After spending so many years in the beauty segment, how were your first couple of months in the diamond industry?
I spent the last twenty years focusing on different aspects of a woman’s life to understand her better. This consumer understanding will be of great help in my new role. My learning on insights, changing mindsets and understanding need gaps will help in the current role and hopefully, accelerate my learning curve in this industry. It will help to build on knowledge and deliver faster. I joined the organisation in November 2017 and ever since my colleagues in the industry have been extremely warm and welcoming towards me. They are always open to share their knowledge and expertise at all occasions.
The ‘Real is Rare’ campaign rolled out in India late last year during the festive/ wedding season. What is the initial feedback from consumers and the trade? Were you surprised by any of the reactions to the commercial?
The ‘Real is Rare. Real is a Diamond’ campaign was launched last November through a TVC that showcased real and rare moments between a couple. The campaign was very well received by our audience as they related to the proposition that DPA aims to deliver. The film on YouTube garnered almost 4 million views in a month. The campaign reflected the story of a reallife couple, something which every marriage journey goes through.
Please elaborate on your annual marketing strategy for the Indian market.
We believe that India has the potential to become a major diamond jewellery retail market. It is the land where diamonds were first discovered and celebrated; it has a very deep jewellery culture. It is the largest polished diamond manufacturer and diamond jewellery exporter in the world. Yet, the diamond consumer market is still under-developed with 7% of world consumption in value.
Only 10% of Indian women own a diamond, against 20% in China and 70% in the US. As the Indian middle class grows, we are confident that diamond jewellery demand will grow very strongly and that India will become a major diamond jewellery market over the next decade. The DPA’s primary objective is to deepen Indian consumers’ cultural and emotional connection with diamonds as a precious and valuable gem and to work with the industry to realise this potential.
We are working closely with the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) and we are looking at building ties with the retailer community to capture the opportunity. We have also launched our first multi-channel category marketing campaign, with a TV commercial in November 2017, under our ‘Real is Rare’ platform. This is the beginning and we are planning activities which create a bond with consumers. This would be across multimedia channels including digital media. We aim to invest approximately $7 million (R45 crore) in 2018 in the India market.
How closely will DPA work with Indian diamond jewellery manufacturers, especially in the field of diamond jewellery design? Are there any programmes in the pipeline?
We are going to partner with GJEPC. DPA aims to start aligning retailers towards the authenticity of the product to sell diamonds to the younger generation. We will develop learning modules for retailers including facts about diamonds, which will help them handle questions and objections from consumers. This would be in the form of fact sheets and learning-based modules. This is a project for the next 12 months to educate and propagate our key diamond messages which have not had a voice till now. We also intend to reach out to retailers in a phased manner and share our message, a video message, links to the film, and key messaging as a preamble to the launch of our campaign.