When you think of silk sarees, the temple town of Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu will be top of mind. The weaving community has carried forth the craftsmanship, quality, heritage and legacy over generations.
Several retail brands have risen across locations taking the silk from Kanchipuram (and other locations) to the people. One such celebrated brand was born in 1928 and continues to enjoy patronage from generations of customers.
Nalli Chinnasami Chetty, the founder of Nalli Silks, launched its first store in Chennai, in the popular area of Thyagaraja Nagar with a vision to make Nalli the ultimate saree destination, a hallmark of purity. Today the textile and retail business has 39 stores across India and abroad.
The spread includes Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Hyderabad, the USA, Singapore and Canada, among other locations.
Nalli has to its credit many firsts, from working with Swiss chemical engineers to produce chemical dyes, to designing sarees reflecting current events and films.
When King George V stopped over at Madras, it was decided that a hand-crafted Kanchipuram silk saree would be gifted to him as a souvenir from Tamil Nadu. Chinnasami Chetty was chosen to create it. In 1953, when V.A.K. Raghu of Royal Insurance was invited for the occasion of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, he carried with him one of India’s finest silk sarees made by Nalli as a gift.
When other stores closed down during World War II, Nalli remained open to cater to customers’ needs.
In 1973, the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi visited Nalli in Chennai and showed her love for Kanchipuram silks. Nalli has remained a long-time favourite for dignitaries like former President Dr Rajendra Prasad, and the carnatic music legend M.S. Subbulakshmi.
In 1958, Nalli Chinnasami Chetty’s grandson Kuppusami Chetty entered the family business. While brands extending promotional discounts and offers to lure buyers remains the norm, Nalli Kuppusami, who was captivated by the family business from a young age, decided that the shop would not offer discounts – in the 1950s.
Nalli still maintains an ‘Every Day Value Price’ strategy, wherein the focus is on optimal cost structures to bring high-quality products to consumers at affordable, value-based pricing.
In 1980, Nalli became the first textile retailer to use barcodes and computerized billing systems as a symbol of transparency in business.
In 2003, Nalli Kuppuswami Chetti was conferred the ‘Padma Shri’ in the field of Trade and Industry.
Nalli continues to be an iconic Indian brand that consumers look up to, synonymous with silk sarees and tradition.
