Opportunities for Italian luxury grow in India

The Indian market has room for Italian products, spanning from mechanics and luxury to cars and food, including wine and oil. “This is the new frontier for 'Made in Italy',” senator Adolfo Urso, minister for business and 'Made in Italy' (Mimit), emphasised yesterday. He was visiting the Italian pavilion at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, meeting with representatives from leading Italian industrial and technological companies active in the country, as well as startups present at the forum.

Urso: “It is India’s moment for Italian companies”

“It is India’s moment for Italian companies. Even in 2025, a terrible year for global trade, our exports to the Indian market continued to grow by almost 10 percent," added Urso. "We can now aim to double our exports in the next three years, thanks to the free trade agreement signed by the EU, which should come into force at the end of 2026.”

“Italy is establishing itself among the major global exporters; we are on the right track,” explained the Mimit minister. “We must now seize new opportunities by opening up the major markets of the Persian Gulf and Southeast Asia with other free trade agreements, along the ‘cotton route’: the Emirates, the Gulf, Malaysia, the Philippines, and all the way to Australia.”

India - the new powerhouse of global luxury

According to data from the Global Barometer by Simon-Kucher, a global strategy consulting firm, which surveyed more than one thousand consumers worldwide, India is confirmed as the new powerhouse of global luxury.

According to the research, almost two-thirds of Indian and Chinese consumers have spent over 20,000 euros (23,537 dollars) on luxury goods in the last 24 months. Furthermore, 86 percent of Indian consumers expect to increase their spending further in the next 12 months, which is the most significant figure among all markets analysed.

New purchasing behaviours are also driving India's growth. These include less loyalty to individual brands, a strong focus on status symbols, and a markedly higher propensity for online shopping. Less than 50 percent prefer physical stores, compared to over 70 percent in the US, Europe, and China.

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