Nielson Upper Middle and Rich in India Survey

Nielsen has just declared results of its Upper Middle and Rich (UMAR) survey. The survey covered more than 18,250 individuals across 35 Indian metros. The survey has identified three segments of affluence from lifestyle and consumer durables mapping and estimates that there are 2.5 million population belonging to urban rich segments in India.

1. 2.2 million belong to the Upper Middle segment (owning a car and a computer)
2. 0.2 million households belong to the Upper-Upper Middle segment (owners of a car, computer and LCD television).
3. The Rich segment (owners of a car, computer and LCD television, and have holidayed abroad) consists of about 0.1 million households.

Interestingly most of people belonging to this group are heavy users of internet.The key highlight of this survey are:

1. Half of the targeted consumers are schooled in English
2. English is the preferred language for newspapers however the television programmes watched are more in regional languages.
3. Nine in ten affluent individuals own a house; three-quarters have a fully automated washing machine; and nearly two in five affluent individuals have a home theatre and modular kitchen.

Media Reach:

1. 98 per cent of the individuals watch TV;
2. 70 per cent read English dailies;
3. 67 per cent watch movies outside home;
4. 55 per cent use the internet at home;
5. 54 per cent listen to the radio;
6. while 38 per cent and 10 per cent read magazines and English business dailies, respectively.

Recession:

40-50 per cent of the respondents saying that their expenditure on travel, luxury accessories, fuel, vehicle usage, branded garments and consumer durables has seen no change. However, spending on luxury accessories and vacations, compared to other items, has reduced due to recession.

Lifestyle:

1. Fine dining is high among this section of the society, with eight in ten individuals going out for meals often.
2. Shopping is also a fad. Nine in ten prefer to shop at modern retail stores – articles of interest include footwear, jewellery, handbags, sunglasses, cosmetics, fragrances, pens and watches.
3. Respondents are found visiting gymnasiums, spas and beauty parlours, with three in ten visiting a parlour or spa once a month.

The survey ranks Delhi, Bengaluru, Greater Mumbai and Chennai as the most affluent cities in India, followed by Hyderabad, Kolkata, Kochi, Pune, Jaipur and Ahmedabad, respectively.
Source: afaqs