Importing CHANDELIER
HS : 940510
Long ago, they used to light up palaces. Then, mansions and five-star hotels. But thanks to China, today they light up the living rooms of even commoners in India. Made in China chandeliers are today available at just a fraction of the price at which the Made in India variety is marketed. And so, importing these bright danglers can mean profits!
While travelling through the lanes and bylanes of Old Delhi’s Chandni Chowk area, it’s hard not to feel a tug back to the past. Right from the flurry of rickshaw pullers to the scores of vendors offering street food to their enthusiastic patrons, from the hustle bustle reverberating across the crowded streets to the array of shops selling goods at throwaway prices, walking through Chandni Chowk is almost like stepping into an alternate world of charm and mystique. What adds to this is Bhagirath Palace – one of India’s largest wholesale markets for lighting equipment, including chandeliers. Spend a couple of hours in Bhagirath Palace and you can find the best of chandeliers, better than those you have seen even in the most majestic of palaces. Bargain a bit and you can have one of them in your living room. How? Thank China.
Sitting in his quaint office in Chandni Chowk, Anurag Gupta, Partner, Imperial Glass Emporium, a manufacturer and importer of lights and chandeliers, has an impressive line-up of the latter, most of them manufactured in China. “For a customer, it’s much better to buy a chandelier imported from China. It offers much more value for money. You can’t get the same value for money in an Indian product. Imported chandeliers aren’t cheap. Their prices are roughly the same as those manufactured here. But they are of better quality and last longer,” he replies, when asked why Chinese chandeliers are selling like hot cakes in India.
The reason behind asking the question to Gupta in the first place is Ministry of Commerce’s data, which reveals that India’s chandelier imports have grown at an unbelievable CAGR of 26.7% in the last 10 years, with China accounting for 83% of those imported in FY2015. Interestingly, although much lower in absolute terms, the per unit price of chandeliers exported by India is much higher than that of imported chandeliers. In fact, while the same for imported chandeliers has more or less remained steady over the last decade, that for exported chandeliers has risen almost 3x. Does that mean India is an exporter of high-end chandeliers and importer of cheap varieties? Not really. Firstly, the credit for India being able to import cheap chandeliers should go to China, its manufacturing prowess and the economies of scale it enjoys. Secondly, the per unit price of India’s chandelier exports being high is more a function of just a few high-value products being exported than anything else. “The difference might just be a function of the fact that very few products are being exported from India. When you are manufacturing in small lots, your cost of production is high. The Chinese benefit from economies of scale and hence, are able to export at much lower prices,” adds Gupta.
"India’s Chandelier imports have grown at a CAGR of 26.7% in the last 10 years"
Other than the fact that Chinese chandeliers are much cheaper than those made in India, surging imports are also a function of the fact that (a) they are of better quality and (b) it’s easy to import them. For instance, among the many lighting fixtures in Gupta’s shop, one can find a medium-sized Chinese chandelier, which can change colours and can be operated using a remote. What price does it come at? A mere Rs.4,500, including all add-ons – a price unheard of just a few years back.
"The demand for metal chandeliers is on its way up in India"
When asked why did his company get into manufacturing chandeliers, when very high margins are there for the taking by easily importing chandeliers from China, Ahmed replies, “As a brand, we want to distinguish ourselves from others. If we do what everyone is doing, then we will never be able to stand out. These days, everyone is importing. There is no ingenuity when it comes to the product itself. Moreover, since importing is easy, a lot of people try their hand at it, thereby squeezing each other’s margins. Hence, we decided to stay off this crowded trade and created something of our own.”
Ahmed’s main export destination is UAE, which he describes as a market keen on ‘ridiculous stuff’. He also mentions that China is not being able to compete in the genre he is in, since bulk production, which the country specialises in, makes customisation difficult. “We are being able to compete only because we do things differently. Neither do we lack in will. We think out the box. We try to keep our finger on the pulse and understand the trend. We manufacture products that are not available in the market. We try and manufacturer products even before similar products could be imported into India by others,” he adds with a lot of pride. The prices of blown glass chandeliers that Ahmed’s company manufactures, on an average, start from about Rs.15,000, with crystal ones starting at around Rs.12,000. “Though crystal chandeliers are more aesthetic, it is also difficult to maintain them. They cannot be cleaned easily as each crystal is different and needs to be cleaned separately. The trend is moving more towards metal ones, where there is lesser hassle involved in maintenance,” he says, while explaining the changing trends in the chandelier market, particularly given that the average size of homes in India is getting smaller by the day. Ahmed claims that chandeliers are becoming more retro. “There's demand for the 1920s look,” he adds.
Ahmed, however, is a rare breed. The Chinese have an absolute stranglehold over the Indian chandelier market. And making hay while imports surge are importers like Gupta. “Today, there is absolutely no demand for Firozabad’s glass. A buyer gets a lot more value for his/her money if he/she buys Chinese products. Firozabad’s sales will increase only when it starts offering products that offer more value for money. But that will require a lot of factors falling in place. In some ways, you can say the glass industry in Firozabad has backed off completely,” he adds.
So, even though the government is trying to revive India's manufacturing sector, it’s unlikely that Indian manufacturers will pose any threat to Chinese dominance in the near future. An evening in Bhagirath Palace is enough to realise this. The difference in the prices of Chinese and Indian chandeliers is just too wide. It’s difficult to imagine a parity between them anytime soon. Bottom line – if you want to get the royal feel of the bygone era in your living room, buy a Chinese chandelier. But if you want to live like royalty, start importing them!