DITAA 2026: Long lasting appliances can build customer trust, says Sanjay Chitkara, Director and co-CSMO of LG
Follow UsLG sees long-lasting appliances as a way to build customer trust.
Consumers should decide when to replace a working appliance.
LG is testing new air purifier technology for Indian conditions.
Digit hosted its India’s Top Appliance Awards 2026 (DITAA 2026), bringing together leading appliance brands, senior industry executives and technology leaders to discuss how the Indian consumer-durables market is changing. The event focused on issues including product quality, innovation, sustainability, manufacturing and the evolving expectations of consumers. Speaking at the event, Sanjay Chitkara, Director and co-CSMO of LG, offered a different view on one of the industry’s biggest business questions: what happens when appliances last for 10 or 15 years? He further added that LG does not want customers to replace a working appliance simply because a newer model is available.
SurveyWhile speaking at the Fireside Chat, Chitkara said, ‘We don’t treat a long life cycle as a business threat. We feel it’s an opportunity to build long-time brand loyalty with our customers.’ He further added that the idea of making products last is closely linked to how LG looks at its relationship with consumers.
Describing the companies’ vision, he said, ‘We don’t push very aggressively the artificial obsolescence of our product, like slowing down the software or there being no spares for 5-10 years.’ According to him, a consumer should be able to continue using an appliance as long as it is meeting their needs, while the decision to upgrade should come from the consumer.
While talking, what’s his idea on what actually makes a person replace an appliance that is still working? Chitkara believes the answer is often aspiration rather than necessity. He compared the situation with smartphones, where people frequently upgrade even when their existing phone is functional. ‘What we believe is that our upgrades are basically based on human aspiration to evolve,’ he said.
Consumers, according to Chitkara, may choose a new product because it matches their changing personality, taste, lifestyle or status. He also added that ‘they (consumers) change their functionally working products because the new product reflects their new image, new personality, new taste for the design and features and their new status.’
While discussing affordability, the LG director said Indian consumers have become more affluent over the years, with many middle-class families now able to afford things that were once considered expensive. However, he pointed out that entry-level products such as single-door refrigerators have remained relatively affordable despite the rise in incomes and prices of other goods.
He noted that ‘the biggest strength of LG was that we always took care of affordability. And with the affordability, we gave excellent products,’ he also added that several brands have disappeared over the last three decades while LG has continued to hold a leading position across product categories.
Taking air purification as an example, Chitkara explained how India’s difficult conditions can influence LG’s products globally. He said pollution in Delhi-NCR is different from the conditions for which many air purifiers in Western markets are designed. LG is, therefore, testing an air purifier that moves beyond mechanical filtration and uses molecular chemical action to address gases such as SO₂, NO₂ and CO₂.’ These days we are testing in the Indian market. And if we get a good response, we are getting the test results, which are very good. And the idea is to launch these globally,’ he said.
