Hermes store at DLF Mall Chanakya, Delhi
Editor’s Note: India continues to be the next great Asia opportunity for luxury brands as classes continue to move upward and consumers continue to show preference to ‘rep brands’ that offer the status they crave. Our good friend Abhay Gupta is truly the expert when it comes to anything India and luxury and offers his take on the country’s outlook for 2018 via CPP-Luxury.com:
May 2014 saw a regional controversial political figure walk into the power corridors of New Delhi with a never before witnessed sweeping victory. A grim & challenging economic condition coupled with several other crisis situations welcomed Mr. Modi. Obviously the Luxury Industry could not have been on top of the Governments agenda" However, some of the key developments that unfolded have directly or indirectly affected the industry positively or negatively:
Digitisation of financial services & Demonetisation: The attempt at weeding out alternate economy from the system came as a big blow to various sectors. Luxury however was gainfully impacted during the initial window of relaxations. Cash transactions peaked for a few hours when accessories, jewellery, watches, real estate and other high value goods ended up being replaced with stashed away cash. Posts this period, there are mixed reports with respect to positive or negative impact. Most brands feel that the initial slow down was replaced by a more balanced cash less trans...