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Opportunities exist but potential exporters to India need patience and perseverance.

India is not one market, it is very fragmented. It is also very, very price sensitive.

An exporter needs patience and perseverance as India is a very different place to do business.

It is a mistake to assume India is one market and exporters must have a regional, targeted, niche approach that is very price aware.

As well as first tier cities, exporters need to think of second and third tier cities as well and innovate to drive down price.

Indian companies won’t necessarily buy Australian.

India has very high levels of self-sufficiency, especially in resources and agriculture. Its growth is services led.

Online consumer goods will leapfrog China particularly in non-metropolitan cities because there are limited shopping malls.

The focus is on customer service and price and exporters must collaborate with offline partners to go online.

For retail consumer goods, the number of Indian middle class is one fifth the size of China and half the salary level.

Forty percent of these are government employees and the average annual salary is AUD3,000 per annum.

Half the population is vegetarian.

India is the second largest spirits market in the world and the largest milk consumer in the world.

It is very hard to penetrate the high-end market but there are opportunities for packaged snacks and spirits, particularly whisky.

By 2050 the Indian Government will have developed 100 cities across India and by then 900 million people will live in cities.

Opportunities exist for infrastructure consulting on rail, water, green cities and hydro developments. Also on desalination, waste water, renewable energy and smart grids.

Intelligent transport solutions such as ticketing systems, vehicle tracking systems and road safety enhancements are also required.

Austrade has a large presence in India with ten offices. They are located in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Kochi.

Together with Austrade, I can assist Tasmanian exporters considering the Indian market for export of their products or services.

By TCCI’s TradeStart Adviser, Sally Chandler

For international trade and investment assistance contact the TCCI’s TradeStart Adviser, Sally Chandler, at sally.chandler@tcci.com.au or phone 1300 559 122.