Following the news that Reliance Brands Limited (RBL) has signed a strategic deal with Balenciaga to bring the best of global couture to the Indian market;
Bobby Verghese, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view.
“Balenciaga joins RBL’s portfolio of 40 international fashion brands, providing the retailer an edge in the $1.1 billion Indian luxury apparel market*. Asia is Balenciaga’s second-largest market after Western Europe, contributing about 31% of its global sales in 2020. The brand has made considerable inroads in China, Japan, and South Korea over the last decade, with the three markets contributing the vast majority of its revenue in Asia. However, the Spanish luxury fashion brand has not made much headway in the Indian market *.
“Through the partnership with Reliance Brands, Balenciaga will gain access to the conglomerate’s strong brand name and nationwide network of nearly 600 stores and 750 shop-in-shops across India. The iconic luxury brand has a chance to attract 25% of Indian consumers, who said they purchased clothing & footwear from luxury brands in the last year**.
“Reliance Brands is on an expansion spree, acquiring the franchises for Italian luxury lifestyle brands Valentino and Tod’s in the first half of 2022, before the latest deal with Kering SA for Balenciaga. With these top brands in its portfolio, Reliance Brands is well positioned to capitalize on the Indian luxury apparel market, which is set to expand from $1.1 billion in 2022 to $1.4 billion in 2025.”
*GlobalData Apparel Intelligence Center – Market Analyzers, accessed in August 2022
**GlobalData 2022 Q1 Consumer Survey India, with 613 respondents, published in March 2022
