Akshaya Tritiya, one of the first and most auspicious festivals in the Hindu calendar, is customarily celebrated by buying gold and other luxury items. The tradition of buying jewellery on this day usually heralds a positive beginning for the gems and jewellery sector every year and this year was no exception. Despite the sudden spike in gold prices, consumers thronged the market, thus ensuring higher sales for jewellers this year. Solitaire International finds out.
Across India, market estimates denoted that vis-à-vis last year, there was an increase of about 15% in overall sales on Akshaya Tritiya that was celebrated on April 18th last month. While gold prices stood at R28,950 in 2017, on Akshaya Tritiya this year, it soared to R32,200. Organised jewellers enjoyed a sales growth of 20%-25% since it is increasingly being seen that gold buyers prefer hallmarked gold from chain stores, which was further supported by BIS urging buyers two days before the festival to choose only hallmarked jewellery. Investment buying too was higher than last year.
Kumar Jain, vice president of the Mumbai Jewellers Association, Zaveri Bazaar, Mumbai, noted that Akshaya Tritiya was a hit as jewellery sales increased by 35% over last year. While Maharashtra usually witnesses daily jewellery sales from R175 crore to R225 crore on an average, it soars to R400 crore-450 crore on festive days. “This year, the figures shot up even further, with some jewellers open for business till late in the night. Those in southern India too enjoyed excellent business,” he stated.
Atul Sinha, CaratLane’s senior vice president, said, “This Akshaya Tritiya, we discovered the new-age perceptions and preferences of jewellery buyers; the consumers are now buying everyday-wear modern jewellery over traditional designs.
The majority of the customers bought diamond jewellery over gold jewellery, indicating the changing trend towards diamond jewellery. Across all age groups, women are buying jewellery for everyday adornment and not investment. There is no doubt that keeping the budget in mind, the preferred range was of R15,000 to R25,000. Therefore, at CaratLane, our efforts are focused on making affordable modern designs that can be worn every day.”
Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, CEO and founder, BlueStone.com, added, “The Akshaya Tritiya sale is one of the most popular sales for us at BlueStone.com since the last three years. This year, too, despite the significant increase in the overall gold price, our sales grew almost 60% as compared to last year. Earrings, rings and pendants were fast-moving categories for us owing to the large variety on offer and the demand for quality, high design and wearability was strong. Additionally, we observed a shift towards diamond and gem-studded jewellery as opposed to plain gold pieces. For a first-time customer, the sweet spot for online purchases ranged from R25,000 to R35,000. As trust in the brand grows, the ticket size also goes up.”
Considering the recent lacklustre mood in the jewellery market, jewellers were happy to see the markets abuzz with demand on the day of the festival. Sangeeta Boochra, creative director, Silver Centrre, Mumbai, informed that the market sentiment was very positive. Sales increased by 10% compared to last year. Our consumers opted for plain silver and gold jewellery and long necklaces, coin jewellery, temple jewellery and silver and gold coins enjoyed greater demand. Moreover, customers preferred buying silver jewellery since gold has become more expensive.”
Demand for lightweight jewellery was strong, according to Aditya Pethe, director, WHP Jewellers, Mumbai. “We saw a 25-30% hike in footfalls this year. Akshaya Tritiya sets the mood for the rest of the year as it is followed by the wedding season, so we hope that the buying mood stays positive for the rest of the year.”
Vaibhav Saraf, director, Aisshpra Gems & Jewels, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, said, “The markets have been responsive after the short lull in the past couple of weeks, and faith in the yellow metal has been restored. Increased sale of diamond jewellery sprang a surprise for us.”
Tanya Rastogi, director, Lala Jugal Kishore Jewellers, Lucknow, announced, “Business has witnessed a growth of 20- 25% compared to last year. Since 2008, there has been a rise of 160% in the gold price. However, people are still opting for it, which makes me believe that gold will continue to maintain its sheen.
Overall, Akshaya Tritiya did spring a surprise on many retailers, who were a tad worried about the rising prices of gold. Add to that, the recent PNB-Modi-Choksi scam also dented the image of the industry.
But this apparently did not deter consumers from buying gold or diamond jewellery. Saurabh Gadgil, chairman and managing director, PNG Jewellers and director, Indian Bullion Jewellers Association, added, “This year on Akshaya Tritiya there had been a steady crowd at our showrooms since morning; in fact, customers queued up even before the stores opened to capitalise on the morning muhurat. The response was much more than we anticipated; the hike in gold prices had no inverse effect on the demand.
“A lot of wedding jewellery shopping was prevalent on the auspicious occasion and we fulfilled quite a few jewellery preorders too. We also noticed an incremental trend for purchase of gold coins on our online platforms as it is a convenient option for the working class. Given the current prices, investment in gold is an essential element of any portfolio. Considering the current global and national political and economic situation, we will be seeing a steady rise in gold prices in the near future. All these factors were in favour of Akshaya Tritiya, which the industry needed.”
Some shops opened earlier than usual to cash in on the morning muhurat and to meet the demand. Abhishek Chanda, director, Kalasha Fine Jewels, Hyderabad, shared, “Our stores witnessed an increase of 60% in footfalls as compared to regular and wedding season days. Many retail stores in South India opened from as early as 7am to cater to the rise in demand. Pertaining to sales, we are at about 30% higher than last year.”
Ishu Datwani, founder, Anmol Jewellers, Mumbai, disclosed, “The customer sentiment this Akshaya Tritiya was very good. The footfalls had been high since morning and we did great sales, especially in gold jewellery. We enjoyed 25% higher sales on this propitious day.”
Some jewellers also chose this day to launch fresh jewellery collections. Kolkata-based Mahabir Danwar Jewellers launched their polki diamond jewellery collection, unveiled by Mrs. Asia Pacific 2018, Suparna Mukherjee, at Mahira -The Bridal Couture Boutique with an exclusive range of jewellery.
Manubhai Jewellers of Mumbai witnessed a rise of 15% in the overall sales of jewellery. The brand’s director Samir Sagar, commented, “It’s good to note that consumers are more inclined towards purchasing wearable jewellery over buying coins and bars for investment.”
Mayank Soni, managing director, The House of MBJ, Kolkata and Jaipur, revealed, “To mark this special day, we launched a new collection, Kanakam, inspired by the temples in India. We got a fantastic response for it. We sold bangles and earrings from this collection and also took quite a few orders. A lot of customers bought gold coins, diamonds and polki jewellery as well, pushing up sales by approximately 15%, which is fair in this scenario.”
Despite the price hike in gold, consumers put their faith in the yellow metal. That’s good news for the industry – touch wood!