KIK Jewells, Kamakhya Jewels hail IIJS Premiere 2024 as the best post-covid

Tech upgrades like Digiyatra, good infrastructural facilities, and a buoyant buying sentiment has increased the number of serious buyers, who are giving bulk orders, say the jewellers

MUMBAI: The gem and jewellery industry in India has turned around for good this year, and the massive turnouts at IIJS Premiere 2024 are a proof of the same. The Retail Jeweller interacted with KIK Jewells (1B 62, Nesco) and Kamakhya Jewels (2J 255C, Nesco) to sense the unwavering buying appetite of retail clients.

Third-generation jeweller Amit Soni, director of KIK Jewells, gave an overview of the company’s origin in 1970, their retail operations in the name of Mahabir Danwar Jewellers and the B2B wing that has its head office in Salt Lake, Kolkata. Paying heed to the IIJS theme of Kolkata jewellery festival, the jeweller presented lightweight handmade antique gold jewellery and handmade diamond jewellery, with diverse concepts of Bengali craftsmanship such as nakashi works.

“The one collection that we got a high response for is the Rajbari collection, representing the palaces of the royal families of Bengal. After visiting various heritage palaces in West Bengal, we created this bridal range, which caters to retail clients’ requests for the wedding season in winter,” said Amit Soni, director of KIK Jewells. 

Exhibiting at IIJS for more than 16 years, Manoj Jha, CMD, Kamakhya Jewels said that the B2B event has improved a lot with smooth entrance facilities like Digiyatra, naturally increasing the number of serious buyers. “Previously, business from India was going to neighbouring countries such as the Middle East and Bangladesh. Corrective measures have been taken, enabling NRI customers to buy from the domestic market. There has been a dip in buying in the first quarter because of the gold rate and the election. In 6 months from now, the festival season is coming. With gold and diamond rates under control, we expecting a good hike in demand,” maintained Jha.

Surprisingly, the first day at Nesco was also good for diamond manufacturers, unlike previous instances where gold manufacturers get the prominence. Jha said that every booth has some sort of engagement, be it JWCC or Nesco. “This is the best IIJS exhibition after Covid. For the first time, we are getting new customers every day in IIJS from Tier 2 and 3 cities, who generally don’t come for Premiere, and come only during IIJS Signature,” he maintained.

Soni too is happy with the business as strong promotions for IIJS across media has resulted in turnouts that has surpassed expectations. “Primarily, our business was concentrated within east India. We cover Bihar, Jharkhand, UP, Odisha, and North-east. However, at IIJS, we are getting inquiries from Gujarat, Vijaywada, Coimbatore, Kerala, Aurangabad, Amritsar, Jammu, and Dehradun too,” Soni concluded.

Written by Shubham Dasgupta and Aparna Bhowmick

Retail Jeweller India Exclusive