The classic white shirt, crisp in its incorruptibility, seems to be making a determined comeback. According to top fashion and apparel brands like Versace, Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo, Dun­hill and homegrown Wills Lifestyle and Raymond, more and more well-heeled and dressed Indian men are opting for classic white. No rainbow colours anymore for them.

“Most gentlemen prefer white these days,” says brand head of Blues Clothing Company, Prem Dewan, neatly dividing the men into two classes. The company sells Versace products in India and is the exclusive franchisee for a host of other luxury brands.

“White has a very short shelf life, it sells throughout the year,” Dewan says. “Forty per cent of all shirts sold here are white, followed in popularity by black and purple.”

Versace has a collection of conservative shirts where the whites are mainly pitched to CEOs. They cost between Rs 18,000 and Rs 40,000.

At Italian fashion house Armani’s store at DLF Emporio in the capital, two of every 10 shirts sold are white.

According to the store manager, the shirts are tailor-made of Egyptian cotton and, although the fashion house fancies darker shades, a classic white button-down Armani shirt, with mother of pearl buttons, can do wonders for that hairy-chested male ego.

Says Saloni Nangia, senior vice-president at retail consulting division of Technopak: “Shirt sales contribute around 40 per cent to the total revenue of the clothing business. It is the versatility of white that makes it an absolute staple in every wardrobe. Be it a CEO or the guy next door, a classic white shirt will go with everybody.”

The best thing about white, says designer Raghavendra Rathore, is “its ability to go with any colour. It is neutral, classic and can be worn on any occasion.”

Most store managers say customers of white shirts come in all ages — from 18 to 50 year-old. They are either businessmen or celebrities who like to wear white shirts at formal dinners, celebrations or while clubbing. Says Himanshu Puri, 33, a consultant with Bank of America, “I can wear white to work, to meetings, and I also to my birthday party.”

Rathore, who believes that the fabric is the engine of any white shirt, says, “Advancement in technology has made it possible for shirt makers to come up with diverse designs even in white. Stripes, shades, mix and match in the material, cuts and even the way the buttons are stitched determine the price of a shirt.”

How about buttons made of precious metals? Dewan of Blues Clothing Company argues: “Design, distinctiveness, quality of material matter but what matters the most is the brand name.”

At Salvatore Ferragamo, the Italian brand, exclusivity in shirts comes from restricting one style to one size. White shirts form an important part of the brand’s four collections pre-spring/summer, spring/summer, pre-fall and autumn/winter. “White shirts, both formal and casual, especially those with embossed logo, sell throughout the season,” said an attendant at the Ferragamo store in DLF Emporio. A Ferragamo white can cost anywhere between Rs 18,000 and Rs 21,000.

Alfred Dunhill, the UK-based brand specialising in men’s luxury leather goods, has a customer base in the age bracket of 35-40 whose favourite is the brand’s white formal shirts. “We sell four or five formal white shirts a day and 30 other white shirts a month. Sales peak in winter, the wedding season. Customers generally couple white shirts with suits to parties. Two-ply cotton shirts in white, both regular fit or engineered fit, sell throughout the year,” said the Dunhill store manager at Emporio Mall. The price of a classic Dunhill white shirt starts from Rs 9,000 and goes up to Rs 18,000.

The newly opened American brand Tom Ford store at Emporio has a huge collection of white shirts in the range of Rs 21,000 to Rs 29,000. Not just luxury, but classic white shirts are a hit in the premium brand space as well. Around 10 per cent of all shirts sold at Raymond stores are white cotton in the Rs 1,500-3,000 price range. “Of 10 shirts we sell at this outlet, two or three are white, mainly bought as office wear. White shirts can be worn over jeans as well. Hence they have an appeal among youngsters also,” said Ashok, store manager at a Raymond outlet in South Delhi. At Wills Lifestyle the price of white shirts ranges from Rs 1,500 to Rs 4,000. Says Atul Chand, CEO of the ITC Lifestyle retail business: “Up to 12 per cent of our sale in men’s portfolio comes from white shirts.”

Did anyone say anything about white-collar jobs?