Gaggenau has brought to the country its high-quality built-in appliances across product ranges such as hobs, hoods, ovens, steam ovens, microwave ovens, dishwashers, coffee machines, vacuuming drawers, wine cabinets, refrigerators etc.

BSH HOUSEHOLD Appliances, Europe’s home appliances brand recently launched Gaggenau, a luxury built-in appliances brand in India. Gaggenau has brought to the country its high-quality built-in appliances across product ranges such as hobs, hoods, ovens, steam ovens, microwave ovens, dishwashers, coffee machines, vacuuming drawers, wine cabinets, refrigerators etc. Bw Hotelier spoke to Gunjan Srivastava, MD & CEO, BSH Household Appliances who spoke about his idea behind bringing Gaggenau to India.

With already having two brands in your appliance portfolio, what led you to introduce Gaggenau in India?

In India, our dual brand strategy with Bosch and Siemens has witnessed tremendous success in the last few years. With the introduction of a third brand - Gaggenau from the house of BSH, we are now catering to the extremely high-end customers who believe that appliances are a functional art that fit into the lifestyle of the discerning and cultured individual.

The Indian consumer durable industry is on a fast track towards luxury offerings. Today, top chefs, food-enthusiasts and culinary experts are looking at options that promise uncompromised quality, ease and convenience of products and a zeal to use appliances that provide a culinary experience.

With such an upward trend in the industry, we are confident that 2018 is an appropriate time for Gaggenau to enter the country.

Are you not worried about higher import duties?

Today, every Indian household aspires to own reliable, highly durable, aesthetically appealing and most importantly, machine-made-easy appliances like dishwashers, washing-machines, etc. Thus, these consumer durable are no longer considered a luxury but are indispensable must-haves.

India is a progressive economy. We are gradually moving towards accepting products and services that are globally renowned. With an improved standard of living in metropolitan cities, the trend is momentarily percolating down to the grassroot level.

There is a huge opportunity for luxury goods in India and higher import duties hamper such accelerations. Liberal policies in the sector would be a move in the positive direction. However, our primary target audience for such elite-luxury offerings remains marginally unaffected/impervious as they fall under the HNIs and UHNIs category.

How many exclusive outlets for Gaggenau we can expect by the year end?

In 2018, Gaggenau will expand to six metropolitan cities in India. With its launch in Mumbai as the first city, Gaggenau will be made available in Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad & Surat.

With Gaggenau now into your portfolio, what is your share in the appliance market?

In 2017, BSH Household Appliances has experienced a positive impact on business and we are aiming to continue and gain a larger market share in 2018 as well. Our efforts are aligned to our vision 2025, wherein we aim to gain a sizeable double digit market share in India across the home appliances category. Based on internal estimates, we are happy to share that some of our product categories are excelling in the Indian market. An example of such a category would be dishwashers and front-loading washing machines. In the dishwasher segment, we have shaped the category with roughly 50% market share. In the washing machine segment, we are close to roughly 15%-20% market share. Also, Siemens’ premium built-in appliances is No. 1 in the market with about 30% share.

UK based Michelin Chef, Atul Kochhar uses Gaggenau appliances at his home and believes that with the brand’s heritage as an innovation leader in design and technology, Gaggenau has special expertise in the home appliances sector and that the appliances have professional grade.

Sharing some of his thoughts towards the brand, he stated, ‘’I was introduced to Gaggenau through a fellow colleague and a top chef, today it is one of my most prized possession. Today, the Indian kitchen is a gastronomically evolving and progressive space. The Gaggenau range will accelerate this culinary growth. With its elaborate features like Sous-vide & precision (one degree) cooking Gaggenau appliances cater to cook up meals from a global standpoint ‘’My favourite picks from the Gaggenau range of products would include their hobs and hoods, induction cooktops, refrigerators and steam oven.’’