Breaking new ground, Accenture’s recent 2015 Masters of Rural Markets research series attempts to cut through some of the assumptions, built over the years, on the habits of rural consumers in the country. The last few decades have brought about many shifts in perspective. Here is a sampling of the changes that have taken place, based on the survey covering 2,800 consumers in 320 villages and 32 census towns in eight states: the oft-quoted assumption that the price factor overrides all buying decisions of villagers — pushing them to “seek stripped-down, low-cost versions of products” — was found untrue, with respondents attributing 66 per cent weightage to brand image, functionality and aesthetics, and only 30 per cent to price;

the assumption that villagers make purchases after the harvest and during festivals was also proved wrong, with 55 per cent respondents preferring to buy when the need arises;

the third assumption that took a beating was that villagers prefer to buy from nearby places. The survey found that when it comes to bigger purchases, 85 per cent flocks to cities.

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