Economic slowdown has plagued markets for quite some time, but the blues may not last for very long. Retailers are confident about India’s long term consumption story. Brands are likely to offer more discounts in the upcoming festive season to make up for the lackluster first half.

Jamshed Daboo, managing director, Trent, in an interview with CNBC-TV18 said: “The slowdown people were talking about was accentuated by what they saw in rural markets but in urban markets it was not as highlighted as it was in the rural markets.

“We have seen a pickup in consumption, which tells us that the next festive season will be a good one. Consumers are willing to spend but perhaps wanting to spend more sensibly and perhaps at lower price points but the sentiment to spend is coming back without a doubt,” he added.

He also expects the festive season to be better than last year from a growth point of view. “I think there will be steady increase in consumption during festive season but I don’t think people are going to go over the top to splurge," he said, adding that in general the Indian consumers are becoming more sensible with spending.

"So if products are delivering value they certainly will take off but don’t see reckless spending taking place this year."