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India's Latest Luxury Products

Monday, September 10, 2007

I know luxury and India don’t necessarily go hand in hand, but yet another sign of a growing economy should not be ignored. Below, check out the new luxury brands soon to appear in India for those that want to live the affluent lifestyle.

Vogue magazine

The style magazine for the wealthy worldwide is starting an India edition. I guess this is good news although the models and merchandise shown in this magazine ranges from the extravagant to the down right silly. I’ll let you be the judge.

“We will raise the bar because we are the ultimate style-bible,” said Priya Tanna, Vogue India editor.

“More and more confident, successful women are moving from the ‘we’ culture to the ‘me’ culture,” Tanna said, adding that the Indian woman was now providing for her family and indulging herself as well.

India allows 100 percent ownership in non-news titles and has a 26 percent limit on news publications.

Porsche

Porsche fans will love the entrance of the sports car maker. We covered some other India luxury cars earlier, but we are excited by the entrant of Porsche. Although still a nascent market, the luxury carmakers are planting a stake in the ground to test the market and hopefully build upon it as road conditions and India attitudes change towards luxury autos.

Volvo India

Leveraging the Ford brand in India is key for the luxury automaker. Volvo expects to double their luxury auto marketshare by 2009 and is starting off with models S80 sedan and XC90 sport utility. We like the automaker and expect them to do well in the long run. Volvo has long been known as a safe, family oriented automobile.

Paul de Voijs said, “We see the luxury car market here more than doubling by 2009 on organic growth, upgraders, new launches and because the segment grows faster in emerging markets,” he said.

“You only need to see markets like China and Russia for evidence,” he said at a news conference to unveil the vehicles.

Louis Vuitton

Dilip Kapur and his leather accessories firm Hidesign have managed to rope in Louis Vuitton and will help with their supply chain and the setting up of factories. However the two name brands will remain separate on the shelves.

Brand India – Travel

Conde Nast UK picked India as the top ranked destination for travel. If that comes as a surprise to you – you’re not alone especially when “environmental friendliness” was taken into consideration. India will proudly accept the award, but really folks, does India yet top a Paris, London or Venice? These surveys tend to hurt the countries they portray due to a relaxation of improvements. You watch, the government will point to this #1 ranking as a reason not to do certain infrastructure improvements – you watch.

“India was the 10th most preferred destination in 2004, the 4th in 2006 and is now at the top in 2007 and that is where we want to be,” says Ambika Soni, minister, tourism and culture. “We are proud and privileged to be the recipients of this prestigious award.”

From Conde Nast, “The nominations were judged on a range of criteria particular to each category, from ‘range of accommodation’ to ‘environmental friendliness’.

The influx of British tourisms to India is growing with every passing year and the respondents to this survey are some of the most sophisticated and avid travelers across the world. They form an integral part of the discerning and growing numbers of readers of this widely read magazine, which is considered to be the leading authority on travel and tourism in the UK.”

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