Evolution of Indian brands: From local to global players

Indian brands

Indian brands are making a mark globally and are giving a tough competition to international players!

India is no longer a country known just for its spices and textiles. The last decade has witnessed the growth and rise of some of the most prominent brands that India has to offer. Indian Brands that were once confined within the boundaries of India, have now gained global recognition, thanks to their quality and competitive pricing. This shift towards quality products has allowed Indian brands to expand beyond borders and compete with international players in the market.

Evolution of Indian brands :

Amul

This Indian dairy company needs no introduction. Amul has been a household name in India for decades and has recently started to expand globally. The Indian Brands products include milk, butter, cheese, and yoghurt. The Indian Brands has also made a mark in the ice-cream industry, where it is giving stiff competition to global giants such as Haagen-Dazs and Baskin-Robbins.

Titan

Titan is an Indian brand that specializes in watches, jewellery, and eyewear. The Indian Brands has created a niche for itself in the luxury watch industry, where it has managed to capture a significant market share. With unique designs and competitive pricing, Titan has made a mark globally and has emerged as a serious competition to international luxury brands such as Rolex and Omega.

Patanjali

Patanjali is a brand that is making waves in the FMCG industry. The Indian Brands product range includes cosmetics, food, and health care products. The brand has gained popularity in India because of its emphasis on traditional Ayurvedic remedies and its promise of natural and organic ingredients. Patanjali is giving tough competition to international FMCG giants such as Proctor & Gamble and Unilever.

Mahindra & Mahindra

Mahindra & Mahindra is an Indian multinational company that specializes in automobiles, aerospace, and defense equipment. The Indian Brands has been successful in capturing the SUV market in India, where it has emerged as a serious competition to global players such as Toyota and Ford.

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Royal Enfield

Royal Enfield is an Indian motorcycle company that has been around for more than a century. The Indian Brands retro design and thumping engine have made it a popular choice not just in India but also globally. Royal Enfield has been successful in capturing the premium bike market in India, where it is giving a tough competition to international brands such as Harley Davidson and Triumph.

Raymond

Raymond Group is one of India’s largest branded fabric and fashion retailers. Founded in the year 1925 in Mumbai, Raymond today owns some of the well-known apparel Indian Brands like Raymond, Raymond Premium Apparel, Park Avenue, Park Avenue Woman, Manzoni, ColorPlus, zapp, Notting Hill & Parx. The group has over 60 per cent market share in worsted suiting in India. Its products are exported to over 55 countries including the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan and the Middle East.

Airtel

Bharti Airtel is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company, operating in 20 countries across South Asia, Africa and the Channel Islands. Airtel, headed by Sunil Bharti Mittal is the world’s fourth largest mobile telecommunications company by subscribers, with over 275 million subscribers across 20 countries. It is also the largest cellular service provider in India, with 192.22 million subscribers.

Micromax

Solely owned by Indians Rajesh Agarwal, Sumeet Arora, Rahul Sharma, and Vikas Jain – Micromax started its telecom operations in 2010 – at a time when India was already a hot market captured by international giants Nokia, Samsung, Sony, etc. When Micromax launched their first Android smart phone, no one had much hope from the phone; since Samsung was the only credible brand favored for androids, then.

However, as international brands were fighting it out in the crowded urban market space, Micromax launched its phone in the rural market. With cheaper, credible and features-laden phones as their USP, Micromax attracted millions of middle class customers. Micromax today boasts of an impressive 13 per cent market share, giving tough competition to Nokia, which stands second at 20 per cent. Today, the brand has grown strong enough to pull an international celebrity (Hugh Jackman) as its brand ambassador. Go, Micromax!

Lakmé

Lakme is one brand that is giving a stiff neck to neck competition to the billion dollar L’Oreal Group, and how! Owned by Hindustan Unilever and run by CEO Pushkaraj Shenai, Lakmé started out as a 100 per cent subsidiary of Tata Oil Mills, part of the Tata Group. It was named after the French opera Lakmé, the goddess of wealth, also renowned for her beauty. Lakmé began operations in 1952, funnily because the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, was concerned that Indian women were spending precious foreign exchange on beauty products, hence personally requesting JRD Tata to manufacture them in India. Lakmé is the current market leader in the Indian cosmetics market with a 17.7 per cent market share.

Café Coffee Day

Café Coffee Day is an Indian café chain owned by Amalgamated Bean Coffee Trading Company. Chikmangalur-based Amalgamated Bean coffee trading company is the largest producer of Arabica beans in Asia, growing coffee in its own estates of 12,000 acres and exporting to various countries including USA, Europe and Japan. Today, Café Coffee Day, or CCD, as it is commonly known, has almost 1534 outlets across 28 states of India.  It has also recently expanded outside India with outlets in Karachi, Vienna, Dubai and Prague. Foreign brands like Starbucks, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Costa Coffee and Gloria Jeans Coffees have not been able to stir this brand from its place.

Thums Up

It is well known among marketers that Coke actually bought this iconic soda drink in 1993 from the erstwhile owners Chauhan Brothers to kill it, since it was reigning over the market with the largest share (36 per cent). Even after being acquired by the company, it still continued to be the drink favored by the masses, and still has the highest market share that stands at 16 per cent with Pepsi and Sprite at a close second (15 per cent).