Luis Vuitton in Inai

BMA 5504 Global Marketing:

Student: Rolf Paulsen

Student number: A0093317E

Case: Louis Vuitton in India

I see two major challenges in the case given to us on Louis Vuitton’s entry and expansion in the Indian Market:

1. Creating brand awareness and consumer preference for the LV brand in the expanding upper middle class, ensuring that LV does not alienate existing customers

The case shows that LV’s current target segment is mainly the “super rich” that accounts for about 20.000 families in India. This number is expected to grow to 140.000 in by 2010.

This target segment has built their awareness of the brand mainly through travel abroad, and have also done their LV product purchases abroad.

There is an increase in the upper middle class population in India and this will grow from the current level of 97 million to 583 million by 2025.

So LV’s challenge can be described as building consumer awareness and preference in this segment and getting a “share of the wallet” from a consumer segment that will have an explosive growth and ability to purchase luxury goods. LV should also avoid alienating the “super rich” (existing customers) as they want to differentiate them self from the masses.

Creating brand awareness is currently done by LV through the selection of retail locations and marketing in Lifestyle magazines targeted towards the traveler in the up-scale market. Creating word of mouth is also an important part of their awareness concept of LV. I think LV should pursue their global marketing strategy, they should maybe in their ad campaigns evaluating using other profiles/people than they do in the western markets (Bono, Sean Connery, Keith Richards) and selecting people who represent their brand and are more known in India.

I think the best way to grow and not alienating existing customers is to build solid relationships with the existing customers that are loyal and have repeat purchases through the stores. Offering them tailor made...