Lighting major Philips is increasing its focus on the home decorative lighting market, an area it ventured into last year.
The Rs 300-crore home decorative lighting market is a small constituent of the Rs 5,000-crore lighting market in India. But it is growing at 20 per cent yearly, in comparison to the overall lighting industry’s seven per cent growth rate, say experts.
By home decorative, the reference is to designer lamps, luminaires, lighting fixtures, etc, slowly but steadily finding a place in Indian households, especially in urban areas, as living standards and aspirations grow with higher disposable incomes.
Philips, which derives over half its revenue from selling traditional lighting equipment, fixtures, etc to retail and institutional customers, has been looking to strengthen its presence in emerging segments, says R Nandakishore, head of the company’s modular switches and consumer luminaire business. “This market presents us with an opportunity to do that,” he says.
To woo consumers, the company is increasing its retail presence through Light Lounges — basically experience centres. Forty of these are operational at the moment in key cities and towns, says Nandakishore. “Consumers can walk in and see for themselves what is on offer.
We have interesting display areas, where consumers can figure out how the product will look like in their homes,” he says. “If interested, they can purchase the product as well at the centre.”
Philips’ product portfolio is robust, with over 500 designs spanning lamps, luminaires and designer fixtures, says Nandkishore, priced between Rs 500 to Rs 40,000. “When they are displayed under one roof, it makes a big difference,” says Nandakishore.
Philips hopes to take its revenues from this division, currently five to six per cent, to about 15 per cent in the next few years, says Nandakishore.
This aggression, he says, is imperative, since India is the second-largest market for home decorative lighting, after Europe. “The possibilities are immense. There is interest coming from consumers; we have to tap into it,” he says.
Rivals such as Havells and Bajaj, say industry experts, could do likewise on the opportunity emerging in this segment. Havells, says the company’s head, marketing, Vijay Narayanan, recently opened experience centres called Havells’ World in Mumbai and Delhi. These operate on the lines of Philips’ Light Lounges, except the company doesn’t sell products there. “On display here are products that we have in our portfolio. It’s a concept store, which we hope will take off,” says Narayanan.
