Perception of value for luxury brands in India

Abstract

Purpose – This report is a study of the perceptions of luxury branding for consumers in India. A complete picture of the industry has also been looked at. A comparison with the Chinese luxury market showed potential areas of opportunity that are going to evolve in the Indian market. As of now there are few luxury brands from India and among them mostly in the service sector. If global predictions hold true and India continues to grow, there is going to develop an indigenous luxury market where local luxury brands can tap into. Design/methodology/approach – Using exploratory survey data collected from luxury retailers in Bangalore, an integrated framework which hypothesized the workings in the Luxury market was evolved. Findings–The report finds that implications of luxury branding in the traditional marketer’s job is to focus on the social, emotional and novelty values of the offering. Functional and Marketing values act as hygiene factors in this industry. The hypothesized luxury framework in the report indicates how the customer and the marketer connect to each other for a specific value based on various 2nd order dimensions. For effective marketing of a luxury good, the marketer will identify which of the five horizontal paradigms, viz. values, he wants to differentiate and then focus attention on these secondary dimensions. Also to be successful in India, luxury brands will have to actively codevelop their channels with their retailers as well carefully chose their specific rarity driver enabling them to balance sales volume with price. Research limitations/implications – The study has several limitations including sample, sample size, and exploratory research design. Also the framework hypothesized does not take into account the external environment and detailed marketing mix elements. Nevertheless, the report depicts a contemporary picture of the Indian Luxury market and its evolution. Practical implications – The findings of this study provide both marketers and retailers strategies for improving market orientation and insights into developing and maintaining luxury brands in India. Originality/value– The report provides a holistic framework for luxury marketing with focus on both the marketer and the customer. Taking into consideration the discussions in the study a strategy for luxury brand can be developed.