European No. 1 Collin Montgomerie, ECCO shoes brand ambassador, gives it his all

If you are an avid golfer and ready to delve deep into your pockets, you can soon hit a driver off the tee, stepping into the super shoes that power the likes of Collin Montgomerie, Thomas Bjorn and Iben Tinning.

After launching its India operations in Delhi last July, ECCO, the world's second-largest casual lifestyle footwear brand, has planted its first footprint in Calcutta, in the shape of a shop-in-shop inside the ProShop outlet at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club (RCGC).

?Calcutta has a special status when it comes to golf, boasting the world?s second-oldest golf club in the shape of the Royal. Our golf shoes are rated by Rankmark (the world?s leading golf gear rating agency) as the best in the world and we are teeing off from this hallowed campus with these high-performance shoes,? Sumit K. Lal, director, ECCO India Trading (P) Ltd, told Metro.

While the men?s range will be priced between Rs 10,399 and Rs 30,000, the women?s golf shoes will retail for Rs 6,399-10,299. Lal, who was in town for the flag-off of the Indian ladies golf team (which ECCO supports) to the Queen Siriket Cup in Adelaide, expects to contribute to ?this exciting sport by conducting tournaments and supporting promising young players?.

Following the fairways foray, ECCO plans to impact the fashion scene with its formal and casual range at the brand?s second ?Concept? store in Calcutta, after the maiden one in New Delhi. The formal range essentially includes men?s classic office shoes, costing anywhere between Rs 8,200 and Rs 12,000, while the casual range is priced at Rs 7,349 to Rs 12,000.

?We are looking at a very exclusive flagship store in Calcutta by this year-end or early next year, for which we are scouting for partners, and we plan to bring in the entire ECCO arsenal to Calcutta,? stressed Lal. The likely start-up investment for a franchisee is up to Rs 1 crore in an ECCO Concept store.

The Concept stores of the Danish brand worldwide have a standardised ?arena? design provided by Swedish firm M2, which also does the layout, signage, fixtures and furniture, with wood, beige and white being the predominant shades.

The company expects to sell approximately 15,000 pairs within the first year of operation, with a break-even expected between the second and third years. At the Concept store, around 150 new SKUs (stock-keeping units) will be introduced, offering the brand?s globally acclaimed spread.

Founded in 1963 by Karl Toosbuy in the sleepy town of Bredebro, in south-western Denmark, ECCO is owned and managed by the Toosbuy family. The brand is now present in 60 countries and its production network spans six nations, producing more than 12 million pairs of shoes every year, employing over 9,000 people. ECCO India Trading (P) Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Euro 450-million ECCO Sko A/S.

The company?s distribution model is very selective and ECCO shoes will be available in only a few handpicked outlets, in addition to the concept stores, in keeping with the premium positioning of the brand.

?The ECCO philosophy is a perfect fit, where our trademark Receptor technology, developed over two decades of R&D, plays a major role,? said Lal.

All experiments with design are carried out at the brand?s three global flagship stores at Ostergade and Bredebro, in Denmark, and Oxford Street, in London, the latter selling over 1,000 pairs a week, before the shoes are rolled out at other outlets across the world.

?We are auctioning shoes autographed by Monty and Bjorn in Delhi and the proceeds will go towards supporting the game. In Calcutta, we are extremely keen to leverage the vintage of RCGC and lure the legends to its greens, besides holding golf clinics here. The game has never been strategically marketed here and in our own way, we would like to correct that to the extent possible,? Lal promised.