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Trigger re-positioned as 'Youth Icon'
 New blood enters denim territory. The new face of
Trigger jeans will emerge this year to 'Seize and Control' minds and moods. Trigger will enter the market with new collections, new attitudes, new perspectives and an all-new frame of mind, said N Rajha Gopallan, chief, Fashion Management.
Trigger, the largest selling denim brand in the mid-segment, is realigning itself to be in line with the latest and international trends. Positioned earlier as a basic brand with a price-conscious tag, it will now be repositioned as a 'Youth Icon Brand'. It will also sport a new logo: Trigger 1932 Jeans Inc.
Towards giving Trigger this high-end
fashion offering tag, an in-house trend management group has been set up, which will be responsible for putting together the 14 collections comprising over 376 SKUs. With this, Trigger
becomes the 1st brand to take the route of collections in mass merchandising.
Trigger will also enter the kids and women western wear segments in August/September 2004. Also on the cards is the entry into smart casual wear for both men and women. The year ending June 2005 (financial year July-June), Trigger projects a Rs 70 crore sale. (Rs 50 crore from the existing Trigger label and Rs 20 crore from the new segments).
The summer bouquet collection of Trigger was unveiled in Chennai May 18. The collections were launched with a fashion show to give the retailers a preview and also know the response before the products hit the market. The new look reflects the brand's new attitude and comprises five new collections:
Basix
Classic 5-pocket jeans. What's life when your fundamentals aren't right? It's time to make amends with basix.5-pocket jeans that take you back to those days of bunking classes and garage bands. Rediscover the feeling of classic 5-pocket jeans in a variety of cuts that are crafted from pre-shrunk denim and riveted for durability. Pull on a pair and try passing those exams this time!
Corroded
A distinctive collection of earth-stained denim Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust. Get back to mother earth with corroded jeans in sludge tones and washes that are soiled to perfection. Just the way you've loved them. Pull on a pair and let the dirty games begin.
Wounded
A special attitude of blood-stained denim. You've always had to kill to taste blood. But, that's history. Introducing Wounded: Denim that's born from the legend of Mongolian warriors. An era where blood on your clothing ensured you were a step ahead of the hostilities. Grab a pair and take control. Only this time, the blood won't be on your hands.
Abyss
An exclusive range of deep sea denim. Three-fourths of the earth is covered with water. The rest is what we make of it. Bringing to life, Abyss. Jeans is made from light, playing
hide'n seek with the colours of the ocean. Treated with bizarre yet meticulous effects, like hand brushing and scrubbing that will leave the mermaids in awe. Get' em on, the water's deeper than you think.
Burnished
An anthology of soft smooth denim. Get onto the smoother side of survival with Burnished. Denim that's silky soft in feel and come with a salt'n
pepper effect to keep you playing games through the day and into the night. Grab a pair that matches your mood and hold on to it, coz you never know when someone might try to get 'em off.
 Speaking on the occasion, Rajha Gopallan said, "Each ensemble is made with one goal. To give young blood something that they've always wanted but never have been able to lay their hands on." He added, "This is just the beginning; Five more collections are lined up for launch this year. Because, from now on, Trigger will 'Seize and Control' like never before."
This new range is priced between Rs 595 and Rs 995 and will be available at the exclusive stores of Trigger and all leading MBOs in Chennai.
Trigger jeans entered the jeans wear market during the September of 1995 when it was launched in Bangalore. The brand in 1996 ventured into Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
Kerala was added to the radar screen in later 1996. During its initial stages, it was positioned as a no-nonsense jean label which offered a great value for money.
'No Cowboy Talk, No Macho Talk. Just Great Jeans', was the selling point. Trigger debuted in the market with an introductory price of Rs 475 and it had a unique money back guarantee offer, wherein a customer could return the product if he found the ownership of the product not to his liking. The products that were on offer were basic blues and blacks. The product-value equation was so good that only a handful of jeans ever made it back to the factory.
In 1997, Trigger decided to go national in a big way. Competition was tough, Newport had established itself as the No 1 player with pan-Indian presence and low-pricing. The aspirational labels (Levi' s,
Lee, Pepe), had also set up shop. Trigger had to make an impact to be counted and had to do it fast, Result - 'Trigger My Passion' was born.
Trigger established itself as a national brand in no time. During 1997-1999 Trigger sold more than 2 million pairs of jeans, and was the largest selling jeans wear brand in India. Trigger offered a variety of cuts and washes/colours, and was a big hit with the college-going crowd. The 'Trigger My Passion' campaign is regarded as by far one of the best campaigns in the jeans segment.
Having captured a sizeable market in jeans, Trigger decided to enter the khakis/casual
market in late 1999. It also opened its first exclusive outlet in Hyderabad that year. The 1999-2002 period was a bad patch for denim. Jeans sales dipped worldwide and Trigger sales were hit too. Cotton casuals and khakis were the in-thing and Trigger, through its line extension Trigger Trevi, catered to that segment and was a market leader in the south.
The year 2002-2003 was a year of denim re-invention. Globally, jeans were making a romping comeback, this time on a
fashion platform, and jeans that were on offer were subject to various finishes, bruised, torn, faded, tinted, you name it they had it. The cash registers in India started ringing too. Trigger had a impressive growth during late 2002 and 2003. The products were slowly undergoing changes. From a few washes and colours, Trigger had built a huge range of colours, washes and fits.
The exclusive store network has also grown (10 stores) with stores in
Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Nagpur. This number is set to double very soon. Trigger plans to have 50 stores in place by 2006. Trigger will also start retailing in the Middle-East and South-East Asian countries this year.
In 2004, new blood enters denim territory. This year, K G Denim presents the new face of Trigger jeans. A brand that will 'Seize and Control' minds.
Trigger recently had shifted its creative work from JWT, Chennai, to Mudra, Bangalore.
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