US brands eager to adorn Indian malls

Consumer goods brands from the United States may soon find a place on the floors of Indian retail malls, if the efforts of the US Consulate in India succeed, that is.

Jim Cunningham, Commercial Consul for the US, told media persons here on Monday that his office was in talks with big players in the Indian retail sector to open their shop floors for American consumer goods companies for test marketing purposes.

Cunningham participated in a media briefing organised by the Pune chapter of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC).

He said many consumer goods manufacturers in the US would be eager to promote their products in India and were interested in devising a test marketing programme for them in the country.

Cunningham did not disclose any specifics but said the consulate was in talks with the Indian retail majors like Reliance to check out the possibilities of offering the American companies a platform to promote their brands among Indian consumers, know the consumer preferences and the price points at which the products can get some acceptability.

"The effort," Cunningham said, "was to help the US to double its bi-lateral trade with India."

Cunningham said the export from the US to India had seen a rise of $10 billion over the last four years and there was a huge scope for businesses in either country to strengthen relationships in the areas of information technology, automotives, retail or consumer goods.