Titan Warns Of Consumption Fatigue Among Customers
Titan Warns of Consumption Fatigue But Optimistic About H2FY16
Too much of a good thing can be bad, as one Indian watchmaker has found out. In a notification to the exchanges, Titan Co Ltd. said the year-long discounts and deals have led to fatigue in consumption trends and consumers are interested only in niche product ranges.
It said base demand has remained weak in the second quarter of the financial year 2016-17 with sentiment remaining “patchy and unpredictable”.
The customer today seems to be enthused only by fresh and differential offerings across the consumer discretionary sector. This change in consumer behaviour may be structural and here to stayTitan’s Press Release
The company is optimistic about its business prospects in the second half of the year. This is on account of expectations of a boost in sales due to the upcoming festival season and increase in disposable income, which it expects, should lead to revival in demand. The company said it intended to capture the resurgence in demand with a range of new products in the pipeline.
Demand has been sluggish in the jewellery segment for the industry in 2016. However, Titan managed to surpass expectations courtesy its newly launched “Queen of Hearts” diamond studded jewellery brand in the second quarter of 2016-17. Volumes in gold jewellery, which comprises a majority of the company’s revenues, remained subdued.
The company has launched watches under the brands Titan, Xylys, Nebula and Sonata but while sales in domestic markets have held up, those in export markets remained under pressure. The company suggested that growth in the Indian eye-wear industry too appears to have slowed down with few players gaining market share.