October Issue 2008

Ritu Kumar

Ritu Kumar, often known as the empress of Indian haute couture, has finally opened her doors to the Pakistani market. The launch of the official Ritu Kumar franchise was held on September 19 at the Ensemble.

Karachi’s jet set began pouring in promptly at the designated time. With a gazebo set-up in the front yard, sheeshas, an open buffet and fairy lights that provided dim lighting outside — the event was bound to be a success. And successful it was, with a record sale of Ritu Kumar’s label in the first hour of the event.

According to Zeba Husain, owner of the Ensemble, which is the only franchise of the Indian designer in the country, Pakistan is the largest market for the Indian label after India. Coincidentally, Ensemble was the first store in the city to stock the designer’s label almost a year ago. But now being a franchise, the store is expected to restock on saris, lehengas, kurtis and accessories every few weeks, which is great news for all Ritu Kumar enthusiasts in the city who flocked to the event.

“We carry all three labels by Ritu — Label, Ri and Ritu Kumar. I think her prices are in line with most of the designer wear that is available in the city,” says Shehrnaz Husain, daughter of Zeba Husain. The label included traditional Indian motifs, heavily worked with variations of zardozi, thread embroidery and such, on silks and chiffons that were eagerly bought by the customers.