INSTEP Magzine

Formalising a casual brand
Stemming off from a former knitwear unit, Crossroads has successfully merged a very fashionable ethos into its brand identity.
By Sonya Rehman

Local brands in Pakistan are a sorry little joke. Their journeys run in one very basic cycle: start out big, get nudged into a corner (almost immediately) by intimidating foreign brands, face a downward spiral – that tends to offshoot – from market saturation and wa-hey before they know it, it's over.

However, one local Pakistani brand - Crossroads – has managed to put up a bit of a fight. Amidst the ever-so-current foreign brand outlet explosion in every city within the country, Crossroads has landed in the midst of this entire international-brand-availability-heaven and continues its market invasion, unthreatened.

So how and when did Crossroads begin? How did it get to where it is today? "Actually it all began about four years ago," Imran Ghani, the brand's Managing Director explains. "Due to Crossroads' (now) parent company, Forest Sweaters Private Limited, which dealt primarily in manufacturing and export, I traveled extensively for export purposes. It was through my travels that I began noticing great quality clothes that were set at exorbitant prices. And it made me think, why couldn't clothes like this be made for the younger generation in Pakistan at reasonable prices?"

What followed however was a serious blow in the form of a cancellation of Forest sweaters' export business. Why? September 11. Like many export houses in Pakistan (who supplied to big guns such as Nike, Tommy Hilfiger, Adidas and others) trade relations were brutally severed as the Twin Towers were reduced to bags of rubble and dust. The West simply did not want to associate itself with a country that bred terrorists – even if it meant giving up on A-grade polo T-shirts being manufactured by incredibly inexpensive labour!

"Due to September 11 we were out of business for nearly six months. And that is when, after much consideration, we did a Crossroads 'soft-launch' by opening up a sole outlet in Defence, Lahore," states Ghani. "We deliberately kept it hidden without any promotion or advertisements because we wanted to get a feel of the local market by testing it."

The Crossroads team


Imran Ghani Managing Director, Crossroads The brainchild of Crossroads, Imran was inspired by A-grade yet trendy apparel on his many export business trips overseas. Noticing their steep prices, Imran figured the dearth of value for money outfits that were not only affordable and local, but kept up with international, contemporary fashion styles overseas as well. Starting off with a humble outlet purely for sweaters in Defence, Lahore, Crossroads has manifested itself into twenty (and counting) retail outlets, nationally.	Misha Piracha Marketing Director, Crossroads Constantly reforming Crossroads' campaigns, Misha makes it a point to work with different photographers to ensure a spanking new 'feel' to the brand's promotional campaigns - striking perfect symmetry with each season's collection. As a Marketing Director, Misha's ideas are fun, snappy and on the ball - rarely falling short of ideas vis-à-vis the placement and introduction of a Crossroads' newly-introduced line.	Ammar-Bin-Ayub Design Director, Crossroads A former graduate from the distinguished PSFD, Ammar-bin-Ayub makes it a point to study and adopt international trends into each Crossroads collection. Operating as the brand's single designer for three long years, Ammar implements foreign styles and cuts into desi funk - giving it a whole new name.The great thing about labels into pret is that they give fresh talent a chance to shine. Ammar's taken it and how!

Initially starting out with sweaters, Crossroads launched its very first summer line in 2003 after incessant requests from its customers. The feedback was overwhelming and it was only then that Crossroads the brand, went full-speed ahead into an entire apparel range, the establishment of six outlets and the building of a highly competitive Crossroads team.

There was absolutely no stopping the local brand as it swiftly triumphed over competition and whittled itself a niche for high quality clothing lines at very affordable prices. Today, with twenty outlets in the country and further plans for expansion (in Lahore and Karachi) to "consolidate the market" Crossroads never fails to entice its customers with savvy promotional campaigns in the form of jazzed up billboards and snappy, funked-up visuals. With fashion awareness on the rise, Misha Piracha, the brand's Marketing Director knows how imperative it is to bring fashion into the brand.

"In the winter of 2003 we did our first shoot with Khawar Riaz, and at that point we were learning," Piracha elucidates. "Our first billboard read, 'Have you been there yet?' And that's how our marketing campaign took off, right from there. That's when we realized we were onto something big. Our entire focus was to give Crossroads a name, a face and a personality, which is why we approached J & S for the launch of our summer line. The idea that they came up with was unique…something that local fashion hadn't ever seen before…to have a casual fashion show in the middle of a party!" Taking to the idea and considering it to be a "worthy risk", the event (which was named 'Juice' and later, the collection's name too) was planned and chalked out. Its culmination? Great publicity, a heavy dosage of media hype and an additional brand entrenchment for Crossroads.

"The brand is not about being formal and rigid; the clothes at Crossroads breed fun, and spunk," Piracha says matter-of-factly. Once the 'Juice' event and line became an instant hit with the public, it was apparent that having a name for each collection worked well for the brand's seasonal collections. "A name for each and every collection is made six months beforehand because everything bases itself on that one word," states Piracha. From 'Paparazzi', 'Chocolatey', 'Graffiti', 'Crush', 'Phunkaville' and more recently 'Glam', the names associated with each line make it more individual and keep the young target market's attention, continuously captured.

"We also work with different photographers to keep our campaigns fresh," states Piracha. "Khawar Riaz did our first campaign along with 'Juice' and 'Paparazzi', Maram & Aabroo did 'Phunkaville' and Deeves wound up doing 'Chocolatey', 'Graffiti', 'Crush' and now 'Glam' for the current season."

Crossroads' design process too, is mulled over meticulously. The brand's sole designer, Ammar-bin-Ayub, a PSFD graduate, has been working with Crossroads for the past three years. "We follow and research international trends religiously," he says, adding that the team usually starts the design process for a particular season atleast one year in advance. "We go through intensive brainstorming sessions that are based on the feedback acquired from our customers, as well as our marketing and sales departments. In these brainstorming sessions we focus on what changes we can bring into our line. Once we know what exactly we want to introduce for a particular season, the designing and marketing department interact very closely for a punchy campaign." By mainly using natural fibre for its lines (and 100% wool for the winter lines), Crossroads has an edge as it centers on comfort, great cuts and lines that are up to date with the international fashion market.

"We're not threatened by foreign competition," Imran Ghani says. "NEXT, for instance is for entirely different people. Crossroads on the other hand is trendier and besides it sets itself apart with reasonable prices."

Comprising of four savoir-faire individuals, mainly Imran Ghani, Misha Piracha, Musa Khan (the Sales Manager responsible for each franchise of Crossroads) and Ammar-bin-Ayub, the team at Crossroads is a dynamic one. In a country where international brand heavyweights threaten to knocking over local brands, Crossroads (just as Bareeze), has held its ground.

It all boils down to determination, an eye for design and thoroughly creative campaigns.
Local brand houses in Pakistan should keep up the fight, focus on international trends and constantly reinvent themselves. The game is in numbers and it's not long before the entire industry will realize that it's the power of prêt that changes the way fashion in a country looks.