Chennai, June 2 -- On Chennai's Nungambakkam High Road stands a two-storey Go Colors store spanning nearly 2,000 sq ft. The apparel outlet has everything-from women's tops and ethnic daily wear to jeans, palazzos, joggers and even menswear. Women's leggings, a hybrid of the Indian churidar and tights, which had put the brand on the fashion map 15 years ago, occupies just three racks.

The display at this store lies at the heart of Gautam Saraogi's riskiest, yet most ambitious gamble. Having built Go Colors into one of India's largest bottomwear brands, the founder and chief executive is now attempting to turn it into a full-fledged apparel retailer, venturing into territory dominated for decades by the Tatas, Birlas and Ambanis.

In an in...