Made for India

While consumers across the human race are seeing a growing number of Made in India labels on the goods they buy, Indian shoppers are witnessing a more subtle change. Increasingly, international companies are selling products that are not just made in but that are made for India. Entire generations of Indian consumers, who once felt grateful simply for being able to experience the same brands as the rest of the world, are now realizing they can ask for products that cater to their wants and needs.And they put up a good chance of getting what they want. The willingness of big brands to customize their products was neer the issue, says Harminder Sahni, managing director of Technopak Advisors India, one of the countrys largest management consultancies. What has changed is that the Indian grocery has finally piped a critical mass after the U. S. and China, this is the largest consumer market in the world that justifies the investment. That wasnt of all time the case.Before the Indian economy opened up in the archean 1990s, imported goods were a sought-after commodity, their foreignness often being their close to desirable attribute. Not surprisingly, then, many multinationals didnt think success would require a great deal effort when their brands finally entered the country after 1991. Things have changed. As Indian consumers became more aware of trends and advancements in technology, they began to demand similar sophistication. More important, they precious products built to their needs.That meant not just auto planetarys, household appliances and consumer electronics, but also mobile phones, foods and apparel. Earlier, there was a reverence for anything foreign because local products were of terrible quality, says Abraham Koshy, prof of marketing at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA). But as the market developed, the focus started shifting from the product to the brand. Customers started patronizing a brand scarce if the product s uited them.So the need arose for companies to adjust their products to customers requirements. It isnt only approximately holding on to existing customers. If altering a products design or introducing a variant will help a brand reach out to an additional customer group, most companies would think it worth the investment. Brands that do their relevance with customers do well, says Shripad Nadkarni, director of MarketGate Consulting, a Mumbai-based marketing and brand consultancy.The increase use of third-party sourcing helps further the customization cause companies can simply take on additional local suppliers who will adapt the products for different markets and customer groups. Of course, pickle doesnt work for all products. Many high-end luxury goods, for instance, rely on their country-of-origin iota to enhance their brand appeal. A Made in India label on these products would be disastrous, says Technopaks Sahni. Koshy adds that products where the unit consumption is low m ay not condone huge outlays on customization.