Olympics-related publicity has boosted the appetite for British products among luxury-hungry consumers in China and India, according to new research.
More than 60 per cent of respondents in the two countries said they wanted to buy more British products because of publicity around the games, according to the survey from Deloitte, the professional service firm, while 80 per cent said they were more likely to visit the UK.
In contrast, only 20 per cent from the US, France and Germany said Olympic publicity made them want to buy more British goods.
“London 2012 clearly provides a direct and immediate opportunity for consumer business,” said Graham Pickett, the head of travel, hospitality and leisure at Deloitte.
He added that the emerging middles classes of China and India were “increasingly powerful consumers of western goods”, and that British companies would benefit from Olympics publicity in the long term if they exploited the attention on London and the UK.
High-spending consumers from emerging markets have already helped boost sales at Burberry Group this year, and Deloitte’s research suggests that other British luxury brands could cash in from the games.
The government is aiming to use the event to generate £1bn of inward investment and to lure an extra 4m visitors by 2015.
The survey of 6,000 adults was conducted in March.