Different Strokes

I like shopping in Madison Avenue in New York,” says Kavita Singhania, grand-daughter of Ramnath Goenka, wife of Yadupati Singhania and promoter of Express Avenue, an upcoming destination mall in Chennai. “If I compare India with London and New York, there is absolutely nothing here yet.” Generally assumed to be a conservative and cautious spender, the Indian luxury consumer has also proved to be discerning and well-informed.

The Indian luxury buyer can be classified into three types — old rich, wealthy professionals (CEOs, senior management, NRIs), and first-generation entrepreneurs. Sarvajeet Chandra, managing partner of Master Sun Consulting, a strategy execution firm, defines the three: “The wealthy professional is a global citizen. He would be quite amenable to buying a home in Dubai or London. The first-generation entrepreneur is keen to flaunt his wealth, and looks at luxury goods as a way to signal ‘having arrived’ in life. The old rich are trying to keep up.” 
 
The band of consumers is difficult to stereotype, however. “Consumers of luxury brands have no age restrictions,” says Sangeeta Assomull, CEO of Marigold Group, marketers and distributors of international luxury brands in India. “A young client buys a Louis Vuitton or Judith Leiber just as much as consumers in their 50s, or even older.” Only first-time buyers look at ‘entry point’ products of famous brands. And if old money still spends on conservative heads such as jewellery, the young prefer clothing, cars and lifestyle products.

“It’s not like luxury is new to India or Indians,” says Atul Mehrotra, co-founder of Evoluzione, a high-end store in Chennai. “Yes, the presence of international luxury brands in India is new. Today, a person buying an iconic automobile is also a potential customer for all luxury products. But will he embrace all these products in the same way? This can’t be said with any certainty.” Nothing, it appears, can be said with certainty about the Indian luxury consumer. She is price-sensitive, likes to be discreet, sees luxury as a price-tagged reference, is ecologically aware but not to the extent of her western counterpart, and sees the overseas luxury shopping experience as vastly superior to that in India. She does not fit into any stereotype, making the country’s luxury market tough to crack for global luxury brands.

Interpreting The Price Tag
India is a price-sensitive market, even in the luxury segment. The Indian consumer is willing to pay top dollar for the best, but she also keeps close tabs on international prices. “We want to bargain; we want to feel we have got a good deal,” says Vikram Phadke, co-founder of Evoluzione. Jewellery, of course, is the hot favourite (see ‘What Are They Buying?’). Typically, the Indian consumer prefers to spend on collectibles (jewellery, watches, art and the like) than experiences (travel, spas, hotels). “For the latter, he prefers to go abroad as they cost more and come with less quality in India,” says Phadke.

Indian luxury travellers are also not overly adventurous. “Some Indian travellers are yet to go beyond the five-star league where the out-of-the-ordinary experience cou-nts more than the luxury hotel, fine dining, caviar, cigars, single malts and shopping,” says Rajesh Khanna, executive director, sales and marketing, Abercrombie & Kent India, specialists in customised travel. On the other hand, western travellers also seek high-end hotels and experiences, but do not always attach much importance to luxury hotel brands.