Gone are the days when fashion enthusiasts in India coax a friend or relative residing overseas to courier an elusive luxury fashion label. The reason for the same is that the global luxury brands are on the verge of taking the e-tail path in order to reach the potential buyers in the tier II and tier III cities inIndia.
The luxury segment is heavily involved in e-tailing activity as their renowned brands are involved in overcoming the barriers that are associated with the launch of brick and mortar operations in the country.
A report by McKinsey claimed that online sales of luxury products in the country are rapidly growing likewise the overall e-tailing segment. Regarding this, CEO and Founder of FabFurnish, Vikram Chopra claimed that e-tailing is a great platform for the luxury brands to establish a foothold in the markets such as India that are considered significant. The primary reason for the same is that there are many challenges involved in offline retail such as getting approvals, finding the right location and so on. Facing these challenges require long term planning and a well focused plan execution, whereas going online is relatively easier.
FabFurnish has announced over 10 tableware or glassware brands such as Lodge, Stoelze, Noritake and Nauni that were so long found only at high end hotels such as Hilton and Taj inIndia. Furthermore, the e-tail portal is involved in talks with 10 more brands across the globe.
Lately, fashion portal Jabong introduced international fashion labels such asRiverIslandand Dorothy Perkins inIndiaand Fashionandyou launched Luxury Lounge section with brands such as Coach handbags, Salvatore Ferragamo watches, Burberry & Versace handbags and Aston Martin sunglasses respectively that are not available in the offline market inIndia.
It is claimed by CMO and Co-Founder of ShopClues, Radhika Ghai Aggarwal that e-tailing has the benefit of getting seamlessly integrated with digital media such as mobile and social networking websites.
As per the industry experts, if the luxury brands take the discount route on the e-tailing segment, they would face a potential risk of losing their rigorous pricing and brand positioning. Regarding this, Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of Retailer’s Association of India claimed that the international players should not imitate the discount players that are available inIndia.
