Using jeweltech to accelerate business growth, with affordable technology for existing processes

The most significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic over the last three years has been the acceleration of technology in every sector, including jewellery. A panel of eminent speakers at the Retail Jeweller India Forum 2023 came together to decode the scope of business growth through technology in a discussion that turned up valuable insights.

Moderator Rahuel Stone, Partner, Polynation Ventures, set the context before the panel, saying that the consumer mindset and expectations today are very different from what it was a few years ago, and technology implementation has become imperative at various levels. Each panelist explained how they offer value for their products in their respective segments.

Meghna Saraogi, Founder & CEO of MirrAR, which enables customers to try on products virtually in the comfort of their homes, said, “Our vision is that everything that you see on the Internet, you should be able to experience on yourself. We let customers try on jewellery virtually in real-time.”

Veer Mishra, Founder of Plus, a jewellery savings app that allows home-makers to save for their desired purchases by paying in advance, said, “It’s an easy-to-use interface to invest in savings schemes of jewellers. The user can open the app, browse the digitised schemes from multiple jewellers, and choose. We also help automate payment collection and reduce operational hassles.”

Sankalp Goyal, CEO of Book My Diamond Pvt. Ltd., said, “I saw a huge gap between what the consumer, jeweller and the manufacturers want and tied the chain by a scalable technology. Book My Diamond has an inventory of Rs 6000 crore worth of IGI-certified solitaires, which can be delivered in one day.”

Mitesh Parekh, Co-founder of Synergics Solutions Pvt. Ltd., said, “We help jewellers to have their inventory in control. Our ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) gives you control over your inventory and movement of stocks, and it has seamlessly integrated ERP with transactions happening in all your locations.”

Iterating that technology is used differently by different kinds of jewellers – national level or family jewellers, Saraogi said, “One of our core focus areas is to drive value and ROI (Return on Investment). At MirrAR, we can increase sales conversion for brands from 16% to 32%. We address the reduction in return rates and have been able to cut it by 36%. We look at consumer interaction and engagement, which has increased by 160%.”

Savings schemes and purchase plans have been around for decades now. Mishra talked about preserving their nativeness while trying to create a uniform layer for jewellers, no matter what size or region they are based in. Users can discover multiple saving schemes on the app, start saving with multiple jewellers and then make a call.”

Savings schemes and purchase plans have been around for decades now. Mishra talked about preserving their nativeness while trying to create a uniform layer for jewellers, no matter what size or region they are based in. Users can discover multiple saving schemes on the app, start saving with multiple jewellers and then make a call.”

Saraogi recalled that earlier, the only concern was whether people would adapt to the technology on offer or try the app. “But last year, we did one crore try-on, which was a milestone for us. The whole point is that technology is evolving, and so is the customer you will engage with. Brands that have incorporated MirrAR have seen a 4X growth of sales on products that have got MirrAR versus products which don’t,” she added.

In conclusion, Stone said that though many jewellers are hesitant to implement technology for different reasons, this is a time to come together and collaborate for digitization.

Courtesy: Retail jeweller India Forum