The fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) market in rural India is tipped to touch $100 billion (around Rs 45,735 crore) by 2025 on the back of "unrelenting" demand driven by rising income levels, according to a study by research firm The Nielsen Company.
"The Indian rural market is set to become a $100 billion opportunity for retail spending in the next fifteen years," according to a statement released by the company today.
According to Nielsen, rural India accounts for more than half of sales in some of the largest FMCG categories.
"While the ability of lower priced packs to improve accessibility is known, their pace and presence has been unrelenting," The Nielsen Company India Vice President Prashant Singh said.
In addition, premium skin care brands typically associated with the urban population are growing nearly twice as fast in rural areas, he added.
At present, rural consumers spend about $9 billion per annum on FMCG items and product categories such as instant noodles, deodorant and fabric, with the pace of consumption growing much faster than urban areas, as per the findings.
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The Nielsen study also suggests that the number of direct-to-home television connections in rural areas is already more than double that of urban centres and growing dramatically. "Today, two out of five new mobile telephone connections are in rural," the statement added.
"These findings have wide-ranging, practical implications for creating successful portfolio strategies and packaging formats that recognise these traits and appeal to the rural consumers' senses," Singh said.