Luxury brands urge rationalisation of taxes

Mumbai, Jan 25 (UNI) Dealers in luxury brands urged the Government to rationalise the taxation structure in the country so that luxury brands, which were still largely purchased abroad, were available at globally competitive prices to Indian consumers.

Dealers also asked the government to look afresh at legislation like Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Value Added Tax (VAT) and other duties in order to help promote the sale of luxury brands for which there was a sizeable demand within the country. Failure to ensure globally competitive prices would hamper sales within the country and end in this demand being met through purchases abroad, a statement here on the Images Fashion Forum 2007 said.

Mr Sharad Kachalia, Marketing Head of Navnit Motors that sells Rolls Royce, BMW and Land Rovers said. ''The 112 per cent tax on luxury cars was a barrier. Coupled with the poor road infrastructure, it resulted in customers ending up with the feeling that they were not getting value for their money.'' The session -- The Business of Luxury -- which was anchored by Devyani Raman, CEO, Leading Brands of the World, included panellists Mr Tarun Joshi, CEO of Brand House Retail, Mr Robert Hennin, Vice President and Country Head of American Express, Davide Carelli of Giorgio Carelli and Mr Sanjay Kapoor, Managing Director of Genesis Colors.

They said there was an emerging 97 million strong middle class segment with a huge consumer mindset who believed in demonstrating their wealth and wanted nothing but the best. They were also looking for ethnic chic and the fusion of global and local brands. Luxury retailers were keen to offer them contemporary products at contemporary pricing within the country despite the risks involved.

In fact, global brands were even taking salespersons abroad for training in order to meet the shortage of trained manpower for luxury brands, the statement added.

UNI