Estilocus is a Bangalore-based menswear brand, founded in 2019, that is redefining accessible premium fashion in India. Built on the philosophy “Wear Who You Are,” it focusses on timeless, functional design moving beyond fast fashion to offer high-quality, well-crafted apparel that balances style, durability, and comfort.
Estilocus combines strong craftsmanship with a deep understanding of Indian consumers. With a growing retail presence across South India and innovations like with its AI-powered “Try-It-On” feature, the brand is scaling steadily.
Medianews4u.com caught up with Ladeesh PC, Director and Co-Founder Estilocus.
With nearly two decades of experience across marketing, product development, and brand building, including roles at Reliance, Aditya Birla Group, Airtel, and Havells, Ladeesh offers sharp insights into India’s evolving fashion landscape and consumer behaviour.
Q. What was the gap in the affordable-quality men’s clothing market that led to the founding of Estilocus?
The Indian menswear market largely sits at two ends. Premium brands offer strong design and quality but are often out of reach for everyday wear, while mass-market options are accessible but tend to compromise on fit, consistency, and durability. This leaves a clear gap for customers looking for something more balanced.
Estilocus was built in that space, focusing on minimal, well-designed menswear that offers quality and consistency while remaining accessible.
Q. What progress has been made so far? What goals have been set for 2026 and what is the gameplan to get there?
Estilocus has evolved from a fashion label into a growing omnichannel menswear business, with primary operational base and retail location in Bengaluru. Despite the brand’s growth in the digital space, through our online store, we are rapidly expanding our retail footprint across the South, emerging as a fast-growing player in India’s fashion and lifestyle D2C ecosystem with plans to open retail stores in Kerala, Telangana and TamilNadu.
For 2026, we are planning for Pan-India expansion of our retail stores in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Goa. Our game plan is centred around-
- Strengthening our omnichannel ecosystem for seamless experience across retail, D2C channels and marketplaces
- Expanding our reach to established and new emerging markets aligned with the brand’s core aesthetic, “Wear Who You Are”
- Targetting and approaching a consumer base that believes in our philosophy in order to build stronger consumer communities
- Improve accessibility to mid-premium apparels across the country
Our expansion is not about adding stores in isolation, but building connected regional clusters where we already see strong customer alignment.
Q. Where is India’s menswear market really growing in 2026?
In 2026, growth in menswear is no longer limited to metro cities. There is clear momentum across Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets, where customers are becoming more aware, more discerning, and more consistent in their preferences.
We’re seeing a shift in how men approach clothing. Instead of buying for specific occasions, there is a growing preference for pieces that work across different settings and everyday use. Fit, comfort, and durability are becoming as important as how something looks.
There is also a move away from trend-driven choices towards clothing that feels more personal and understated. This is especially visible among younger consumers, but it is not limited to them. The broader shift is towards clothing that reflects identity in a quieter, more natural way.
Q. Could you shed light on the philosophy ‘Wear Who You Are’ and how will this be reflected in the marketing strategy?
“Wear Who You Are” reflects a simple idea. Clothing should feel personal and natural to the person wearing it. Instead of following trends, we focus on building pieces that fit well, feel right, and integrate easily into everyday life. Our marketing follows the same thinking. It is less about projecting an ideal and more about showing real, relatable expressions of style across different people and contexts.
Q. What marketing campaigns and innovations can we expect in 2026?
In 2026, our focus is not on increasing the number of campaigns, but on making each one more meaningful. We will continue to build collection-led campaigns where there is a clear idea to express. These campaigns are not created as standalone bursts, but as extensions of the thinking behind each collection.
Alongside this, always-on communication will remain a strong foundation. It allows us to stay consistently present, build familiarity, and deepen our connection with customers over time.
On the innovation side, we are continuing to invest in improving how customers experience the brand, especially online. Features like our AI-powered try-on are part of this effort to make the shopping process more intuitive and personal. The approach is simple. Campaigns create moments of expression, while continuous engagement builds long-term trust and recall.
Q. Will the media mix be led by digital or will traditional media also have a role to play?
Our digital channel will remain a top primary media channel as this is where the target audience is present and it is a space where we can be highly personal and effective at scale.
Traditional channels will be effective for mass visibility and localised trust building. For us the future isn’t traditional versus digital, but a cohesive storytelling experience with each channel used for its specific role relative to the target audience and campaign goal.
Q. How has AI been integrated into Estilocus including in the marketing function?
Estilocus offers an ‘AI try on’ feature to make the shopping process easier and more engaging. The hybrid strategy of combining offline outlets with online accessibility allows consumers to engage with the brand and have versatile collections.
We’re also deploying AI for our customer analytics, forecasting of demand, optimisation of inventory, personalisation, advertising, and performance marketing. It will also enable us to know more about customer trends and upcoming trends in fashion, and will particularly aid in marketing for finer segmentation and more efficient targeting and faster creativity experimentation while still focusing on human creativity.
Q. Could you shed light on how Estilocus will leverage the creator economy by working with fashion, lifestyle influencers to get the message across?
We take a selective approach to working with creators. We don’t work at scale, and we don’t see it as a volume-driven channel. Instead, we collaborate with a small set of individuals whose personal style and way of expressing themselves naturally align with the brand. The focus is on relevance and authenticity rather than reach.
When there is a genuine fit, the content feels more natural and credible. That matters far more to us than visibility through one-off associations.
Q. To succeed in digital marketing is an understanding of the subtle nuances of each platform like Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp key?
Brands need to understand the changing trends and audience behavior of each platform. Something that works well on one platform, might be ineffective for other platforms.
Every platform has its own psychology in the mind of a consumer,its specific format for content and dynamics of communication. When a brand doesn’t communicate its story contextually, it can hardly establish any kind of engagement, which is where communicating in context rather than one-off marketing is crucial to thrive in digital marketing.
Q. There is a debate going on about moment marketing versus long form storytelling. What are your views on this?
Moment marketing helps a brand stay relevant in the present, but it is not enough to build long-term recall. Longer-form storytelling creates depth and consistency. We see them as complementary. Short-term moments create visibility, but consistent storytelling builds familiarity and trust over time.
Q. The company has a solid presence in offline and online channels across the country. What percentage of sales are expected to come from each channel in 2026?
We see both online and offline channels as equally important, but serving different roles in the customer journey. Offline retail continues to be a key driver because it allows customers to experience the product directly, especially in a category where fit and feel matter. Over time, it has also given us a deeper understanding of what customers actually look for in terms of fit, comfort, and everyday usability.
We are now carrying those learnings into both channels. Insights from real customer interactions in our stores help us refine our products, communication, and overall experience across platforms.
At the same time, online plays an important role in accessibility, discovery, and repeat purchases.
Rather than focusing on a fixed split, our approach is to strengthen both channels together and build a more integrated experience, where each reinforces the other.
Q. There is a rise in subtle, identity-driven fashion among Gen Z. How is this TG reshaping the category?
In the last few years, we have seen Gen Z shift from traditional, logo-driven designs, to pieces that are intentional, feel personal, and reflect their identity. The younger generation is growing beyond trends and dressing up to express themselves in a unique way. More recently, we have seen a rising demand for versatile fits, clean silhouettes, thoughtful detailing, etc., over logo-driven branding.
When consumers value functionality and authenticity over traditional fashion trends, the clothing choices are expressive – yet timeless, enabling them to present their own clothing identity rather than following pre-defined fashion norms, and hence redefining the Indian apparel industry.
The future of fashion, according to us, is not about labels or excess-driven fashion, but about wearing simplicity and representing a personal identity.
Q. How much R&D goes into offering high-quality, well-crafted apparel that balances style, durability, and comfort?
Research and Development is crucial for us as quality is a fundamental aspect of Estilocus. There is a lot of research that is put into everything from fabric selection, fit development, wash testing, engineering comfort, wear testing, and craftsmanship details such as stitching quality.
All feedback from online reviews, repeat purchases, social media interaction, retail store discussions and post-purchase behavior are monitored in great detail in order to know what is appreciated and what requires enhancement and develop collections more responsive to consumers’ lifestyles in the real world.
At Estilocus, we focus on elevated essentials, purposeful design and collections that focus on comfort, quality and a sense of belonging.
