Levering the balance sheet pulled in the roof of the whole western economy and now going too far up the value chain and being the brand just might pull in the walls.

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"As Indian consumers become more upwardly mobile and more exposed to foreign brand names, it is inevitable that the Indian consumer will upgrade himself and move up the value chain and try out better brands, so I think that is what UB is trying to prevent, " he said.

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And downstream, the new multi-brand retailers and the internet-savvy consumers are together gaining power and a bigger chunk of the value chain.

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