They say beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. While technology brand apple, is the ‘apple’ of most eyes globally, Indian consumers pushed it 18 notches below Samsung mobiles in a listing of India’s most attractive brands for 2013 unveiled today by Trust Research Advisory. Over 2,500 consumer-influencers across 16 cities were interviewed for the study. 

Samsung mobiles topped the list nationally, and apple was ranked at number 19. For a brand that commands a premium position in every category from phones, tablets to laptops because of its attractive looks, among other attributes, apple was able to salvage some of its global reputation primarily because of the west of the country where consumers ranked it at number 9.

In the South and East of the country, apple did not even feature in the top 20. While Samsung’s mobile phone division would have topped the attractiveness charts, the rest of the durables business from the Korean giant languished at a distant 54th place in the list.

While Indian consumers did not think twice about giving global reputations the boot, they also ensured that footwear brands do get their place of pride in the listings. At no. 11 Bata led the pack followed by Reebok (no.12), adidas (14) and Puma (15) in the top 20. The disclaimer: Reebok, adidas and Puma are not just footwear brands – they also double up as sports accessories brands. That health consciousness is an attraction is a given and would have worked well for the sports brands, but that does not mean Indians are going to give up their colas in a hurry. Pepsi, the carbonated beverage brand was at no. 20. 

There were other surprises in store as well. If you thought that automobiles is a category where international brands would steal a march over local companies in the attractiveness, the badge of a Maruti Suzuki (7)and a Hero Motocorp (27) was more attractive than a BMW (32) or a Toyota (50) for the respondents of the study.

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