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well today it's a pleasure to have you
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here at the warden in the Economic Forum
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and also for knowledge at what I think
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is right thank you for inviting me
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you know it's our honor why don't we
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start off with you telling us a little
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bit more about your career path your
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career trajectory we were talking
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yesterday obviously and you have a very
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interesting trajectory so why don't you
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share some of that because my career
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path wasn't planned my parents never
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looked at my report card so it's just
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everything happened by accident which is
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perhaps a very romantic way of going
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about things but it's I don't recommend
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it to many people as I said things
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happen by chance I graduated from the
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Doon school and went to Delhi University
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and was hired by a bank in New York so
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spent about ten years banking across the
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world and I was picked up by the LVMH
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group to look at India when India was a
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closed market so I joined them in 1994
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and advised various companies within the
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group and in 1998 the chairman of Louie
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Vuitton said hey I want you full-time
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with me and we will decide who else you
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can advise so it's been in fascinating
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journey because my chairman Eve Cassell
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is the is the real pioneer and the
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luxury business is a legend and he has
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created louisv thought to be what it is
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and passionate about India and the
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development of business in India so I
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consider myself privileged and honored
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to have been associated with him
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professionally and personally for such a
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long time you know yeah so talk about
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the luxury market in India you measure
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is closed at one point now you have a
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presence in India as I'm sure do other
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luxury brands can you tell us a bit more
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about the Indian consumer when it comes
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to the luxury market like what sort of
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trends are you seeing who are these
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who's your target customer and India or
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and also do you see an aspirational
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element in India when you look at
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consumers or is it serve a very set
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group
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of consumers that are going after the
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luxury well I think this is phase one of
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development phase one of development in
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a country like India is with the very
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affluent they have the same trends as
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global customers they travel lives in
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the world they want similar products
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across as consumers across the world
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want so the patterns are very same
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similar the the the aspiring middle
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class which is actually the game changer
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they look and see what Bollywood is
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doing what the Indian tycoon is doing
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what the young politician is buying and
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they follow that trend whatever as Dhoni
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is doing exactly yeah so we have to be
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careful that the brand is always
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positioned at a level they are always
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aspiring to reach you know so it has to
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be managed very carefully so iconic
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Indian faces as I said from Indian
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royalty we do photo shoots with them
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whose families have had association with
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Louie Vito for over a hundred years with
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top Bollywood stars everything is done
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at the top level you know to give that
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exceptional experience with an
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exceptional brand so no compromises made
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you know but as I said the game changer
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is the middle class and they want to see
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this brand associated with exceptionally
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gifted and talented people right so when
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we talk about this aspiring middle class
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in India which you know you've done the
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game changer in the luxury market you
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mentioned obviously the challenges and
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the trade-offs there that glue it on as
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a brand has to face and manage can you
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tell me a bit more about how you're
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managing that and what's the strategy
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going forward well the strategy is
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simple to get the message across through
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different media different avenues of
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communication to do very select events
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which are unique
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to always make the consumer feel and
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this middle-class feel a that here is a
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brand which is always thinking out of
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the box any experience with Vito is a
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surprise just gonna give us an example
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of such an event or such a yes I mean
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when we opened our bomba store we said
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let's look for a unique venue normally
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brands would play safe and go to a
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five-star hotel and secure it bit on
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doesn't do things that wouldn't so we
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asked a friend we call it the friends
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and family of Vito if they could give us
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their home ok now you imagine a
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billionaire giving his home to a
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commercial company it doesn't happen but
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Vito is the only brand they were willing
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to make an exception for this is a home
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on top of a hill perhaps the greatest
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home in Bombay belonging to a very
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conservative family and giving her too
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many clues no you should be surprised
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it's not what you think
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they're a very special family they gave
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us access to the home event big team
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game created this incredible scenery
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outside covered their pool also you know
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a Mexican plexiglass the dinner was on
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the pool special menus special
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champagnes were flown in great
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entertainment so people you know went
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and said wow what an experience this
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could never happen anywhere then we also
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lit up Gateway of India with our logos
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Bombay said hey how come this brand is
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allowed we've never been allowed to do
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that so you know I mean Vito has the
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ability to create exceptional
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experiences and moments and even
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government agencies don't mind us doing
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because we are very respectful you know
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when we when we lit up the Gateway of
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India it was done in a very tasteful way
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it wasn't you know brash brand flashing
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its logos everywhere it was done in a
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very artistic way
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so the Gateway was lit up plus you have
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this unique evening in a home where
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people had never been invited - right so
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let's talk about this affluent customer
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in India for a second so you said the
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patterns you've seen a very similar to
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affluent people anywhere else in the
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world that's said I'm sure there are
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differences and I was wondering if you
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can talk a little bit more about what
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differences in tastes in the sort of
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things do you see amongst the affluent
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Indian and especially I think one of the
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things I would love for you to address
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is in India especially even with your
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designs or with consumer preferences are
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you seeing the affluent Indian wanting a
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mix of Western fashion Western designs
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combined with some sort of a heritage
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traditional element as well or is that
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not happening right now no as I said you
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know that fluent Indian is a global
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customer so he's used to seeing with
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Rome globally and knowing the products
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what is different with Indian consumer
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is that he still wants something
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specially made for him the best book
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we've had a special order section within
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Louie Vito for over 150 years Indian
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consumers today some of the biggest
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spenders and have placed orders for
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special orders I mean for example a
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large steamer trunk with the initials
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and family coat of arms is still made
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for them you know we have a customer's
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order a shoe case 400 shoe pairs of
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shoes
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another customers ordered are a watch
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cabinet for his collection of watches
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they like things specially made for them
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which is very interesting I mean these
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were traditions which which India in a
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way excel in and they're still very much
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in vogue today right and so given that
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you've straddled both the India and the
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US and I imagine several other countries
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in your career over the last day of last
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few decades can you start to share a few
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insights you've had about how management
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practices in India and the management
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philosophy in India differs from the
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management philosophy different
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management
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that you've seen elsewhere you know
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management philosophies for us I can
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only talk on behalf of Louie Vito are
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very similar standards are set by the
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chief executive officer what he looks
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for some unique qualities in you and I
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said you qualities which people don't
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really value it but are coming to
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evaluate much more is humility the
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ability to to appreciate other cultures
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integrity you know when you are
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representing iconic brand you really
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need to be careful on how you conduct
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yourself to you know it's very it's it's
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you're not selling a mass-market product
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so ethics value systems are you a
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custodian of the heritage because when
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you join Vito you become a custodian of
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a very interesting heritage you know
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unique so we try and make sure that
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these values filter down to all the
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employees you know so the company is
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very very proactive it does a lot of
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training sessions it has many seminars
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there's a lot of interaction between
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different levels of management both
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formal and informal you know just to
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make sure that everyone becomes the
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custodian of the DNA of the brand as you
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also see Indian companies expanding
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abroad maybe not necessary in the luxury
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market do you see anything in terms of
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practices philosophy values that the
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Indian management ethos has to offer the
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rest of the world significant question
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IIIi think Indian management companies
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or engine management skills are being
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used more and more across the world but
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I'm not quite sure how how they can
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really merge with practices of the West
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I think what is happening right now is
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that we are coming from a very different
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were you know we're very very used to a
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consumer market which is driven
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internally I think our company's Indian
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come traditional companies haven't had
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to deal with competition I think that's
00:11:37
the opportunity for Indian companies to
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change become more international the
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acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover by
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Tatas is I think again a game changer
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because on the other hand they produce
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terrible cars in India you know there is
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no comparison between the Land Rover
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they produce and the car they produce
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the other hand we have this nano you
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know and other Tata vehicles which I
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don't know whether you've seen or driven
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them are a different story so and
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they've also in the hospitality sector
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they've they're their leaders in
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beautiful heritage hotels and they've
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acquired the pier in New York I believe
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they are going to see it tomorrow I
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believe they've redone it they've
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acquired a Boston Hotel ambassador they
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own a hotel in San Francisco so in the
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hospitality sector I think we're very
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strong and there's a huge opportunity
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for us to create this magic of service
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of luxury of being entertained we're
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very good at that but other sectors I'm
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not quite sure how we will it'll take
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time to adjust but the opportunity is
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there you know we've got tremendous
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talent you know all that all they need
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to do is unleash it you know right well
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I'm not hopeful not thank you very much
00:13:00
today it was a pleasure chatting with
00:13:01
you about obviously your trajectory and
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also the luxury market and thank you for
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your wonderful welcome and I look
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forward to more dialogues with the
00:13:11
Wharton School of Business definitely
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thank you my pleasure
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you
