Deep pockets down south
Kids in the hinterlands of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are no bumpkins when it comes to spending.
No babes in the woods
In early November, Siddharth Sriram, 10, and J. Keerthana, 8, emerged from a consumer electronics shop in a dusty southern town and jumped onto a bullock cart along with their most recent prized possessions: a 32-inch LED television and a Sony home theatre. They along with their father R. Kumar, a native of Theni in the foothills of the Western Ghats - some 75 km from the temple town of Madurai in southern Tamil Nadu - had started from home on a Sunday morning to buy an LCD television to replace an old flat-screen model. "I had just harvested paddy and decided to take advantage of festival discounts that various companies were offering,'' says Kumar in chaste Tamil. What happened at the shop took him by complete surprise. The brother-sister combine began pestering him for an LED TV.
He resisted for a while but when the children began to create a scene, he gave in. "We had agreed at home to pick up a 32-inch LCD TV costing Rs 32,000 but finally ended up spending Rs 45,000,'' says Kumar. The kids also forced him to buy a Sony Home Theatre costing Rs 13,500 against the original plan of a Philips Home Theatre costing Rs 5,000.
"This happens all the time,'' says Raj Kumar, the Manager of Jainsons, a consumer durable chain, in Theni. "We sell about 600 TVs every month and it is the children who make the choice in at least 60 per cent of those sales," he adds. The children in this predominantly agricultural small town were also largely responsible for Raj Kumar having to order and deliver three 40-inch LED 3D TVs costing Rs 75,000 each in less than two weeks in November. "The kids watch advertisements on TV and are clear about what they want. They ask for models with a USB drive, a high contrast ratio and good sound quality,'' he explains. Their influence is not restricted to TVs but extends to air conditioners, mobiles and two-wheelers.
"Being a well irrigated district, the per capita income of the farmers, who typically grow rice, sugarcane, cardamom, grapes, bananas and cotton, is good. That coupled with children who are exposed to the latest products ensures that consumption here is as good as in any city,'' says R. Serman, the proprietor of Seran's Shopping Spot, one of the oldest shopping centres in the town. He cites the instance of chocolates. The fastest moving chocolate in his shop is Kinderjoy - made by Italian confectioner Ferrero International, which costs Rs 30 a piece. "Do not get misled by the way people are attired,'' he warns. The heavily-bleached white shirts and dhotis hide not only prosperity, but also the propensity to try the new goodies in the marketplace.
Shops till he drops
Seven-year-old Gaurav Shah, a Class II student in Tumkur, 70 km off Bangalore, is a big fan of actress Priyanka Chopra. His parents Praveen and Asha Shah have no complaints about that. Except that they had to shell out Rs 44,000 recently because Chopra rides the Hero Honda Pleasure in the ad for the scooter. And since Gaurav likes the Bollywood starlet, he also likes - and wants - the scooter she rides. The parents will, of course, be using the two-wheeler. But they had to take Gaurav's advice on which brand to buy.
Shah, a realtor, acknowledges that his two children - Naina, 13, is the other - know more about computers and electronics than he and his wife do. The only downside about such awareness levels: Shah ends up spending more frequently than he would like to. For instance, the family replaces their TV set twice a year at the behest of the children. "Left to ourselves, we would keep the same TV set for at least five years,'' says Shah. The family also bought a 32-inch LG LCD TV four months ago; the son's demand now is to replace that with the one with a USB plug-in. And recently Shah had to spend Rs 26,500 on a Godrej air conditioner when the children insisted on one for the living room. "We already have one in our bedroom and never felt the need for one in the living room. But our children made us buy that,'' says Shah.
The children keep track of all print and TV ads and hear about the latest stuff their classmates and friends have acquired at home. "New models keep coming, and they get attracted sometimes by either the looks or by features or just by the sheer size," says Shah. Recently, when the family bought an HCL computer, the children ensured that their father spent some extra bucks for more storage space - all of 500 GB. After all, they need to store their favourite cartoon shows and songs from Bollywood.
In early November, Siddharth Sriram, 10, and J. Keerthana, 8, emerged from a consumer electronics shop in a dusty southern town and jumped onto a bullock cart along with their most recent prized possessions: a 32-inch LED television and a Sony home theatre. They along with their father R. Kumar, a native of Theni in the foothills of the Western Ghats - some 75 km from the temple town of Madurai in southern Tamil Nadu - had started from home on a Sunday morning to buy an LCD television to replace an old flat-screen model. "I had just harvested paddy and decided to take advantage of festival discounts that various companies were offering,'' says Kumar in chaste Tamil. What happened at the shop took him by complete surprise. The brother-sister combine began pestering him for an LED TV.
He resisted for a while but when the children began to create a scene, he gave in. "We had agreed at home to pick up a 32-inch LCD TV costing Rs 32,000 but finally ended up spending Rs 45,000,'' says Kumar. The kids also forced him to buy a Sony Home Theatre costing Rs 13,500 against the original plan of a Philips Home Theatre costing Rs 5,000.
| Location: Theni, in the foothills of the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu Pester power poster boys: Siddharth Sriram, 10, and J. Keerthana, 8 Purchasing power: A 32-inch LED television and a home theatre costing a total of Rs 58,500 |
"Being a well irrigated district, the per capita income of the farmers, who typically grow rice, sugarcane, cardamom, grapes, bananas and cotton, is good. That coupled with children who are exposed to the latest products ensures that consumption here is as good as in any city,'' says R. Serman, the proprietor of Seran's Shopping Spot, one of the oldest shopping centres in the town. He cites the instance of chocolates. The fastest moving chocolate in his shop is Kinderjoy - made by Italian confectioner Ferrero International, which costs Rs 30 a piece. "Do not get misled by the way people are attired,'' he warns. The heavily-bleached white shirts and dhotis hide not only prosperity, but also the propensity to try the new goodies in the marketplace.
Shops till he drops
Gaurav (R) pushed his father to buy the Hero Honda Pleasure
| Location: Tumkur, 70 km off Bangalore Pester power poster boy: Gaurav Shah, 7 Purchasing power: A Hero Honda Pleasure Scooty, a 32-inch LCD TV, a two-tonne airconditioner and a PC with 500 GB of storage space, all costing a total of Rs 1.25 lakh |
The children keep track of all print and TV ads and hear about the latest stuff their classmates and friends have acquired at home. "New models keep coming, and they get attracted sometimes by either the looks or by features or just by the sheer size," says Shah. Recently, when the family bought an HCL computer, the children ensured that their father spent some extra bucks for more storage space - all of 500 GB. After all, they need to store their favourite cartoon shows and songs from Bollywood.
