Description
Every year, India’s festive calendar unfurls like a carnival of color, emotion, and commerce. From Rakhi and Janmashtami in August to Diwali, Christmas, and New Year, these months remain the single biggest consumption cycle for food and grocery. Categories from chocolates and sweets to staples and spices surge, making this the sharpest churn of the retail year.
Once defiined by mithai boxes, festive gifting today— read our feature on pages 18-27—has transformed into a $44 billion marketplace of gourmet hampers, wellness assortments, and digitally curated indulgences. For retailers, the season means double or triple category volumes, 20–30% higher footfalls, and weeks of meticulous supply-chain preparation. Simply put, gifting has become the centerpiece of strategy, sentiment, and sales.
Equally, India’s food story is being reshaped by processing. As one of the world’s largest producers of grains, fruits, vegetables, and dairy, the country still loses signifiicant output to wastage. Food processing— supported by government schemes, new technologies, and entrepreneurial energy—has emerged as the bridge to higher farmer incomes, reduced waste, and nutrition-rich brands that can compete globally (pages 39-40). Yet, even amid this transformation, India’s retail backbone remains its kiranas, which still drive over 80% of FMCG sales. That’s why our cover story on pages 32-37 traces Flipkart Wholesale’s fiive-year journey.
Launched in 2020 on the legacy of Walmart India’s cash-and-carry business, Flipkart Wholesale today empowers 1.2 million kiranas across 2,900 pin codes with credit, loyalty, and technology—reimagining how small retailers can thrive in a digital economy.
Rounding off, turn to pages 42-44 for our foodservice story on McDonald’s India. Once synonymous with “burgers and fries,” it has pivoted into snacking, coffee, and value combos—embedding itself in more mealtimes and more conversations. The lesson is clear: in India’s food story, evolution is survival.
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