In this episode, Sudeep Chawla interviews Sharan on one of the most under-discussed but critical topics in Indian marketing—how brands can build effective rural distribution.
Sharan draws from years of consulting experience and insights from Rama Bijapurkar’s Lilliput Land to reframe rural distribution as a strategic design challenge rather than a logistical nightmare. This episode sets the foundation with four powerful principles that every brand must understand before venturing into Bharat.
CONVERSATION HIGHLIGHTS
Why Bharat Matters: 65% of India’s population lives in rural areas, contributing nearly half of all FMCG sales.
Rural ≠ One Market: How treating rural India as a monolith is the first strategic mistake.
From Infrastructure to Insight: Why roads and warehouses are less important than relationships and rhythms.
Four Fundamentals of Rural Distribution:
KEY TAKEAWAYS
QUOTES
“Fragmentation isn’t a bug. It’s the blueprint.”
“You don’t crack Bharat by scaling up. You crack it by going small, again and again.”
“Trust is the real infrastructure in rural India. Roads come later.”
“They don’t want cheaper brands. They want the same brands, made accessible to their lives.”
“Lilliput Land isn’t a metaphor. It’s a distribution strategy.”
If you’re a brand builder, marketer, or founder trying to reach real India beyond metros, this episode gives you the mindset shift you didn’t know you needed.
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