Author: Rajalingam Rathinam Date: 6th Sep. 2025
I’m often told the way for Indian companies to “win” is to export harder to the U.S. and Europe. Chase volumes, take the price the buyer offers, and pray tariffs don’t change. I disagree. Exports matter, but the real game is value, not volume. My strategy is simple: rebalance exports while building strong Indian brands and value-added industries. That keeps foreign exchange flowing, reduces vulnerability to overseas policy swings, and—most importantly—puts Indian consumers and Indian capability first.
What I See Behind Today’s Trade Noise
Tariffs move price; ownership of the value chain decides power—who designs, who owns IP, who controls the brand, and who captures the margin. Too often we ship raw materials or anonymous capacity and buy back finished brands at 4–6× the ex-factory price. That’s not a materials problem; it’s a branding and retail power problem. Fashion’s own pricing playbooks show wholesale markups commonly doubling costs and retail often doubling wholesale—roughly ~4–6× from factory to shelf in mainstream apparel (higher in luxury).
Here’s the irony I’m calling out, plainly: we export finished apparel under Western labels, and then buy those same logos in India at full retail. We do the making; others harvest the brand premium. The U.S. alone accounts for about a third of India’s garment exports, so when their policies swing, our low-margin exporters feel it first.
Tea tells the same story in a different language. India grows some of the world’s finest teas, yet most households are sold dust/CTC by default while premium orthodox leaves fly abroad. Structurally, we manufactured this outcome: ~80% of India’s tea is consumed at home, and around 90% of our black tea production is CTC, leaving only a sliver of orthodox to fight over—and that sliver goes premium and export-oriented. In 2024, India even rose to #3 in global tea exports, despite weather-hit output.
And it doesn’t stop at tea. Spices exports just hit an all-time high in both volume and value. Organic food exports are up sharply. Millets? We’re the world’s largest producer—roughly 38–40% of global output—yet our value-added millet exports remain negligible. Meanwhile we’ve become the world’s #3 instant-noodle market—8.32 billion servings in 2024—because convenience wins when better options aren’t just as easy.
I’m not saying “stop exporting.” I’m saying: export differently—export brands, IP, and systems, not just bales and billable hours. And in parallel, give Indians first access to India’s best.
My India-First Frame
Value before volume. I choose ₹100 margin on ₹500 branded sales over ₹10 margin on ₹500 commodity exports—every time.
Home market as launchpad. With a massive consumer base, India lets me prove quality, scale, and loyalty at home first.
Export the brand, not just the bale. Cotton and code can move; the real leverage is trademarks, designs, software IP, and channel control.
Selective openness, strategic depth. Stay globally connected, but deepen finishing, productization, and advanced materials here.
Set a high floor for quality. If “export grade” and “domestic grade” coexist, Indians get the short straw. I refuse that.
The Five-Pillar Plan I’m Executing
1) Move Up the Value Chain
I map the chain from input to consumer, circle the margin spikes—design, finishing, packaging, retail, software—and position myself there. Then I protect it with IP: trademarks, patents, code ownership.
2) Build Indian Brands People Trust
I own a promise I can prove: “Stays soft after 50 washes,” “Onboard in under 60 minutes,” “Battery retains 80% after 500 cycles.” Then I publish the proof.
3) Win India on Quality, Not Just Price
I treat quality as non-negotiable. No “export-only” specs. I back claims with measurable standards consumers can see.
4) Productize Services
I convert repeatable know-how into SaaS, APIs, and tools. Outcomes over hours. Integration over one-off projects.
5) Export on My Terms
I pick 1–2 markets that fit my product’s strengths, price for brand, and refuse clearance-sale deals that dilute positioning.
Sector Playbooks (with My Additions)
A) Apparel & Cotton: From Fields to Flagship Indian Brands
The gap: We supply premium cotton and manufacturing muscle. Labels abroad capture the narrative and the retail premium. The same logos then sell in India at full retail. Typical fashion math supports those multiples (~4–6× factory-to-shelf), even before luxury branding stretches it further.
My moves:
Tiered Indian brands (mass premium / premium / luxury) with published specs: fiber length, GSM, pilling resistance, colorfastness after 50 washes—tested independently.
Design for India’s climate and care realities. Breathable weaves, shapes that hold after handwashing or hard water, and finishes that tolerate frequent washing.
Upgrade finishing & compliance to meet global eco-standards; that unlocks domestic trust and smooth exports.
Anti-counterfeit by default: serialized QR codes, tamper tags, consumer-facing authenticity checks.
Omnichannel distribution: flagship + franchise + D2C with fast returns. Convenience is loyalty.
How I’ll talk about it publicly:
“We export finished garments under Western labels and then buy those logos back in India at full retail. The gap isn’t cotton or stitching; it’s brand and retail power. My answer: build Indian labels to global specs, publish the quality data, win at home, then carry the brand abroad.”
Context: The U.S. alone accounts for ~33% of India’s garment exports—so capturing brand margin at home matters even more when policies swing.
B) Tea: From Dust Default to Indian Access for Indian Excellence
The gap: We grow iconic teas, yet everyday Indians default to dust/CTC blends while premium orthodox leaves head abroad. The production mix explains it: around 90% of India’s black tea output is CTC, with only a sliver of orthodox—consistently documented across Tea Board and industry studies. Domestic consumption is ~80% of production, so premium supply is tight at home; in 2024, India still rose to #3 exporter, even with weather-hit output.
My moves:
Rebalance the mix—increment orthodox capacity and earmark premium Indian lots for the domestic market at fair, transparent prices.
Label literacy: front-of-pack clarity on grade (CTC vs. orthodox), origin, flush, and independent cupping scores.
Retail rituals: enable small tins/pouches of premium Indian teas at kiranas and quick-commerce, not only boutiques.
How I’ll say it:
“India should not be a dust-tea nation by default. We’ll raise the share of orthodox, publish the grade, and make our best Indian teas accessible to Indian families—without killing our export engine.”
(Side note: output volatility is real; 2024 production fell ~7.8%, lifting prices—another reason to protect domestic access while we export premium.)
C) Spices & Organics: Export Muscle, Indian Access
Facts I’m working with:
Spices: FY 2024–25 exports hit a record—1.799 million tonnes, ₹39,994 crore (US$4.72 bn). India remains the world’s leading exporter.
Organic foods: US$666 million in 2024–25, up 34.6% YoY (Commerce Ministry/APEDA-tracked).
My moves:
Build clean-label Indian spice blends with origin, volatile-oil content, and pesticide-residue transparency.
Mirror export-grade traceability at home—QR codes to farm clusters and lab reports, not just for overseas buyers.
For organics, push domestic assortment and price points that work for Indian households, not only export baskets.
How I’ll say it:
“We ship the world its flavour and purity. Indians deserve the same quality and traceability on their shelves—not just the export-grade stories told abroad.”
D) Millets & Real Food vs. “Three-Minute Everything”
Facts I’m working with:
Millets: India is the largest producer, around 38–40% of global output (FAO/USDA/APEDA). Yet APEDA’s own reporting says value-added millet exports are negligible—we mostly ship raw grain.
Instant noodles: India is already #3 globally, at 8.32 billion servings in 2024 (WINA). Convenience is winning.
My moves:
Turn millets into modern Indian formats—ready-to-cook batters, porridges, extruded snacks, rotis that puff, idli/dosa mixes that actually ferment right—priced for Indian families.
Compete on convenience and taste, not lectures. If a millet upma cooks as fast as noodles and tastes great, it wins.
Build domestic brand love first, then ship those brands (not just raw millets) to climate-similar markets.
How I’ll say it:
“We’re the millet capital of the world, yet we export raw and import processed convenience. I’m flipping that: value-added Indian millet foods for Indians first.”
E) Software & SaaS: From Projects to Products
The gap: Services revenue stops when the client stops. Products compound. Indian talent already builds world-class products—often for others. I’m keeping more of that equity here.
My moves:
Stand-up product squads with ARR targets and P&L autonomy.
Start narrow (GST for small retailers; hospital OPD flow in Tier-2/3; fleet safety for intercity buses) and own the niche.
Sweat DX/UX and ecosystem integrations so switching away from us is painful.
Price in rupees first, then scale to the Global South with localized compliance.
The Domestic Market Is My Launchpad, Not Plan B
India isn’t the “backup” market. It’s the proof market. If my apparel survives Chennai’s humidity and Delhi’s hard water, if my tea earns repeat buys in Ranchi and Kozhikode, if my SaaS handles India’s data scale and compliance quirks—that is the strongest export credential I can carry.
Who Does What (So We Don’t Wait on Each Other)
What I’m doing now (industry side):
Publish specs—fiber length, GSM, wash cycles; uptime and latency for software; residue and origin for foods.
Treat each brand as a P&L with retention, NPS, and contribution margin as core metrics.
Design as a core function—fabric/fit, interface, packaging. Design is how customers feel quality.
Standardize parts & platforms to reduce cost and defects and scale faster.
What I want—tightly targeted policy nudges:
Truth-in-labeling and minimum quality floors (cotton grades, blends, wash performance; software uptime/data protection).
Incentives for value-addition (finishing, advanced materials, product IP), not just assembly.
Fast-track testing and certification for domestic players hitting global marks.
Export credit that favors branded Indian goods, not just raw inputs.
A 12-Month Sprint I’m Running
Q1: Prove quality. Pick one hero product, define its spec, lab-test it, and publish the results. Fix top return reasons first.
Q2: Build the brand. Craft a promise I can back with data. Align packaging, website, onboarding, and support around that single promise.
Q3: Productize and price for India. If I’m a service, ship a productized module. If I’m a product, tune variants and warranties to Indian usage.
Q4: Export on my terms. Enter 1–2 markets that fit my strengths. Hold margin. Say no to buyers who treat me as a commodity.
By month 12, I’ll have a brand Indians recognize, a healthier margin mix, and export legs that don’t buckle with every overseas policy gust.
Addressing the Obvious Pushbacks
“But exports bring dollars—won’t this cut forex?”
Not if we rebalance. Branded, value-added exports bring more dollars per unit, while better domestic access reduces the dollars we burn importing finished brands at steep markups.
“Building brands is expensive.”
So is being invisible. Either I invest to earn pricing power, or I discount forever. I choose brand discipline.
“Quality standards raise costs.”
In the short term. In the medium term, they cut returns, build loyalty, and open export doors.
“Clients abroad keep the IP.”
That’s why I’m building my own. Services can pay the bills—but products build the moat.
The Lines I’m Adding (Your Points, in My Voice)
On apparel:
“We export finished apparel for Western labels and buy the same logos here at full retail. The gap isn’t skill; it’s brand control and channel power. I’m fixing that by building Indian labels that meet global specs and publishing the test data for Indian shoppers.”
(The pricing math that enables those retail multiples—keystone and beyond—is well documented.)On tea:
“We grow extraordinary teas—yet most Indians default to dust/CTC while premium orthodox flies abroad. That’s a choice we made: roughly 90% CTC production and about 80% domestic consumption. I’m switching part of my capacity to orthodox and reserving premium lots for Indian families at fair prices.”On spices/organics/millets:
“Spices exports are at record highs; organic shipments are surging; we produce close to 40% of the world’s millets—yet we still export raw and import processed convenience. I’m building clean-label Indian spice blends and modern millet foods for India first, then exporting the brand.”On instant noodles:
“India is now the world’s #3 instant-noodle market with 8.32 billion servings in 2024. That’s the benchmark for convenience. My job is to make the better Indian choice just as easy—and tastier.”
The North Star
Rebalancing isn’t retreat. It’s focus. I’ll build for India with Indian strengths—climate-smart textiles, frugal engineering, resilient supply chains, and software engineered for variability—and then export that playbook. That way I’m not begging for access; I’m bringing answers.
I’m committing to this path: value before volume; brand before bale; product before project; India before everywhere else. I will export—but I will export brands, IP, and systems as much as I export goods and hours. I will fight for Indian consumers to access India’s best at fair Indian prices. I will publish my proof. I will respect foreign markets without contorting my business to every policy twitch.
If enough of us choose this, tariff headlines won’t scare us. We won’t measure ourselves by containers shipped, but by value created—here at home and then worldwide.
- Rajalingam Rathinam
