Recently, Italian fashion brand United Colors of Benetton announced that it will launch a home collection in India under Casa Benetton, starting with bath products and then moving on to bedroom, kitchen and tabletop items. Apparel retailers Marks & Spencer and H&M also launched home and lifestyle product lines a year ago, including crockery, glassware, bedsheets, towels and decorative items. Home interiors start-up Design Cafe raised funding seven years ago to expand its business. ₹Last month, it was led by private equity fund WestBridge Capital and reached Rs 400 crore.
A common thread among these developments is the booming home makeover craze among Indian consumers. The trend, which began during the COVID-19 lockdown that forced people to stay indoors for months, now seems to have fully blossomed, with new brands opening stores both offline and online at home and abroad, and established brands expanding their stores to cater to a different consumer demographic. Even homegrown ethnic wear brand Fabindia now derives 30% of its sales from non-apparel, such as home and lifestyle products.
Harminder Sahni, founder and managing director of Wazir Advisors, a consulting firm for consumer goods, retail, textiles and agribusiness, says Indian consumers are loosening their purse strings to make their homes look better. “Stuck indoors, people have become more in touch with their homes,” Sahni says, and Geeta Ramanan, co-founder of Design Café, agrees. “The pandemic has made people pay attention to every room, and on a bigger scale than ever before.” Previously, the company had to sell its services to consumers, but now they are demanding it, Ramanan says.
Ritesh Mishra, MD, Marks & Spencer Reliance India, agrees that the pandemic has prompted consumers to rethink their home environments, but adds that increased internet consumption and social media usage have exposed consumers to global trends and they are developing an aesthetic that reflects their personality, which they are keen to incorporate into their living spaces, he said.
Mishra said rising disposable income, a newfound connection to their homes and a drive to refresh them have led consumers to seek out quality options.Marks & Spencer sells bed, bath, dining and decor products in stores as well as online through marketplaces such as Myntra and Ajio.
Ramanan says the tiny subcategory of home décor is set to expand as middle-class consumers are now driving the trend of maintaining an Instagram-worthy home. The desire to own a good-looking home has trickled down from the wealthy to the lower classes. “That's why both Indian and foreign brands are launching home collections. Buying rugs and changing curtains to match trends wasn't that common in India. But that has changed,” she says.
Cushions, perfumes and decorative lighting are also ideas that have taken root among the middle-class consumer, says Ramanan. Her Design Café, which offers fixed and modular furniture solutions, saw an opportunity in the large middle-class market and launched an affordable sub-brand, Qarpentri, a few months ago to cater to price-conscious consumers.
A spokesperson for Italy's CASA Benetton said the company launched its home collection in India due to the rise in disposable income of the middle and upper-middle classes and a visible change in lifestyle. “The dynamics of purchasing power have changed from mothers being the primary buyers.
“India has become one of the largest markets for homewares, where every member of the family now has a say in how they want to decorate their room. This shift has made India one of the largest markets for homewares,” a spokesman said.Benetton launched the collection in collaboration with Bergner Group.
The home and lifestyle products market in India is still in its nascent stage and has a lot of room to grow. “Earlier, people would simply invite people over to their homes to show off their homes. Now, all it takes is posting photos and videos on social media to let everyone know what's going on inside,” says Sani.
He gives his own example to back up this point: “Before the official work-from-home Zoom calls started, no one had ever seen the study I'd had for 20 years. During the pandemic, every client saw my study, and I would change the painting in the back every now and then so it didn't look outdated,” he laughs.
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