PM Modi's 'make in India' strikes emotional chord with the consumers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “make-in-India” programme seems to have struck an emotional chord with Indian consumers.

 

A survey conducted by McKinsey says that as much as 68 per cent of the respondents feel that in the second quarter (Q2) of 2025, they would purchase a product made by “locally-owned companies,” catapulting India to the top among 18 countries.

 

This trend is also three percentage points higher compared to the previous quarter (Q1) of 2025.    

 

But the nationalistic spirit is not limited to only India.

 

In China — which is involved in an aggressive trade battle with the US over high tariffs — consumers seem to be moving back towards local goods.

 

The survey shows that 58 per cent of the respondents in China want to buy local products in Q2 of 2025. This has gone up sharply by 7 per cent over the previous quarter.    

 

In the US, with President Donald Trump’s aggressive calls for “make in USA” or “Making America Great Again”, 52 per cent of the respondents in the country want to buy local products in Q2 of 2025. It is up by four percentage points compared to Q1.  

 

In Canada, Trump’s call to convert the country into a US state led to the boycott of American products there. This explains again the 8 percentage points increase in Canadian respondents (hitting 61 per cent) in Q2. They said they would buy more local products over the previous quarter.     

 

The research was based on quizzing 25,998 consumers across 18 countries between April 26 and May 5, and included Gen Z customers as part of the McKinsey ConsumerWise Sentiment Survey of Q2, 2025.  

 

What is also interesting is that Gen Z consumers in India seem to have the highest propensity to “splurge” on buying products and services compared to other age groups (like millennials, generation X and baby boomers) according to the survey. 

 

Asked a question on products and services they would like to spend money on and if they plan to “splurge” in the next three months, over 80 per cent in India answered in the positive, again. This puts India at the top of the pecking order.  

 

It is ahead of countries like the UAE (over 75 per cent said yes), China (75 per cent ), Saudi Arabia, Canada, European Union countries, Brazil, Japan, Australia, US, Mexico and South Korea.

 

Not only that, as much as 38 per cent of the Gen Z respondents in India said they use the ‘buy now pay later’ services to make purchases. This helps them in splurging despite not having enough money.    

 

Gen Zs have been identified as those born between 1996 and 2010, the first generation which has grown up in a digital world and reached adolescence during the pandemic.

 

What the survey brings to the fore is that among overall consumers, while there is worry about rising prices, a larger proportion of them plan to keep splurging.

 

Even here, India tops the list — while 40 per cent of consumers say that they are concerned about rising prices, only 31 per cent of them intend to splurge. The rest intend not to.

 

At the second spot is UAE, where 44 per cent of the respondents are worried about price hikes. But 30 per cent will continue to splurge while the rest will be more careful.