With nearly 140 crore in revenue from a single store in Hyderabad, Devi Pavitra Gold & Diamonds, the retail arm of a more than decade-old manufacturing firm, is charting
a new course to success.
In a space long dominated by legacy players, the brand is establishing its presence with sharper prices, finer finishes, and aspirational marketing. Managing Partner Praneeth Kumar tells The Retail Jeweller, factors that drive the brand’s early success.
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How and why did Devi Pavitra Gold & Diamonds venture into retail? What did the journey look like?
We come from a manufacturing background, with nearly 15 years of experience in crafting traditional gemstone and gold jewellery in Vijayawada under the name Pavitra Jewellers. Supplying across India, we identified a rising demand for exclusive, occasion-specific designs. That insight led us to retail. In 2022, we launched Devi Pavitra Gold & Diamonds in Vijayawada, which became our first retail outlet. ‘Devi’ signifies goddess, and ‘Pavitra’ means purity—values that define us. Encouraged by 60–70 daily walk-ins at the first store, we opened the second store in Hyderabad in December 2023, despite the challenge of a first-floor location.
How are you positioning the brand differently in a market crowded with legacy names?
As first-generation entrepreneurs, we know differentiation is critical. Today’s buyers want unique, customisable jewellery and we adapt rapidly to trends—moving from nakashi coral to kundan seamlessly. Our advantage lies in our responsiveness and direct customer connection.
What strategic advantages have helped you build a profitable retail business after transitioning from wholesale?
We leveraged our manufacturing strengths to eliminate middle layers. By offering lower making charges and wastage, we are more competitive than larger brands. Operating lean, we avoid excess marketing spends. This efficiency has kept us profitable from day one. Despite high upfront investments—including onboarding actor Kajal Aggarwal as our brand ambassador—we crossed Rs 140 crore in revenue from our Hyderabad store alone, with 11% gross margins in our first year. Earlier, nearly 60% of the total footfalls came through acquaintances. Today, about 70% are walk-in customers—an encouraging shift. We are targeting a 3–4% margin increase through product mix optimisation and increasing trust.
What is the brand’s design language?
Over 70% of our pieces feature deity motifs—Ram Parivar, Lakshmi, Narasimha Swamy—signifying tradition and spiritual depth. Our karigari is intense; a single piece can take up to 45 days. Every stage—from sketch to tagging—is handled with precision and care.
How are you expanding your reach while catering to customer preferences?
Our lightweight jewellery appeals to working professionals aged 28–40 years. For bridal clients, our bridal studio allows families to shop together. They usually purchase 500–700 grams of gold and are often accompanied by their elders. In the tech-savvy Kukatpally, demand for everyday wear is strong. We are now planning retail exhibitions in Tier II and Tier III cities to reach customers who are currently travelling to Hyderabad for wedding shopping.
What type of marketing and customer engagement activities has the brand done? Can you share an example?
We recently launched a week-long Ugadi gold awareness campaign aboard Hyderabad-Tirupati/Vizag trains, reaching over 30,000 people. It was a first for us and we added 2,000–3,000 new Instagram followers, along with many direct purchase queries in that week. We also plan in-store educational events to explain purity standards and production timelines.
How are you building your digital and international presence?
We currently generate about Rs 4 crore annually from international business, mainly in the US—driven by Instagram and YouTube. Our website, now nearing completion, will soon go live. Once operational, we aim to double the numbers and grow our digital
support team.
How are you using technology to streamline your retail operations?
We are an organised retailer. We use Data Care for inventory and billing and are now integrating an order management system. RFID tagging has made daily stock-taking seamless. With our silver articles line entering the mix soon, automation is essential. Next, we also plan to automate our gold savings plans via WhatsApp and our website, providing real-time price updates and contributions.
You have now completed a full financial year. What are your future plans?
We plan to open two to three stores in the next financial year across Hyderabad and Tier II cities. Simultaneously, our silver articles line is launching within a month’s time.
By Aparna Bhowmick
