India is set to overtake China as the world's most populous nation by 2050 and designers like Nicole Miller are taking note. India’s luxury clothing and accessories business generates around $434 million in sales annually. Researchers estimate that by 2010, this figure will rise to $800 million. Nicole Miller is looking to sell her clothes and accessories to an Indian retail chain and may partner with a luxury apparel company to distribute the Nicole Miller label.
Other designers are holding back for now. For example, Oscar de la Renta Inc. is keeping an eye on India, but according to the chief executive officer of the company, India is too accessories driven to yield success for luxury apparel brands. Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Valentino are not hesitant though and have already launched stores in India. These designers have good reason to throw caution to the wind since week long weddings with 1,000 guests are common in India. These events mean that there is a great demand for formal gowns and cocktail dresses. According to designer Payal Singhal, these weddings are “making a lot of designers in India very, very rich and they live very, very well,” and American designers like Nicole Miller are looking to follow in their footsteps.