Move over Donald Trump, India has embraced the celebrity endorsed real estate phenomenon and early word is that Indian celebrities increase purchase prices by 10-15%. The India Street has examined a number of the most prominent celebrity endorsements for real estate builders and projects and has rated them accordingly. The rating is not a statement of the project quality, but a statement on the suitability of the brand ambassador.
| Project | Celebrity | Brand Ambassador Rating 1 – 10 (best) |
| Royal Garden Villas and Resort · Location: Bangalore
| Jack Nicklaus – US Golfer | Rating: 8 While Jack is popular in the US, his appeal in India is probably limited. I would have gone for Vijay Singh (yes I know he wasn’t raised in India) due to his heritage. |
| · All Projects
| Yuvraj Singh – Cricketer | Rating 7: A good choice for LVL but they fail to effectively tie the Cricketer to the project very well |
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| Greg Norman – US Golfer - designed the Signature Golf Course
| Rating 8: Very good brand ambassador positioning for the project, but I don’t know how much star power Mr. Norman has in India |
| Sania Mirza – India Tennis Star | Rating: 2 We can’t even find her on their website. It doesn’t make sense to us that she endorse the company or projects since they deal in large infrastructure projects. Just how exactly is she going to help? | |
| · Location: Bangalore · Developer: Golden Gate Properties (GGP) | Rating: 9 This power couple is a near perfect fit for the project and should prove to be a benefit to the development. They are featured on the home page as a pair of likeable neighbors. | |
| · Bangalore | · Australian Cricketer | Rating: 8 If the Cricket Camp run by Shane Materializes, this endorsement will be revised upward |
| Rating: 9 Due to Emcee wanting to appeal to the young hip generation, Basu is a very good choice | ||
| · Construction Division | · India Singer | Rating: 5 Although Jesudas is fairly well known, I’m not sure how this adds much value to SRK’s construction projects. I rate this project a neutral. |
| · Bangalore | · India Cricketer | Rating: 9 A very good choice for Skyline using him on almost very marketing piece. However, the company fails to tie their projects to Cricket which Nitesh Forest Hills appears to be doing well. |
| Royal Garden Villas & Resort at Tuscany Hills
| · Tennis Star
| Rating: 10 A perfect blend of matching the tennis star’s qualities and participation since Vijay will headline the tennis center at Royal Garden Villas. He joins Jack Nicklaus as co-brand ambassadors for this project |
| · Location: Wakad | Rating: 5 Like the other singers on this list, I don’t see the developer tying the singer’s style or music to the project. Mont Vert should have added some elements to the project that match Remo. Still, we don’t like singers as real estate ambassadors. | |
| · Location: Lonavala | Amitabh Bachchan | Rating: 10 Perfect brand ambassadors for a near perfect development. This all inclusive city development has everything. |
| · India Cricketer | Rating 9: The facility will have a state of the art sports center including a cricket field. We like this project and the brand ambassador |
We like celebrity endorsements as both a buyer and as a method to sell more residential product. The former because it forces the developer or property manager to maintain the project and keep it up to the standards of the celebrity that endorsed it. Can you imagine the Aamby Valley project falling apart and having an irate Aishwarya Rai and Amitabh Bachchan come after you in the press? It would not be good for the corporate image.
I also believe it sells more residential product and at a higher value because customers want to be associated with a top brand. This luxury brand phenomenon cuts across all modernizing cultures around the globe. Lastly, the celebrity effect gives a boost to the developer’s corporate image if managed correctly.
According to Navdeep Malhotra, the maker of A Different Sunday, “If stars can lend fizz to aerated drinks and other consumer goods, then why not real estate? Housing projects are merchandise too and need a selling impetus. However, it also lends a peep into how tough the competition is in the sector and on the chances of sales sagging or plateauing in near future.”
While star power is a new trend in the Indian real estate, some celebrity endorsements make less sense. Currently there are filmstars, cricketers, TV actors and musicians that are acting as “real estate” brand ambassadors. How are musicians adding value to a real estate development unless they tie the musician to something related to musical arts. A community built around a symphony hall or school might work, but a standard real estate development doesn’t seem to be a fit. Moreover, as I rated above, I can’t see how GVK industries receives much value from Sania Mirza because the brand relationship is confusing.
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