Despite being a largely local preference driven
market, organized Jewel players have been increasingly venturing
into the diamond market. With gold prices touching an all-time
high, more biggies like Tata’s Tanishq, Gold Plus, including
the latest entrant Reliance have stepped into the diamond business
in an elaborate way by opening large format stores with separate
floors for diamond and bridal jewels. So that high value purchases
can be made in a more relaxed ambience. While the national players
in the jewel market witness a compounded annual growth of 60%,
five times more than the overall market growth rate of 12%,Diamond
sales are expected to make manifold increase in sale and as if
now, it is more than the national average index. This was mainly
attributed to the increased purchasing power of the middle class
group and general awareness about the quality and genuineness
of diamond jewels amongst the public. The fact that diamond is
redeemable and the pledging facility available with the financial
companies have also contributed significantly in promoting the
sales of diamond in large scale.
Every single purchase of diamond is
being supported by an authentic certificate rendered by
the business men. This certificate includes, name of purchaser,
date of purchase, purity of diamond, color, weight of
gold, etc. the consumer has thus the facility to redeem
the card while giving back at a later stage. He is ensured
to have the existing market rate. It also ensures the
rate according to the market variations with respect to
the gold jewels. As per the study conducted by the “Gem
and Jewellery Export Promotion Council”, with the
last six years, the face value of diamond has been increased
by 50%. The price per carrot in 1939 was Rs. 1000/-, which
has subsequently touched Rs.4,20,000/- in 2006.
Now the value has touched a whopping
rate at Rs.5.5 lakhs. The increased demand in the open
market has prompted several jewelers to open a separate
store for diamond section. The growth of organized retail
will also impact the manufacturing sector by demanding
better standards. Customers are also finicky about quality
and no longer tolerate bending bangles, itchy necklaces
or flimsy ear rings screws. Emphasis on design that has
increased dramatically over the past few years. The need
to create a brand and introduce different collections
for each season has been almost enforced by the organized
sector.
