The irony is impossible to miss. Outside, the Chennai sun blazes with its usual fury. Inside Joonus Sait & Sons, neat stacks of woollen sweaters, cardigans, and thermal wear line the shelves. For 120 years, the store has been an unlikely fixture in Madras โ a place where generations of families have come, not for the weather outside their doors, but for the journeys beyond them.
โThe store was started by my grandfatherโs grandfather Hajee Abbas Yunus Sait, who was called Joonus Sait because the Anglo-Indian name for Yunus is Joonus. He was doing business in Bellari, Karnataka in the 1900s, but when cholera broke out, he migrated to Madras and began a rayon silk business,โ says Nauman Sait, the fifth generation co-owner of Joonus Sait & Sons. He runs the store along with his brother Safwaan Sait.ย
The second generation owner and Yunus Saitโs son, Usman Sait, soon spotted a niche that would define the familyโs legacy. โHe slowly introduced balls of woollen yarn because he saw that the British started to knit their sweaters when they were preparing to sail back. That caught his eye, and from there, he started winter wear,โ recalls Nauman. In a city where temperatures rarely dipped low enough for a sweater, the idea seemed audacious. But it worked, because city dwellers travelled to Ooty, Kodaikanal, Shimla, and later, abroad as time went by.ย
Joonus Sait & Sons carried huge stocks of woollen material,
pullovers, rugs and shawls, offering a wide choice to its customers.(Madras landscpae column published on August 25, 1989)
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THE HINDU ARCHIVES
By the mid-20th century, the store had become more than a wool shop. Naumanโs grandfather, Ibrahim Sait, expanded into tailoring and brought the textile brand Raymond to Chennai. โHe introduced shirts and trousers at a time when everyone was still in veshtis and lungis,โ says Nauman with pride.ย
Through the 1960s and 1970s, the store became part of the cityโs institutional fabric. โMy grandfather introduced capes for High Court judges, and we also supplied blazers to universities,โ says Nauman. Rainwear followed suit. โHe brought rainwear brand Duckback from West Bengal to Madras. Those old raincoats used to weigh a kilogram or two, and people had to sprinkle talcum powder inside while storing it away for the dry season. But everyone bought them because it was high quality,โ he laughs.ย
Over the years, Joonus Sait & Sons built its reputation on loyalty rather than flash. โWe are not brand-conscious people. People come back because of trust. Some customers even say they treat shopping with us before a trip as a lucky charm,โ Nauman notes. That loyalty often stretches across generations.
Despite the rise of e-commerce and international brands, the Saits believe in keeping the in-store experience central. โWe want the customer to come in, spend quality time, and we make sure to educate them. More than the sale, what matters is if I educate one person, he will tell ten others. Thatโs my business,โ says Nauman.ย
Due to recent rain, raincoats are being sold briskly at Joonus Sait & Sons, Rattan Bazaar, Chennai
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RAVINDRAN R
Now in its fifth generation, the family is thinking ahead. Naumanโs daughters represent the sixth. โIf my daughter can one day walk into the store and pick up something for herself before travelling to a cold place, then my job is done. It means that we have kept up with the trends,โ he says, adding that some day he hopes his daughters will take the family business ahead.
Joonus Sait & Sons has remained a constant, a reminder that the cityโs spirit lies as much in loyalty and tradition as in change.ย
Joonus Sait & Sons has three branches in Chennai at Adyar, Parrys and Purasawalkam.
Published – September 03, 2025 05:26 pm IST