Growing market for quality food products in India
During the last couple of years, a whole new chain of stores has opened in Mumbai, India. “Nature Basket” as the chain is called, is a chain, which most of the Danish quality conscious producers of food products have looked for, for a long time. “Nature Basket” sells high quality food products and in modern and inviting stores. For the time being, eight shops have opened in Mumbai, and the owners plan to have 20 “Nature Basket” stores opened in the major Indian cities by 2010.
- The classical picture of an Indian general store is a store at the size of a shoe box, where one can get the most basic products within a very narrow selection, says Ejvind Vøgg, DI’s Director in Mumbai.
The classic stores are characterized by being dusty, lacking information, too warm with varying power supply, and at the same time it is obvious from the look of the products that they might have been damaged on route from the unloading on Indian soil to the store.
New gorgeous stores suitable for Danish products
Danish companies have until now hesitated to grapple with this distribution channel, Ejvind Vøgg continues. But it is about to change! In these new types of stores, everything is showcased nicely, they are clean, the air condition is working, the employees are qualified, and then they have a lot of – a bit more expensive- connoisseur products. It is comparable to an Indian version of Food & Wine in the department store, Magasin.
The target group for these stores is the rich Indians, the upper part of the middle class – from a middle class the size of the population in the US; and of course foreigners living in India.
”Nature Basket” is owned by the Indian conglomerate, Godrej. But other similar stores have also opened, often in places near super- and hyper markets. To conclude: More retail stores are opening, which will be interesting distribution channels for Danish suppliers of quality food products, Ejvind Vøgg says, and he encourages Danish companies to start looking towards the Indian market, which is developing fast.
28 September 2009