Consumerism thrives on status symbols. And so does the premium segment of the consumer good industry. A consumer survey done by A&M-ORG-MARG shows that the real status symbols are not consumer products alone. They surveyed 623 adult males in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Calcutta. All of them had at least one car for their use (owned or otherwise).

Interestingly most of them chose the location of their home as the most important status symbol. Similarly the other symbols which they put a lot by were cars, education and club membership. Consumer products like washing machines, music systems, paintings and lap-tops came much lower on their lists. Among the consumer products/services, the only ones which made it to the top ten were cell-phones and credit cards. Children's education ranked higher than flying first class and five star-dining.

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