Mumbai: The festive season in India is a prime time for jewellery sales, driven by major festivals such as Diwali, Dussehra, Navratri, and the wedding season. This period, typically from September to November, sees a surge in demand for gold, silver, diamond, and other precious jewellery, fueled by cultural and traditional significance.

Jewellery sales in India are expected to soar during this period, contributing significantly to the annual revenue of the sector, which accounts for around 7 per cent of the country’s GDP.

Jewellery brands are forecasting increased sales driven by the festive and wedding seasons, with a blend of tradition and modernity taking centre stage. According to industry reports, India’s gold demand is expected to rise by 15-20 per cent during this period, especially after the government reduced the gold import duty earlier this year.

High prices coupled with an inauspicious period in the Hindu calendar for making purchases of valuable items from mid-September to early October, kept consumers away from jewellery buying. However, market reports indicate early signs of a resurgence in gold buying due to various ongoing festivals, with demand largely driven by wedding purchases. Retailers are actively implementing marketing campaigns to stimulate sales.

The surge in demand following the import duty cut, which coincided with some festivals, has been tempered by record-high prices. There is an expectation of increased demand from rural areas, driven by improvements in overall consumption. Favourable monsoons and higher crop sowing this year are anticipated to boost rural incomes, potentially leading to higher gold purchases.

Investment demand for gold bars and coins remains strong, in part fuelled by the rise in gold prices and expectations of further increases. This trend is further enhanced by sales across online marketplaces, making gold more accessible.

gems2jewellery.com received feedbacks some industry leaders. Below are the excerpts:

Ms. Vaishali Banerjee, Managing Director (India), Platinum Guild International says, “This year has seen strong performance across the board for platinum as a category. For the way forward in India, we are particularly encouraged by the government’s decision to lower custom duties on platinum to 6.4%.

On the demand side, this coupled with the recent competitive platinum pricing is a great opportunity as it makes one of the rarest precious metals more accessible to the consumer. On the supply side, these elements will encourage the industry to develop designs and collections across price points to enable higher consumer acquisition. We are confident that this virtuous cycle will provide an organic fillip for the platinum jewellery category and bolster a sustained market dynamic.”

She further adds, “With Q4, we’re entering the peak festive and weddings season – a period replete with buying occasions. All three of our brands—Platinum Love Bands, Platinum Evara, and Men of Platinum—will be active during this time, making Q4 an action-packed quarter filled with opportunities to engage with consumers and drive growth.

• It is a special season for us at PGI, especially with the launch of the M.S. Dhoni Signature Edition for our men’s jewellery brand Men of Platinum, timed perfectly for Diwali.”

The Men of Platinum ‘MS Dhoni Signature Edition’, is a testament to how innovative design accompanies these evolving preferences of Indian men.

Since its retail launch earlier in September, the association with MS Dhoni effortlessly let us reach a broader audience across India. The 15-pieces that make up this collection align values of MS Dhoni and convey them using a design-language that speaks to the consumer who also relates to them.

From kadas and bracelets to statement rings and neck-chains, the collection holds a very deep personal code in its design – MS Dhoni’s signature etched in platinum. While some pieces carry the signature as a subtle detail, others showcase it prominently. By doing this, the design philosophy folds in varied nuances of a consumer’s personal style that Platinum today caters to.”

• Beyond the festive season, we are also looking at a robust weddings-season this year.

Our new digital communication as part of the Platinum Love Bands ‘Love so Rare, Love so Platinum’ campaign will delve deeper into modern love. Young consumers look at Platinum Love Bands as markers of both romance and partnership. Love bands crafted in in lustrous and resilient platinum present a symbol of love that is based on mutual respect, equality, respect, and friendship.

On the retail front, we will continue to bolster our deep retail networks to meaningfully present our offerings to consumers. PGI has partnered with leading retail partners including national chains, regional chains, and independents with 2000+ doors across India to ensure that consumers have access to platinum jewellery and to respond to this robust demand potential.

While platinum jewellery started as a metro and large city phenomenon, the market has evolved significantly. Our consumer today sits out of metros and tier 1 cities, as well as tier 2 cities and even in smaller tier 3 towns. Our retail distribution maps this, and is 60% in metros/tier 1 cities, 30% in tier 2 cities and 10% in tier 3 cities.

Within this expansive landscape, we have created an ecosystem of education and engagement, spanning in-store, ex-store and last mile activations,” responds Vaishali.

Mr. Sachin Jain, Regional CEO, India, World Gold Council (WGC) says, “We’ve seen an increase in both physical gold purchases and interest in gold ETFs after the recent reduction in import duties. India’s gold demand is expected to grow in the coming months due to higher rural purchasing power from a good monsoon, the festive season, and government pro-gold policies. Anecdotal feedback suggests manufacturers and retailers have done new product lines and are prepared to cater to the consumers. The festive and wedding season starting with Navratri will further drive the demand peaking around Dussehra. Gold purchases are anticipated to be robust during the festive season, symbolising auspiciousness, leading up to Diwali in end October and a busy marriage season from December to February.”

“Buying gold is considered auspicious during Dhanteras, Diwali. From gold jewellery to gold bars, gold coins consumers plan at least a token purchase as a matter of tradition as gold buying is generally believed to herald good fortune, wealth and prosperity and that is visible in the sharp rise in gold buying historically witnessed on this day. Despite gold prices touching record highs of Rs 79,000/10 grams, anecdotal feedback from Industry indicates a resurgence in gold buying due to various ongoing festivals, with demand largely driven by investment sentiment and wedding related purchases.

The retailers have also invested on new designs and innovative usage of technology to make daily wear, lighter jewellery considering heightened gold prices, to invite consumers to come into the stores. There is also an expectation of increased demand from rural areas, driven by improvements in robust economy and consumption. Good monsoons and higher crop sowing this year are anticipated to boost rural incomes further, potentially leading to higher gold purchases. Investment demand including digital gold, gold ETF’s, gold bars and coins remains strong, with purchases also emerging from new channels such as e-commerce and Q-commerce. Overall, we are expecting gold demand uptick to continue this Diwali and till end of the year due to the wedding season,” Mr. Jain adds.

Dr. Saurabh Gadgil, Chairman and Managing Director of PNG Jewellers says, “Despite price fluctuations driven by global geopolitical tensions, the sentiment for gold in India remains strong. Gold continues to be viewed as a safe haven, and the industry is expecting growth in value terms of around 15-20% this Dhanteras, even if volumes remain in line with last year. While price volatility may cause a temporary dip in sales, this can be mitigated with broader retail outreach and tapping into new markets.

During Dussehra, we saw robust consumer interest, particularly in exchanging old gold for new jewellery, with many customers opting for mid- to high-ticket purchases. Rising prices have turned old gold into a valuable currency for buyers. If international conditions stabilize and we see a short-term price correction, we could be looking at an exceptionally strong Diwali season.

Gold’s long-term price appreciation reassures customers, even when prices rise. After a brief adjustment period, demand typically rebounds. This Diwali, we expect strong interest in heavier pieces like necklaces, bangles, and mangalsutras, particularly as we head into the wedding season, which looks very promising this year.”