"We want to shape culture"

Pranoy Sarkar

Anita and Simran Lal of Good Earth.

The toilet seat is often a place to ponder over life's big and small dilemmas, but you know that you are sitting on one at a special place when you inadvertently look up and find a slab of glass that's open to sky, allowing the thick foliage and shimmery sun to peek into this private space. We are at a farm in Delhi's Chattarpur area that luxury retail brand Good Earth calls its office space and glass silos let in ample light as young, energetic teams work hard on creating the next successful collection under the watchful eye of founder Anita Lal,, 70, Creative Director, and her daughter Simran Lal,47, who has been the brand's CEO since 2012.

The luxury home decor and lifestyle brand, which was founded in 1996 by Anita Lal has, in the last 23 years, grown to represent the changing idea of India and its historic past that makes it what it is today. In a cluttered market where you need to scream to be heard, Good Earth's way is to be slow, even languorous. While the brand has captured the high end of the market and over the years inspired a number of copycat brands, it is in no hurry to expand at breakneck speed. With revenues of about Rs 150 crore in 2017, the company is set to take things to the next level, both in terms of the influence it wields and the people it reaches out to. The brand today has ten stores across seven cities and ships to 90 countries.
While Good Earth is essentially a luxury home decor brand, over the last few years their business has grown to include apparel under the label Sustain. They also have a crockery range, linen, bedding, a children's range, and wellness oils. More recently they also launched a historic colouring book for adults and have commissioned stories for children that are rooted in India.
In fact, Sustain, their clothes brand launched in 2010 has been a big money spinner, overtaking the home decor segment soon after its launch. Many have tried replicating the success of the dynamic brand but Anita Lal had something that none of them do: first mover advantage. When she set up her then fledgling business there was no one else who had the same vision that was so deeply rooted in India (FabIndia was catering to a different demographic) and so Lal tapped into a space that the brand has come to occupy since, on the high end of the luxury home decor scale. She says, "I'm okay with people copying us; they say imitation is the greatest form of flattery. Our aim was to create a little movement that people will copy and appreciate and the fact that our designs are being copied and sold at cheaper prices means that there is a demand for our aesthetic by different groups."


While AL, as Anita Lal likes to be called, says Good Earth happened to her rather than the other way round, the fact remains that she had an unmatched vision and had the means to convert that into a profitable business venture, given that her husband's company Eicher put in the seed capital for the business. In the 23 years since, Good Earth's growth has been staggering and today, it is a global brand that is one of the biggest ambassadors of Make in India.

Gyasar cushions by the brand have a distinct look and celebrate local craftsmanship.

INDIA PROUD, FOR THE WORLD
The brand has had its share of ups and downs but the mother-daughter duo are unfazed, as they believe the strength of Good Earth lies in its slow, sustained growth and the daily involvement of its founder in the design process. Simran Lal says, "The best thing about Good Earth is that it is authentic. We are deeply connected to what we do, believe in it and want to do this. And thus, it is joyful with all its ups and downs. At the end of the day we believe that what we do should have a purpose so we work with a purpose of rebuilding a sense of pride and respect in India." Anita Lal adds, "Our products should reflect our roots but be equal, and at par, regarding quality, design and thought to what one gets internationally. Indians should buy dinner ware that is Indian but of international quality. I was keen to showcase Indian products in a global style so the brand was born."
The interesting thing about a brand like Good Earth that has a founder who is a design purist is that every collection delves deep into the roots of the country's history and picks people, motifs and ideas that have largely remained untouched, even gone unnoticed. For example, their Golconda collection in 2011 celebrated the spirit of the Deccan and the arts and crafts that were popular during the Golconda reign. It also paid special tribute to the iconic Tipu Sultan through its designs. Similarly, the 2014-2015 Samarqand collection drew on the Central Asian Silk Route, which also ran through India. From opulent ikat silk cushions to use of fine embroidery, velvet, brocade and metal and crystal tableware, the collection was evocative of the goods sold through the Silk Route.

The Good Earth store at Raghuvanshi Mills, Mumbai.

Unlike a lot of other brands that are purely motivated by profits, the Good Earth family has been more interested in changing the design narrative and engaging with a deeper, more meaningful dialogue with its consumers. AL says, "We strive to shape cultures in our day to day business. We got copper jars back in vogue 15 years ago and made a story around it, and now there is a profusion of copper vessels in the market. Back then, we had seeded a little movement through that jar and suddenly they were everywhere. We are all about shaping culture by seeding ideas. There is something acceptable and aspirational when they see us putting a traditional thing; they'll think it's cool. We need to accept the heritage in a normal way."
SHAPING CULTURE THROUGH DESIGN

The designs at Good Earth stand out because they have become so distinct across time that they are recognisable almost anywhere. Anita and Simran Lal are all about bringing forgotten crafts and techniques back and giving them a luxury platform without shortchanging the artisan in the process. For example, they work with craftsmen in Bhuj. Gujarat, Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh and several other craft-heavy zones as well. They also made their way to Kashmir and gave a contemporary face to the papier mache products that are popular here. Simran Lal says, "We made the designs a little bolder, brighter, and more graphic because earlier the craftsmen were losing eyesight doing such intricate work. The bottom line is that if they go blind, they will not be able to pass on their craft. Also, after working with us, they saw an increased demand and this helped them sell more products, increasing their security, respect and livelihood."
For the brand, the maximum emphasis is on quality and design but not to the level that is detrimental to the craftsman or the craft itself. Anita Lal adds, "I'm not saying that one has to achieve perfection. If you want perfection why go to a person? He is not a machine and there will be errors. When I say quality, it is in the detail and finish rather than the craft."
FROM IDEAS TO COLLECTION
So how does the design process at Good Earth unfold? While many of the designers working with the brand were among its first employees, there has been an infusion of new blood in recent years as well. While Simran Lal handles the business side of things, Anita Lal still helms the design process. She says, "every year we think of a theme which I choose; last year was Van Vaibhav that meant forest. This year the theme is Gandhara so the colours are deeper, with Greek and Persian influences, and there are layers of cultures. We pick a theme and then I do intense research before sending out a note to the girls who then start collecting ideas and begin designing." AL is deeply inspired by nature and travel and music also plays a key role in her creative journey. The entire process takes them six-eight months and then that vision is translated into the products that we see displayed in the stores and online.
NEW VISTAS, NICOBAR
Two years ago, the brand decided that it wanted to expand its design repertoire and since Raul Rai, director of Nicobar and Simran Lal's husband wanted to take the business to a new level Nicobar was born. With an aesthetic that's original but clearly from the Good Earth stable, the younger, more versatile Nicobar shares the mother brand's genes but has a different face since its designs are cleaner, more efficient, shorn of motifs, more bohemian, invoking images of languor and the sea. The travel accessories, apparel and homeware brand is obsessed with quality and the stores (the first one was set up in Kala Ghoda, Mumbai and there is a second at The Chanakya, Delhi) reflect the travel instinct of the brand and has tropical palms, large display windows and fluid lines that reflect an uncluttered aesthetic. Simran says, "We wanted lovely, simple designs but knew we couldn't include everything under a single brand. While the fundamentals are the same (to tell Indian stories) we wanted to spin the yarn differently. We use organic cotton for the core clothing and are for the mindful consumer."
THE NEXT CHAPTER
A family run business comes with its own unique set of challenges. AL says, "everyone has a clear defined space and there are lows but we all just get through it, to which Simran Lal adds, "we have had some challenges and times when I have fought with mom. But we can trust each other, and that is the best form of partnership." While store expansion is on the cards, Good Earth has also amped up its digital presence and you can buy online as they ship to 90 countries. AL began her Good Earth journey with a pottery collection and we are likely to see a return of some of that old-style pottery in their Gandhara collection to be unveiled later this year. The brand is also launching a new baby titled Paro over the next few weeks which is a luxury wellness vertical that draws on ancient philosophical thought and Indian heritage through its products. Having carved a space in the hearts and minds of all design lovers and with an international clientele that laps up its collections as soon as they launch, the Good Earth family is ready to embark on its next big adventure, intersecting design, wellness, Indian philosophy, and culture, all with an innate Indianness at its core. source