Indian market favourable for fashion retailers, says BMI Research report

By

Maverick Martins

Published
Jan 18, 2018

India’s large young middle class consumer base coupled with high disposable income has made the market one of the most favourable for fashion retailers across the world, says a latest report by BMI Research, a Fitch group firm.
 

India is set for further growth in the coming years owing to the relaxation in the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy for single brand retail by the government, the report said. The government had earlier tweaked the FDI policy to permit 100 percent FDI in single brand retail.
 
Over the years more and more foreign firms are scaling up their investment in the booming Indian fashion retail market. The relaxation in norms for investment in doing business is expected to give a major fillip to fashion retailers in the country.

India’s investor friendly policies has also helped it improve its ranking from 130 to 100 on the World Bank's 'Ease of Doing Business' ranking which is expected to bring in more investment into the country, the BMI report added.
 
"We believe that recent changes to this policy will bode particularly well for fast fashion majors looking to expand in India," the report said.
 
"Young adults are the core target group for fast fashion majors on the back of their strong interest in fashionable yet affordable apparel," it added.
 
Currently, the fashion retail market is estimated to be around Rs 2,97,091 crore (US $46 billion) and expected to grow at a promising Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.7 per cent to reach Rs 7,48,398 crore (US $115 billion) by 2026 , according to another report by research firm Technopak.