Money talks: How brands, leaders, destinations are monetising storytelling

Imagine 50–100 people sitting in a café, cultural venue or auditorium. There is no elaborate set, no screen, perhaps not even a celebrity performer. Someone simply walks up and begins: “Let me tell you a story…” And people have bought tickets to listen. In an age of endless free content, why are consumers paying for something as old as civilisation: a story told in person?

From a ₹850 live storytelling evening to a ₹1.65 lakh executive programme, people are now paying at both ends of the spectrum — to experience stories and to learn how to tell them. Increasingly, the story is part of what we buy. A luxury hotel no longer sells only a room; it sells heritage, provenance and a sense of place. A coffee company doesn’t just sell beans; it tells you about the farm, grower and roast. A jewellery label sells craftsmanship and generations of artisans. A founder isn’t simply pitching numbers, s/he is pitching a vision people can believe in.

And now there is another business growing alongside it: teaching people how to tell those stories. According to TechSci Research, India’s executive education and corporate training market was valued at $2.05 billion in 2025 and is projected to grow at around 11 per cent annually through 2031. From short digital courses and private coaches to executive programmes at leading business schools costing upwards of ₹1 lakh, storytelling is becoming a professional capability people are willing to pay to acquire.

Does content convert to commerce?

Does storytelling actually make people spend more? “Sometimes—but not automatically,” says Karan Chechi, founder and chief executive officer of TechSci. “Stories can build attention, trust, emotional connection and perceived value, potentially increasing purchase intent and willingness to pay. But the story must be credible—and the product must deliver.”

Chechi shares an example of the Significant Objects project by journalist Rob Walker and writer Joshua Glenn who bought 100 inexpensive objects for a total of $128.74, commissioned writers to create fictional stories around them and auctioned the objects on eBay. They eventually fetched $3,612.51, about 28 times their original cost. A second batch, bought for $134.89, sold for $3,992.93.

The project was not a controlled experiment—publicity and the auction format could also have influenced prices—but it offered a striking illustration of how narrative can alter perceived value. For businesses, however, there are limits. “Storytelling cannot rescue a poor product, weak service or inflated price. The real test is measurable: does the story improve conversion, retention and brand connection—or increase what a customer is willing to pay?” says Chechi.

When stories shape policy

Storytelling is moving beyond brands into leadership and policy advocacy. At a recent Ladies Who Lead gathering at Taj Ambassador in New Delhi, Ambassador Lakshmi Puri, former UN Assistant Secretary-General and founding deputy executive director of UN Women, described storytelling as fundamental to how people build families, communities and societies — and even consensus around policy.

At UN Women, she used storytelling while navigating the politically and culturally contested terrain of gender equality. “We have to be that sutradhar, managing different strings very deftly,” she said, referring to the challenge of balancing diverse political, cultural and social perspectives while building consensus around gender equality. For Puri, storytelling can shape narratives, influence policy and rally people behind an idea. She has since carried that instinct into fiction. Her novel Swallowing the Sun, spanning three generations of women, uses personal stories to explore the larger canvas of India, history and social change.

The principle increasingly applies in corporate leadership too. Facts may establish credibility, but narratives can help executives explain where an organisation is going, why change is necessary and why employees, investors or consumers should be part of that journey.

When the backdrop becomes the foreground

At a resort in Rishikesh Aloha on the Ganges, the backdrop becomes the foreground. What is being sold is not simply a room with a view, but an experience built around the river and the spiritual character of the destination. “Our main strength is our location—right on the banks of Ganga ji, surrounded by mountains. During the aarti, the mountains, river and fire come together to create a spellbinding experience,” says Kuldeep Saini, area general manager, Aloha on the Ganges.

The narrative extends to the plate. The riverside restaurant, Patio, traces the Ganga’s journey from its source to the Bay of Bengal through food — from Harsil’s rajma and Haridwar’s kachoris to Banaras’ tamatar chaat and Kolkata-inspired dishes. Even in-room dining has a “tiffin story”.

Equally telling is what Aloha chooses not to offer: no alcohol, no DJ nights and not even ubiquitous resort staples such as paneer butter masala or standard mixed vegetables. “We don’t do very commercial food here,” says Saini. Instead, there are Himalayan thalis, a distinctive Delhi 6 moong dal and familiar vegetables such as torai, lauki and bhindi presented differently.

Yoga, nature walks and evening aarti reinforce the narrative. The resort has also created Ragas on the River, its musical property, and is experimenting with bhajan clubbing—bringing devotional music into a contemporary experiential format rather than introducing conventional nightlife. At Aloha, the location isn’t scenery around the product; the location is the product.

Brewing a story, one cup at a time

In a crowded café market, the story behind the coffee can become almost as important as the cup itself. At Libertario Coffee Roasters in GK2, New Delhi, that story begins with provenance—the farms, growers and Colombian roots behind the bean.

“Coffee is not simply about what is in the cup. It is about everything that happens before and around it—where it comes from, how it is grown and processed, and how it is ultimately experienced,” says co-founder and India CEO Miguel Villaquiran. Born from a Colombian family with decades of coffee-production experience, Libertario brings that heritage to India through coffees from Colombia and India, five signature flavour profiles and an Omakase experience that introduces consumers to coffee’s different personalities—from floral and fruity to chocolatey and intense. It reflects a wider change in premium consumption. Provenance itself has value. Knowing who grew something, where it came from and how it was made can turn an otherwise functional purchase into an experience.

At Libertario, the customer isn’t simply buying a cup of coffee; the story behind the cup becomes part of the product.

When culture becomes the conversation

The same principle operates on a much larger canvas: travel. Some destinations barely need marketing because their culture does the storytelling. Heritage walks through Old Delhi, Mehrauli, Lucknow or Jaipur sell more than sightseeing: travellers pay for someone to interpret a place through its food, architecture, history and forgotten neighbourhoods.

The power of such narratives can become so strong that some destinations face the opposite problem—overtourism. Rohit Kohli, managing director, Creative Travel Family of Brands, points to Japan, Barcelona, and Disney destinations as examples where cultural associations and experiences are powerful enough to generate their own demand.

For Ruchi Kohli, Chief of The Experience, Away&Co., Japan is particularly interesting. Despite potential language and food barriers, its culture and civic behaviour have created a compelling global image—reinforced by stories such as Japanese football fans staying behind to clean stadiums after matches.

Elsewhere, different narratives drive travel. Vietnam and Azerbaijan have built appeal around accessibility, value and short-haul connectivity, while Antarctica promises the ultimate once-in-a-lifetime experience. Travellers aren’t simply buying a flight or hotel room. Increasingly, they are buying into what a destination represents — and the story they can bring home.

Storytelling Moves Beyond the ‘Soft Skill’

If stories can influence customers, employees, policymakers and investors, it follows that learning to tell them has acquired a price tag. Storytelling is moving from a soft skill to a premium professional capability. Short workshops can cost a few thousand rupees, while programmes at leading business schools range from roughly ₹45,000 to ₹1.65 lakh, before taxes. The emphasis is not creative writing but business impact—leadership communication, brand narratives, data storytelling, personal branding and stakeholder influence.

IIM Calcutta, for instance, offers programmes covering areas ranging from leadership storytelling and strategic influence to data narratives and AI-enabled communication. IIM Bangalore and ISB Executive Education offer programmes around business storytelling, leadership and executive presence, while MDI Gurgaon has programmes combining storytelling with data or theatre techniques. At the lower end, digital courses make the skill accessible for a few thousand rupees. At the other, executives are spending six figures and several days—or even months—learning how to turn information into narratives that persuade. The shift is telling. Storytelling is no longer treated as creative flair. It is becoming a professional capability that can be taught, priced and monetised.

And whether the product is a hotel room, a cup of coffee, a destination—or an executive’s ability to persuade—the business proposition is increasingly the same: a good story can add value to what is being sold.

WHAT DOES IT COST TO BECOME A BETTER STORYTELLER?

From ₹7,000 digital courses to ₹1.65 lakh executive programmes, professionals are paying widely varying prices to master the craft.