INDIAN FASHION ACCESSORY MARKET GOES MAINSTREAM, REGISTERS RAPID GROWTH

With a long history among the unorganised un-branded market, ranging from street vendors to small “mom and pop stores”, fashion accessories are now also available in curated collections through luxury boutiques, high street brands, international accessories chains, international brands with accessories sections and multi-brand outlets…

- Jacqueline Kapur

Over the past decade, the fashion accessory market in India has witnessed a significant surge in importance, as new players have entered the field and the market share in the overall fashion retail industry has increased. The field of fashion accessories covers a diverse array of products and can be divided into seven major categories. Within the non-apparel portion of fashion retail in India, the largest category remains footwear, and the rest is composed of fashion accessory categories of bags, watches, sunglasses, belts, scarves/shawls and hair accessories, not to mention fashion jewellery.

Fashion accessories have only recently been introduced into the formal retail experience. With a long history among the unorganised un-branded market, ranging from street vendors to small “mom and pop stores”, fashion accessories are now also available in curated collections through luxury boutiques, high street brands, international accessories chains, international brands with accessories sections and multi-brand outlets. The ever-growing e-commerce market has also played a major role in the growth of the fashion accessories industry, offering a vast selection of accessories to shoppers all across India. In contrast to footwear and apparel, most fashion accessories do not depend upon sizing, making them easier to sell online.

Accessories are no longer need-based purchases but give customers the opportunity to make a fashion statement. The growing need among young urban customers to express their uniqueness has set the stage for the entrance of many international as well as home-grown Indian companies into the evolving world of fashion accessories.