India is 3rd most brand conscious country globally

27 Mar '08

4 min read

An improving economy and the rapid opening up of the Indian market has given rise to a group of affluent consumers who are more than eager to adopt the latest fashion trends. According to the latest Nielsen Global Luxury Brands Study, 35 percent Indians who participated in the survey agreed to buying designer brands.

This is the third highest percentage globally with Greece leading the countries with 46 percent, followed by Hong Kong with 38 percent. Despite the prevalence of imitation designer-branded goods in some markets, surprisingly more than three-fourth of Indians surveyed do not think that imitation products match up to the real deal.

The top brands that Indian consumers spend on are Calvin Klein (34%), Gucci (25%), Diesel (24%), Christian Dior (16%), and DKNY (10%). India has also made it to the top ten markets globally for some of the brands. India ranks third highest globally for people who buy Gucci products. It ranks sixth for Calvin Klein, ninth for Diesel, and tenth for Fendi for buying these brands globally.

“People are traveling overseas more frequently now and quite likely their interactions with foreign brands have increased considerably. Moreover, foreign brands are synonymous to status and our survey finds that 57 percent of Indians surveyed buys designer brands as a status symbol. The number of outlets that these brands have opened up in the country in recent times is a testimony in itself of the increasing fashion consciousness amongst Indians,” said Vatsala Pant, Associate Director, Client Solutions, The Nielsen Company.

The study reveals, if money were no object, Gucci (41%), Calvin Klein (31%), Christian Dior (26%), Versace (25%), Diesel and Giorgio Armani (both 22%) are the most coveted brands among consumers in India. The local designer brands are also quite popular amongst Indians with whopping 40 percent respondents buying these brands. This is the sixth highest percentage globally for a country that buys local brands.

India (41%), the Philippines (39%) and Indonesia (37%) top Asia Pacific with people most aspiring to the Italian brand Gucci. At 41 percent, India actually tops the world with most people wishing to buy a Gucci product if money were no object. It's worth noting that the level of desire among Asian consumers to buy Chanel and Christian Dior increased by six and four percentage points respectively compared to two years ago when the Nielsen survey was last conducted.

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