Price v/s brand : How Indian consumer is changing?

                     Indian consumer give importance to price doesn't mean that they buy  cheap products.They look for reasonable price.They don't blindly buy things because they are branded, Celebs can be considered as exception.They look for quality products with reasonable price

Today in Indian market the lower end segment is growing much faster than upper segment. This consumer needs a decent quality with affordable pricing , so high end brands are loosing market share but not the turn over. A clear case of Nirma beating HLL. Or Sundrop loosing market share to local manufaturers.Godrej furnitures are much lower in compare with local manufaturers.so these examples tells you the answere

India's over 50% consumer are either from agriculture field or government servants; if we look at broader frame-work; These two most potential segments have enough paying capability but requirements/needs are limited.

for example say - cell phone; they people may easily invest 10k-12k for handset but they used to purchase a cell worth of 5k-6k because they don't require or may be don't find utility of value added features like camera, music player, memory card, display etc in their life as per their additional cost.

This is a very small example and we may find a lot of similar examples in our daily life.

This is the reason i used to say Indian shopping is based on product value proposition

Indians believe in "true Value Proposition" as a result most of the time go for In-expensive shopping.

I have no idea about the business world but i can say one thing very confidently that any indian consumer be it from the rich class,middle class or the poor class we indians are deeply very price sensitive.No one gives a damn about the brand , quality etc... It is reflected in the bargains we make everywhere.I personally had the experience once in big bazaar , a gentlemen was arguing about the price of some fruits and later started accusing the management of being bandits !!! his wife was constantly consolidating the matter and was trying to take him away but this gentlemen was in no mood of loosing :)

We indian's want good quality products at cheap prices !!

i thank shiuli fr hr understanding of the new generation mktg breed, who r good in preparing briefs ie Advrtising/Research etc-etc whch they hv learned frm their luxurious B-schools. Thus wht i find tht topic Price/Brand is in itself is a dichotomy. So instead of making price inversely propotional to brand actually it is just the opposite. But today mrketers neither hv the patience/nor the forsightedness in craeting and nurturing a brand. It is a very slow and tedious process which requires a lot of patience. In today's world of fast cars/fast foods/quick money & quick recognition, the new breed of so called marketeers will fall flat on their face.

Another ridiculous topic i observed was about Foreign/Local brand. Having spent 13 yrs in brand management function I must admit that I still dont decipher the meaning of this absurd thought process of local/foreign brand.

For a lady residing un jhumritilaya, Surf is brand read product which is used for cleaning cloths. In my various tours of rural india, people use ghari detergent as a shampoo.

So give a damn to brand or price just offer a product which says"Adorable product at Affordable Price"

Hahaha, Thanks Ranjeet for the support, there was a question raised on Toosteps, whether front line Managers are in sync with the Brand strategy or not?

Now in very simple words, you have said it all-“to learn swimming you have to get to the waters”. That is what is required by all Brand and Product custodians. Sitting in Air-conditioned offices if one strategizes, does pricing and identifies target group, it’s a heinous crime for the Client, Product and the Brand.

Now coming back to the Front line Managers, they are the Sales people, they are going to “Push” a Brand and Product to the target group, the advertisers are the “Pullers”, who with a Communication campaign will pull the target group towards the message, Product and Brand. To ensure perfect working the “Pull & Push” is required simultaneously.

Now as a consumer, who is conscious, aware and alert, will be looking for a Brand which offers Value with right pricing. Irrespective of it being Made in India or USA/France/Uk etc...

I Supphis this debate was India specific, taking Ms Shuili and her ilk, wht the heck are we talking abt. The focus for an average Indian consumer is still " Roti, Kapda Aur Makaan". Wth due respect to all advertising professionals, who are more interested in client servicing/ glib talking, understanding a consumer pshyc is not through Quali/Quanti reasearch but actually get in to the groove.

I mean if we want to learn swimming u have to get in to the water.

So much for Chandni chowk/lajpat nagar/new market

Off -course Price la. Quality but with cost effective price is the typical Indian branding. More-over U want labels go to Karol Bagh ki Galli. As far as Garment, Shoes, Accessories- Industries are concerned, the tipping point towards Brands is yet to be achieved.

But there are Industries concerning with Electrical Goods, electronics etc are progressing towards Brands.

I have already participated in your support Akhilesh.

I am happy to see the amount of enthusiasm in trying so hard to convince that we are ONLY BRNAD conscious. Indians by heart are traders and traders always like to bargain!! Why are we traders at heart goes a long way back in the history during the British era.

The brnads, niche I mean, are purchsed when there is a bargain sale of 50% off. No one in their right mind will buy a LEVIS for a whopping INR1500 and then go on to buy two more at the same cost!!! But if the same pair was at a 50% off you would immediately buy six and marvel at not only the bargain but the brand and the quantity!1 Lets face it... For every Mercedes Benz bought, there are at least a dozen Maruti's, a couple of Xylo's or Scorpio's or at least half a dozen Indica's and Indigos' that are sold across India! Go figure people...

Indian consumer want brand at a price and that's why we see the "Sale" and "Discount" business in retail being so success. Someone has argued that Koutons are available now in smaller towns also. Since when Koutons became a brand, I don't know. It is label which always sells at 50- 70% discount. Ask them to sell it at MRP and then they will see the result. Brand like Levis had come to the idea or installment purchase and lower price point brand "Levis Signature". Further, food inflation touching approximately 15% at wholesale price and one can add another 4-5% for retail inflation, and no increase in family income, consumers are left with limited disposable income and no choice but to be price concious. In past 8-9 months, I have seen that they are downgrading their consumption and doing it very fast.

The Indian consumer cannot be labeled as only "Brand conscious" or only "Price sensitive". This is true the world over.

We keep speaking of an emerging consciousness regrding brands... it was always there. Its not new. Just that in the past, there were fewer brands and those were mostly Indian brands; as the newer brands have launched and distribution has increased they have made a space for themselves in the consumers mind.

We know that there are those who adopt early and those who have the disposable income will spend earlier and try newer brands.

A lot of consumers maybe "aware" but cannot afford to spend or choose which category to spend on.

A casual example would be the person who buys Dove soap for the face but a cheapie deo. It is a mindset and a prioritization of where to deploy the funds.

Another example would be the person who buys a SONY digital camera but will wear a store brand - e.g. the T-Shirt from Shoppers Stop. Again, it is a mindset issue - about value.

So yes, to some extent all shoppers in India want value for money - which makes them "price conscious", but they also want to buy good, well known solid brands - which makes them "brand conscious" too.

as per custumer view most important is price and quality. Because most product comes from open market. If we sart to set market that time most important is price. If price is low and goods are also good that time custemer forgot the brand he take that product which is best price

Indian consumers are always considered price sensitive, brands do enjoy a loyalty over a period of time because of their quality, usage and availability. Premium brands are creating a niche market among consumers because of the increased awareness of the adoption trends, increased disposable incomes and more importantly the younger generation involves in impulse purchasing.

There are niche brands and then there are "popular"  brands and then there are lesser known brands. All these brands in a single vertical have their mark made in various types of stores for consumption by the SEC across the sections. But I tend to agree with Akhilesh as there seems to be a "difference" in all these brands which is Price & quality. The consumption of such types of products in a single vertical is definitely affected by the price particularly.

Also, the showcasing of these brnads is of prime impotrtance. E.g. A SONY is very visible in single vertical stores like VIJAY Electronics, SONY MONY etc but a lesser known EC Tv is present in a smaller single centric shoppe in some remote area of Mumbai even today. Buying is definitely affected through the price tags and the demographic of the area that the store is in!!