Introduction

India is growing at a phenomenal pace. It is currently the second fastest growing economy in the
world after china. Almost every major organization in the world wants to get involved with
India. However a lot of organizations have failed or are restructuring their marketing efforts and
product mixes. The simple theories of localization vs. globalization do not work here. There are
many India’s within India and only a thorough understanding of these sub groups will enable
organizations to successfully communicate with them. This paper will aim at describing my
culture and sub culture and the fit that it has within the current living environment and using the
models of Schwartz, Hoefsteda, and Maslow understand the business and consumer implications
of the same. To analyze my culture It is very important to understand the roots of my being. To
bring more objectivity to the paper, a region from India, namely the region of Maharashtra is
used to analyze the cultural fit of my culture as well as other cultures in India and explore
commonalities between them.
My background
My father was born on 8 October 1945 in Sindh, India. He was the fourth son of eight. During
the partition of 1947, Sindh became a part of Pakistan, My father’s family decided to move to
India. After months of movement they finally settled in Pune in a house provided by the
government. The entire extended family of 25 lived together in the settlement treating the group
as one entity, with all the finances and responsibilities were pooled together and then allocated
by my grandfather. As a young boy, my father was entrepreneurial and ambitious but was not
academically inclined. After completing his basic education he worked in Pune for a couple of
years before shifting to Hong Kong at the age of 20 to work for a clothes shop. He started his
own company at the age of 26 and got married at the age of 33. During the course of his career
he has travelled the globe, establishing offices in Vienna, Frankfurt, Rotterdam, New York etc.
In 1996 due to a number of reasons like his health condition, longing for his homeland etc
enticed him to move back to Pune.
My mother was born in Jaipur, Rajasthan. She was the older of the two sisters. My Grandfather
was in Merchant Navy, constantly travelling to exotic locations such as Malaysia and Thailand.
After the passing away of his first wife, my grandfather decided to get married a second time to
ensure the up keeping of his daughters. He passed away a few years later due to heart
complications. The untimely death of my grandfather put a lot of financial strain on the family
and the family moved to Pune to save money. The family depended on assistance from relatives
to sustain themselves. My mother completed her basic education and then managed the affairs of
the family. She had an inclination to helping people and often spent her spare time at old age
homes. She got married at the age of 27 and settled in Hong Kong. Her frugal attitude towards
money and her ability to manage tight finances helped my father raise the scale of his business.
I was born on September 22 1986 in Hong Kong. My early years were spent studying in a
Canadian private school with a diverse multi cultural group. At the age of 11 I moved to with my
Family to Pune and studied in a Private school which preached openness and independent
thought. This unconventional environment generally attracted expatriates, non resident Indians
and other liberal Indian families. My focus in university was towards economics and
Psychology. I spent a lot of time reading different books and watching movies from directors of
Russia, France, and Afghanistan etc. After graduating I started working in KPMG and then
moved on to work for a few advertising firms.
My culture

Indian culture
India has had a very colorful history. It has witnessed the rule of thousands of small kings and
provinces. It has also been externally ruled by the Mauryans, the Mughals and the British. In
1947 India gained its independence from the British after a rule of almost 300 years. These years
saw a rich and diverse country undergo repression and stagnation. When the British, India was in
a state of despair. With over 75% of the population under the poverty line, no industry and the
largest migration in history, India was in a state of problems. Between 1947- 1960 India was left
with the task of reintegrating refugees, creating industries, alleviating disputes on Caste,
communities and waging two wars with Pakistan. The 1970s-1990s saw growing frustration
among the public. A large population was educated but unemployed. Businesses suffered due to
restrictive economic policies of the government and a lot of corruption and infighting leading to
large political instability. In mid 1990’s economic reforms were introduced which encouraged
business and improved cash flows in the country. The country has seen a massive transition since
then. More jobs have been available, education has improved and the overall business
environment has seen tremendous growth. From being an economy completely dependent on
agriculture, India now receives about 60% of its GDP from the services sector. Household
incomes have seen an exponential rise in the last ten years and see no
The western part of India has undergone a metamorphosis in the past decade. Investments in the
field of education and infrastructure by the government coupled with large multi nationals setting
up their base here have made this one of the most sought after region in the country. Every day
thousands of Indians from different parts of the country come to the region to either study or find
employment, making the region the countries melting pot of culture.
Maslows Hierarchy of needs
Rokeach
Schwartz
Hoefstedas dimensions
Consumer implications
Business Implication
Cultural fit
With my culture
With other cultures