Porcelain Lustre

As a strategic market with a focus on growth, Spanish luxury porcelain brand Lladró has opened its second largest store in the world, in Delhi

- SMITA TRIPATHI

THERE WAS MUCH excitement on Delhi’s posh MG Road—home to some of the biggest designer brands—this September, as a new store opened its doors to the city’s discerning but affluent shoppers. While such unveilings are usually marked by a launch party where the glitterati rub shoulders over cocktails and canapés amid much fanfare, guests at this event were literally on their toes, as everyone was afraid of being the proverbial bull in a china shop! The store in question: Spanish luxury porcelain brand Lladró’s glittering new outlet, replete with stunning sculptures priced between ₹8,000 and ₹2.47 crore. Now, that’s not something you would want to trip and fall over.

Opened to celebrate the brand’s 70th anniversary, it is Lladró’s eighth store in India and the second largest in the world. Spread over 475 sq. m, it is part of the brand’s expansion strategy in India and Asia. “India is a strategic market for us. It is third in terms of global sales; the first is Japan, followed by the US. Five years ago, India was 8 per cent of our global sales; today it is 11 per cent, so it’s a big jump. I mean, we’re seeing the Indian market growing so fast,” says Ana Rodriguez, CEO of Lladró.

Lladró’s journey in India began in 2000, with its first outlet in a suburban mall in Mumbai. Now, it has stores in luxury shopping malls across India in New Delhi, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai. “All these are managed by us as we believe that we have to invest directly in the country,” says Rodriguez, who has been the CEO of the Valencia, Spain-based firm since 2017.

Globally, the brand has 1,200 points of sale.