The salesman in the Bombay branch of Brioni, the Italian tailor favoured by James Bond, oozes high-class disdain. When quizzed on the price of a linen blazer, a raised eyebrow effortlessly communicates that those who ask such questions can seldom afford the answers. He is, as it goes, quite correct: the jacket costs £3,000.

The wonder, though, is not how much 007 splashes out on his clobber, but that Brioni has set up shop in a country where three quarters of the population live on less than 25p a day. The outfitter is far from alone. Bombay is home to one of the few shopping centres to sport a Rolls-Royce showroom, about a 30-minute drive from Asia’s biggest slum. Ferrari recently - and rather bravely - sent out two reinforced 612 Scaglietti supercars to tour the sub-continent’s potholed highways to showcase the marque.

Stella McCartney, the designer, has announced plans for six stores across the sub-continent - a bet on Bangalore’s fashionistas matching the profligacy of their peers in LA and Moscow. Joseph Wan, the chief executive of Harvey Nichols, is studying a move into the market.

In luxury retail, the centre of gravity is shifting east. India will spend about £2 billion on luxury goods this year, according to A. T. Kearney, the consultancy, a number expected to hit £15 billion in 2015. Already, there is plenty of cash about. Forbes magazine says that India sprouted 19 new dollar billionaires last year. It now has 54 - more than Japan for the first time.

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