“This year, the pent-up demand, price drop and holiday boosted sales.”
“This year, the pent-up demand, price drop and holiday boosted sales.”
Gold sales on Akshaya Tritiya rebounded after remaining subdued for the past two years due to COVID-19 as a drop in metal prices coupled with the holiday led to heavy footfall in jewelry stores on Tuesday, industry stakeholders said.
Jewelers observed strong customer interest in buying gold on this Akshaya Tritiya, which is seen as promising for buying the precious metal, and sales are expected to be 10% higher than the last Akshaya Tritiya date, according to the industry.
“This Akshaya Tritiya was very strong. We will keep our shops open late. We assume that the level of 2019 will be significantly exceeded. This year, pent-up demand, a drop in gold prices and the holiday have helped boost sales,” said Saiyam Mehra, vice-chairman of the All India Gem and Jewelery Domestic Council (GJC), to PTI.
He said the price of 22k gold including tax is around £48,300 per 10g, down from a recent peak of £52,100.
In terms of volume, Mr. Mehra said the industry is likely to have 10% more deals on this Akshaya Tritiya than on the same occasion in 2019.
Somasundaram PR, Regional CEO, World Gold Council, India said: “After two years of the Covid-induced doldrums, the festive mood among retailers and consumers appears to be stronger this year, exceeding expectations with store visits and taking advantage of the opportunity.” Digital Gold buying platforms are also sounding optimistic, as small buyers are happily embracing the convenience of buying gold for as little as 1 rupee on their smartphone without worrying about purity and transparency, Somasundaram said.
“As gold prices stabilise, initial market feedback points to a brisk Akshaya Tritiya with increased consumer interest in gold after risks from inflation and global uncertainties emerge,” he added.
Arun Narayan, Vice President, Category, Marketing and Retail, Tanishq at Titan Company said: “We have seen a very good response from customers looking forward to celebrating Akshaya Tritiya after two years.
“Our safety protocols and preparations ensured that we served a high volume of customers across our 390 stores while maintaining our ‘Gold Standards of Safety’. Our newly launched gold coin ATMs also allowed customers to shop quickly and conveniently. We now look forward enthusiastically to a good wedding season with this response.” Saurabh Gadgil, Chairman and CEO of PNG Jewelers said this year’s Akshaya Tritiya was phenomenal with people rushing to the shops since the early morning, adding : “We expect shoppers to be pouring into stores by 10 p.m. tonight.”
Prices have also corrected and there is great demand for gold and diamond jewelery alike and compared to last year which was an Akshaya Tritiya in lockdown and included online sales, this year is all about visiting the store and that making purchases, he said.
“We’re already seeing a 30 percent increase in numbers over 2019 sales, which we expect to continue increasing through the end of this day,” he said.
Overall, the industry expects more than 25 tons of gold sales nationwide this year as Akshaya Tritiya makes a fantastic comeback after a two-year hiatus, he added.
He said Wedding shopping has been for us the highlight of this Akshaya Tritiya with up to 40 lakh weddings to take place across India in the next few months and hence people are taking advantage of this auspicious day to make their wedding jewelry purchases.
Kalyan Jewelers Executive Director Ramesh Kalyanaraman said, Akshaya Tritiya, we have seen strong momentum across geographies and product segments, resulting in a positive growth outlook.
“We are encouraged by the significant increase in footfall, sales volume and value even compared to pre-pandemic days in 2019. The higher traction of this Akshaya Tritiya could continue to gain support due to lower gold price volatility over the past week revenge buying and today’s holiday,” he said.
While an increase in sales in southern markets was expected, the reaction in markets outside the south has also been extremely encouraging, he added.
Avnish Anand, COO and co-founder of CaratLane said that Akshaya Tritiya has seen customers inquiring about gold coins and chains, significantly fewer than any other year.
Because of our digital-first, omni-marketing strategy, the majority of our customers enter the stores with screenshots of designs they have shortlisted from the website and previously researched by contacting the physical stores, he added.
“With the wedding season approaching, we’ve also seen an upsurge in engagement ring shopping. Interestingly, this year there was good traction across the country and not just in certain regions,” Anand added. PTI SM MR MR
