Abhijat Shukla of WebEngage explains that women drive 70-85% of purchases in India, but brands lag in understanding them, relying on token campaigns over sustained, data-driven engagement.
Women are not a niche audience in India’s consumer economy; they are one of its most powerful forces. The March 2026 HerKey – Havas Creative India report underscores an urgent reality: women influence 70-85% of purchase decisions across Indian categories. Still, the market is lagging dangerously behind. While 79% of marketers acknowledge women’s rising influence over the last two years, a mere 14% see themselves as leaders in women-centric marketing. This disconnect demands immediate action.
That gap means the main problem now is not whether brands recognise women’s importance, but whether they understand them well enough to build a strategy around that influence. The 2026 report says the biggest barrier is not budget, but the insight gap leads to legacy assumptions, limited data, and weak qualitative understanding.
Women’s economic and decision-making roles are also becoming more visible in measurable ways. India’s female labour force participation rate was 35.3% in December 2025 and 35.1% in January 2026, according to official monthly labour force releases. That does not mean every working woman looks or behaves the same as a consumer, but it does reinforce that women’s participation in earning and household economics is substantial and current.
The shift is especially visible in financial behaviour. In March 2026, the Economic Times reported data from Axis Direct showing that demat accounts opened by women have risen by 129% since 2021. The same report says 64% of equity orders placed by women are executed online, signalling greater comfort with digital investing journeys.
Despite compelling data, brands are moving far too slowly. The March 2026 Lxme-EY India report reveals a stark gap: women hold just 25% of mutual fund folios, compose only a quarter of equity and mutual fund investors, and typically start investing five years later than men. Alarmingly, another March 2026 Economic Times report finds women comprise just 25.7-26% of India’s unique mutual fund investors. The opportunity is slipping by, and waiting is no longer an option.
This is why brands must act now; broad symbolic women-focused marketing is woefully insufficient. The HerKey-Havas report finds that even in traditionally female-oriented sectors such as fashion, personal care, FMCG, and retail, only 50-70% of brands conduct regular women-focused campaigns. In rapidly shifting sectors like BFSI, automobiles, and real estate, the lack of scaled initiatives could prove costly. Delay at this moment can set brands back for years.
The report also shows where the market is beginning to move. Brands say future women-centric engagement will increasingly rely on community-led ecosystems (43%), AI-driven personalisation (39%), and regional relevance (37%). That is an important shift because it moves the conversation from “talking to women” to actually understanding different cohorts of women by needs, life stage, language, and context.
Time is running out to move past the ‘occasion trap.” The same 2026 study reveals that many brands still relegate women-centric communication to moments like International Women’s Day or Mother’s Day, rather than sustaining year-round relevance. This approach risks creating fleeting visibility with no lasting impact. Consistent, ongoing engagement is no longer optional; it’s imperative.
So it’s clear: women matter to growth. Yet many brands still use generic narratives, while consumer behaviour grows more diverse, digital, and consequential. A woman researching SIPs, one driving family purchase choices, and one entering a new category are not identical marketing challenges. Treating them as one segment results in shallow relevance.
The implication for brands is clear. Don’t wait for a marketing calendar, rather act now. Commit to ongoing, data-driven engagement by segmenting based on behaviour, intent, channel preference, life stage, and decision role. Harness first-party insights to pinpoint whether users are researching, comparing, investing, buying for themselves, or purchasing for their families. To lead the market, shift boldly from symbolic gestures to delivering practical, sustained relevance for women consumers.
Women’s influence is here. Marketing maturity must now catch up.
