Archive · 23 Sep 2026
Why Five Indian Cities Are Emerging Consumption Hubs
A report says five Indian cities are becoming important places for shopping and business.
The cities are Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur, Surat and Lucknow.
Ahmedabad has the most people and the highest overall opportunity score.
Pune has many people and strong buying power.
Jaipur has the highest affluence score, meaning its households are especially financially strong by the report’s measure.
Surat has a large population but a lower affluence score than some of the others.
Lucknow has fewer people but relatively strong household affluence.
Together, these cities could create more demand for premium products and organised retail outside India’s biggest metros.
Ahmedabad has the largest population at 98 lakh and the highest Opportunity Index score at 7,300.
Pune combines a population of 68 lakh with a high Affluence Index of 83.4.
Jaipur has the highest Affluence Index among the five cities, scoring 100.0.
Surat and Lucknow are emerging hubs despite lower Opportunity Index scores than the other three cities.
The report assesses market potential using both affluence and population, not population alone.
- Who
- Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur, Surat and Lucknow are the cities assessed in the report.
- What
- The report identifies the five cities as emerging consumption hubs with differing combinations of population and affluence.
- Where
- The cities are located in India, including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
- Why
- Their market potential reflects both population size and household affluence, creating opportunities for premium products, organised retail and future demand.
- Cities covered
- Ahmedabad, Pune, Jaipur, Surat and Lucknow
- Largest population
- Ahmedabad, with 98 lakh people
- Highest affluence score
- Jaipur, with a Market Affluence Score of 100.0
- Highest Opportunity Index
- Ahmedabad, with a score of 7,300
- Pune metrics
- 68 lakh population; Affluence Index 83.4; Opportunity Index 5,668
- Surat metrics
- 56 lakh population; Affluence Index 60.4; Opportunity Index 3,382
- Lucknow metrics
- 42 lakh population; Affluence Index 73.1; Opportunity Index 3,071
- Data source
- Kantar TGI / Urban Bharat City Opportunity Index