What can investors learn from ethnographic research to help in understanding the bigger picture in Emerging Markets?
In this podcast Tassos Stassopoulos and Gita Ghate, Founder and CEO of Third Eye, talk about the importance of avoiding biases when listening to consumers, how Indian society is changing, and where Gita sees the next big trend in this fast-growing nation.
Podcast Questions
In the Financial Sector when we look at Emerging Markets, we look at it through a Financial lens. We look at GDP, we look at demographics. Is this lens enough? [0:22]
When you talk about the impact of “denial as a virtue” was it a conscious or a subconscious decision? Was it a case that people could not afford things and were saying “I do not want an iPhone” but actually they were saying “I cannot afford an iPhone”? [2.00]
One of the biggest lessons I have learned in the past decade of doing ethnographic studies and working together, when 5-6 years I first listened to consumers expressing denial I viewed it through my value lens not theirs and thought they are only saying that because they cannot afford. But what you realise is that these consumers have a very strong value of money filter? [2.49]
Where do you see India going from here? [4.08]
In the study we did over a year ago on Millennials and Gen-Z, what surprised me was that there was no longer the desire we had a decade ago to migrate to a big city like Mumbai. The youth felt that the big city now takes more away from you than it gives you and there was a desire to move to a lower-tier city like Pune, where they were closer to their families and had less drawbacks. How do you see that? [6.07]
From an investment/consumption point of view such a shift in patterns is dramatic and would mean shift the way we are applying capital instead of servicing these people through brands in Tier 1 cities, we need to start thinking what brands will resonate in the lower tier cities [8.13]
If you were to look forward to 2025, what do you think will be the top 3 trends that will pay out by then? [8.38]
Thinking of the modern national, the path that they are following is different from how the development world evolved as the modern national has a more collective identity attached to it. [9.50]
If you think of the Indian message of “Simple living, high thinking”, when you look at the modern national their shift is toward brands that reflect this message. [11.32]
What is causing the fast changes in India over the past decade [13.10]
The views expressed herein do not constitute research, investment advice or trade recommendations and do not necessarily represent the views of Trinetra Investment Management LLP and are subject to revision over time. Trinetra is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom.
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