Diwali 2023: Gold, silver lead regional sales, as diamond wins over national markets

Growth in demand for diamond jewellery marked the season, implying an increased share of youth experimenting with diamonds. Overall, temple jewellery in gold and diamond jewellery in 14kt-18kt saw strong sales

Mumbai: Gold prices have been fluctuating over the last several months and the country’s jewellery industry has seen staggered demand for the metal during this time period. Despite a disrupted trajectory, Dhanteras brought demand back on track, which intensified sales of gold jewellery during Diwali.

Enthused, jewellers navigated every possible vertical from gold, silver, diamonds, platinum and coloured gemstones to excite buyers. In specific local markets, independent jewellery brands saw healthy demand for gold jewellery and silver coins in the 10-25 grams range, because of the auspicious occasion.

“Tradition encourages buyers to focus more on gold and silver, while demand for platinum, diamond, and coloured gemstones rises after such festivities. Regardless, proper marketing brings the best of our stock to customer’s attention and that helps influence future purchase decisions for people walking in,” said Diksha Rajawat, Head of Operations, Fulchand Gulabchand Jewellers, Thane.

Diamonds proved to be quite popular in national markets. Mia by Tanishq noted that diamond jewellery in the 14kt to 18kt category has been most purchased during Diwali every year.

“While most of the buying mainly takes place in the North and West markets of the brand, this year, the purchasing trend was strong, especially in the Tier II and Tier III markets in the East,” said Mrinal Maji, Head – Product and Merchandising, Mia by Tanishq. The brand also saw the muted purchase of coloured gemstones this year as an opportunity for next year’s festive season.

According to Suvankar Sen, MD & CEO of Senco Gold & Diamonds, volume growth for the brand has been in the low single digits, while value growth has been in the low double digits this Diwali due to fluctuating gold rates. “We have seen an overall growth of 10-12% in terms of value. Notably, we have experienced a substantial 25-30% growth in diamond jewellery, which shows that the younger generation is willing to experiment with Western designs. Platinum has also performed well, with 15-20% growth. This suggests that young consumers are interested in white metals, such as platinum and rose gold,” Sen said.

Interestingly, the brand saw a significant uptick in sales of men’s jewellery, including chains and rings, with a remarkable 15% growth. Sen said that customers came in either to purchase for themselves or had their spouses buy for them.

Price points and weight categories

Gold jewellery, more specifically, temple jewellery, has been in demand for heritage brands such as Shri Ram Hari Ram Jewellers, and sales were at par with the festive season of 2022. “We saw a trend where people only want vintage or temple gold jewellery. This means that there should be no jadau, polki or diamonds on the pieces. Pricing varies, but people are buying mostly in the Rs 1-15 lakh price bracket,” said Meghali Gupta, Director, Shri Ram Hari Ram Jewellers.

For PNG Sons, the average weight of the jewellery purchased by customers was between 15-20 grams and hence, the price range was anywhere between Rs 1.5-2 lakh. Moreover, the brand saw a 10% increase in sales over that of the previous year. “The try-out jewellery, preferred by the new generation, was sold between Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh. Some of the stores experienced usual sales, while others saw over 15-20% growth,” Aditya Modak, Chief Financial Officer, PNG Sons, commented.

Marketing and branding activities

With retail jewellers making the most of marketing and promotional activities, certain changes were observed in the buying patterns. PNG Sons focused on TV and theatre advertising for their primary target audience. For the tech-savvy youth, they executed various forms of digital marketing and received positive responses.

Mia by Tanishq’s omnichannel marketing has led to better performance than last year. “We leveraged a mix of print innovations across major national publications and an intensified digital presence including social media campaigns, influencer collaborations, and personalized outreach for our diverse customer base,” maintained Maji.

Written by Aparna Bhowmick

Retail Jeweller India Exclusive