'India could become Hettich's biggest market in five years': Andreas Hettich

Mumbai: Andreas Hettich, chairman and fourth-generation owner of furniture fittings maker The Hettich Group, expects India to soon surpass home country Germany as its biggest market, powered by a rapid shift from informal carpentry to organised manufacturing and a swelling middle class.

"India has the largest population in the world, and if it comes to furniture and kitchen, it's very much related to number of households, population and income levels," Hettich told ET in an exclusive interview. "So, definitely, it will not take that long. I foresee (India overtaking Germany) within the next five, latest 10 years." India is already Hettich's second-largest market, accounting for 15-20% of its reported revenue of €1.4 billion in fiscal 2025, as per the company.

"We see a fast-growing middle class in India, which just widens our customer base really rapidly," Hettich said, adding that the country, being the fastest-growing economy, is "becoming more important every day." He noted that the brand has grown beyond the metros.

"In tier-2, tier-3 metros, housing is cheaper and there's more budget left for furnishing. Sometimes, they're even consuming higher sophisticated things" even as price sensitivity remains a defining trait of the market, Hettich said. The company, which entered India over 25 years ago, is seeing a steady transformation of the furniture ecosystem.

While 70% of the market still remains unorganised, there's a clear shift to the organised market, which is "growing probably double the speed of the market," Hettich said. Even a 1-2% annual shift from unorganised to organised is expanding the addressable opportunity for players, he added.

This transition is being reinforced by regulatory and policy moves, the company said.

"The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is affecting the country in the mid to long terms in a very positive way," said Andre Eckholt, managing director of Hettich India, SAARC, Middle East and Africa. "It is translating into local investments and manufacturing in India, rather than being dependent on other countries."