Not foreign anymore: Indian brands are embracing western festivities & how

The influence of western holidays and festivities has been visible in the Indian culture for long, but more recently brands have been seen popularising and embracing celebrations that were still a foreign concept to us. Halloween, Black Friday and Thanksgiving are no longer confined to American sitcoms and have quite become a way of life.

What led to this shift and how is it influencing the commerce landscape of the country? We asked experts to share the fine print beneath renewed marketing strategies around these festivals and what has prompted Indian brands to look beyond Christmas and New Year celebrations?

According to Geetika Mehta, Managing Director of Hershey India, “We live in a cultural environment, and we celebrate everything right from Diwali to Christmas, Navratri and Eid. So just like that Halloween is another day, a fun day for kids. It is important for us to be where the consumers are. And consumers like to celebrate these days.”

With the advent of technology and exposure to various cultures, people have become more accepting and are learning to appreciate different customs. Digital has a big role to play here. Seconding this, Pooja Sahgal, Chief Marketing Officer at Raymond Consumer Care, said, “I think it is because of digital as you can see content anyway. Today, thanks to digital, everyone knows everything. And India continues to be very deal-seeking. So, whenever there is a big festival like Black Friday, we've seen a lot of consumers ask about special promotions or deals. So, we started customising and strategising accordingly.”

“Premium brands are definitely embracing all the holidays and festivals. And I think it's just a great way to market and connect to the consumer,” she said. 

Sahgal also believes that Covid and the two years spent in lockdown have led people to look for reasons to celebrate. Halloween and Black Friday are close to the time frame of the Indian festive period and it falls between Diwali and Christmas, she notes. “So, a lot of people are embracing these festivals as one more reason to enjoy. You can say that this is revenge spending. There's also a revenge celebration.”

This November 25, numerous Indian brands joined the Black Friday bandwagon, offering multiple discounts. Officials at R City Mall shared they had planned a three-day campaign wherein fashion brands offered massive discounts. 

“Indian brands are looking at new ways to cash in. Borrowed from the US, Black Friday sales and Halloween sales have picked up in India thus reporting a big surge in numbers. The phenomenal trend influenced by the West is a win-win situation, wherein customers get good deals and brands register good business numbers,” the mall’s spokesperson said. 

As for Nisha Sampath, Brand Consultant, and Managing Partner at Bright Angles Consulting, “The landscape has not really changed. Western culture has always been aspirational to Indian audiences, especially among the young. Affluence, growing exposure to social media, connection with a growing ex-pat audience, and celebrations facilitated locally by marketers, have made it possible for Indians to celebrate American festivals locally.” 

“We also enjoy socialising and when marketers open up new occasions and avenues we tend to embrace them,” she added. 

Speaking on brands jumping onto the bandwagon, Lloyd Mathias, business strategist and angel investor, said, “Brands use these ‘festivals’ for moment marketing and to tell their story and weave in buying occasions. With social media as a key marketing tool, it is easy to create topical communication built around these festivals. With a 12-month marketing calendar built around digital and social media, every such occasion – Independence Day, Republic Day, Children's Day and Women’s Day – has become occasions to be ‘celebrated’.”

With the upcoming holiday season, brands are gearing up to woo the audience with various offers and discounts. Although the western festivities are being celebrated and much talked about, experts believe that it is mostly celebrated by people living in Tier 1 cities and affluent households which have disposable income.  

Talking about festive ad spending, during Black Friday especially, R CITY said that they have been offering Black Friday sale deals for a few years now. “We did a mix of print ads, OOH, influencer collaborations, and heavy promotion on our social media platforms as well. We saw huge footfalls and sales across a variety of fashion and accessories brands. The footfall growth for Black Friday weekend was the highest for the month,” the spokesperson said. 

While this is a growing trend, experts say that due to globalization there has been an interchange of festivals across the world. Agreeing to this, Mathias said, “I’m sure this trend will grow with increased globalization and cultural assimilation across the globe.   Remember, that Diwali is now being celebrated in many western countries with a significant Indian diaspora – most notably the US and the UK.”

Talking about the intertwining of festivals within the country, Sampath said, “While brands will try to leverage Western festivities to increase revenue and footfalls, I think a bigger opportunity lies closer to home. Across India, we see that festivals from other regions are gaining popularity. For instance, Ganesh Chaturthi is becoming bigger in South India, Durga Puja is becoming more popular in Mumbai. Everywhere in India, more people are celebrating Christmas. We feel more naturally connected to Indian festivities, and it’s easy to adopt them because they are celebrated by people around us.”

“I think brands can gain more by 'importing' festive occasions from other parts of India, rather than foreign ones. After all, we have no dearth of festive occasions in India. By doing this, they will actually build stronger connections with audiences, by acknowledging local culture.” 

(With inputs from Nilanjana Basu)