According to the news reports, OYO has unveiled its plans to venture into the food and beverage (F&B) space by introducing in-house kitchens and Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) carts or lobby stores at its company-serviced hotels. With a primary focus on the Townhouse by OYO branded properties, the company aims to elevate the in-hotel dining experience and generate additional revenue streams across its hospitality portfolio.

Flexible Kitchen Models for Guest Convenience

As part of this initiative, OYO announced that it will implement in-house kitchen services at 1,500 company-serviced hotels in FY26. These kitchens will enable guests to conveniently order meals via online travel agencies (OTAs) and the OYO app by selecting the “Kitchen Services” option. The company clarified that kitchen formats would be tailored to each hotel, ranging from full-fledged commercial kitchens offering extensive menus to compact pantry setups for basic food items, depending on the hotel’s profile and infrastructure.

Townhouse Café to Offer Regional and Continental Menus

In addition to the kitchens, OYO is set to launch QSR carts and lobby-based stores branded as ‘Townhouse Café’. These outlets will serve well-priced meals featuring regional and continental dishes. The pilot programme, which commenced in January 2025, has already been rolled out in 100 company-serviced hotels across Delhi, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, and Bangalore. This successful trial has laid the groundwork for a nationwide rollout in the upcoming fiscal year. The company is also building a network of “trusted F&B experts” in cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Indore, Kolkata, Jaipur, and Lucknow to support the initiative.

Conclusion

OYO anticipates that its F&B venture will contribute an additional 5%-10% revenue at the hotel level on a stable state basis. Varun Jain, Chief Operating Officer, OYO, stated that the initiative aims to enhance the in-hotel dining experience for guests by offering “fresh”, “convenient”, and “quality” meal options across its network.

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. This does not constitute a personal recommendation/investment advice. It does not aim to influence any individual or entity to make investment decisions. Recipients should conduct their own research and assessments to form an independent opinion about investment decisions. 

Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.

At the prestigious World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES) held in Mumbai, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan made a powerful statement about India’s rising influence in the digital content landscape. Declaring India a “creator nation,” he acknowledged the country’s massive footprint in the global creator economy. With over 100 million Indian channels uploading content on YouTube in the past year alone, India is rapidly positioning itself as a global content powerhouse.

Massive Creator Payouts Showcase Economic Impact

YouTube’s financial contribution to India’s digital ecosystem was a central highlight. Mohan revealed that over the past 3 years, the platform has paid more than ₹21,000 crore to Indian creators, artists, and media companies. This figure underscores the platform’s deep-rooted role in enabling livelihoods, entrepreneurship, and brand-building in the digital age. As Indian creators continue to scale their reach, the financial rewards have followed.

Indian Content Finds Global Audiences

Indian creators are not just catering to domestic viewers. According to Mohan, Indian content clocked 45 billion hours of international watch time in the last year alone. Whether it’s regional music, educational content, tech reviews, or lifestyle vlogs, Indian creators are resonating with audiences across the globe. This global engagement is turning local creators into international digital ambassadors of Indian culture and creativity.

Over 15,000 Indian Channels Cross the Million-Subscriber Mark

The scale of success is reflected in subscriber counts as well. More than 15,000 Indian YouTube channels have crossed the one million subscriber milestone. This growth showcases not only the increasing digital literacy and internet penetration in the country but also the power of niche content, regional language adoption, and community building in driving creator success.

YouTube’s ₹850 Crore Commitment to Fuel Further Growth

Looking ahead, YouTube announced a fresh investment of over ₹850 crore (approximately USD 100 million) over the next 2 years to bolster the Indian creator ecosystem. This investment is aimed at supporting infrastructure, tools, training, and innovation to help creators turn their passions into sustainable businesses. From monetisation opportunities to global distribution, the initiative is expected to accelerate the evolution of India’s creator economy.

Read More: April 2025 Auto Sales: Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, M&M Shares in Focus.

Conclusion

YouTube’s declaration of India as a “creator nation” is not merely symbolic. It marks a recognition of the economic and cultural shift powered by millions of digital entrepreneurs. From smartphones to studios, India’s creators are rewriting the playbook on storytelling, content consumption, and community engagement. As global platforms continue to support this movement, the next wave of digital success stories is expected to emerge not from boardrooms but from creators’ living rooms across the country.

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. This does not constitute a personal recommendation/investment advice. It does not aim to influence any individual or entity to make investment decisions. Recipients should conduct their own research and assessments to form an independent opinion about investment decisions. 

Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.

In a recent move to protect retail investors, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has cautioned the public against participating in so-called opinion trading platforms. According to SEBI’s official statement, these platforms fall outside the purview of regulated securities markets and do not offer any form of legal or investor protection.

How Opinion Trading Platforms Operate

Opinion trading platforms allow users to stake money on binary outcomes—essentially “yes or no” propositions about uncertain future events. These could range from the result of a sports match to a political decision. The structure of these trades is such that a user either gains a fixed payout if the chosen outcome occurs or loses the entire stake otherwise.

While they may appear similar to investment platforms due to their use of financial jargon like “profits”, “stop-loss”, and “trading”, SEBI clarified that these are not genuine financial instruments. Instead, they often simulate the mechanics of trading without the backing of underlying securities.

Outside SEBI’s Regulatory Scope

SEBI’s advisory highlighted that opinion trading does not qualify as trading in securities under Indian law. This distinction is crucial because only transactions in recognised securities fall under the regulator’s jurisdiction. Consequently, any activity or dispute arising from such platforms is not covered by the protections typically offered in SEBI-regulated markets.

As per the advisory: “No investor protection mechanism under securities market purview shall be available for such investment/participation.”

Platforms Are Not Recognised Exchanges

SEBI also clarified that these platforms are not recognised stock exchanges, nor are they registered with or regulated by the market watchdog. Therefore, investors dealing with such entities do so entirely at their own risk, with no recourse to dispute resolution or compensation mechanisms usually available in the formal capital market ecosystem.

In instances where the nature of trades mimics or crosses over into areas regulated under securities law, such activity could be deemed illegal. Recognised stock exchanges have also been directed to report any such violations and take appropriate action.

Read More: SEBI’s New Regulations for Investor Safety Unveiled. 

SEBI Flags Use of Misleading Financial Terminology

One of the key concerns raised by SEBI is the misleading language used by these platforms. By employing terminology commonly associated with legitimate financial markets, these platforms may mislead users into believing they are engaging in regulated trading.

SEBI underlined that regardless of how skill-based or strategic the engagement may appear, the binary nature and unpredictability of outcomes make such platforms closely resemble gambling rather than investing.

Conclusion

Through this advisory, SEBI aims to spread awareness among investors and deter them from engaging with platforms that fall outside regulatory oversight. The regulator has urged the public to remain cautious and not to be enticed by promises of easy profits or technical-sounding terms that create a false sense of legitimacy.

This communication reinforces SEBI’s continuing efforts to shield investors from emerging market risks, especially those that exploit technological innovation to bypass legal frameworks.

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. This does not constitute a personal recommendation/investment advice. It does not aim to influence any individual or entity to make investment decisions. Recipients should conduct their own research and assessments to form an independent opinion about investment decisions. 

Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.

India’s luxury retail landscape is undergoing a remarkable transformation. In Q1 2025 alone, leasing activity in the luxury and bridge-to-luxury segment grew by a staggering 90% compared to the same period last year. Leasing by luxury brands touched 1,80,000 square feet, underlining a sharp rise in demand from global and domestic players alike, all eager to tap into India’s expanding premium consumer base.

Changing Consumer Demographics Fuel Expansion

A key driver behind this expansion is the evolving Indian consumer profile. Luxury brands are recalibrating their strategies, moving beyond legacy customers to target a broader and younger demographic. This includes not only the metros but also new-age urban centres that reflect changing lifestyle aspirations.

International Brands Enter Indian Cities

The Indian luxury ecosystem saw several marquee international entries in Q1 2025. German clockmaker Qlocktwo opened in Bengaluru, Jacadi Paris, a French children’s fashion brand, entered India, and women’s fashion label Maje debuted in Mumbai. Meanwhile, Bershka – the Spanish fast-fashion brand – and premium coffee lifestyle brand Nespresso launched stores in Delhi.

These entries reinforce the belief that India is now on the radar of most international luxury players, especially as Asia-Pacific emerges as a key growth region.

Read More: Luxury Shopping Beyond Metros: How E-commerce is Redefining Shopping in Small-Town India.

Surge in Rentals and Demand for Prime Retail Spaces

With this surge in demand, prime retail malls are witnessing a rental uptick. Strong sales performance by luxury tenants has empowered landlords to command higher rents. Notably, brands in the bridge-to-luxury segment, particularly in categories such as beauty and accessories, are aggressively taking up space in newer malls and emerging premium locations.

India’s High-Income Households to Double by 2030

According to projections, the number of high-income households in India is expected to grow from 15 million in FY23 to 30 million by 2030. This demographic shift underpins the bullish outlook for the luxury sector. The luxury market in India is expected to grow 3.5 times by 2030, reaching an estimated ₹8,500–₹9,000 crore (approximately US$1.01–1.06 billion).

Conclusion

India is poised to remain among the top 5 luxury markets in the Asia-Pacific region. While legacy players continue to focus on metros, new entrants are eyeing India’s aspirational population across Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities. This momentum reflects not just a retail evolution but a broader socio-economic shift.

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. This does not constitute a personal recommendation/investment advice. It does not aim to influence any individual or entity to make investment decisions. Recipients should conduct their own research and assessments to form an independent opinion about investment decisions. 

Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.

India’s restaurant sector, which currently employs approximately 85 lakh people, has the potential to generate employment for 1.5 crore individuals by 2028. 

This optimistic projection comes from Mr Zorawar Kalra, Vice President of the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), who believes that the right policy support could unlock significant growth and employment opportunities for the industry.

Key Demand: Granting ‘Industry’ Status and GST ITC

One of the primary demands from the NRAI is to grant the restaurant sector ‘industry’ status—an acknowledgement that would help streamline access to various government schemes and incentives. Additionally, the association is pressing for the availability of input tax credit (ITC) under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) framework.

Currently, restaurants are taxed either at 5 per cent GST without ITC or at 18 per cent with ITC. This dual structure is seen as unfavourable and burdensome, especially for smaller players in the industry. Kalra, who also heads Massive Restaurants Pvt Ltd, stated that the lack of ITC is a significant operational challenge and expressed hope that this issue would be addressed by the government soon.

Tensions with Aggregators Over Fair Competition

Beyond taxation, the relationship between restaurants and food delivery aggregators such as Swiggy and Zomato remains strained. The NRAI has voiced concerns over these platforms launching their own private-label brands in the quick-commerce segment a move seen as threatening to fair market dynamics.

Kalra called for open dialogue between aggregators and restaurant owners to ensure mutually beneficial operations. “Aggregators must engage more constructively with the sector and acknowledge the challenges it faces,” he added.

Service Charge Issue Remains Under Legal Review

The issue of service charges levied by restaurants continues to be a matter of legal debate. With the case currently sub judice and scheduled for a hearing in the Delhi High Court on May 9, 2025, Kalra chose not to comment in detail. However, he affirmed that service charges are globally accepted and remain optional for customers in India.

Read More: Best Hotel Stocks in India in April 2025 – Indian Hotels, Oriental Hotels & More – 5yr CAGR Basis. 

Conclusion

With over 5 lakh restaurants under its umbrella, the NRAI believes that the restaurant industry is poised to play a pivotal role in India’s economic future, provided that it receives the regulatory recognition and support it seeks. Kalra concluded that policy reforms, especially around GST and the aggregator ecosystem, could empower the sector to exceed employment targets and contribute meaningfully to national growth.

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. This does not constitute a personal recommendation/investment advice. It does not aim to influence any individual or entity to make investment decisions. Recipients should conduct their own research and assessments to form an independent opinion about investment decisions. 

Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.