New Delhi, Dec 6 (UNI) Walk into a boardroom in Manhattan or London, and the person at the head of the table is increasingly likely to be of Indian origin. From Satya Nadella to Leena Nair, India has proven it can produce the world's best managers. We build half the world -- writing the code, doing the math, and engineering the future. And yet, we cannot convince a Londoner to buy an Indian shampoo.
It is a stinging paradox: We are the "Pharmacy of the World," yet we don't have a Pfizer. We are the IT back office of the globe, yet we don't have a Microsoft. We grow the "Champagne of Teas" in Darjeeling, yet the world drinks Twinings. Where are the Indian equivalents of Toyota, Samsung, or IKEA? Why does a country with such extraordinary capability lack global consumer brands?
To understand this, we must look beyond economics and analyze the underlying dimensions of global brand building.
Global consumers buy not just a product, but the perceived national essence behind it. We associate Japan with precision, France with luxury, and Switzerland with perfection. India, however, has a weak "Country of Origin" (COO) meaning in aspirational categories. As per Anholt Nation Brand Index Survey (it measures the power and appeal of each country's "brand image" by examining global perceptions) in 2024 India's rank was 44, while in 2023 it was 38. Globally, we are trusted for IT, pharmaceuticals, and spices. But in premium FMCG, beauty, or lifestyle, we lack authority. The world sees India as the land of "spirituality and tech support," not "luxury and lifestyle". This weakens the psychological advantage global brands rely on.
Countries that manufacture rarely capture brand margins. India is caught in a "functional trap," marketing itself almost exclusively on benefits like "It works" and "It's cheap". True Brand Equity is built on emotional benefits. The Trap: We sell the tea leaf (commodity). The Goal: We need to sell the tea party (experience). When you buy a German car, you aren't just buying transportation; you are buying a feeling of invincibility. When you buy Indian, you are often buying a feeling of savings. To compete, we must move from selling products to selling meaning.
Global brands do not win on product alone; they win on identity. Apple stands for creativity; Nike for personal greatness. Indian brands, by contrast, often anchor themselves in functionality rather than a sharp, culturally resonant identity. Without this symbolic depth, our brands struggle to build the emotional equity required to travel globally.
Research shows that brands don't become global by just "going global" -- they become global by first becoming powerful cultural symbols at home. Coca-Cola symbolized American optimism; Harley-Davidson embodied American rebellion. India has dominant companies, but very few "local cultural icons" -- brands that stand for modern Indian identity in a vivid, emotionally charged way. We need brands that capture our cultural imagination at home before they can capture it abroad.
India's enormous domestic market is a hidden obstacle. Companies can scale to hundreds of millions of users and become billion-dollar giants without ever leaving India. Unlike Sweden or South Korea, where small domestic markets forced early internationalization, India's abundance creates a psychological barrier. If you can get rich without buying a passport, you may never build a global brand.
Finally, our ecosystem is misaligned. Companies prioritize logic over magic, viewing branding as a cost rather than an asset. Investors reward efficiency and quick revenue, rarely backing long-term identity building. Government supports exports (getting the product abroad) but lacks support for identity creation (getting it chosen). Good infrastructure gets you into a market; good branding gets you out of the discount aisle.
We have spent decades proving to the world that Indian minds can run their biggest companies. Now, the challenge is to prove that Indian brands can capture their hearts. It is time to stop being the invisible engine inside the global Ferrari and start designing the car ourselves. We must stop competing on the 'Cost of Production' and start competing on the 'Quality of Imagination.' The world already trusts Indian hands to write the code and stitch the shirt. The question is: When will we make them trust the Indian label on the collar? We have mastered the supply; it is time to master the dream.
(The writer is a marketing and branding expert)