Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Nabanita Talukdar

Luxury brands want you to believe a $3,000 handbag can also save the planet. Nabanita Talukdar, PhD, the newest Marketing professor in the School of Economics and Business Administration, is here to explain why that pitch works—and why it matters for the next generation of business leaders.

Her latest study, published in the European Journal of Marketing, has a title that sounds like a capsule from a sci-fi novel: “The guilt-relief pill: the effect of a sustainability claim for luxury brands.” The research reveals that when a luxury brand adds sustainability claims to its products, consumers don’t just nod approvingly; they feel less guilty about buying. The effect is most powerful when the product is expensive, visible, and purchased purely for pleasure. In other words, eco-friendly messaging won’t do much for a $30 bottle of designer shampoo, but it can ease the conscience of someone eyeing a couture bag or diamond bracelet.

“Marketing, like geology, is about fieldwork,” says Talukdar. “You can’t understand the terrain by staying in your office.”

Talukdar didn’t start out in business. Growing up in Assam, India, she studied geophysics and mathematics, mapping glaciers and terrains before realizing she wanted to explore a different kind of landscape: human behavior. “Marketing, like geology, is about fieldwork,” she says. “You can’t understand the terrain by staying in your office.” That curiosity led her to roles with Procter & Gamble and L’Oréal, where she managed luxury accounts and saw firsthand how prestige rituals reshaped markets in Mumbai, Dubai, and Singapore. Working with artisans, sourcing luxury silks, and navigating the aesthetics of global beauty brands planted the seed for her fascination with sustainability and consumer psychology.

At Saint Mary’s, those insights don’t stay locked in journals. They animate her teaching, where students are asked to wrestle with contradictions that drive modern marketing. Can a luxury brand be authentic when it leans on sustainability? Why do Gen Z shoppers champion vegan bags while still filling their closets with fast fashion? What does all this say about the future of consumer trust? For Talukdar, the answers aren’t simple, which is exactly the point. “I want students to see that consumer behavior is messy, emotional, and deeply cultural,” she explains. “Numbers matter, but so does empathy.”

That blend of data and humanity is what drew her to Saint Mary’s. The College’s Lasallian values of respect and inclusivity mirror her own experience of navigating different cultures and industries. “When you’ve had to learn your way into a new culture, a new industry, a new country, you understand how important inclusivity really is,” she says. In her classes, she brings those values to life through active learning projects, collaborations with community partners, and opportunities for students to engage directly with industry voices.

There’s also a lighter side to her story. A lifelong comic book collector, Talukdar grew up devouring Amar Chitra Katha and Tinkle in India, then moved on to Tintin, Asterix, and Archie. She credits those colorful panels with giving her a lens to the world long before she traveled it, shaping her imagination in the same way her research now shapes the imagination of her students.

For Talukdar, joining Saint Mary’s isn’t simply about adding another chapter to her career. It’s about equipping Gaels with the ability to navigate an industry where desire, ethics, and culture constantly collide. Her message is clear: In business today, guilt is no longer just a feeling—it’s a lever, a variable, a question every brand must confront. “Luxury brands are learning they can’t stay silent about sustainability,” she says. “Consumers expect it. The question is whether they believe it.”