PUNEET CHHATWAL'S SPRAWLING OFFICE IN MUMBAI'S NARIMAN POINT OVERLOOKS THE TRIDENT HOTEL, WITH ITS LUXURY STORES, RUN BY RIVAL OBEROI GROUP. BUT THE IHCL MD & CEO'S JOURNEY OF REINVENTING LUXURY WITH TAJ HOTELS IS NO LESS REMARKABLE.

Luxury is in its infancy in India, but it is growing.

- BY AJITA SHASHIDHAR

The reason for that is, for so many years we were more like a savings economy. Luxury was limited to weddings and education or may be a good house in a good location. The real need, demand, and quest for luxury started more or less during the Covid-19 pandemic. That's when the generation that has all the disposable income started indulging in luxury more.

Secondly, India has been changing and evolving strongly in the past 10 years. There has been an influx of international luxury brands in India. Indians are also travelling abroad a lot more, so their awareness levels are increasing. Also, there is growth in the economy, there is a general feelgood factor. I believe senior executives and startup founders are indulging a lot more in luxury. Earlier, if there were 10 million luxury consumers, today there are easily 50-100 million.

As a percentage of the total population, luxury consumers would hardly be 2-3%, but it's actually quite big—as big as the total population of a small a country in Europe.

The Indian luxury market has been especially active in the past couple of years. One not only sees an influx of leading international brands, but also new business models. What kind of conversations do you have with luxury brand CEOs, since Taj is a popular luxury retail destination?

It’s again reflective of the way India has evolved. Earlier, luxury brands were visible only in the luxury hotels of India. Today, with the growth of shopping malls, a lot of these brands have moved into these spaces. But the number of brands has increased. So, we don’t have empty shops. That shows how luxury brands have grown, and demand is higher than supply.