Indian Luxury Market, Luxury Goods Industry, Indian Luxury Consumer

Luxury Retailing Scope India, Indian Luxury Market, Luxury Goods Industry, Indian Luxury Consumer, Fibre2fashion

With the democratization of luxury in the 1990s (Kapferer & Bastien,2009) which broke out with the conglomeration of luxury initiated by Bernard Arnault, the construct of several luxury houses has changed to more organized corporate firms and their reach has crossed borders. A luxexplosion (Chadha & Husband, 2006) has hit Asia. Asian consumers account for as much as half of the global luxệ industry. Hong Kong boasts more Gucci and Hermes stores than New York or Paris. Chinas luxury market is growing with such gusto that it will single-handedly become the biggest by 2014. Even Indian luxury market which is still in its nascent stage, has 3-month waiting lists for exclusive pieces, while in Tokyo, the epicenter of the cult, 94% of women in their 20s own a Louis Vuitton bag.

India has a rich tradition of luxury. Addressed as the Golden Bird, India has experienced Maharajas and Nawabs who had refined tastes and were connoisseurs of luxury (Kapoor, 2010). Describing luxury as "balance, harmony and beauty of human race," French ambassador to India Jerome Bonnafont told the luxury summit, "because of lavish Indian weddings, media advertisements, maharajas and Bollywood stars, I feel the art of luxury is alive in India (Pandey Omkar, 2008). Jacques Cartier visited India in 1911 in pursuit of fine pearls. He also persuaded a number of Maharajas to reset their jewels using Cartier designs. The necklace, created for the erstwhile Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala by the House of Cartier in 1928 is one of the most expensive pieces of jewellery ever made (Chuganee Bhakti, 2010). Indians still have the concept of luxury connected to their lives; one would not fall short of instances, be it the luxurious Residence Antilla of Mukesh Ambani, or worlds most expensive tie by Satyapaul.

Luxury brands have their presence in the major cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. Demographics of several other cities suggest huge potential for luxury retail. Okonkwo (2007) argues that India with a growing population of literates who have a high spending power woos most of the international luxury brands.

For customer-centric retailing of luxury goods in India, the understanding of cross cultural impact on global brands becomes essential which can be achieved through segmentation of markets appropriate to luxury goods. It considers issues such as income, affluence, wealth as well as psychographic approaches of individuals (Seringhaus, 2002). Purchasing habits, being a major part of the overall consumer behavior, are deeply affected by the prevailing cultures of the society in which consumers live (Belwal, 2009). Kotler and Armstrong (2008) state that consumer purchases are influenced strongly by cultural, social, personal, and psychological characteristics which must take into account for successful marketing. Subcultures that can be differentiated by nationalities, regions, religions, social beliefs and languages, and share identical values; play an important role in customer behavior, especially in their preferences for purchase. Likewise, other socio-demographic variables such as family income, age and life cycle stage, education, occupation, are also important (Belwal Rakesh & Shweta, 2009). The growing number of brands and the spurge in retail relates to consumer expectations up to a certain extent-which can be known by studying their behavior.

Luxury goods industry is quite different from regular goods in terms of market characteristics and behavior of consumers. Also the level of acceptance and understanding of luxury in different markets is different. India is in nascent stage of its development as a luxury retail market. Only a few cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore enjoy the presence of luxury culture thereby making the accessibility and visibility of these products quite low. There has been quite a lot of debate on the potential growth of luxury as a concept in India. While many experts see India as an upcoming market and the next China for luxury, there are others who think that the potential of the Indian market has been overrated and argue that since India is a developing country there is a little scope for conspicuous consumption. Several researches have been conducted on the luxury markets of Asia with special reference to China and Japan. But very less relevant research has been done with focus on the Indian market. The significance of Indian market in the international retail scenario is distinguished. Hence a comprehensive research on the potential of India as a luxury market is highly relevant

With the democratization of luxury in the 1990s (Kapferer & Bastien,2009) which broke out with the conglomeration of luxury initiated by Bernard Arnault, the construct of several luxury houses has changed to more organized corporate firms and their reach has crossed borders. A luxexplosion (Chadha & Husband, 2006) has hit Asia. Asian consumers account for as much as half of the global luxệ industry. Hong Kong boasts more Gucci and Hermes stores than New York or Paris. Chinas luxury market is growing with such gusto that it will single-handedly become the biggest by 2014. Even Indian luxury market which is still in its nascent stage, has 3-month waiting lists for exclusive pieces, while in Tokyo, the epicenter of the cult, 94% of women in their 20s own a Louis Vuitton bag.

India has a rich tradition of luxury. Addressed as the Golden Bird, India has experienced Maharajas and Nawabs who had refined tastes and were connoisseurs of luxury (Kapoor, 2010). Describing luxury as "balance, harmony and beauty of human race," French ambassador to India Jerome Bonnafont told the luxury summit, "because of lavish Indian weddings, media advertisements, maharajas and Bollywood stars, I feel the art of luxury is alive in India (Pandey Omkar, 2008). Jacques Cartier visited India in 1911 in pursuit of fine pearls. He also persuaded a number of Maharajas to reset their jewels using Cartier designs. The necklace, created for the erstwhile Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala by the House of Cartier in 1928 is one of the most expensive pieces of jewellery ever made (Chuganee Bhakti, 2010). Indians still have the concept of luxury connected to their lives; one would not fall short of instances, be it the luxurious Residence Antilla of Mukesh Ambani, or worlds most expensive tie by Satyapaul.

Luxury brands have their presence in the major cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. Demographics of several other cities suggest huge potential for luxury retail. Okonkwo (2007) argues that India with a growing population of literates who have a high spending power woos most of the international luxury brands.

For customer-centric retailing of luxury goods in India, the understanding of cross cultural impact on global brands becomes essential which can be achieved through segmentation of markets appropriate to luxury goods. It considers issues such as income, affluence, wealth as well as psychographic approaches of individuals (Seringhaus, 2002). Purchasing habits, being a major part of the overall consumer behavior, are deeply affected by the prevailing cultures of the society in which consumers live (Belwal, 2009). Kotler and Armstrong (2008) state that consumer purchases are influenced strongly by cultural, social, personal, and psychological characteristics which must take into account for successful marketing. Subcultures that can be differentiated by nationalities, regions, religions, social beliefs and languages, and share identical values; play an important role in customer behavior, especially in their preferences for purchase. Likewise, other socio-demographic variables such as family income, age and life cycle stage, education, occupation, are also important (Belwal Rakesh & Shweta, 2009). The growing number of brands and the spurge in retail relates to consumer expectations up to a certain extent-which can be known by studying their behavior.

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Luxury goods industry is quite different from regular goods in terms of market characteristics and behavior of consumers. Also the level of acceptance and understanding of luxury in different markets is different. India is in nascent stage of its development as a luxury retail market. Only a few cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore enjoy the presence of luxury culture thereby making the accessibility and visibility of these products quite low. There has been quite a lot of debate on the potential growth of luxury as a concept in India. While many experts see India as an upcoming market and the next China for luxury, there are others who think that the potential of the Indian market has been overrated and argue that since India is a developing country there is a little scope for conspicuous consumption. Several researches have been conducted on the luxury markets of Asia with special reference to China and Japan. But very less relevant research has been done with focus on the Indian market. The significance of Indian market in the international retail scenario is distinguished. Hence a comprehensive research on the potential of India as a luxury market is highly relevant.