Is The Indian ‘Value Shopper’ Dead?

India’s shoppers aren't just spending more — they are spending differently, and that changes everything.

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This festive season felt different.

The lights shone brighter, the music played louder, and wallets opened wider — not just for essentials, but for purchases that, until a few years ago, sat firmly in the “luxury” bucket. India touched a record-breaking INR 6.05 lakh crore in Diwali sales this year, but the real story runs deeper than one day of big spending. India is moving from economical to aspirational, from “value” to “premium-first.”

It’s not merely that people spent more — it’s how and why they spent that has changed.

Two datapoints capture this shift clearly.

One: Diwali and festive-season sales across goods and services surged, hitting unprecedented highs.

Two: India’s luxury market is accelerating rapidly. Analysts estimate it will reach USD 12.1 billion (over INR 1.06 lakh crore) by 2025 — evidence that high-end consumption is no longer limited to a sliver of the urban elite.

Social Media + Online Shopping = India’s New Shopfront

This year, Indians didn’t wait for the last day to shop — purchases started early and happened online at levels never seen before. Fashion, beauty, home décor, and premium appliances saw heavy demand long before peak Diwali week.

Social media played a starring role