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India is an infant in the luxury market, says Longchamp CEO

Longchamp CEO
Longchamp CEO Jean Cassegrain.

India is an infant in terms of the luxury market because what is on offer is quite limited, says Jean Cassegrain, CEO of French luxury house Longchamp.

He feels the tax and duty structure and lack of real estate options are “major hurdles” in his brand’s foray in the country.

Longchamp opened its first flagship store for the Indian market last month in the capital. The brand, which was founded in Paris in 1948 by the CEO’s grandfather, Jean Cassegrain, has over 300 exclusive stores worldwide.

SEE ALSO: Longchamp to debut in India

“With over 1.3 billion people, obviously India is a big market. I think we needed to be here… It took us a little bit of time in particular because it is difficult to find good real estate locations for a luxury store in India,” Cassegrain told IANS.

“India is also an emerging market, it is still very much infant in terms of the luxury market because the luxury on offer in India is still quite limited, but I think people can buy only if products are available. So, the job of the brand is to make the products available.”

“Now that we are in the market, I am confident that we can reach a level of success here as well as we did in some of the other places,” Cassegrain said, adding India has been a huge influence in the brand’s designs in the past.