Indian Jeweller (IJ) Feb - March Issue

Special Feature
Credit: Kanakratna Exim Pvt. Ltd.
Jewellery buying in India has mostly been
occasion centric. Women are seldom seen
wearing heavy pieces of jewellery at work
place. With more women being employed
and having more disposable incomes, they are
increasingly looking at light-weight options to
wear every day. The little nest built for buying
jewellery is splurged on buying multiple,
smaller and lighter pieces as opposed to one
large piece during occasions like Akshaya
Tritiya. With gold prices soaring, light weight
jewellery in 18K gold seems more affordable.
On the other hand, for weddings and such
other occasions were gifting comes into play,
there is a growing market for jewellery that
looks big, but is not heavy in weight. As the
demand for such jewellery is on an uptick,
manufacturers are pushing the envelope and
are coming out with light-weight collections
even in antique and jadau. Rajkot today is a
bastion for light-weight jewellery, wherein a
handful of players use powerful technology
to create light-weight magic. They travel the
world, especially to places like Italy, Turkey and
Germany to not just buy the latest machinery
but also find out about trends in light-weight
jewellery.
18K for the Win
Buying capacity of consumers who walk
into showrooms has drastically come down.
Retailers hence place orders for light-weight
jewellery in 18k gold. “Light-weight jewellery
in 18k gold is more affordable. Today the price
of 18k gold per gram is Rs 3200-3300. So,
retailers add making charges to this and sell
the same for around Rs.3700-3800. And
when it comes to designs, they want light
weight chains with pendants and necklaces
with cz stones,” says Vikram Jain of Kanakratna
Exim. Kanakratna has been following the
footsteps of Italy and Turkey when it comes
to manufacturing jewellery because their
technology is far superior. Their lightweight
pieces whether in rhodium or colour stones are
inspired by Italian and Turkish manufacturing
prowess. “Italians have mastered in mixing
gold with different colours. Earlier rose gold
was popular, now chocolate coloured gold
is also becoming popular and all the big
manufacturers in India are following this
trend. After the increase in gold price, hollow
jewellery is also fast moving. A necklace set
looks like it is 40 g, but in reality it is only
between 15-20 g. In the coming IIJS show in
August there would also be 18k lightweight
antique jewellery and there will at least be a
difference of Rs 300 per gram compared to
jewellery of higher purity,” he adds.
Italians have mastered in
mixing gold with different
colours. Earlier rose gold
was popular, now chocolate
coloured gold is also
becoming popular and all the
big manufacturers in India are
following this trend. After the
increase in gold price, hollow
jewellery is also fast moving.
A necklace set looks like it is
40g, but in reality it is only
between 15-20g
Vikram Jain,
Kanakratna Exim Pvt. Ltd.
Credit: Lotus Jewellery Creation
88 | february-march 2020 | INDIAN www.indianjeweller.in
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