Indian shoppers always want the best brands. It seems that their prayers have been answered and there are lots of luxury names in the market. Sure, we do have many top international companies in apparel, makeup, food, shoes, handbags and attract loads of buyers. But the next time you walk into a shopping mall, look for these brands – believe it or not, they’re all ‘home-made’!! Here are some of the pretty well-known brands that you probably Thought Were Foreign but Are Actually Indian.
Here Are Some Brands That You Thought Were Foreign But Are Actually Indian:
1. HiDesign
This is a luxury handbag, shoe and accessory brand for men and women. What sets them apart is the quality of leather that they use. And that’s reflected in their price tags too. The quality, name, all give it a very global feel, but this brand is proudly Indian! HiDesign is a Pondicherry based manufacturer and is owned by Dilip Kapur. They have facilities in Sikkim, Baddi (Himachal Pradesh) Puducherry, Chennai to fill their stores in the USA, UK, Australia, Kenya, UAE, Spain, Portugal, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka.
2. Lakme
You probably already know that this is an Indian brand. Is it one of the cosmetic brands owned by Hindustan Unilever that originated in the Tata Oil Mills in 1952. Today it operates in India and abroad. The name had been inspired by a French opera called Lakme.
3. Allen Solly
This company is the brainchild of the Maura Fashion and Lifestyle and is owned by Aditya Birla Fashion and lifestyle. Every shirt, pant, shoe, belt inside these stores have been made in India – no imports here, please!
4. Louis Phillipe
This brand is also owned by the Maura Fashion and Lifestyle name and is pretty similar to Allen Solly. The brand took inspiration from the French King for its name in 1989. This is one place that people go to when shopping for they want unique, classy formal wear for men. The company even sells shoes, accessories, and bags as well.
Read Now: 30 Apps In Your Smartphone That You May Not Know Are Chinese
5. Da Milano
Sure, the name is as Italian so people think it can get but the brand is 100% desi and makes some of the best high-end leather goods Indian consumers have seen, even exporting some of their products as well. It is started by Sahil Malik in 1989, with just one store in Delhi. Today the brand has over 60 stores and even has its designing studio.
6. Flying Machine
When you walk in this store, you think you’re buying types of denim and other apparel from a foreign brand, because the quality is just that good, but Flying Machine is owned by the garment division of Arvind mills. What is interesting is the number of styles, patterns and innovative apparel that they have. They even market over 20 national and international brands like Arrow menswear, GAP, Aeropostale, Sephora, and Ed Hardy to name a few.
7. La Opala
About this brand, everyone Thought Were Foreign but Are Actually Indian. India doesn’t just sell clothes and has experimented with other things as well. The La Opala name is one of the more successful forays and it involves cutlery. This brand sells some of the most exquisite plates, glasses, and bowls and is usually the name for quality cutlery among homeowners, caterers and restaurateurs too.
8. Royal Enfield
And finally, we have some of the top car brands to boast about as well. Royal Enfield is one of them. This used to be a British motorcycle manufacturing company that went out of business. It was bought by Eicher Motors Limited, a Chennai based automaker, who rebooted the famous motorbike design that originated in 1901.
9. Jaguar
It’s the same with uber-luxury cars too. In 1990 Ford acquired the Jaguar brand and BMW’s Land Rover. Ford then sold both of these subsidiaries to Tata Motors and are now officially Indian brands.
10. Britannia
Made in 1982 by the Wadia Group, it’s one of India’s oldest companies dealing with the dairy products, biscuits, and bread; it had a small, humble start in Kolkata and has now spread to over 60 countries.
So, you think I missed something? Let me know in the comments below if I missed any brand that Thought Were Foreign but Are Actually Indian.