OOH shines bright this festive as inventory jumps 15-20%

The 2025 festive season has lit up the balance sheets of OOH players with industry executives reporting a 15-20% spike in inventory utilisation across major markets. The surge was driven by a strong comeback in brand confidence, a broader advertiser base spanning metros to smaller towns, and a growing shift toward digital and tech-enabled outdoor formats.

After a long phase of steady recovery, outdoor advertising seems to have firmly reclaimed its spot in the mainstream media mix this festive season. From premium LED billboards to rural haats and temple towns, brands across categories used OOH to tell compelling, high-impact stories that connected with consumers on the move.

According to Vikas Nowal, CEO at Interspace Communications, the growth this year proves that OOH has reclaimed its stature as a full-funnel medium blending scale, technology and storytelling. He noted that across the top 15 cities, inventory utilisation rose by nearly 20% year-on-year, with premium and digital outdoor sites touching almost full occupancy through September and October.

 “Post-pandemic recovery has matured into renewed brand confidence,” said Nowal, adding that smaller markets in the East and South also showed impressive growth as regional brands increased spends around Durga Puja, Onam, Dussehra and Diwali.

Echoing this sentiment, Jayesh Yagnik, CEO of MOMS Outdoor Media Solutions, said the festive period has been one of the most prosperous in recent memory, reflecting how brands are again viewing OOH not just as an awareness vehicle but as a strategic amplifier of brand stature.

“We’ve observed an average inventory hike of 15-20% year-on-year, driven by stronger brand participation, smarter data-led planning and multi-format integrations,” he said. “The festive quarter has reaffirmed that OOH is back in the core media mix, delivering both scale and contextual relevance at key consumer touchpoints.”

Rajesh Radhakrishnan, Co-founder and CMO at Vritti iMedia, shared that the company recorded an approximately 20-25% year-on-year increase in festive ad volumes. “Advertisers came back with confidence, driven by robust consumer demand across both urban and non-metro markets,” he said.

Radhakrishnan pointed out that Tier 2, 3 and 4 towns saw significant traction, where local festivals, fairs and temple gatherings created strong engagement opportunities. “Our Audiowala Bus Stand platform, which integrates digital ads with passenger information systems and audio announcements, saw very high brand utilisation this season, reflecting a clear shift toward tech-enabled, contextually relevant formats that connect effectively with on-ground audiences,” he added.

OOH’s resurgence has also extended to smaller and rural markets. Sarabjit Singh Puri, Chairman of Fateh Rural Limited, said the festive quarter saw strong traction in district towns, village clusters and agri-fair locations. “Footfalls at local melas, harvest markets and religious gatherings created high-impact visibility for brands. At Fateh Rural, overall OOH demand grew by around 15-18% year-on-year, reflecting increased advertiser interest in hyper-local rural campaigns rather than just metro-focused bursts,” he said.

FMCG, E-comm, Automobile lead the charge

The festive spending boom was led by categories with direct consumer engagement. Nowal said that the OOH pie this year was dominated by retail, e-commerce and fashion, followed by automobiles, consumer durables, electronics and real estate. “D2C and homegrown brands are now testing outdoor for awareness bursts, which shows how the medium is attracting digital-first marketers who earlier avoided OOH due to measurability concerns,” he added.

Yagnik observed a similar momentum, saying that automobiles, smartphones, e-commerce and FMCG together accounted for nearly 60% of festive OOH inventory. “Automobiles dominated the spends on large-format media at around 20%, smartphones and e-commerce each contributed about 15%, and FMCG and consumer durables another 10–12%. We also saw increasing activity from fintech, OTT and real estate players validating the medium’s cross-category versatility,” he said.

Radhakrishnan highlighted that BFSI, FMCG and consumer durables collectively accounted for about 50–55% of total festive OOH spends. “Auto, cement, steel, pipes and paint companies contributed another 15–20%, while telecom and fintech brands continued consistent spending on transit and rural OOH,” he explained. “Interestingly, regional advertisers and local retailers leveraged our state bus station digital network to reach consumers in native languages, giving brands unique visibility and recall advantages.”

 In rural markets, Puri said FMCG brands led with roughly 30-35% of rural inventory, followed by consumer durables and regional retail at around 20%. “Other active sectors included microfinance, agri-input companies and local services. This year, there was a notable rise in regional and challenger brands using OOH in village markets, weekly haats and agrifairs, creating stronger penetration in smaller towns and hinterlands,” he said.

New-age formats drive innovation

Across the industry, advertisers are moving beyond static hoardings toward dynamic, digital and experiential outdoor formats. Nowal said there is a clear pivot from static to smart, sensory and sustainable OOH. “Largeformat LED billboards and programmatic OOH are scaling across metros. Real-time creatives, countdowns and festive flash sales have made outdoor more dynamic and data-integrated. Transit media — especially airports, metros and EV-charging stations — are also seeing strong traction,” he explained.

Yagnik added that brands today are investing in immersive 3D anamorphic innovations, contextual contenttriggered sites and integrated transit formats. “We’ve brought forward tool-based targeting that uses AI-led insights to align audience movement, dwell time and purchase intent with location relevance. This shift is transforming OOH from a visibility medium to a precision-led, data-powered brand experience,” he said.

Radhakrishnan noted that digital and motion-enabled displays are becoming increasingly popular in high-footfall locations. “We are seeing significant growth in digital advertisements integrated into Passenger Information Systems across state transport bus stations. These combine visual impact with audio engagement to deliver 100% attention in a captive environment,” he said. “Advertisers are also seeking integrated OOH–digital campaigns, where outdoor exposure is amplified online through QR codes, social media extensions and analytics-driven reporting.”

 Even rural markets are evolving. Puri said brands are exploring formats that drive participation and engagement rather than just visibility. “Mobile vans, wall branding near market clusters and LED displays at agri fairs and town squares are gaining traction. Campaigns now combine on-ground sampling and local influencer engagement to create meaningful connections with rural audiences,” he added.

 The broad-based 15–20% growth in OOH inventories this festive season reflects not only the revival of advertiser confidence but also the evolution of the medium itself. Industry leaders agree that OOH has re-emerged as a credible, data-driven and creatively rich platform that bridges physical and digital experiences.

 Nowal summed up saying, “OOH has reclaimed its stature as a full-funnel medium blending scale, tech and storytelling.” With sustainability, innovation and precision planning leading the next phase, this festive glow may well mark the start of a new, enduring era for outdoor advertising.