No online way for Fisher and Paykel
No online way for Fisher and Paykel

The Retail Media interviewed Sanjeev Wadhwa, Managing Director, Fisher & Paykel India, to talk on the brand’s operation in India, its absence on online portal, the prospects of alliance with Real Estate developers and plans to venture into the fast-growing market of kitchen appliance.

Fisher and Paykel – the New Zealand-based premium kitchen appliances brand started its India operations in the year 2012. Designed and engineered in New Zealand, its products are sold in 50 countries around the world. While most of the retail is going omni-channel, Sanjeev Wadhwa, Managing Director, Fisher & Paykel India, clearly denies plans of the company to go online, citing that Fisher and Paykel is all about feel and experience.

How has been the brand’s journey in India and what has been the channel of selling?

Fisher and Paykel was introduced in India around 2.5 years ago with aid of distributors and liaison office, which we set up in 2012. We have been experimenting with the market, analysing the acceptance of the brand and the product, which has helped us tremendously in terms of both understanding the customers and their expectations. Now we have presence in 15 cities with 45 dealers, which is why we also pair it up with trust and huge potential of the country. This is the reason why we set up a 100 per cent subsidy last year and this year we operate physically as a subsidiary operation which means that though we continue with two of our distributors, we also sell directly to certain markets like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Kolkata.

How do you analyse India as a potential market for luxury or premium kitchen appliance?

Luxury means different things to different people. It also depends upon the growth of Real Estate sector and their pricing. When you look at metros, which are hub of the Real Estate growth and the luxury market, with high prices in Real Estate, also the price for every other home improvement market has also gone up.  So, the people initially looking at normal tiles are seeking for designer ones.

Similarly in our business of modular kitchen, we see nearly 60-70 new brands being imported from Italy, Germany, US and Japan. That’s been the change where in luxury, people are expecting a lot more bespoke or lot more customised solution which is why lot many brands have entered the market.  That has been the change in Tier I. In Tier II also, there have been huge pockets like Surat, Coimbatore, Ludhiana have given us tremendous hope as well as the expectation of our brand and performance of our brand to grow further in those markets. Now we have a set of deals in these markets of Tier II cities.

What were the challenges you faced while integrating with the dealers?

It has not been an easy ride for us for reasons such as– Fisher and Paykel was unheard of as a brand, difficult to pronounce, not easy to accept for a brand in Kitchen appliances coming all the way from New Zealand, whereas the expectation is to see a kitchen brand from Europe, Italy or Germany. It was not easy for dealers also to accept us, but they took the risk for there is a differentiation in the products.

Fisher and Paykel has got different aesthetics design as well as quality of the product. Once they (dealers) installed our products in the kitchen, by the sheer touch and feel of the product, they realised the difference. We have kept our prices as strategically very correct which also helped us gain acceptance in the trade.

What were the steps taken while pricing?

We studied the market before launching ourselves in the country. After gaining enough knowledge and information about the industry, we ensured that we keep ourselves in the premium positioning but not bring into the absurd premium by price. Fisher and Paykel is more about the reasonable premium so that the customers see the reason or value behind purchase from a brand and willing to pay for it.

Which income group is being catered by Fisher and Paykel?

It is the middle class and upper middle class which is why we are positioning ourselves as affordable luxury brand. So it’s not just about the elite luxury class, but also about the people with enough disposable income and with easy financing, people are really looking towards brands like Fisher and Paykel.

What all type of Real Estate alliances are you looking at?

We are looking at alliances for both residential Real Estate as well as Hospitality sector. We are effectively targeting serviced apartments and branded apartments in residential sector and suits and hotel residences in hospitality. We have products to fit into this with setting an example from the international markets of the US, Australia, Singapore and Shanghai where we have installed our products.

How is Indian market different than the global one?

In India, the demand is huge today. For the next 20 years, it will just be growing. We know that Europe has been completely stagnating and I don’t see their economy coming out in next few years. US is another strong market for us as their economy is growing well now. After US it is Asia, mainly India and China, where all the brands are focusing. In Indian Real Estate, we have all the international architects and designers who play key role in specifying the right and internationally available product, which also give us a way to put forward our strength.

Ultimately, it voices down to the developer and the pricing part. So there are developers in market today who clearly see the value of the brand and they are opting for really high end appliances in terms of quality and performance.

Then we have a project range in Fisher and Paykel, which can go in a premium or entry level Real Estate projects.

Have the products been customised as per Indian needs?

The design and basic quality of appliances is same as per the global requirements and standards. What we have customised is in accordance with the Indian weather. For instance, in all the refrigerators we ensure that they have tropical compressors. We have changes gas-hobs as per the Indian cooking needs and cookware. In India, people still use vessels with round base, which require gas hobs with open trivets as well as high flame for frying etc. Similarly, we made changes in dishwasher and water purifier.

Have you set up an experience centre at Gurgaon?

No, we don’t entertain the concept of experience centre. We have given the customers a similar experience and feel of Fisher and Paykel appliances. So we have created a lot of shop-in-shop and mini-brand shops. At Gurgaon, we have a mini brand shop. We have created a new brand shop at Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi. There are shop-in-shops at four more areas in Delhi and Gurgaon and now we have got 21 shop-in-shops across the country. Soon we are opening in Bengaluru and Chennai.

What is your take on taking the online way to retail?

We still believe that for Fisher and Paykel as a new entity in the country, touch and feel is very important for people to come and feel the difference. Some of the dealers are on the eCommerce platforms which they are welcome to, but as a Company, we are not entertaining eCommerce. This is very clear and specific, at least in next two years we have no plans to go online.

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