Indians' ₹1.45L cr foreign travel spend now dwarfs building materials industry: Kotak MF's Nilesh Shah

Nilesh Shah flags a structural rewiring of Indian wallets: outbound travel (₹1.45L cr) tops entire building materials sector, Apple India added ₹1.2L cr in 5 years, and live events (₹20,800 cr) are eating into footwear and wardrobe budgets as experiences replace goods.

— Filed Mon, 25 May, 2026, 07:31 IST · Source Business Today · Latest · Updated

Kotak MF's Nilesh Shah flags shifts in Indian consumption: foreign travel spend (₹1.45L cr) exceeds building materials industry, Apple India added ₹1.2L cr in 5 years, and weekends/live events replace footwear/wardrobe spend.

Why this matters

Shah's commentary maps a structural consumption shift: discretionary spend is migrating from durables and apparel toward travel, premium electronics, and live experiences, reshaping retail category growth assumptions.

Retail-brand signals steady at 557 over 90 days, with experience-led spend gaining share.