India had just 9 Shopping Malls in 2007.
There are over 350 Shopping Malls in 2019.
Plus 85 new Shopping Malls will be built in the next 5 years = 435 Shopping Malls in 2025.
That’s my “shopping mall index” That’s why you should revisit India.
India today is a heady mix of three powerful elements – an appetite and reality of rapid change, a young population and the Governments now have funds to spend.
Add to this that online retail is taking off, with Amazon and the local Flipkart leading the way.
Dr Mark Morley Trade Commissioner India Government of Australia makes a key point about opportunities for us: “Australia is well positioned with the Indian consumer. Across India, we have a great reputation for clean, safe and reliable supply. We are well known as a premium supplier of produce, and we have a global reputation for our quality brands.”
One challenge for Australian businesses is to fully understand the market – and the answer is that hardly anyone knows what size the market is.
We know there are 1.3 billion people.
Within that, some estimate the “middle class” as high as 300 million.
Austrade takes a dimmer view – it estimates that there are approximately 30 – 80 million people in our target demographic, many of whom live outside Tier 1 cities. Thats a big range from 30 to 80, which shows that we just do not know. Austrade looks for consumers that:
- can afford international travel to destinations like Australia;
- can afford to send their children for study abroad; and
- can afford to eat at high-end restaurants and hotels, or eat significant amounts of imported food and wine at home.
The point is, we need more and better data.
But my “shopping mall index” should give you a reason to revisit.
And if you act soon but take a long term view, now is the time to start.
Into India 