: “It’s a classic and evergreen look that will never fade out. The fabric is awesome and keeps me warm.”
Price: Blazer (Rs 7599), trousers (Rs 2099), muffler (Rs 899) and shirt (Rs 2099)
Syed Moizuddin, II Year MBA, AMC College, went for a semi-formal look with a collared shirt, trousers and belt.
Punchline: “I just love the pattern. It’s so simple yet so nice. You can wear it to work as well as parties. The pant fits really well too.”
Price: Trousers (Rs 2099), shirt (Rs 2099) and belt (Rs 1600)