MAM
It’s ‘age of the entrepreneur’: JWT study
MUMBAI: Ad agency J Walter Thompson (JWT) has revealed the findings of a study on the Indian family based on ethnography entitled The Great Indian Family: Juicing change.
Most conventional research focuses on consumer attitudes and behaviour in terms of product categories, brands, response to communication or a gender or class. The study, which attempts to break from “western templates” in its outlook, is the culmination of a rigorous process to delve into the multi-faceted psyche of the Indian consumer, focusing on the collective, a company release says.
JWT CEO Mike Khanna was quoted as saying,”The process of change happens at a collective level and, in the Indian context, the smallest unit of this collectivity is the family. Therefore, understanding this phenomenon required an in-depth study of the whole family and its complete dynamics. This led us to undertake the study on the Indian family. I am pleased to announce our efforts have borne fruit as we now hold the key to the eight core driving forces of the Indian consumer…”
The JWT study identifies eight core, underlying, truths about Indian consumers that significantly influence their attitudes and behaviour. The research was conducted by Research International, part of the London-based Research International Group, which is the largest custom research organisation in the world.
The eight most significant norms moulding attitudes and behaviour, according to the study, are the importance of being “entrepreneurial”; “speed and lightness in all aspects of life”; “enjoyment”; “religion and spirituality for physical and mental health”; “the family as a brand”; “the ‘nowness’ of life”; “manipulation and powerplay for family harmony”; and “getting more out of less”.
According to the findings, the value of being self-made holds more importance than ever before, with increasing emphasis being laid on this quality as an assertion of ability and, thus, worth. The age of the entrepreneur is emerging, with the belief growing among Indians that an enterprise, no matter how small, carries dignity and pride and denotes the realisation of a dream. There is also an increasing penchant for ‘lightness’ among families, be it in terms of being more casual than traditional, seeking lightness in the kitchen through convenience foods and ready-to-use masalas, and looking for lightness in terms of convenience – purchase through super markets and home delivery systems.
More than the need for a product or service, it was found Indian consumers today lay greater emphasis on the experience and enjoyment that come with it. Enjoying the simple pleasures of life; working to earn that enjoyment; and enjoying the small dreams that come true with the help of brands, new products and services, are the top priorities among Indians.
On the relationships front, conforming with the traditional Indian psyche of being respectful, non-controversial, and non-confrontational, Indians today are using positive manipulation to get what they need. The study also showed that with lifestyle increasingly getting stressful and demanding, the consumers of today are turning to spirituality and religion for serenity and balance in life. In addition, there is a growing trend among Indians to project a specific family image, with the family increasingly being treated as a brand. It was also found that Indians are taking life as it comes rather than trying to direct one’s life.
The study also revealed that although people are willing to spend money, their expectations of return from every rupee spent are much more than what they were earlier. Consumers today are seeking better deals and better bargains, and are looking to get more than they bargained for, not just from a product but also from the entire experience.
The study involved over 96 in-depth interviews across 24 families covering the north, south and west of India. The entire process of field work took over seven months to complete. The study on the Indian family was conducted to fill the gaps in knowledge left by the findings of researches in brands, categories and consumers conducted in the previous 12 months. With the objective of studying the complete dynamics of the Indian family in great detail, along with its origin and history, families were chosen as respondents instead of individuals. These families were scientifically selected to represent the emerging consumer types in India, the release says.
Researchers from Research International parked themselves in the homes of respondents for an entire week and interacted with them in every possible detail to get real insights into their lives. twenty-four families from Delhi, Mumbai, Nagpur, Bareilly, Bangalore and Warangal, representative of the metros and small towns in Northern and Southern India, were targeted for the research. To get a holistic view of the Indian family, the chosen families were from different socio-economic strata, at various life stages and belonged to different family types – nuclear as well as joint.
Brands
Flipkart completes reverse flip to India ahead of IPO
Walmart-owned e-commerce giant shifts domicile from Singapore to Bengaluru
MUMBAI: Flipkart has completed its restructuring to move its parent company from Singapore back to India, marking a key milestone as the Walmart-owned marketplace prepares for a potential initial public offering on Indian stock exchanges, ET reported, citing people aware of the matter.
The move, often referred to as a “reverse flip”, relocates the company’s legal home to India and aligns its corporate structure more closely with its largest market. It also clears an important regulatory step for Flipkart as it explores listing plans.
As part of the restructuring, several Singapore-based entities have been merged into Flipkart Internet Private Limited, which will now serve as the main holding company for the entire group.
The consolidation brings a number of major businesses directly under the Indian parent company. These include fashion platform Myntra, logistics arm Ekart, travel booking platform Cleartrip, healthcare marketplace Flipkart Health, and fintech venture Super.money.
Under the new structure, global investors including Walmart, Microsoft, SoftBank, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will hold their stakes directly in the Indian entity rather than through an overseas holding company.
The redomiciliation required approval from the Indian government because Chinese technology company Tencent owns around a 5 to 6 per cent stake in Flipkart. Under Press Note 3, investments from countries sharing a land border with India require prior government clearance.
Flipkart had already secured approval from the National Company Law Tribunal in December. With the latest clearance from the central government, the company has now obtained all the regulatory approvals needed to complete the relocation, ET reported earlier.
Flipkart had originally shifted its holding structure to Singapore in 2011 to tap global capital more easily. However, as India’s capital markets have matured, several start-ups have begun returning their domiciles to the country ahead of public listings. Companies such as Razorpay, Groww, and Meesho have taken similar steps.
The company is now expected to move ahead with its IPO preparations and has begun early discussions with merchant bankers. According to people familiar with the matter, Flipkart could file its draft prospectus later this year, setting the stage for what may become one of the most closely watched listings in India’s e-commerce sector.
Flipkart has been majority-owned by Walmart since 2018, when the US retail giant acquired a 77 per cent stake in the company for $16 billion in one of the largest e-commerce deals globally.
