MBA Analysis: Indo-Western Brands' International Expansion Challenges

This MBA report provides a comprehensive analysis of the challenges and factors affecting the expansion of Indo-Western brands into Western markets. The study investigates the concept of international market expansion, highlighting the difficulties these brands face. It examines key factors such as cultural differences, market strategies, and consumer behavior. The research employs a non-probability purposive sampling questionnaire to identify crucial elements for success in the Western market. The report also includes a literature review, research methodology, key findings, and a conclusion with recommendations for Indo-Western brands aiming for international growth. The report emphasizes the importance of adapting business models and understanding evolving market dynamics. A website has also been created to support the research, and the link has been included at the end of the research.

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INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION OF INDO-WESTERN BRANDS RISING
FROM INDIA

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Executive Summary
Expansion to new international markets can be regarded as the amount with which a certain
product and/or brand is adopted with a new market in comparison to the nature of that
particular market. New market entry is a dynamic and complex in nature and seeks to explain
the extent with which certain products are adopted in a certain market. This study is an
analysis of how Indo-western brands have been having challenges to expand into the western
market. The factors that have affected Indo-western brands entering into the western market
will be highlighted and the concept of international market expansion will be looked at in
detail. The study has aimed to uncover the factors that can help an Indo-western brand
expand to the west by undertaking a non-probability purposive sampling questionnaire and
the results of the study have been outlined. The results of the questionnaire outline the key
factors that a business must focus on in order to expand to and become successful in the
western market.
A website has also been created to support the research, and the link has been included at the
end of the research.

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary............................................................................................................... 2
Table of Contents...................................................................................................................3
Chapter 1 : Introduction..........................................................................................................4
Context to the study............................................................................................................5
Philosophical position.........................................................................................................6
Aim..................................................................................................................................... 8
Objectives........................................................................................................................... 8
Chapter 2 : Literature Review.................................................................................................9
Overview of the study.........................................................................................................9
Conceptual framework......................................................................................................11
Chapter 3 : Research Methodology......................................................................................18
Introduction....................................................................................................................... 18
Research Philosophy (Philosophical Position)..................................................................19
Research design............................................................................................................... 20
Research strategy............................................................................................................. 22
Primary approach............................................................................................................. 23
Sampling strategy............................................................................................................. 24
Data analysis.................................................................................................................... 25
Reliability and validity........................................................................................................28
Ethical considerations.......................................................................................................28
Research limitations.........................................................................................................29
Chapter 4 : Key findings and Conclusion..............................................................................31
Key findings from the questionnaire from the FGD...........................................................31
Summary and conclusion..................................................................................................33
Appendix:............................................................................................................................. 35

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Chapter 1 : Introduction
This research evaluates the factors that affect the success of Indo-western brands expanding
into the West. According to a report by Keller et al. (2014), the global apparel industry is
growing rapidly while at the same time evolving due to a number of factors including
changing demographics, effect of social media, global wealth distribution, customer
expectations, and technological advancements. It goes on to state that for brands to succeed,
they need to be agile and be able to rapidly adapt the business model to make the most of
evolving markets while letting go of traditional practices.
East Asian brands have started to expand to foreign markets with the aim of providing a
variety of both traditional and fusion fashion to their international consumers. However, in
spite of a noticeable growth, Indian brands have faced issues such as cultural problems, lack
of pricing strategies, etc. This research has tried to show the issues which are faced by Indian
designers (with the main focus on Indo-Western brands) while trying to expand their business
to Western countries.
Indo-western brands have been trying to expand into the west for quite some time now,
however their efforts have not borne any meaningful fruits (Aaker & McLoughlin, 2010).
There are various reasons behind this and there are many challenges that the Indo-western
brands actually face in their aim to make an entry in western markets. This particular research
is going to discuss the concept of why Indo-western brands have not been in a position to
successfully expand to the west, and in doing so certain aspects about Indo-western brands
and designs and some market expansion strategies will be looked at. Due to various factors
such as changes in technology among others, we’ve seen that the Indo-western brand and
designs have been evolving. Fashion has taken a completely different turn and things are not
the way they used to be a decade ago. Indo-western brands have done well in various areas

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across the globe such as in some developing countries like Kenya, Tanzania among others
(Ackerman & Fisher, 2013). There has been a challenge, however, that has been noted is that
in the western market, Indo-western brands have not been able to do so well.
It is also important to note that this report will focus solely on Indian brands and some of the
issues that they have faced. Some of the common challenges noticed were; poor marketing
strategies, cultural differences among others. These factors will be discussed later in this
write-up.
Context to the study
Indian fashion brands have been making a lot of effort to succeed in the western countries.
Many areas of the Indian businesses have done well like its technological field, medicine
research and its production and supply and on academical fields. Even in the fashion industry
Indian designers have worked at being creative and modern in their aesthetics, styles and
designs in order to expand their brands in the western countries. However, this field being
highly contemporary and competitive, they have not been too successful in focusing on the
demands of their western customers when enlarging their market in those countries (Liu et al.
2016). However, in a globalised economy, there is a lot of opportunities for brands to expand
internationally and Asian and indo-western brands should look to do this if they are to attain
the same level of success that western brands have been able to get in the eastern and
emerging markets.

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Indo-western brands should learn to adapt and keep up with the constantly changing fashion
industry, be it fast fashion, ecommerce, e-tailing, the digital race or the upcoming trends.
There are a lot of opportunities in the near future. Studies shows that the fashion Industry and
its buying power and audience, its target markets are fast shifting from the West to the
upcoming Asian ad East-asian markets (Keller et all, 2014).
The emerging middle class from developing nations are going through a huge socioeconomic
change, and countries like India, China, Indonesia etc. have started to emerge with higher
spending power in recent years (Eizenberg and Salvo, 2012). There is also a growing
awareness and curiosity among western consumers in asian cultures and sensibilities so
business from these markets should aim to tap into this new and emerging market segment
within the west.
Philosophical position
There has always been an argument that whether or not it is true that Indo-western brands
have been having a challenge in expanding to the western market. This report aims to
ascertain that it is indeed true that there has been a really big challenge in doing so. Various
reasons and factors have been attributed to this and this report aims towards establishing
some of these factors and how they have contributed the state mentioned therein (Gershon,
2013). The report will aim to outline the various ontological, axiological, and epistemological
aspects of the research and elaborate on all of these concerns, and provide justifications for
the different research approaches and choices that have been made in the report. Management
studies, being a multi-disciplined field, can be looked at various different aspects and
viewpoints, and the research will approach this in a specific way which is considered to be
the most appropriate for achieving the research aims.

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A reputable research philosophy has the following characteristics as said by Saunders (2015)
- “assumptions about human knowledge (epistemological assumptions), about the realities
you encounter in your research (ontological assumptions) and the extent and ways your
own values influence your research process (axiological assumptions). These assumptions
inevitably shape how you understand your research questions, the methods you use and how
you interpret your findings”.

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Aim
To identify and evaluate the factors on the challenges faced by Indian brands while
expanding in Western countries. The research will also highlight the lack of strategic business
management by Indian brands in order to expand to the West.
Objectives
1) To critically evaluate the existing literature on overseas expansion by the East
Asian and Indo-Western brands to shed light on the different factors responsible
for the growth of these brands in the western fashion market.
2) To apply the qualitative approach method to assess the perspective of the broader
target market with the help of focus groups. This is to mainly analyse issues
preventing Indian (Indo-Western) brands from expanding to Western countries.
3) To develop recommendations for Indo-Western brands that aim to expand
internationally by informing them on how to make their brands sell in the west.

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Chapter 2 : Literature Review
Overview of the study
The fashion industry is known to be one which is always in flux with the customer’s
preferences which is ever changing, and old trends being replaced by new emerging ones.
Within this environment of constant change, designers, and brands must always keep
themselves up to date on what consumers want, and how their tastes will change in the near
future. This changing landscape creates many opportunities for entrepreneurs to come in and
fill in the gaps in the market which are created by being innovative and satisfying demand.
With this constant competition in mind and the never ending desire to thrive in such a huge
global market, Indo-western brands and business have been attempting their best strategies to
tap into the international fashion market.
The literature review will aim to evaluate the current state of the fashion industry and discuss
the trends and factors which have helped as well as hindered Indian fashion brands to flourish
in foreign countries. Moreover, it has analysed major challenges such as cultural diversity,
economic status, language barrier etc. Which has all been challenges for expanding Indian
brands into the Western countries. According to Cayla and Eckhardt (2007), in spite of many
challenges, the emergence of Asia as a growing force in the international stage, and it’s
recognition in the west presents a big opportunity for modern Asian brands to find their feet
and make a mark in western markets. In order to take advantage of these opportunities, Das
(2007) advocates that Indian brands should leverage their existing strengths, and formulate
strategies for international expansion by looking at the route which has been followed by
brands which have successfully made this transition.
India, in the current international market is a known brand or a tag very much in fashion.

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Like everything else in the current world stage Indian culture has also become a saleable
commodity (Sarulatha, and Sasirekha, 2017). But in terms of the global market , when it
comes to becoming a staple for the average fashion junkie, India still has not provided much
significance. Being a global manufacturing hub, India has always been production oriented.
They are still a developing nation and do not have the sufficient resources to create a
sustainable fashion industry, because of this, its influence in the global fashion industry is
also limited. Their factories are mostly outsourced to international brands like Levis and
Nike. The products of these brands are too expensive for the Indian middle and lower classes,
and most of their own markets are flooded with Chinese mass produced goods.
The conceptual framework below will explain and help the reader understand the reason and
importance of this research, and how it intends to find gaps and opportunities, and bridge out
the differences and create platforms, literature support and common grounds for Indo-
Western brands expansion internationally to the right international markets.
According to Hellman (2017), Indians consider both Indian as well as western dresses/outfit
son many occasions. Due to this familiarity with both types of fashion and apparel, fusion
wear has modernized the Indian fashion industry to a high extent. It is assessed that top-notch
brands focus on different elements in their collection. It still has a long way to go while
considering the market potential for fusion wear in India in the near Past. However, in
contrast to this, BOF (2018) stated that the ethnic Indian wear genre is used in current trends.
It plans to lead the way for women’s wear in India. Indo-western brands have been tracking
the dynamics of ethnic fashion in malls, as well as in standalone stores recently. Among the
current generation, it is evaluated that fashion is starting to become a major concern for
Indian individuals. Further, fashion is determined by the western dresses via social media
influences and cross-cultural influences. It has also been analysed that India has begun to

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follow and be influenced by Indo-western culture wherein they consider traditional as well as
western ensembles in their culture.
Kazi (2018) evaluated that the expansion of Indo-western wear is proving to be a boon for
ethnic fashion in India. Since, customers are willing to consume and experiment products and
it could lead to great demand for Indo-Western brands. This is a key reason that ethnic brands
are generating a wide range of alternatives that a customer can explore for attending special
functions.
Conceptual framework
The conceptual framework will look to outline the issues and challenges faced by the overall
East Asian, Indo-Western/Indian designers while selling their products to the western
consumers. There is also a lack of quality research done within this area with most research
papers focusing on international brands expanding to India rather than the other way round.
These can be considered as gaps in the current literature. In order to address these gaps, the
current research framework has focused on the issues experienced by Indian designers while
expanding their brands in Western countries. This paper aims to address these gaps in the
current literature by undertaking a comprehensive research on this topic. Previous research
within this field has focused on the positive factors of expansion of Indian brands into
western countries. Moreover, they have not thoroughly discussed or defined the challenges
faced by Indian brands while expanding to the West.
For many Indo-western brands and businesses, it has been a trial and error process, in terms
of expanding into the West.
The main challenges have been that many East Asian designers lack creativity and modernity
in their designs, their lack of contemporary and creative Western-oriented design thinking
ends up creating unfamiliarity of the western consumer with these brands.
Lack of accepting modern approaches towards designing innovation in the Indian Fashion

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industry is a huge drawback for Indian Fashion Brands. Indian designers who have been in
the spotlight in the international market have mostly stuck to designing Indian Fashion.
Though it is justified to stick to one's roots and feel pride for one's culture, it needs to be
understood that sticking to one particular idea restricts the audience towards Indian
sensibility. Indian fashion designers need to blend their Indian influences with current fashion
inclinations to create more successful products that can create an interest in the international
market.
Though working with international influences may seem like an easy way to broaden one's
sensibility the real story is something else. A recent survey has mentioned that 91% Indian
designers have tried presenting their portfolio regarding their brands in order to expand to its
foreign counterparts(Todd, Leask &Fyall, 2015). However, they failed to do so because of
the lack of materials, creative and contemporary ideas.
Besides, Indian brands have tried to making Public Private Partnership (PPP) with western
brands in order to expand their market in foreign countries. However, cultural diversity is a
big issue for them due to which designers have experienced communication gaps with their
consumers as well as their western partners. The purchasing behaviour of customers and their
attitude reflected on the selling of Indian fashion accessories. In context of Bombay
Selections Private limited has been noticed that the company has earned only 5% profits
within its foreign market (zaubacorp.com, 2018). The reason behind it was that the company
had produced sarees and the western consumers were not familiar with the ensemble
completely. This indicates that the Indian designers failed to analyse the fashion preferences
of Western customers. This also shows lack of market research and good PR marketing skills
before promoting a product into a new market.
Designers have faced issues due to the huge price of their brands in foreign markets. As per
the arguments of Roll (2015), the designers have purchased materials from foreign countries.

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These in turn have increased their production cost and as a result the prices of the products
are high in the market. In such a case, western consumers preferred their local brands for its
low price and the Indian designers incurred loss. For example, the Indian company Lakme
organized a fashion week in USA where they were only able to sell around 13% of their stock
(lakmeindia.com, 2018) due to its unfamiliarity with its foreign market.
Foreign brands are more familiar to their own local or western brands, rather than Indian
brands according to the relevance of its style and designs. Their own local brands know the
tastes and preferences of its Western customers which to a greater extent is unknown to the
Indo-western brands at times. Though now, the new generation Indo-western designers and
brands are making a better effort at learning and merging themselves with their international
market. The earlier years of expanding businesses and brands into the fashion industry has
been a big challenge.
According to Hellman (2017), some of the key factors holding back Indian brands from being
successful globally are the lack of trust in Indian brands in the global market, lack of
innovation
Among Indian brands, and them not being customer focused. This view has also been
expressed in other articles (Srivastava, 2016).
The fashion industry has maintained a uniquely crowded market globally with all countries
participating and competing in it. With such huge competition in the race there are setbacks
and losses for few businesses which fail to reach up to the high standards cut out for
international expansion.

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Figure 2: Conceptual Framework
In spite of all the challenges, situations and experiences the Indo-western fashion brands face
while trying to expand internationally, there has also been breakthroughs and positive
outcomes with factors that have been responsible for the popularity and growth of Indian
brands in the West.
The Indian fashion industry is just hitting maturity. In the last few Centuries, along with
every other part of the Indian culture, Indian Fashion also suffered monumentally under the
British Raj. Thumbs of workers in textile factories were cut off to prevent them from
manufacturing ‘Muslin’ one of the finest fabrics known to mankind. As a result ‘muslin’ has
now become an extinct commodity (Roy, 2018). This is just one example. The textile

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industry of India was decimated with the British importing factory made clothes from
England while demolishing the cottage and handloom textile industry at the same time to
eliminate competition. Even after this complete devastation of the Indian culture, the country
has successfully managed to turn its fortune around and is currently standing at the precipice
of triumph. Though it has a lot to learn, it has already become a culture that is one of a kind
and is instantly recognisable which contributes to its international brand value as a culture,
and Indian culture has one of the highest brand value in the international consumer market.
Indian, and wider East Asian designers, and people within the fashion industry in India have
tried to grasp and learn the details and the ways in which the western fashion industry works.
These skills and knowledge are mainly learnt and acquired to attract their worldwide
customers. Some new generation Indians have studied western fashion, and in doing so they
have also pushed themselves to learning different languages in order to communicate with
their foreign consumers. All of these efforts and skills have contributed to the growth of
Indian brands in the West (Eom & Seock, 2015).
Some Indian and Indo-Western designers have started creating fine contemporary designs
and workmanship in their products and this has helped consumers notice their brands in spite
of its huge market price in the Western countries. They have also worked on the pricing,
keeping in mind their import and overhead and their overall production budget. Some Indo-
western brands have created fusion styles and fusion accessories in their collection in order to
cater and blend into both cultures. For example, Louis Philippe has produced fashionable
men’s wear where they have provided quasi formal look as well as crafted design for
informal purposes (louisphilippe.com, 2018). By doing so, these brands have been able to
earn a huge profit from foreign countries.

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The fashion industry has a big trend now on growing brand loyalty amongst its customers by
providing infinite choices to them (Liu et al. 2016). All fashion businesses, whether they be
small boutiques to large global conglomerates are now trying to get the attention of
consumers with an ever growing line of offerings from clothing to accessories, and
consumers are spoilt for choice. Fashion houses and brands have tried to connect with the
digital world in order to attract targeted as well as its general consumers. The industry has
thoroughly evaluated their PR and advertising in digital channels, social media majorly, in
order to cater to all of its customers worldwide via e-tailing, pop-ups, fashion shows celebrity
promotions etc. globally.
Fashion trends, by their very nature and definition are transient and represent the preferences
of consumers in terms of the style, and clothing at a particular period in time, and may have
their origins in various cultural, social and economic factors. Hence a fashion trend represents
the affinity for a particular type or types of clothing among a population. There are different
theories in academia regarding the evolution of fashion trends over time. One of these is the
“Trickle Down” theory (Meadows, 2012) where popular people like celebrities and fashion
icons define new trends by being the first ones to adopt new trends, and consumers are then
influenced by these trends and popularize them by trying to emulate them. Another theory is
“Trickle Across” in which fashion trends are spread among different groups of people. The
third one is the “Trickle Up” theory in which it is the various sub-communities, and emerging
street wear trends that influence the popularity of emerging trends. The ever evolving and
changing nature of fashion trends means that fashion trends forecasting is a very important
function within the fashion industry, and many new generation industry people like Indo-
western stylists, buyers, designers, and entrepreneurs want to grow their expertise in this area

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so that they are able to understand the buyers, which will help them meet the demand within
their target market.
Then, comes the role of international marketing and social media, and how it helps brands
grow and reach its customers globally. This is a very strong tool which can bridge the gap
between the East and the western markets and communities all over the world. It can help test
the market and help research the right market for the products and direct the way where a
brand could possibly find success internationally. The marketing and social media strategies
are also useful for a brand to formulate its business plan, design the supply chain, and the
marketing processes that are vital functions for a business that is looking to expand overseas
and gain exposure in western markets.
“As technology gets more and more advanced and the world continues to become smaller and
smaller because of it; those companies that market their product or service effectively
internationally will take advantage of the huge growth potential that international markets
now offer them”(www.cleverism.com, 2015).

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Chapter 3 : Research Methodology
Introduction
The research methodology will give an introduction to the different types of research designs
and strategies, after which the primary approach of this research will be discussed along with
the sampling strategy, and a thorough data analysis will be performed with the help of Focus
Group Discussion (FGD). The validity and reliability of the data will be carried out, and
additionally, the ethical issues around the research, and the limitations of the research will
also be outlined. The aim is to provide insight of the research process clarifying how different
tasks will be undertaken to have the relevant information that will be useful in understanding
the topic under study. This research is based on qualitative methodology as it is more
descriptive which this study requires, and this methodology fits the requirement of the
research topic better.
Qualitative method aims at understanding and providing an explanation of the meaning of the
social aspects with limited disruption of the natural setting (Gibbs, 2008; Dowling & Suchet,
2016).
By using the qualitative method, the research will help support and explain the factors that
are responsible for the growth of Indo-western brands, and determine the best
recommendations for the growth of such brands (Saunders, Lewis &Thornhill 2016, p.183).
In order to get the correct information on the topic, industry people and consumers are the
key sources for the qualitative data, thus their behaviours will provide the reality of the
social-environment situation.
From the application of the research methodology, we will be able to address a systematic
way for the data collection tool and make a reliable decision in context of the current issue

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(Mackey and Gass, 2015). The research methodology is important for the research to help
make a favourable decision and to reach a valid conclusion. This research being a qualitative
method, its descriptive and detailed study will help future students, academics and others
understand this topic in discussion better and in depth.
Research Philosophy (Philosophical Position)
According to Houghton, Hunter & Meskell (2012) research philosophy aims at defining the
basis, description and progress of knowledge under the topic of the study. Research
philosophy aids in assembling the hypothesis and beliefs of the topic to attain precise strategy
of facts gathering. Houghton, Hunter & Meskell (2012) identifies three philosophies:
positivism, interpretivism and realism research philosophies. Based on the topic the research
has chosen to use the interpretivism method. Taking into consideration positivism philosophy
requires the researcher to conduct factual information collection through observation method
since it is entirely dependent on measurable data. On the same note interpretivism philosophy
focuses on collecting socially composed data that is significant in assembling accurate,
reliable and valid information required for the study (Corbally, (2014). Conclusively, realism
research philosophy composes a mixture of interpretivism and positivism philosophies, thus
which is linked with gathering both socially formed and observed data.
The interpretivism process requires the study to interpret the elements of the study since
access to reality is usually socially constructed through various ways such as language,
shared meanings and consciousness. This philosophy supports interactive, cooperative
participation and runs the study on valid grounds to help understand and explain the topic and
to understand the aim of the study in depth. In this process the information the research
acquires from the participants and study are valid, meaningful and helpful to support a good
research topic.

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As stated by Nicotera (2017), interpretivism allows the researcher to interpret the factors of
study as per his or her observation and interpretation skills, supported by the knowledge. This
research philosophy generally focuses more on the meaning of the research subject or
phenomenon and may allow the researcher to apply many processes to reflect various aspects
of the research issue. The researcher, under this philosophy, is able to appreciate the
differences between the people. Thus, as the research study aims to understand the nature and
characteristics of the Indian-Western fashion market, it is important for the researcher to
understand and interpret the perspectives, preferences and differences of the consumers,
which determine the market growth. Hence, interpretivism is more suitable for understanding
the underlying implications of the research issue.
This research aims at understanding the Indian-Western fashion market in different aspects
such as the factors affecting growth, entry into other markets, and consumer preferences of
the brands, and to provide proper recommendations (Dean, 2018).
Research design
Research design refers to the blueprint for the study that provides guidance to the data
collection and analysis process, thus deals with majorly fours issues; the research questions,
the relevance, the data collection, and analysis. According to Ngulube (2015, p.128) research
design is categorized into three major classes: descriptive, casual and exploratory research. In
a research, two to three kinds of tools are considered as mentioned above, namely descriptive,
explanatory, and exploratory method (Flick, 2015). These methods play a diverse role in the
accomplishment of any desired goal in the least amount of time and cost. For conducting this
study, the research will use descriptive research design method as it facilitates the

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comprehension of the relationship between two or more variables. As highlighted by Colorafi
and Evans (2016), descriptive research design includes scientific process of observing and
describing the attitude, behaviour and aptitude of the research subject without influencing it
in any manner. There are three types of descriptive research design, namely, observational,
case study and survey. Nassaji (2015) pointed out that as this research design allows the
researcher to observe the research phenomenon in its unaltered natural environment, the
outcome of the analysis would be more accurate. It is less time consuming than quantitative
experiments, and highly useful for non-quantifiable research topic. However, it cannot verify
the problems statistically.
By doing this the research will determine the relation between Indo-western brands and
international Western expansion. It could be effective for making a reliable conclusion in the
context of the factors on the challenges faced by Indian brands while expanding to Western
countries. The exploratory and explanatory methods could be quite costly and time-
consuming hence these methods will not be considered for the research.
A research design once formulated, also uses certain types of methods that are considered,
namely inductive approach and deductive approach (Lewis, 2015). The inductive approach is
used for collecting the conceptual information towards the specified research matter while the
deductive approach is to enable and make the research hypothesis and collect data
appropriately. For conducting this research which aims to generate meaning, validity and
support from the descriptive data collected, the inductive approach will be practiced as it
could be useful in obtaining information on the factors and challenges faced by Indian brands
while expanding in Western countries. This method can be most suitable as compared to the
deductive method because the research is subjective in nature. Under inductive research
approach, the questions are open-ended and process oriented and it allows the researcher to
derive a generalized solution from a specific set of events (Sekaran and Bougie 2016). This

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approach is useful for exploring the research topic in an untested direction and deriving new
findings.
A research design is a strategy or rather a technique that is often used to integrate different
components of a certain study so as to be in a position to address the research question in a
very satisfactory manner. It should also be noted that these various components should be
arranged in a very logic and coherent manner (Gupta, 2014 p.83).As indicated above, the aim
of this particular study is to categorically identify as well as evaluate some of the crucial
factors that cause challenges to Indian brands as they try to expand in western countries. First
and foremost, there is the literature review that specifically seeks to review some of the
important aspects concerning the issue under study that has already been conducted by other
researchers and scholars (Rajaram, 2014 p.88).In doing so, this component has highlighted a
number of aspects such as statistics that are available regarding the issue of Indian brands
expanding into the west among others. Secondly there is the research methodology; the
component of this study specifically focuses on the means and methods of data collection.
This study being qualitative in nature, only qualitative methods of data collection will be
explored. Here it should be noted that quite a number of qualitative techniques of data
collection are used such as case studies, use of questionnaires, interviews both direct and
indirect interviews (Mann & Byun, 2011).
It is however, important to note that answering the research questions and meeting the aims
and objectives of the entire study is the main purpose of a discrete and concrete research
design (Jones, 2011). Various variables will be identified as indicated in the research question
and there would be a thorough explanation of what each of these variables mean. A
relationship will then be identified that links up these various variables so as to be in a
position to nail down the research question in a much perfect manner to meet the aims and
objectives of the study. As mentioned earlier, this study aims to determine why Indian brands

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are not able to establish a presence the western market. The nature of both the European
market as well as that of Indian brands have been explained earlier. From the nature of these
two variables, a connection is identified and the reasons for the failure of Indian brands to
penetrate the Western market has been highlighted. This nature of the two markets will be
conducted through a thorough analysis of various case studies and other forms of empirical
data (Krishnamacharyulu, 2010 ). The use of questionnaires and interview will however, be
the main source of information that would be exploited in this particular study. These
questionnaires and interviews will target both the Indian population and the western
population.
Exploratory research emphasizes on finding thoughts and insights; the causal research
design aims at identifying the cause and effect relationships in variables under the study;
while the descriptive research design is majorly concerned with the determination of the
frequency with which an aspect takes place or the relationship between the variables under
the guidance of the hypothesis (Boros, 2018).
The research is designed to investigate the international expansion of Indo-western brands
rising from India. To specify the data required to understand the international expansion of
Indo-western brands in India, an appropriate research design is needed that will ensure
accurate data is collected, managed, recorded, coded, and analysed, and the results presented
to the stakeholders.
Research strategy
This research study has considered many types of strategies to accomplish its aims. These
strategies are the survey through questionnaire method, interview method, observation,
content analysis, and case study. For systematically accomplishing the aim and objectives of
this particular research, the study will use survey through questionnaire method as this allows
to collect opinion and views of the research candidates towards the research issue. A survey

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can be effective for getting reliable and valid information in the context of the current issue
(Brinkmann, 2014). Through this method, we will be able to evaluate content for the
accomplishment of the research. A research strategy is basically a well arranged plan that is
often step-wise that enables one to give a concrete direction of the thoughts to be conveyed
by carefully analyzing obtaining the results from the various methods of data collection such
as surveying, use of questionnaires, intervening, and case studies among others. For this
particular research, questionnaires were prepared and as mentioned earlier they targeted both
the western population as well as the Indian population. Various questions were designed that
enabled one to give very important and circumstantial information regarding the issue under
consideration (Mills, Phadke, Wiser, 2011 p.29).
Primary approach
This primary approach of the research is to take a qualitative rather than a quantitative based
one. As mentioned earlier, it seeks to determine the reasons as to why and some of the factors
that have contributed to Indian brands not expanding to western market. In order to
understand this, there are various key primary approaches that need to be considered and
understood (Chowdhary, 2018). For instance, one should have a clear understanding of the
nature of western markets as well as the nature of the Indian brands. This forms the basis of
this particular research. These two aspects should therefore be understood so that this
research can carry on successfully.
In the given research, focus group approach has been adopted. Focus group primary approach
is very useful in the marketing research. This is a qualitative research tool. It helps in gaining
an in-depth insight about the viewpoints of a certain group or profile of the respondents about
a particular research topic (Carey and Asbury 2016). For this given study on the international
expansion of Indian-Western fashion market, it is important to get an idea about the
perspectives of the target market and existing consumers, and hence, the focus group

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approach is chosen. 5 participants have been considered for the focus group. Usually open
ended questions are asked to the focus group participants to get an idea about their thoughts
or attitudes towards the research topic. It is quite useful for marketing research, as the
marketers try to gain information about the products, brands, related images, advertisements,
symbols or concepts (Hopkins 2016). That helps them to make strategies for the broader
market. However, the questions should be made in a manner so that the participants provide
honest responses.
These 5 participants will be chosen through purposive sampling, which is a non-probability
sampling. Under non-probability sampling, each sample does not have equal or random
opportunity of being selected and its selection mostly depends on the judgment of the
researcher. Hence, by applying this sampling, 5 people with shared characteristics will be
chosen for forming the focus group.
Sampling strategy
Sampling plays a very important role in any research. In many cases, it’s often quite tiresome
or even impossible to fully observe and/or interview an entire population. Sampling comes in
here. A sample is therefore made that fully represents the entire population and an interview
of survey is done for that selected population (De Mooji, 2018) In this case, there are various
western countries that Indian brands are trying to diversify to. Carrying out interview of all
these countries and all people would be quite tedious. Therefore a small but effective sample
was taken that represented both the countries. The sampling that was done was very
particular and specific. In order for the above, a sampling method was selected. As sampling
method permits a research to select a suitable sample size for conducting a study, the research
has considered two kinds of methods namely probability and non-probability sampling
method. Furthermore, the probability sampling method tool can enable the study to select the

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research candidates and get their opinion towards the research matter (Lewis, 2015). This
method facilitates each study to give equal chance for their candidates to participate in the
research. Non-probability research method facilitates to select the research candidates on
behalf of certain factors such as age, gender, experience, region, and education. For this
research, we will use a non-probability sampling method since it is easier to find candidates
that fit the sample criterial, which will be most effective(Flick, 2015).
Population forms the border group under the study that is intended to provide data for the
analysis and generalization. However, the population at times is large and makes it difficult to
collect accurate data; the study opts to have samples to authenticate their results. Sample size
means a subset of the population size that is intended to participate in the research study
either through qualitative or quantitative method (Farghaly, 2018).
Purposive sampling method will be used to select the participants since it is the only method
that will ensure participants who have the required information to participate in the process to
maintain plausible sample. As stated by Etikan, Musa and Alkassim (2016), purposive
sampling is applied when the researcher thinks that the participants have similar
characteristics and thereby can provide useful information regarding the research subject.
This sampling method is highly effective when only a few or limited number of people can be
chosen as primary data sources as per the demands of the research topic, aims and objectives.
Hence, few people with a specific characteristic can be chosen through this non-probability
sampling for serving a specific purpose.
Data analysis
The data analysis and data collection process is the utmost important part of the research
methodology process as it aids in computing the data. Descriptive and inferential are the
commonly applied statistical data analysis methods used by researchers. Rutberg and

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Bouikidis (2018) denotes that descriptive research as the method that record data from cluster
members and summarizes the figures in the system of the group characteristics to enable the
derivation of mean; mode, median, standard deviation and use of charts. Inferential statistics
entails the exploration of precise groups of a sample from the whole population magnitude
and enables the respect to generalize the population (Gupta, Mohan et al, 2018). Fletcher
(2016) identifies two common methods used in data collections: primary and secondary
information assembling. The primary data gathering aims at directing response from the
participants while the secondary data collection method aims to collect data from the past
works related to the topic. Based on the research topic and the research method, the best
technique is primary data collection that will be majored on the focus group to provide views,
beliefs, meanings, insights in regard to the indo-western designs.
Qualitative data analysis starts during the discussion period when rich data is generated from
the participants. The stage will be followed by familiarization with the data with an aim to
immerse in the details and get the sense of the data, followed by the identification of the
thematic framework so as to help the research arrange them accordingly. Focus group
discussion (FGD) generally yields qualitative and observational data that requires intensive
analysis to have accurate and clear results. Rutberg and Bouikidis (2018) suggest that the best
analysis methods used in qualitative research on FGD. Focus Group discussion (FGD) being
a part of qualitative research method, it is also characterized by a preset semi-structured
interview, always conducted by a facilitator to stimulate accurate responses and ignite debate
among the participants. Since the aim of the research is to gain views, factors and personal
preconditions on the Indo-Western brands, FGD becomes the best data collection and
technique essential in marketing, and thus able to provide better recommendations for market
entry of the brands. The focus group will be a mixture of ages from 20 to 60 years since they
are a bracket that is much focused on the fashion industry.

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According to Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill (2016)the recruitment process is very crucial
since over-recruitment might bring management challenges while under-recruitment will
pose under discussion of the participants; therefore suggest a range between 6-8 participants
for each meeting for the success of the FGD. The participants finally added up to 5
candidates from within the fashion industry from New-Delhi India and the UK. They were
chosen to ensure that the FGD would yield premium results as regard to the research.
The participants comprised of people who have travelled internationally and lived abroad,
they all work well within the fashion industry as designers, Creative director’s ad stylists of
well known international magazines, and from technical field as well, and this is done
through convenience sampling. From this FGD, the research is capable of linking the
participant’s perception and their socio-cultural that controls their decision making on the
Indo-Western brands.
The data obtained from the various interviews conducted both direct and indirect interview
was very significant. The questionnaire survey conducted provided a concrete and a
significant amount of data that played a very crucial role towards pinning down the research
question.
First and foremost, it was noted that international market expansion is quite dynamic
compared to local and/or domestic market expansion. International market expansion is
much more complex and it requires the highest degree of flexibility and aptitude. Basically,
before the entry into any foreign market whatsoever, it’s often necessary that one determines
the cost-benefit issues that would arise as a result of entry into that particular market.
From the data obtained, it was also found out that western market expansion not just for Indo-
western brands but also for other brands as well requires the art of good and/or perfect
timing. Timing is very important here, this is mainly because the western market is quite

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dynamic and complex in nature. It’s a market that changes its taste and preferences quite fast
and therefore timing should be made before an entry is made into this market. Other factors
about the western market that should be considered so as to facilitate the entry of Indian
brands are the strict government policies and regulations. It was also noted that there are
already other western brands that are dominating the market in the western countries. These
dominating brands have made an entry and they have a very high market share advantage.
This has been attributed to various reasons but the data obtained shows that it’s because they
made a quick entry and had the time to make an impression that is still concrete to customers.
The findings of this study agreed with what previous studies have indicated. This study is
very consistent and it clearly and strongly indicated that the Indian brand is still successful in
the international market. For quite some time now, the Indian culture has proven to be an
extremely stable commodity (Milligan & Kirby, 2010). However, it is also important to note
that the Indian brand has only broken the international veil in various developing counties but
in the western countries the Indian brand has not yet been in a position to provide anything
significant. Basically, the Indian brands has been considered as just an average fashion junkie
(De, 2018). Various reasons have been attributed to this. It is important to note that India is
just another developing country and it does not have the necessary resources required to be in
a position to create a much more sustainable fashion industry so as to have an influence into
the larger fashion industry.
Moreover, the Indian brand is considered to be less superior compared to some other already
established western brands such as Nike, Adidas and Levis. Indian brands cannot outdo these
already established brands which have been in a position to make an emotional influence to
the western market. The customers in the western market therefore see the Indian brand as
just an average brand (Khaire & Hall, 2016).

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Reliability and validity
The study is reliable, because the results and findings obtained from this particular research,
like other studies done before can be reproduced by other researchers at different times. It is,
however, important to note that the time frame is a factor here. It can really influence the
nature of the results obtained (Alon, Littrell, Chan, 2010).As we all know, market trends
change each and every day due to the continuously changing technology. Different results
could therefore be obtained once this same research is conducted sometime in the future. In
regard to validity, this particular research and its results are very valid. This is so because the
research was focused on both geographical regions. Valid information can be obtained from
various participants from both regions using this (Arkolakis, 2010 ).
Ethical considerations
Ethical consideration is imperative for conducting suitable behaviour during the research
issue. There are certain factors that could be considered by the investigator to eliminate
ethical issues namely plagiarism, data manipulation, university guidelines, and references
(Brinkmann, 2014). Moreover, the research has secured the confidential information of
research that its participants have shared at the time of conducting the research. It is evaluated
that the study has also used ethical norms and comprehended the code of conduct during the
research as it is important for the accomplishment of the desired goal and objectives (Lewis,
2015).
The research was conducted in a very ethical manner. All ethical considerations were looked
at and there was no breach of any ethical considerations. For instance, the confidentiality of
the participants is fully assured. Information obtained from participants is solely used for the
research purpose and it is confidential. Moreover, there were no cases of data manipulation in
this research, data obtained was used as it is and it yield the results that have been discussed
above. Finally, no cases of plagiarism as to my knowledge.

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Research limitations
The research limitation can adversely impact on the research outcome. There are certain
factors that influences the research outcome like time, cost, and lack of research skills.
Hence, the study has concentrated on these factors and made a reliable decision in the context
of the current matter. It is evaluated that the data collection research activity can be costly
and time consuming that can impact on the research outcome. Apart from this, it is has also
been seen that the lack of research skills could also create issues in the accomplishment of a
research task (Mackey and Gass, 2015).
For this particular research there wasn’t much limitations faced. However, the focus group
size was a small one, due to the time constraint. Getting the candidates together in a room and
some via skype to join our discussion took some extra coordination work, since everyone was
not present at the same time. This Focus group came together finally after four attempts to get
the whole group together in a room.
The research was conducted in a very ethical manner. All ethical considerations were looked
at and there was no breach of any ethical considerations. For instance, as mentioned earlier,
the confidentiality of the participants was fully assured. Information obtained from
participants was solely used for the research purpose and it was confidential (Bain, 2010).

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Chapter 4 : Key findings and Conclusion
Key findings from the questionnaire from the FGD
The following six questions were put forward to the focus group for discussion:
1 What are the different factors responsible for the growth of Indian brands in the
western fashion market?
2 What are the issues preventing the overall East Asian brands from expansion to
Western countries?
3 What are the preferences of Western consumers with regard to Indo-Western brands?
4 What pricing strategy can be followed by Indo-Western brands to become competitive
in the western markets?
5 Which are the western markets where Indo-Western brands are likely to have success?
6 What recommendations can be provided to Indo-western designers in order to grow
their business in the West?
On the first question from the group about the different factors responsible for the growth of
Indian brands in the Western fashion market, the candidates came with the following
answers. Candidate 1 said that the globalisation of fashion trends and the fashion companies
have made it responsible for the expansion of Indo-western brands. Candidate 2 talked about
the exotic textile and embroidery work from India which are well known all over the world,
and the cheap labour and production cost that has made it possible for Indian brands to thrive
internationally. Candidate 3 and 5 agreed that globalisation encourages the expansion of
markets around the world, and that this has been the driving force behind expansion of Indo-
Western brands to the west. Candidates 2 and 3 also agreed on the quality of the textile and
yarn that India produces e.g. cotton and silk that are attractive to international consumers,
whereas candidate 4 talked about the want to be western mentality of Indians and their
brands, and the bigger spending power of developed countries. For this question, the focus
group finally arrived to the conclusion that the main factors responsible for the growth of

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Indo-western brands internationally are globalisation, and the existing capability in
production and manufacturing. For the second question about the issues preventing the east
Asian brands internationally, candidates 1, 3 and 5 agreed on the lack of familiarity of eastern
fashion among western consumers, cultural differences between the two markets as the major
factors that is preventing the expansion of indo-western brands. Candidates 1 and 4 talked
about the high cost of running businesses and the expenses incurred preventing such aspiring
brands from expanding internationally. Candidate 2 talked about quality control and testing
of the products, and their associated costs. With this, the group arrived to the conclusion that
one of the main issues holding back international expansion are cultural factors between
countries, and the export costs and prices. On the third question on the preferences of western
consumers with regard to Indo Western brands, all of the candidates had their own opinions.
Candidate 2 and 4 agreed on maintaining an Indian element to their brand, while candidate 1
talked about western consumers being more familiar with their own styles of fashion and
brands rather that Indo-western brands. Candidate 5 talked about the varying choices of
consumers in the western markets. The group arrived to the conclusion that in the end it is all
about understanding the trends on the market and the international clientele well, and keeping
in mind that Indo-western brands can be of many different types. The fourth question about
what pricing strategy can be followed by Indo-western brands to become competitive in the
market, candidates 1 and 3 agreed to study the western markets and the target consumers
carefully before setting up a pricing strategy, psychology pricing and competitive pricing for
the market segment in the area that they are looking to cater to. Candidate 2, 4 and 5 agreed
that Indo western brands are reasonably priced, just that they should export in large quantities
so that pricing can be cheaper for bulk orders. With this the group arrived to the conclusion
about understanding their target consumers and market better, and to arrive to a better pricing
strategy by selling at competitive rates with the help of bigger orders. The next question on

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which international markets, Indo-western brands are likely to have success, candidates 1, 2
and 5 agreed that Indo-western brands are likely to have success in markets which have
strong ties to India, and a mixed community where they will have a better chance at faster
brand recognition. Candidate 4 had the opinion that wherever a business could thrive and the
international access is easy, that is where a brand should have success. The group arrived at
the conclusion that brand familiarity matters while expanding to international markets.
Finally on the last question about recommendations which could be provided to Indo-western
designers for international expansion, candidate 1 and 3 spoke that designers and businesses
should look at adapting their designs to cater to the taste and sensibilities of the western
markets in order to grow their business there. Candidates 1 and 5 agreed on adaptation and a
thorough market research in order to grow a business. Candidate 2 and 5 further talked about
bigger export quantities, candidate 2 talked about the importance of supply to well-known
departmental stores, and having good agents to promote the brands internationally, to which
candidate 5 and candidate 1 added that having a local distributor or agent in an international
market is a good option to grow the business further. The recommendation of the group was
to adapt and cater to the tastes of the market where you intend to expand, have good local
agents and distributors, export in bulk to help costing, and a thorough market research.
Summary and conclusion
The purpose of the research is to study the international expansion of indo-western brands
rising from India, thus entails exploration of customer and industry peoples values,
perspectives and behaviours towards the fashion changes in India and western regions. The
research has used qualitative research approach, through the focus group to collect data. The
collected data then analysed through qualitative analytical approach to achieve the objective
of the study. The results of the focus group have shown that there is both a risk as well as a
reward element to Indo-western brands looking to expand globally. While on the one hand,

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expansion to western markets is challenging for brands, and difficult to get right, there are big
opportunities for brands that are able to bridge the gap effectively and become successful.
For Indo-western fashion brands to become successful, they must ensure that their business
strategies are geared towards fulfilling the requirements of their particular market segments.
One of the ways that this can be achieved is by studying existing Indo-western brands and
finding out what business strategies they have used to successfully expand to foreign fashion
markets.
Taking an example of the UK in terms of international expansion, the UK market is
becoming increasingly diverse. A recent report showed that minority ethnic groups in the UK
now make up 12% of the UK population, and have a significant purchasing power of £300
billion with some of the groups being the most affluent within the UK (Mediatel.co.uk,
2012). To appeal to this market for multi-cultural fashion, entrepreneurs need to implement
new business models within this consumer segment which address the wants of these
particular customers. Within a marketing perspective, Indo-Western and East meets west
fashion is part of a wider consumer marketing strategy, which needs to be used by businesses
in order to appeal to a diverse society in the current day and age.
Comparison of findings with literature review
The aim of the research study was to evaluate the factors of expansion of the Indian-Western
fashion brands in the global market and address the challenges. Primary research was
conducted by using a focus group with 5 members. Similarly, an extensive literature review
was also conducted to highlight various aspects of the international brand expansions and
factors of growth of the fashion industry in India to prepare the conceptual framework of the
study. By comparing the findings of the research study and the content of literature review,
some significant inferences can be made.

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Firstly, it is found from the data analysis, that globalisation is the major factor that helps in
the growth of the brands. As per majority of the focus group members, globalization has
helped the Indian brands and apparels to reach to a wider international target market. Along
with that, cheaper labour and cheaper production cost helped the textile companies in the
western market to outsource their manufacturing to India, and thus, the Indian brands are also
getting exposure in this way. Moreover, the exotic fabric and product quality of Indian brands
have also helped it to reach out to the global market. According to the literature review, it is
seen that, the Indian fashion industry has been focusing on the product quality since historical
times (Hellman 2017; Roy 2018) and this has helped the Indian fashion industry to establish
its name in the international market. The trend is still continuing.
Secondly, from the data analysis, it is seen that there is lack of familiarity of the Indian
brands in the western market and larger export can be helpful as the production price is
lower. This view was existing in the literatures. Srivastava (2016) and BOF (2018) have
highlighted that Indian fashion brands initially did not incorporate the cultural blend in their
fashion, and the level of export was also low. Thus, the western market was familiar with the
upcoming Indian fashion brands. Moreover, the Indian brands only focused on producing
traditional wear, which also did not bring popularity among the western market. However, in
the recent times, with growing exposure to the international fashion and cultural blending in
the designs, the situation has been improving.
Thirdly, the response data also highlighted that competitive pricing is highly important in
brand expansion in the international market, and this view can be supported with the view of
Roll (2015). Higher price of unknown brands can turn off the consumers and hence, it is
important for the Indian brands to capture the market share by introducing competitive
pricing.

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Thus, it can be said that the findings of the focus group data have quite a few similarities with
the findings from literature review. Although, the literature review is vast and has addressed
many more factors, the focus group data is limited and has focused only on few factors, like
globalisation, competitive pricing, cheaper production, larger export volume and establishing
brand familiarity in the western market.

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References
Carey, M.A. and Asbury, J.E., 2016. Focus group research. Routledge.
Colorafi, K.J. and Evans, B., 2016. Qualitative descriptive methods in health science
research. HERD: Health Environments Research & Design Journal, 9(4), pp.16-25.
Etikan, I., Musa, S.A. and Alkassim, R.S., 2016. Comparison of convenience sampling and
purposive sampling. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics, 5(1), pp.1-4.
Hopkins, P., 2016. Focus Groups. International Encyclopedia of Geography: People, the
Earth, Environment and Technology: People, the Earth, Environment and Technology, pp.1-
4.
Nassaji, H., 2015. Qualitative and descriptive research: Data type versus data analysis.
Nicotera, A.M., 2017. Paradigms. The International Encyclopedia of Organizational
Communication, pp.1-14.
Sekaran, U. and Bougie, R., 2016. Research methods for business: A skill building approach.
John Wiley & Sons.

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Appendix:
FOCUS GROUP QUESTIONNAIRE:
2nd Cnadidate:
7 What are the different factors responsible for the growth of Indian brands in the
western fashion market?
The textile, embroidery work from India is well known. Production and labour cost is cheap.
8 What are the issues preventing the overall East Asian brands from expansion to
Western countries?
Quality control
9 What are the preferences of Western consumers with regard to Indo-Western brands?
They seem to like the thought of Organic, cotton fabrics, bohemian choices. Indian cotton.
10 What pricing strategy can be followed by Indo-Western brands to become competitive
in the western markets?
Indo-western brands sell cheap, the only issue is the export cost. So I suppose export in larger
quantities, so that Pricing can be cheaper in bulk orders.
11 Which are the western markets where Indo-Western brands are likely to have success?
It depends on the community too. Example the bigger Indian- western mix community, the
better chances at faster brand recognition.
12 What recommendations can be provided to Indo-western designers in order to grow
their business in the West?
Export in bigger quantities.
Supply to well known departmental stores/stores.
Contact good agents and distributors.
Have agents to promote your brand.
3rd Candidate:

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13 What are the different factors responsible for the growth of Indian brands in the
western fashion market?
14 Globalization- globalization encourages the expansion of markets across the world,
thus the introduction of Indian into the western culture.
15 Quality – the quality of the yarn from the Indian produce good quality clothes that are
attractive to the western people.
16 What are the issues preventing the overall East Asian brands from expansion to
Western countries?
Cultural differences between the western and East Asian countries are the major factor that is
preventing the expansion of the Indian brand. The Indian brands wear full dress both men and
women unlike in the western culture that the gender wears are different in both sexes.
 What are the preferences of Western consumers with regard to Indo-Western brands?
 Kazo
 Faballey
 Biba
 What pricing strategy can be followed by Indo-Western brands to become competitive
in the western markets?
The best pricing strategy for the indo-western brands is the psychology pricing. Through the
psychology pricing, the retailers are capable of changing the cultural nature of the western
culture to extensively embrace the Indian culture.
 Which are the western markets where Indo-Western brands are likely to have success?
Canada
Mexico
France
 What recommendations can be provided to Indo-western designers in order to grow
their business in the West?
 The indo-Western designers so should understand the taste of the western customers
in terms of fashion and this would be achieved through extensive market research.
 The designers should develop long-time relationship with the customers to increase
the sales; since the best relationship will enable them to determine the best cost of the
products.
4th candidate:

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17 What are the different factors responsible for the growth of Indian brands in the
western fashion market?
The want to be Western mentality of an Indian and its brand. Business opportunities too of
course. Bigger spending power of the developed countries.
18 What are the issues preventing the overall East Asian brands from expansion to
Western countries?
Too orthodox. Always expensive due to the export costs from the East to the West.
19 What are the preferences of Western consumers with regard to Indo-Western brands?
Western consumers, when they buy into an Indo-western brand they still like typical
Indian/eastern products as they expect that out of a foreign brand from a certain country a lot
of times. They aren’t interested in a try-hard Indo-Western brand, there are enough western
brands, why would they want to buy into another western look alike brand.
20 What pricing strategy can be followed by Indo-Western brands to become competitive
in the western markets?
Produce cheap and make big orders, I agree with candidate 2.
21 Which are the western markets where Indo-Western brands are likely to have success?
Anywhere where the business allows, and the visa is accepted.
22 What recommendations can be provided to Indo-western designers in order to grow
their business in the West?
Be more authentic. Instead of selling Indo-western, try to sell being Indian. That
might sell more for a niche store.
Candidate 5:
23 What are the different factors responsible for the growth of Indian brands in the
western fashion market?
I agree that globalisation of the fashion industry, lifestyle changes etc. have been the
driving forces behind expansion to the west.

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24 What are the issues preventing the overall East Asian brands from expansion to
Western countries?
Yes, cultural differences is huge and unless we modernise and westernise ourselves,
the west doesn’t seem to accept us.
25 What are the preferences of Western consumers with regard to Indo-Western brands?
International consumers, they like whatever suits them. Someday they like a kaftan,
someday a sari, and someday a fully western ensemble. It is hard to please
international customers.
26 What pricing strategy can be followed by Indo-Western brands to become competitive
in the western markets?
Yes, agree with 2 and 4.
27 Which are the western markets where Indo-Western brands are likely to have success?
I agree with candidate 1 and 2.
28 What recommendations can be provided to Indo-western designers in order to grow
their business in the West?
Yes. Adapt to the market where you want to expand. Thorough market research is
required and capital.