Biba unveils new identity

The ethnic wear brand has unveiled a new logo with an aim to target aspirational yet traditional Indian women.

Biba, an ethnic apparel brand, with a legacy of over two decades, has unveiled its new identity. Unlike the old logo of the brand, the new identity has a brand emblem which has been inspired from a 'peacock feather', representing elegance and pride. The font has also been changed while the red colour has been retained from the old logo.

Anjan Roy, director, Elephant Delhi, the branding firm that has worked closely with the key stakeholders at Biba to develop the new identity, says, "Brand Biba needed a refresh as it was in use for several years. The advent of newer, more youthful fashion codes are prevalent today in retail which needed to be infused in the identity. We have retained the 'red' colour as it sits very well with the fashion codes and has a very rich association with Indian beauty and glamour. The typography has been made more classic, so that it endures the test of time and still stands out as a young, vibrant and fashionable identity."

On introducing the peacock feather inspired brand emblem, Roy explains that it is useful for a fashion label to have an emblem or shorthand signature that acts as a recall device.

"A peacock feather captures glamour, is extremely well-crafted and intricate, and a very Indian element in fashion. This has been simplified and used along with the typography to complete the identity," he states.

The refreshed identity will be expressed across all brand touch points across retail, online stores, merchandise, communication and the corporate and media apertures from this season onwards.

Biba, a synonym for pretty woman in Punjabi, is a home-grown ethnic wear brand, started by Meena Bindra from her house in Mumbai, with a sum of eight thousand rupees in 1988. It offers products in all three categories of SKD (Salwar Kameez Dupatta), M&M (Mix & Match) and Unstitched Fabric. Apart from women's range, it also has Biba Girls, a dedicated range for kids between 2 to 12 years.

Biba enjoys a pan-India presence with 172 EBOs and over 200 MBOs across 65 cities. Among MBOs, the brand is distributed through over 200 stores of Shoppers Stop, Lifestyle, Pantaloons and Central.

Siddharth Bindra, MD, Biba, says that, over the years, the company and its consumers have evolved, therefore, a new identity was required to represent Biba of today.

"The new logo reflects qualities of women today - confidence, elegance, royalty, detailed and pride. Something we believe that our consumers have," he notes, adding that the brand caters to three generations in a family, the daughter, mother and the grandmother.

"Our sweet spot is 20-40 years, but we cater to a wider consumer base with a kids' wear range catering to 2-12 year olds," he explains.

Biba's biggest challenge is to keep innovating designs and stand out in an unorganised, cluttered category of ethnic wear. The brand, says Bindra, uses digital space in terms of targetted marketing and social media to reach out to consumers. Print and OOH are also crucial in its media mix.

In 2012, Biba joined hands with designer Manish Arora by picking up 51% stake in 'Indian by Manish Arora' brand, and recently acquired a substantial minority stake in designer label Anju Modi, to cater to the luxury segment. Biba also collaborated with designer Rohit Bal and launched a collection named 'Biba by Rohit Bal,' that is retailed at select Biba stores.

The company is closing this financial year with Rs 500 crores and a target of Rs 700 crores for the next fiscal year.