New Delhi: An analysis by the Bank of Baroda has highlighted that live concerts and entertainment events in India have generated an estimated spending of Rs 1,600-2,000 crore in the last 2-3 months.
India has seen a spike in both international and local music concerts post pandemic, driving an ‘experience economy’ that is influencing spending trends.
The BoB report is drawn on the lines of the coined term “Swiftonomics”, which is used to describe the economic impact of pop star Taylor Swift’s Eras tour.
“The multiplier effect is reflected across industries such as food and beverages, hotels, transportation, and merchandise, to name a few. Moreover, it also stimulates the gig economy, adding to the employment levels,” said the report, co-authored by Dipanwita Mazumdar and Jahnavi Prabhakar, economists at the Bank of Baroda.
India’s increase in disposable income and demand for concert experiences has led to a host of global artists announcing shows in the country. Maroon 5, Green Day, Bryan Adams, Dua Lipa, and Coldplay are fueling this trend, which has a knock-on effect on local artists like Diljit Dosanjh as well.
India currently ranks seventh in terms of revenue from live events, ahead of South Korea, France, and Australia.
The report set out to assess the impact of spending across multiple industries when these global artists first announced their shows. The greatest component is ticket sales, totaling Rs 750-950 crore, taking into consideration the varying ticket prices for different sections of the stadium.
Hospitality and transportation are estimated at Rs 400-500 crore, based on an assumption of twin-sharing rooms and single-night stays. Average prices of 2, 3, and 4-star hotels were used in the computation.
For transportation, assumptions include interstate travel for concerts in Tier 2 and 3 cities. Additionally, airfare at peak pricing for the day was used in the computation, with business class rates excluded to avoid overestimation. Meanwhile, food and beverage spending was estimated at Rs 140-180 crore.
Sponsorship cost for the concerts was anticipated at Rs 250-300 crore, a conservative estimate as per the report that does not include telecast rights.
Finally, coming to the miscellaneous spending, which was estimated at Rs 45-60 crore, includes spending on event management, volunteers, security, and merchandising.
While this brings the total expenditure to Rs 1,600-2,000 crore, on an annualised basis this amount translates to Rs 6,000-8,000 crore. The risk of ticket scalping, where tickets are bought in bulk and resold at higher prices, was also underscored.
“In India, considering the quotes from different unorganised ticket selling platforms, a rough conservative estimate for ticket selling itself amounts to Rs 1,000-1,200 crore in this concert season,” stated the report.
Overall, the rise of large-scale music concerts in India will have an impact on private consumption, job creation, GST revenue, tourism, and the gig economy.
(Edited by Tarannum Khan)
The young are going broke in their desperate pursuit of the “experience lifestyle”. Taking loans, usually unsecured personal loans from some financial app, to attend concerts and festivals, Goa trips and what not. This cavalier attitude towards financial management is bringing ruin to hundreds of thousands.
The industry wants this trend to continue for obvious reasons. They are making hay. The young ones are getting under a debt burden.
This “Experience Economy” is fueled by GenZ. GenZ is the most debt burdened generation in Indian history. Whereas the current and previous generations took on debt for long term asset creation, GenZ does it for “Experiences”.
Needless to say, the effects of such experiences are quite visible on this generation. One can easily predict what the future holds for them.
The pop-stars are loving it though. They rake in the moolah after all.