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January 2011

magazine india retail

Outsource
And Compete
The jewellery retailer’s new mantra

Cover Story Special Report Focus Market Report


Outsource And Compete Impulse Buying – Re-inventing The Shopping Hot Trading, Shortages
The jewellery retailer’s The Growing Experience For Jewellery Keep Diamond Prices
new mantra Sales Driver Consumers Strong
Contents
JANUARY magazine india retail

05 FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK JANUARY 2011


Coping With A Sea Change VOL. 1 No. 02

Editorial Department
06 MUMBAI DIAMOND MARKET REPORT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Vinod Kuriyan
Hot December Trading, Shortages Keep Prices Buoyant
Editors Edahn Golan, Danielle Max
IDEX ONLINE RESEARCH Ken Gassman
10 SPECIAL REPORT INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS
Impulse Buying – The Growing Sales Driver Tamar Katzav, Whitney Hepp

16 SPOTLIGHT ADMINISTRATION & MARKETING


Managing Director Yaron Barzilay
‘What Is The Price Of A Red Car?’ Marketing Manager Kuldip Bedi
Educating consumers & instilling confidence in diamonds SALES MANAGERS
Anish Kuriakose, Osnat Davidov, Tali Kozik, Yaron Barzilay
21 FOCUS PRODUCTION & CIRCULATION Helena Dorsht, Vera Podolny
ACCOUNT MANAGER Shuly Dori
Re-inventing The Shopping Experience For Jewellery
Consumers ART DEPARTMENT
Combining bricks-and-mortar with the internet helps GRAPHIC DESIGNERS
Boris Mandelis (Red Designer Studio)
firm rise from ashes Ilana Akselrod (Red Designer Studio)
Printed by SAP Printers, Lower Parel, Mumbai 400 013
24 COVER STORY
Outsource And Compete
IDEX INDIA
The jewellery retailer’s new mantra Office # 20, Kala Bhavan, 4th Floor, 3 Mathew Rd., Opera House,
Mumbai 400 004, India
Tel: +91-22-6633-2187, Fax: +91-22-6633-2186
37 DIAMOND RETAIL BENCHMARK Email: mumbai@idexonline.com
A diamond price list to assure your customers IDEX USA
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TEL: +1-212-3823528, FAX: +1-212-3822671
42 Going Mobile
IDEX BELGIUM
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48 POLISHED DIAMOND PRICES TEL: +32-3-2341157, FAX: +32-3-2342463

IDEX HONG KONG


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8 HINDI MARKET REPORT
Mk;e.M m|k x
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14 HINDI SPECIAL REPORT on application to the editor. All rights reserved. No part of this
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19 HINDI SPOTLIGHT Published by Yaron Barzilay for IDEX Online S.A

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s dk s f o’ okl d h ryk’ k
32 HINDI COVER STORY
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MARKETPLACE. GO TO WWW.IDEXONLINE.COM
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2 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02


From the
Editor’s Desk
Coping With A Sea Change

H
aving remained unchanged for millennia, reflect the jewellery retail industry’s organised response
the Indian gem and jewellery retail industry toward better countering these new threats.
has gone through a series of changes in the
last decade or so. Changes so profound, they have left And while the retail industry has changed, the retailer
many industry veterans uncomprehending and unable to has to also appreciate the fact that the consumer and the
cope. But understanding and adjusting to these changes drivers that impel jewellery buying have also changed.
is vital for any retailer wanting survive and thrive into While they might not command as high unit prices
the future. as the more traditional bridal and festival market
segments do, impulse purchases of jewellery have grown
The single biggest change is in assessing and defining the exponentially and for many retailers today, are one of
retailer’s role in the marketplace. With each passing day, it the lifelines that sustain them in the many ups and
is becoming less relevant for the retailer to be many things downs of today’s unsteady economic situation.
rolled into one. Today, he would do well to stop trying to
be both a bullion dealer as well as a manufacturer and Even if one adopts to the new methods of sourcing product
concentrate instead on just one thing – understanding and positioning it to cater to the new sales drivers, one
and servicing his customer to a level he has not before. needs to ensure that the product itself enjoys a rock
solid confidence with the consumer. Assurance programs
This is something many veteran retailers, who have are an essential part of the retail game today. And this
succeeded in the Indian consumer market hitherto, assurance increasingly has to come from independent
find very difficult to accept. It takes a major leap of third parties and not the retailers themselves.
faith to appreciate that a specialist manufacturer also
understands the tastes and demands of one’s customers The successful retailer today is one who offers his
and is able to come up with a product range that will cater customer the widest possible range of choices in terms
to them. But as many retailers will tell you, letting go of of product design and styling as well as options in
manufacture is probably the best thing you could do. price points, gets a third party to examine and certify
the product and stands behind even after it has been
In today’s fiercely competitive marketplace, those who sold. The push to meet all these criteria is what has
understand their customers’ tastes and desires, provide the triggered the many changes in the industry.
widest range of choices to cater to them and a whole raft of
assurance programs that instill confidence in the product It stands to reason that embracing these changes is
and its valuation, are going to be the survivors. Those who not an option at all but an imperative. This issue’s
don’t will be history. It is literally as stark as that. selection of articles is designed to help the industry
both understand and better adopt these changes as
Today’s jewellery retailer is not just competing against well as giving some insight into the new impellers that
other jewellery retailers. A whole range of other luxury drive jewellery sales today. ■
products with a set of value propositions that resonate
well with the desires and aspirations of today’s consumers
are aggressively competing for a slice of the disposable Vinod Kuriyan
income pie. The changes that we look at in this issue Editor
IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: EDITOR 3
Mumbai
Diamond MARKET REPORT

Hot December Trading, Shortages


Keep Prices Buoyant

T
he Mumbai polished diamond market saw overseas buyers was also good. Due to the shortages,
very good activity all the way through to however, overseas buyers stayed longer than they
the end of December – much better than expected in the city and finally bought something
what anybody expected. Demand was very good or the other before leaving. The shortages are
for all sizes and categories of diamonds. But goods expected to continue through to January, when
were in short supply all around and buyers had very new production is expected to come onto the
limited choices. Due to this, prices moved noticeably market. It is going to remain a seller’s market
upward, with buyers unable to resist them any more until then.
(there had been strong resistance to price rises in
November, just after Diwali). Today, buyers simply Though not entirely favourable, the dollar-
have to pay more for what they want, even though rupee exchange rate was nonetheless stable,
there is room for some negotiation and sellers don’t with movements remaining within a 2 percent
necessarily get whatever they ask for. band up or down. This allowed trading to go
ahead unfettered, unlike in previous months,
Strong domestic demand was the main driver when large swings kept a nervous market at low
for the market, though Christmas demand from volumes. ■

4 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: MUMBAI DIAMOND MARKET REPORT


M U M B A I D I A M O N D T R A D I NG I N D E C E M B E R

Size in Ct. (Sieve) Comments Forward Call

▲ -0.01 (-2 ) Very good demand for SI+ goods. Shortages will continue in near future. Prices
Good demand for lower piqué goods. Overall are on the rise, will go up by 2%-4%.
very good demand across the board.

▲ -0.02 (+2-6.5) Very good demand for SI+ goods. Shortages will be severe due to increasing
Good demand for lower piqué goods. Very hot demand. Prices will go up by 2%-4%.
category.

▲ 0.03-0.07 Very good demand for SI+ & lower piqué goods. Overall demand will remain stable. Prices will
(+6.5-11) +8 sieve is the most required sieve, demand go up by 2%-3%.
improving for -8 sieve.

▲ 0.08-0.14 (+11-14) Very good demand for piqué goods. Shortages will be felt. Activity will remain
Good demand for SI1+ goods. stable.

▲ 0.15-0.17 Very good demand for piqué goods. Activity will remain stable with shortages of
(+14-15.5) Good demand for SI1+ goods. goods.

▲ 0.18-0.22 (1/5) Fair demand for SI1+ goods. Overall low activity will be seen in this category.

▲ 0.23-0.29 (1/4) Good demand for VS+ & piqué goods. Activity will remain stable.
Demand for VS+ goods is mainly for local
market.

▲ 0.30 (1/3) Good demand for VS+ & piqué goods. Demand & prices will remain stable.
Demand for VS+ goods mainly for domestic
market. G-J colours in greater demand.

▲ 0.40 (3/8) Good demand for VS+/G-J col. Demand & prices will remain stable.+0.45
Demand for this category is mainly for local carat will be difficult to find.
market.

▲ 0.50 (1/2) Good demand for I2+/J+ col. Overall good Demand & prices will go up. Better demand can
demand across the board. be seen for D&F col.

▲ 0.75 (3/4) Good demand for I1/I2 & VS+ clarity. +0.80 Shortages will be seen for +0.90 carat.
carat in more demand.

▲ 1.00 (4/4) Overall very good activity across the board. Severe shortages will be seen for H lower col.
Shortages seen in premium sizes. Prices will go up by 2%-3%.

▲ +3.00 Fair demand for SI1+/ H-K col. Better demand & activity is expected.
Demand for VS/J-K col. increasing in +5 carat
sizes.

Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: MUMBAI DIAMOND MARKET REPORT 5


Special Report
By Vinod Kuriyan

Impulse Buying – The Growing


Sales Driver

E
ven in the 21st century, the vast majority of Pratap Kamath, CEO of Abaran Jewellery in Bangalore,
jewellery sales in India is driven by events — says, “I would estimate that more than 70 percent of
weddings, festivals, anniversaries and other jewellery sales in India are event driven. Events are
milestones. A major factor in the consumer’s assessment such a strong impeller that even Rio Tinto, the diamond
of jewellery is still its intrinsic value — even when one mining company, is looking at developing a sales model
is looking at relatively low-cost product. Given the for their diamonds based on events. Also, it is natural
combination of event-driven purchase impellers and that high-value purchase decisions will be taken only
the need for the product to act as a storehouse of after a fair amount of thought. It follows then that most
value, most jewellery purchases in India are carefully impulse purchases are therefore usually in the lower
thought out, with the actual purchase decision taking price ranges, mostly in the Rs.5,000 to Rs.15,000 range
a fair amount of time to be reached, say many industry and rarely if ever crossing the Rs.50,000 mark.”
insiders. According to them, a relatively small proportion
of sales is driven by impulse — a purchase because a According to Kamath, impulse buying hasn’t increased
customer liked what he or she saw and wanted to have dramatically over the last decade or so, though he
the product immediately. does think it has nonetheless, established itself firmly

NAC Jewellers

8 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: SPECIAL REPORT


Abaran Abaran

in the Indian market — an arena that had almost no Indian consumer’s demand for high intrinsic value
impulse sales for millennia. is what gives the domestic jewellery industry such
staggeringly high volumes,” he notes. “If we were to
N. Anantha Padmanabhan of NAC Jewellers in Chennai, move away from this model where intrinsic value
however, states emphatically that the reverse is true, matters, to something like the models in western
that impulse sales are what keep jewellery outlets going countries,” he notes, “we’d see a sharp drop in volumes
every day. “We’re surviving on impulse sales,” he notes, and overall value.”
adding, “without them, half the jewellery showrooms
around the country would have shut down by now!” Kamath quotes the example of gold jewellery sales in
Padmanabhan estimates that impulse sales account for Kerala. “Fully half of all the gold consumed in jewellery
between 30- and 40 percent of his total sales. every year is recycled from older jewellery. This clearly
indicates that jewellery still plays a major role as a
“Impulse buying is something that has grown in almost storehouse of value and that it is held onto with a
every consumer sector,” Padmanabhan notes. “Some strong investment motive as well,” he observes.
years ago, I too would normally go out to buy myself
new clothes only at Diwali or some special occasion. But This, Kamath says, is why he doesn’t think impulse
today, the variety of choices and the range of product sales are that big a factor in the overall sales mix. And
have changed the way I think. I’m likely to go out and this, he acknowledges, brings with it a major danger
buy myself a new shirt at any time of the year, should for the future. Tomorrow’s generation is less likely to
I feel like it. This is exactly what is happening in the seek high intrinsic value in jewellery and probably
Indian jewellery market. The range and variety of product seek other attributes like a higher design quotient.
available today has nudged the Indian consumer away “As an industry, we need to move on from simply
from being an occasion-driven buyer only to one who depending on intrinsic value and generate a value
is liable to make a purchase at any time, should the urge proposition based on other factors like emotions. De
to buy strike him or her.” He too notes, however, that Beers did this successfully with diamonds, making
impulse sales are usually in the lower price ranges, with their perceived value lie in their ability to become
the more expensive product being bought only after a the symbol of emotional commitment between men
fair amount of thought and planning. and women. Here is where impulse buying could gain
importance.”
India Hooked On Intrinsic Value
Abaran’s Kamath observes that like it or not, the Indian Even here, however, Kamath feels that event-based
jewellery industry is hooked on the consumer’s demand buying will still be the underlying framework on which
for high intrinsic value in the product they buy. “The the industry will still rest. “An emotional hook certainly

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: SPECIAL REPORT 9


abaran

has the potential to add to sales, but even with it, the Much of this difference in buying behaviour, he notes,
underlying factor will still be an event like an anniversary is due to the fact that even low-priced jewellery is
or a festival. An emotional impulse could however, be a perceived as a ‘precious’ product. “You can walk into
major trigger for jewellery sales over these events.” a clothing outlet and casually handle suits that retail
for Rs.30,000, but a piece of jewellery that is worth
It is worth noting here that Valentine’s Day, a very just Rs.5,000 is always behind a glass wall in a counter.
western concept with no traditional grounding in You are more likely to buy the 30,000-rupee suit on
India, was promoted as a jewellery-giving occasion impulse than the 5,000-rupee piece of jewellery. The
only as recently as a few years ago, but is already one products themselves dictate buying behaviour.”
of the fastest-growing sales drivers for low-end, high
design quotient jewellery. The emotional value of a Steady Sellers Already Exist
beautifully designed Valentine’s Day jewellery gift, more Mansukh Kothari of Vasupati Jewellers in Mumbai,
than makes up for its low intrinsic value and has the thinks that while not exactly falling into the category of
potential to last much longer than the latter. impulse sales, there are some jewellery product segments
that have strong sales all year round, independent of
The CEO of a jewellery brand, who requested anonymity, festivals and events. “Chains and bangles are everyday
observed that as a product category, jewellery is not items,” he says, “they sell all year round because they
something that is bought on impulse but a planned buy. are an important part of a woman’s daily attire. These
“Jewellery is a destination,” he notes. “You walk into a products sell well in a variety of price points though
jewellery showroom because you want to buy some, it the most popular products around the country would
isn’t like an iPod, which you could snap up on impulse be those that have have less than 30 grams of gold.”
while you were idly browsing through a retail outlet. As a In addition to these steady sellers, India’s still nascent
retailer, you can create an environment that is conducive branded jewellery industry, especially the lower-price-
to more impulse-driven behaviour, but the product itself point mass-market segment, has definitely made major
is not something people consider on impulse.” strides in modifying consumers’ jewellery purchase

10 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: SPECIAL REPORT


Abaran’s Kamath notes that the domestic jewellery
retail industry could well see a change in consumer
behaviour in the future where purchases driven by
the investment motive are confined to only pure
bullion – gold bars and biscuits – while jewellery
sales might be impelled by a completely different
set of drivers.

There are already signs of this in the marketplace.


Observers note that with gold at today’s sky-high prices,
there has been a sharp increase in the purchase of
gold bars and biscuits, with consumer willing even
to pay premiums for biscuits bought from banks in
tamper-proof packaging, thus indicating a clear intent
to hold the gold for investment. Even purchases from
jewellery retailers are seeing some major changes.
Where traditionally the jewellery buying decisions have
been taken solely by the women in the family, with the
elders playing a major role even in purchases for events
like weddings, retailers have noted that increasingly,
they are seeing the greater involvement of men in
these purchases as high-priced gold calls for more
hard-headed business decisions for investment.
N. ANANTHA PADMANABHAN: Saved by impulse buying

behaviour. Mass-market brands by their very nature, Conversely, branded jewellery has seen a higher
exclude themselves from the traditional jewellery percentage of final buying decisions being taken by the
buying triggers in India. Positioning themselves in wearer herself, even if she isn’t a family elder. Impulse
malls and mass-retail chains, with a more casual and buying has definitely established itself in the Indian
immediate ambience, these brands have taken big steps market. ■
away from the more ivory-towered feel that jewellery
has traditionally generated.

“The mass-market brands,” said one high end retailer


who declined to be identified, “have a product that
is not in the same space as that of most other fine
jewellery retailers. I haven’t come across a single
customer of mine, who has bought anything at all from
the mass-market brands.” At the same time, however, he
acknowledges that the buying triggers for the branded
mass-market product were much more in keeping with
many other non-jewellery product categories that
generate sales simply by attracting consumers who
might not have come to a retail outlet with any specific
intent to buy them. The unique sales proposition of
most of these products was not plain utility or value
for money, but rather their ability to generate a more
diaphanous ‘must have’ feeling in the consumer. That
‘must have’ feeling, he acknowledged, has far better
prospects in the long term than dependence on the
NAC Jewellers NAC Jewellers
perception of intrinsic value.

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: SPECIAL REPORT 11


Spotlight
Roland Lorie

“What’s The Price Of A Red Car?”


Educating consumers & instilling confidence in diamonds
By Vinod Kuriyan
“Thirteen years ago, there was absolutely no reason to “But even now, with all the global education and
open a diamond and gem-testing laboratory in India,” testing majors running teaching institutions in India,
says Roland Lorie, global CEO of the International the educational thrust in the country is nowhere near
Gemological Institute (IGI). “None of the global enough,” Lorie notes. “India is a huge market and you
players – including the biggest Indian diamond don’t see anywhere near as much jewellery on people
exporters – was interested in the Indian consuming as you do in this country. Yet the consuming public
market and Indian consumers didn’t know enough to and – much more importantly – the jewellery retail
either want or appreciate a gem-testing laboratory’s industry know surprisingly little about diamonds.
certificate.”
“Indian consumers know
The situation changed when a great deal about gold, its
De Beers targeted the Indian purity and value; but when it
consuming market with comes to diamonds, they are
its umbrella promotion almost totally dependent on
campaign along with the the retailer for information
launch of branded diamond and valuation. And when
jewellery – a completely you have a sales person
new concept in the Indian who knows very little
market at that time. “We about diamonds himself
jumped into the Indian or herself, the consumer
market along with the De ends up with very little
Beers campaign,” Lorie says, confidence in diamonds.
“and we certified the De A retailer doesn’t need to
Beers brands. But it took know as much detail about
time to gain acceptance.” diamonds as a manufacturer
ROLAND LORIE: Education is paramount
does, but he or she must be
Before it opened its gem-testing laboratory in India able to clearly understand the product and transmit
however, Lorie notes, the IGI realised that it needed this understanding to the consumer.”
to educate the domestic Indian gem and jewellery
industry about the scientific basis for assessing According to Lorie, this is why the IGI has launched a
and certifying diamonds. So the first thing it focussed initiative to educate and train the jewellery
did on entering India was to open a gemological retail sales force around the country. “We have taken
school. “It made sense to have an industry that was the initiative a step further with some simple but
appreciative of the need for a gem-testing laboratory effective steps. In many retail outlets, we have set up
and certification before actually opening one,” Lorie microscopes and the retailer invites the customer to
says. The initiative caught on and IGI’s Indian foray have a look at the diamond himself or herself. This
was soon a success. gives the consumer a great deal of confidence and

14 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: spotlight


that confidence results in a much higher percentage
of store visits being converted into actual sales. Both
consumers and retailers are very happy with this
simple initiative.”

Still, Lorie reiterates, knowledge about diamonds is


woefully inadequate in the Indian consuming market.
A huge number of Indian consumers still don’t know
that there is no such thing as a generic price for a
stone of a given size and that one needs to factor
in colour, clarity and cut to determine the stone’s
value. “When they learn who I am,” Lorie observes,
“I have actually had some people ask me, ‘So how
much does a one-carat diamond cost?’ I respond to
that question with one of my own – ‘What’s the price
of a red car?’ They get the joke and an appreciation
of what goes into valuing a diamond.”

Education and consumer confidence, Lorie says,


are of paramount importance in the Indian market
today. “As an industry, we have to reach out to the
consumer and make him or her confident of our
product. Which is why we have taken the initiative
of opening laboratories in consuming centres like
Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Trichur. It is much easier
to stay focussed on the trading centres – clients can
easily give you 1,000 stones at a time. But retailers and
consumers need us and our ability to boost confidence
as an independent third-party certifying authority.
Without the consumers who demand our product IGI HYDERABAD INITIATIVE
and the retailers who sell it to them, we won’t have
a business in the trading centres either.” world. Typically, it will be the same top global brands
that you see advertising and promoting their product
Beautiful Storehouse Of Value internationally. In India, however, even the smaller
Lorie thinks that in India, the diamond can successfully retailers are involved in some form of advertising and
complement gold as another storehouse of value. “The promotion. That is great because competition down to
diamond is one of very few products that are both a this level creates a buzz in the consumer marketplace
storehouse of value – something to consider investing and generates a buying impulse. Today, retailers are
in – and a luxury item at the same time. The fact that willing to mix plain-gold and diamond jewellery in
it is perceived as something of high value as well as their store displays, a sign that diamond jewellery has
a thing of beauty makes it special as a gift. Women gained equal acceptance with the consumer as the
like flowers because they have no utility at all , are more traditional plain-gold variety.”
beautiful and are given for no particular reason other
than the intent of the person giving them to convey Lorie thinks the diamond manufacturing and retail
an emotion. It’s the same thing with diamonds.” industry need to develop an umbrella campaign in
India to create and project a strong value proposition
Lorie thinks the mystique and lure of diamonds has for diamonds to the consumer.
definitely caught on in India. “I see more advertising
for diamonds in India than in any other country in the According to Lorie, the other issues the diamond
world,” he observes. And this advertising and promotion manufacturing and retail industry needs to keep
has a much greater depth than anywhere else in the a watchful eye on include high pressure and high

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: spotlight 15


temperature (HPHT) treated diamonds and synthetics. Bright Future
“We’ve seen a greater number of both these categories Lorie is enthusiastic about the future of both the
coming through our laboratories worldwide,” he diamond as well as its accompanying certification
observes. “Both are a potential threat to the industry industry in India. “With greater consumer education
though synthetics are a real danger. For the moment and awareness in India, there will be greater demand
though, I wouldn’t classify them as an imminent threat. for diamonds – and a correspondingly greater
Adhering to some simple safety rules should keep demand for assurance programs like certification.
the natural diamond industry safe from the threat of Disclosure and certification will have to come from
undisclosed stones masquerading as the real thing.” a laboratory and not from the retailer himself. Third
party assurance is the norm today. You wouldn’t buy
Even as a fully disclosed and inexpensive substitute a Picasso painting just because you saw his signature
for natural diamonds, Lorie feels, synthetics don’t pose on it. You’d ask an art expert to authenticate it. It’s
a threat to the industry. In the end, the draw of the the same with diamonds. And the more laboratories
natural stone is its best value proposition. “Take the there are in the marketplace, the greater the consumer
Swarovsky product,” he observes, “even though it is awareness and demand for certification will be.”
positioned as a unique product on its own, it is bought
by those wanting a diamond look at considerably lower Lorie quotes the China retail market as an example
prices. The products are beautiful and generate repeat of what could well develop in India. “Consumers
customers. But once you have the pleasure of owning a go online to our website (we give consumers direct
Swarovsky product, you start hankering for some real access) to confirm the specifications of a certificate
diamonds. In a sense, the Swarovsky product builds they see at a retail store. They frequently call our
steps towards real diamonds. And because Swarovsky helpline to clear up any discrepancies. The whole
products are regularly given to young girls, we have thing makes purchases that much easier and gives
a generation that starts wanting real diamonds much the consumer much greater confidence. It could
earlier than they would otherwise.” all happen in India too.” ■

EQUIPMENT TO INSTIL CONSUMER CONFIDENCE

16 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: spotlight


Outsou
And
Compe
The jewellery retailer’s
new mantra By Vinod Kuriyan

18 Idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY


urce
ete
With the economic transformation of
the country, the Indian jewellery retail
industry has gone through a profound
transformation in the last decade.
Among the more profound changes
has been the steady migration away
from one of the retail industry’s oldest
and most widely known role – that of
jewellery designer and manufacturer.

For millennia, jewellery has played a


multiple role in Indian society – the
most obvious one of adornment, a
symbol of status and most vitally in
a society that had almost no options
for the safeguard and investment of
wealth, a storehouse of value that
could be depended on to not only
outpace inflation, but also provide
instant cash in a crisis. Given all these
roles, it has been essential that the
retailer, who has played many roles
in local society, including that of
pawnbroker, have complete control of
the raw material sourcing as well as
jewellery manufacturing.

idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY 19


Specialist manufacturers take on a variety of headaches.
They deliver a product at a fixed price that the retailer knows
is good for his customer base during a specific sales period.

N
ot any more. With a variety of investment consumer goods – organised retail is what drives
options now available as well as a whole organised manufacture and organised manufacture
range of luxury products to choose from, in turn triggers organised outsourcing. The Indian
the Indian consumer is increasingly jewellery retail industry is on the same path that every
looking for a very different relationship with even the other product category’s retail system has gone through.
traditional family jewellery retailers. Primarily, they Organised outsourcing is inevitable.”
want a huge choice in the range of products on offer. In
addition to that, they want guarantees of purity in the Specialist manufacturers take on a variety of headaches
gold content, assurance about the quality and value of in the manufacturing process that require inordinately
the diamonds and coloured gemstones used, as well as large amounts of time and skilled manpower to tackle.
some warranty services in the form of assured repairs, They take care of:
cleaning etc. All the other luxury products offer this
and more and the Indian consumer wants the same • Sourcing primary gold and hedging against the yellow
from the jewellery retail industry. metal’s increasingly volatile price swings. They deliver
a product at a fixed price that the retailer knows is
Retailers around the country now find it impossible to good for his customer base during a specific sales
perform both their traditional roles as well as cater to period.
the new demands from their customers. Increasingly,
they have turned to specialist manufacturers and • Ensure quality by taking care of hallmarking and
distributors to source their product, as being rid of providing laboratory certification of the diamonds
this responsibility allows them to focus more on their and coloured gemstones used if this is required.
customers and their specific needs.
• Provide a huge range of product styles and options that
With much stiffer competition in the market all round, no retailer could offer his customers on his own. These
the name of the game is segmentation and profiling, include the very latest in trends and fashions, that
say industry analysts. As one put it, “There are three the younger customer base is increasingly demanding
separate games – the brand, the product game and the of the product they buy. This also allows the retailer
retail – and the return on investment in each is different. in turn to increase the range of products he offers
If you are in branding, your focus is to maximise the his customers.
perceived value of the brand; if you are a manufacturer,
you will be focussed on simply satisfying the customer’s • Stand behind their product by providing guarantees
specific needs within the product range you have as your as well as repair and refurbishing services when
intent is to ensure that your manufactured product keeps needed.
moving. If you are primarily a retailer, however, it is all
about catering to every single need of the customer –
even those that he or she cannot articulate clearly. You Outsourcing Gives You A
then need the greatest variety and depth of product to Wide Choice
offer the greatest range of choices.” Mansukh Kothari of Vasupati Jewellers in Mumbai, a
firm that provides back-end design and manufacturing
The analyst goes on to say, “It has happened in every services for range of retailer clients around the country,
other industry from automobiles to fast moving says that the volume and value of the jewellery that

20 Idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY


is now outsourced around the country has more than
doubled in the last five years. “One of the biggest reasons
for this increase,” he notes, “is that outsourcing allows
retailers to dramatically increase their stocks. Most
retailers have doubled the stocks they hold in the past
five years. They have to offer their customers the widest
range of choices and options as competition – both from
within the industry as well as from other luxury products
– is becoming increasingly fierce every day.”

In Kothari’s opinion, outsourcing now accounts for up


to 98 percent of the products offered by some retailers.
“Many retailers only manufacture a very small percentage
of their product to cater to very specialized orders,”
he says.

One of the reasons for this huge increase in outsourcing,


he observes is that the specialist manufacturers, due
to the scale of their operations, are able to study the
different geographic markets around India and provide
product to retailers in those markets that is specifically
tailored to local tastes. “we study each market,” he says,
“and we know what each geographic area wants. To give
you a very generic example, if we’re making earrings,
we know that they have to be big and bold for the
northern markets, while the southern markets demand
earrings that are smaller and more delicate. We know
what product to offer which retailer,” he says, adding,
“chains and bangles are the most widespread of jewellery
products in India – they’re everyday items and the staple
of the industry in every geographic market. Once you’ve
got a manufacturing line with these products going, it
is relatively an easy matter to start tweaking the design
and styling for individual markets. You can offer the
retailer a huge range of product because the volumes
and varieties in this segment are gigantic.”

“Outsourcing design and product manufacture has


definitely taken off,” says Pratap Kamath, CEO of Abaran
Jewellery in Bangalore. “Everyone realises the need for a
varied product mix today,” he notes, adding, “ a limited

idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY


NAC Jewellers
21
“Branded jewellery as in the big specific brands, is relatively
small segment of the total market, though one can’t dismiss
brands. Look at Tanishq and how they’ve changed the
jewellery retail landscape!”

or select product offering is a big negative for customers


today.” Kamath attributes a lot of today’s changes to the
fact that disposable incomes have increased and that
people have travelled a lot more and have been exposed
to cultures, tastes and styles outside India. “These people
come back from their travels and realise the importance
of design and styling.” He notes that the trend towards
a greater variety of styles and designs is also impelled
by a strong component of economic necessity. The
sky-high price of gold, he notes, has made people buy
less jewellery now for occasions and very choosy about
what do they buy. “Earlier, when the price of gold was
5,000 for 10 grams, people would buy perhaps five
bangles and some three necklaces for a wedding. Now
the number of those purchases has been scaled back
sharply – perhaps just two or three bangles and just a
single necklace, perhaps two. And they will spend a lot
of time choosing those two or three pieces that they do
buy. The retailer needs to have a really wide selection
MANSUKH KOTHARI: OUTSOURCING
on offer to cater to this demand. So the trend towards HAS MORE THAN DOUBLED
outsourcing manufacture is based on actual consumer
demand and this in turn is a need-based imperative. At
the end of the day, the retailer can’t fight something his customers. This makes him better at what he does
the consumer demands.” and thus better able to compete even with other luxury
products.”

Trust Issues Resolved Kamath notes that outsourcing product design


“Earlier,” Kamath observes, “there were many barriers manufacture doesn’t mean that the retailer will lose
to outsourcing, not the least of which was trust and his identity in any way. “We have our own in-store
dependability. Now with the hallmarking of gold and ‘branded’ collections at Abaran,” he notes, emphasizing
the certification of diamonds and coloured gemstones, that his customer base is content knowing that his
outsourcing is on a solid basis in terms of dependability. retail outlet stands behind the product as a brand of its
That crucial trust element has been taken care of. own. “Branded jewellery as in the big specific brands, is
Outsourcing your product line-up something of a huge relatively small segment of the total market,” Kamath
leap into the unknown.” He goes on to say, “What the says, adding with a laugh, “though one can’t dismiss
outsourcing does, is take away some 75 percent of the brands. Look at Tanishq and how they’ve changed the
retailers headaches, allowing him to focus on his core jewellery retail landscape!”
competence – selling to the consumer. He can work
on developing aggressive sales programs and spend Emphatically endorsing the statement that outsourcing
more time in training his sales force to better service is now the norm, N. Anantha Padmanabhan of NAC

22 Idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY


Jewellers in Chennai, says, “Except for a few individual
retailers here or there, I would say that 75 percent of
all jewellery in retail showrooms today is outsourced.
The sheer variety of product available from specialist
manufacturers today is terrific. Every retailer needs to
know what is happening in the market – the new trends,
styles and colours. The specialist manufacturers spend
a lot of time and money on researching the market,
designing and developing the product. The retailer gets
a snapshot of the entire market when he is offered the
product range of a specialist manufacturer.”

Citing a personal example, Padmanabhan notes, “Until


last year, I designed and manufactured all my product
in-house – could source my diamonds cheaper and
keep a close eye on quality issues. But I found that I
didn’t know what was happening in the market and I
was missing out on offering the best product range to a
large segment of my clientele that wanted the latest in
trends and styles to choose from. Also, designing and
manufacturing one’s own product is a major headache.
I started outsourcing a major chunk of my product
offering and I’m happy doing it.”

Padmanabhan observes, however, that there is one


segment he just will not outsource – the high-end and
exclusive product that he makes for a select customer
base. “When all is said and done, I still think the
best product can only emerge when you design and
manufacture it yourself. You can meticulously source
your diamonds and coloured gemstones, keep a close eye
on quality and assure you high end customers completely
when you have designed and manufactured the product
yourself. And because it has all come from you, the
product on offer can be exclusive and not available
anywhere else. So for jewellery that costs Rs. 5 lakhs and
upwards, we do all the designing and manufacturing
in-house. For product that retails at up to Rs.3 lakhs
or so, we outsource design and manufacture. This way,
we have the best of both worlds.” Vasupati Jewellers

idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY 23


In a tight market, all the retailer has to do is to adjust his own
margin slightly, without having to worry about the fluctuations
in the price of gold and the availability of other raw material like
diamonds and coloured gemstones

Everybody is keeping a close eye on the market and design product, manufacture it and then look at issues
everybody wants a bigger slice of the consumer’s like quality control. They want ready product with
wallet. The fierce competition that he is talking about, all of this taken care of.”
Kothari of Vasupati notes, is actually threatening the
future of the small and medium jewellery retailer.
“You could run a successful retail operation with a
Artisan Workforce Unlikely
range of jewellery that would account for some 30 To Last
or 40 kilograms of gold,” he observes, “but not any The traditional role of the retailer is also threatened by
more. You need much more on hand to offer your a social issue. The karigar is no longer a widespread and
customer a choice. In five years’ time, I think you’ll dependable entity. Many of these traditional artisans,
need a minimum stock that accounts for some 100 who have gone into jewellery manufacture because their
kilograms of gold. The bigger operators and those families have been in the trade for generations, no longer
with multiple branches are going to be the only ones want to continue with a job that demands long hours in
able to cope with demands like this. And they are not poor working conditions and absolutely no security of
going to be tied down with having to source gold, income. Most of them want their children to move into

PRATAP KAMATH: EVERYONE REALISES


24 Idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY
NEED FOR VARIED PRODUCT OFFERING
other fields. The ones that are still in business would
much rather work in factory conditions for a specialist
manufacturer, chain retailer with its own manufacturing
or at the very least a retailer with multiple branches
and therefore the scope and volume of production
demands that will enable it to offer the same working
conditions and salaries that the others can. The small
retailer with low and sporadic demand, will no longer
have a manufacturing resource to depend on.

According to Kothari, the karigar is being increasingly


given a service role in carrying out the minor repairs and
refurbishments that customers demand from retailers
everywhere. Rather than ship a product back to a third-
party manufacturer somewhere else in India – a costly
affair in both time and logistics – it makes more sense
to have repair services offered locally by karigars he
says. “Only if there are major repairs or technical issues
beyond the karigars’ scope, is the piece sent back to
the manufacturer,” Kothari adds.

Kamath echoes this. “Services like repairs and


refurbishment are taken care of locally, primarily
because the consumer is not willing to wait for a long
period of time while the piece is shipped back to the
manufacturer. They want an instant response.”

Just the sheer convenience of having someone else look


after the entire design and manufacture process, Kothari
notes, is continuing to drive the process to expansion.
“Normally, the retailer just adds on our cost to the
sticker price of the product and we then pay our way
through the process,” he says. In a tight market, all the
retailer has to do is to adjust his own margin slightly,
without having to worry about the fluctuations in the
price of gold and the availability of other raw material
like diamonds and coloured gemstones.
Abaran Jewellery
The future, according to some industry insiders will see
retailers who manufacture their own jewellery becoming
highly specialized niche operators in an increasingly
exclusive market segment.

idex Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: COVER STORY 25


Et Cetera

Tres, Tres Chic!


There’s nobody like the French when it
comes to fashion. No matter what the
rest of the world is doing, the French
do it just that much more chicly. These
jewelry and watch pieces from France
show just why the country deserves
its reputation for style.

Down To The Line


The Blue Line range from Bellon Créateur
has a contemporary style imprinted on a classic
look, combining white or yellow gold with
oval or cushion gems. Despite the name, the
Jewelry by
Bellon Créateur rings and pendants are also available set with
amethysts, citrines and smoky quartz, as well as
with blue topaz and blue sapphires.

30 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: RETAIL ET CETERA


Jewelry by Cacharel

Graphic Design
Cacharel’s Argent Générique line encompasses
what the company calls “graphic-chic.” The
necklace, ring and bracelet are made of silver,
lacquer and cubic zirconia to provide an art deco
look in contemporary colors for affordable fashion
jewelry. The open-worked, crafted bubble jewelry in
the Bulles (bubbles) collection is made of rhodium-
plated sterling silver and zirconia.

Work of Art
In homage to the impressionist painter Claude
Monet, Mathon Paris has re-launched its
Nymphéas collection, created in 2005 and now
enriched with new color harmonies and a
modernised design. The line is based around
orange and yellow – yellow sapphires, spessarite
garnets and diamonds – to evoke the atmosphere
Jewelry by Mathon Paris of Monet’s lush field of poppies.

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: RETAIL ET CETERA 31


Jura Jewels
Isabelle Langlois comes from a long line of
lapidaries from the Jura region of France. She has
lived among gems since her childhood, which is
evident from her stunning designs. She uses an
extensive range of gems, including pink and green
tourmalines, Ceylon sapphires, tsavorites, citrines
and amethysts. Her “French-style” is easy to wear
and very decorative, just like real bouquets of
flowers.

Jewelry by
Isabelle Langlois

World Traveler
Artist-jeweler Philippe Tournaire is renowned
for his architectural creations. Now he has taken
his creativity a stage further with rings based on
Jewelry by
some of the world’s most important cities. London,
Philippe Tournaire Dubai, Moscow, New York and Paris, rendered in
multi-colored gold and artfully placed diamonds,
are his first world offerings, though other cities are
planned to follow.

Jewelry by
Commelin

Bon Voyage
How can you not fail to be “charmed” by these
travel-themed charms from Commelin? The
Voyages collection takes wearers all over the
world through a variety of 18 karat yellow and
white gold charms. Providing inspiration for
places not yet visited, as well as mementos of
special places, these charms are irresistible.

32 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: RETAIL ET CETERA


Jewelry by
Gay Frères

No Frères
Founded in 1835, Gay Frères is renowned
as a manufacturer and supplier to some of
the best-known European jewelry brands.
The Endless Love collection, one of about 40
produced by the company, represents the
power of love. The necklaces, rings, earrings
and bracelets come in pink or yellow gold,
or white gold with diamonds.

Precious Hearts
In its Sceau de Coeurs collection,
Poiray reveals a new line of
poetic, fun and technical jewelry. Two
Jewelry by interchangeable rings, one in precious metal,
Poiray the other in ceramic, are interlaced. The rings are
available in 18 karat white, pink or yellow gold,
semi-pavéd or entirely pavéd in diamonds.

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: RETAIL ET CETERA 33


Gay Paris
The Rêviere Parisienne collection of watches
from Opex takes its inspiration from famous
Parisian people and places. These muses
include the writer Colette, the singer Edith Piaf
and the famous Café de Flore on Boulevard
Saint Germain where artists and writers would
meet. While the inspiration may come from the
Paris of yesterday, the designs are as modern
and forward-looking as they come.

Watches by opex

Time Change
These Obi watches from Kenzo are available
for both men and women. The watches
feature reversible straps, allowing wearers
to match them with double the number of
outfits that a single timepiece would allow.
Now you need never worry about clashing Watches by kenzo
with your clothes ever again!

34 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: RETAIL ET CETERA


DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011

THE DIAMOND RETAIL BENCHMARK - INDIA


Diamond Retail Benchmark for Polished Diamonds

Prices are in Rupees Per Carat Powered by www.idexonline.com


IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 174827 143747 124321 108781 101011 77701 66046 58276 50506 38850 27195 D 198547 163250 141189 123541 114716 88243 75007 66182 57358 44122 30885

Round 1/4 (0.23-0.28)


Round 1/5 (0.18-0.22)

E 147632 132092 112666 101011 93241 73816 62161 58276 46621 34965 23310 E 167662 150014 127953 114716 105892 83831 70595 66182 52946 39709 26473
F 139862 128207 104896 93241 85471 69931 58276 54391 42736 31080 23310 F 158838 145601 119128 105892 97068 79419 66182 61770 48534 35297 26473
G 128207 112666 97126 85471 73816 62161 54391 50506 38850 31080 19425 G 145601 127953 110304 97068 83831 70595 61770 57358 44122 35297 22061
H 112666 101011 89356 77701 66046 58276 50506 46621 34965 27195 19425 H 127953 114716 101480 88243 75007 66182 57358 52946 39709 30885 22061
I 93241 81586 77701 69931 58276 54391 46621 42736 34965 27195 19425 I 105892 92655 88243 79419 66182 61770 52946 48534 39709 30885 22061
J 69931 66046 62161 54391 50506 46621 42736 38850 31080 27195 15540 J 79419 75007 70595 61770 57358 52946 48534 44122 35297 30885 17649
K 62161 58276 54391 46621 42736 38850 34965 34965 31080 23310 15540 K 70595 66182 61770 52946 48534 44122 39709 39709 35297 26473 17649
L 50506 46621 46621 42736 42736 38850 34965 27195 23310 19425 11655 L 57358 52946 52946 48534 48534 44122 39709 30885 26473 22061 13236
M 42736 42736 38850 34965 34965 31080 27195 23310 19425 15540 11655 M 48534 48534 44122 39709 39709 35297 30885 26473 22061 17649 13236
N 34965 38850 31080 27195 27195 23310 19425 19425 15540 11655 11655 N 39709 44122 35297 30885 30885 26473 22061 22061 17649 13236 13236
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 235446 193589 167428 146499 136035 104642 88946 78482 68018 52321 36625 D 272525 230598 199153 178190 146744 115299 104817 94336 73372 57650 41927

Round 3/8 (0.38-0.44)


Round 1/3 (0.29-0.37)

E 198821 177892 151732 136035 125571 99410 83714 78482 62785 47089 31393 E 230598 204394 178190 167708 141504 110058 94336 89095 68131 52409 36686
F 188356 172660 141267 125571 115107 94178 78482 73250 57553 41857 31393 F 220117 199153 172949 157226 131022 104817 89095 83854 68131 52409 36686
G 172660 151732 130803 115107 99410 83714 73250 68018 52321 41857 26161 G 199153 172949 151985 136263 115299 99577 83854 78613 62890 47168 31445
H 151732 136035 120339 104642 88946 78482 68018 62785 47089 36625 26161 H 178190 157226 136263 120540 104817 94336 78613 73372 57650 47168 31445
I 125571 109875 104642 94178 78482 73250 62785 57553 47089 36625 26161 I 151985 131022 120540 104817 94336 83854 73372 68131 52409 41927 31445
J 94178 88946 83714 73250 68018 62785 57553 52321 41857 36625 20928 J 120540 110058 104817 89095 78613 73372 68131 62890 47168 41927 26204
K 83714 78482 73250 62785 57553 52321 47089 47089 41857 31393 20928 K 110058 99577 94336 78613 73372 62890 57650 52409 41927 36686 26204
L 68018 62785 62785 57553 57553 52321 47089 36625 31393 26161 15696 L 94336 89095 83854 73372 68131 57650 52409 47168 36686 31445 20963
M 57553 57553 52321 47089 47089 41857 36625 31393 26161 20928 15696 M 78613 73372 68131 62890 57650 52409 47168 41927 31445 26204 20963
N 47089 52321 41857 36625 36625 31393 26161 26161 20928 15696 15696 N 62890 57650 52409 52409 47168 47168 41927 36686 26204 20963 20963
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 313188 265005 228868 204777 168640 132503 120457 108411 84320 66251 48183 D 447306 343662 300022 240018 223653 185468 147284 136374 109099 87279 60004

Round 1/2+ (0.50-0.69)


Round -1/2 (0.45-0.49)

E 265005 234891 204777 192731 162617 126480 108411 102388 78297 60228 42160 E 332752 300022 278202 229108 201833 169103 136374 125464 103644 81824 54550
F 252960 228868 198754 180685 150571 120457 102388 96366 78297 60228 42160 F 300022 278202 256383 218198 190923 152739 125464 114554 98189 76369 54550
G 228868 198754 174663 156594 132503 114434 96366 90343 72274 54206 36137 G 267293 245473 229108 201833 169103 136374 109099 103644 92734 70914 49095
H 204777 180685 156594 138525 120457 108411 90343 84320 66251 54206 36137 H 240018 218198 196378 174558 147284 125464 103644 98189 87279 65459 49095
I 174663 150571 138525 120457 108411 96366 84320 78297 60228 48183 36137 I 196378 180013 163649 141829 125464 109099 98189 92734 81824 65459 49095
J 138525 126480 120457 102388 90343 84320 78297 72274 54206 48183 30114 J 152739 141829 130919 114554 109099 98189 87279 81824 76369 65459 43640
K 126480 114434 108411 90343 84320 72274 66251 60228 48183 42160 30114 K 130919 125464 120009 103644 98189 87279 81824 76369 70914 60004 43640
L 108411 102388 96366 84320 78297 66251 60228 54206 42160 36137 24091 L 114554 109099 103644 98189 92734 81824 76369 70914 60004 54550 38185
M 90343 84320 78297 72274 66251 60228 54206 48183 36137 30114 24091 M 98189 92734 87279 81824 81824 70914 65459 60004 54550 49095 32730
N 72274 66251 60228 60228 54206 54206 48183 42160 30114 24091 24091 N 81824 76369 70914 65459 70914 60004 54550 49095 49095 43640 27275
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 553205 423039 363380 319991 292873 249485 222367 184402 157284 103048 65083 D 682516 569659 494421 392312 354693 333197 284830 220340 177347 123605 75238
Round 0.90 (0.90-0.99)
Round 3/4 (0.70-0.89)

E 406769 363380 325415 303721 271179 238638 211520 173555 151860 97624 65083 E 564285 532040 451428 360068 338571 311700 274081 209592 171973 118231 69864
F 363380 330838 303721 282026 254908 222367 195249 168131 146437 92201 59659 F 532040 505169 419183 343945 322449 295578 263333 204217 166598 112857 69864
G 325415 292873 271179 249485 227790 200673 178978 162707 141013 92201 54236 G 451428 413809 354693 317074 295578 274081 241836 193469 161224 107483 64490
H 292873 265755 244061 222367 206096 184402 168131 151860 130166 86777 54236 H 365442 343945 322449 300952 279455 252585 231088 182721 150476 102109 64490
I 244061 227790 216943 200673 184402 168131 146437 135590 124742 81354 54236 I 306326 290204 268707 257959 236462 225714 204217 166598 139728 96735 59116
J 184402 178978 173555 157284 151860 146437 135590 119319 113895 75930 48812 J 252585 241836 231088 220340 204217 198843 182721 150476 128979 91360 59116
K 162707 157284 151860 135590 130166 119319 108472 103048 92201 70507 48812 K 209592 204217 193469 182721 171973 166598 150476 128979 102109 80612 53741
L 135590 130166 124742 119319 113895 108472 97624 92201 70507 59659 43389 L 177347 171973 166598 155850 150476 145102 134354 118231 96735 75238 48367
M 124742 119319 113895 108472 103048 97624 92201 86777 65083 54236 37965 M 161224 155850 150476 145102 139728 134354 123605 107483 91360 69864 48367
N 113895 108472 103048 97624 92201 86777 86777 81354 59659 48812 32541 N 145102 139728 134354 134354 128979 123605 112857 96735 85986 64490 48367
Disclaimer: This Diamond Retail Benchmark India (DRB™) is an informational and educational tool for diamond consumers. Organized around the “the 4C’s” - Carat, Cut, Color & Clarity - the DRB India is based on
market data from the diamond trading centers Worldwide and market research assessment of customary retail mark-ups. Endorsed by the All India Gem & Jewelry Trade Federation (GJF), as well as the World Federation
of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) The DRB™ should be used as background information only. Actual diamond sale prices may be differ compared to this benchmark, depending on demand and supply at time of transaction;
source of the diamond certificate; fluorescence; cut specifications; payment and other terms of business; foreign exchange rates; special stones and other business considerations. This is published jointly by The All
This and
India Gems price list reflects
Jewellery suggested
Trade Federation (GJF), a retail prices
trade body for polished
headquartered diamonds.
in Mumbai, and IDEX, aDiamonds may,house
diamond research andheadquartered
should, sell at Aviv
in Tel discounts compared
Israel, with to this
a view of unbiased list.toFor
service the more
consumer
education on prices and discounts please visit www.diamondSRP.com. Copyright 2009 by WFDB and IDEX Online S.A. All rights reserved.
36 DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011
D R A F T – J A N U A R Y 1st 2 0 10
DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011

THE DIAMOND RETAIL BENCHMARK - INDIA


Diamond Retail Benchmark for Polished Diamonds

Prices are in Rupees Per Carat Powered by www.idexonline.com


IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 1275458 938649 800612 607361 474846 403067 336809 265030 226380 154601 88343 D 1507279 1220446 1124835 860499 691774 556793 455558 348699 275585 174349 101235
Round 4/4 (1.00-1.49)

Round 1.50 (1.50-1.99)


E 872391 822698 695704 557668 447238 375459 320245 248466 215337 149079 82822 E 1192325 1141708 956110 809881 658029 534297 433062 331826 264336 168725 95611
F 789569 717790 634968 507975 425153 358895 303680 237423 204294 143558 77300 F 1034848 944862 899868 742391 629908 506176 404941 320578 253088 163101 89987
G 557668 535582 513496 447238 397545 336809 292637 226380 198773 138037 71779 G 725519 708646 674901 613035 551169 461182 376820 298081 241840 157477 84363
H 463803 441717 414110 375459 342331 320245 281595 220858 187730 132515 71779 H 584914 568042 551169 500552 466807 427437 359947 275585 230591 151853 84363
I 397545 386502 358895 320245 303680 287116 253987 204294 171165 121472 66258 I 517424 511800 494927 438686 404941 376820 320578 253088 219343 140604 78738
J 331288 320245 309202 292637 265030 253987 237423 182208 149079 110429 66258 J 427437 421813 404941 365571 331826 320578 281209 224967 185598 129356 78738
K 298159 287116 276073 265030 226380 220858 198773 165644 138037 99386 60736 K 348699 337451 326202 320578 286833 264336 241840 202470 168725 118108 73114
L 265030 253987 248466 237423 209816 198773 176687 154601 126994 88343 55215 L 314954 303705 292457 275585 253088 241840 219343 185598 151853 112484 67490
M 220858 215337 204294 193251 171165 160122 143558 121472 110429 82822 55215 M 264336 258712 247464 241840 213719 202470 185598 157477 134980 101235 67490
N 176687 176687 160122 149079 132515 123605 112857 96735 93865 77300 55215 N 213719 213719 202470 188390 174349 163101 151853 129356 118108 89987 67490
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 2141801 1729504 1558160 1274372 926329 706794 578286 396233 310561 182053 101736 D 2428889 1961328 1767017 1445189 1050495 801533 655800 449344 352189 206456 115372
Round 2.00 (2.00-2.49)

Round 2.50 (2.50-2.99)


E 1675959 15688691338626 1140509 888847 690731 562223 385524 299852 176699 96381 E 1900606 1779161 1518056 1293383 1007989 783317 637583 437200 340044 200383 109300
F 1472488 1327917 1194054 1006646 851366 653249 524741 369461 289143 171344 91027 F 1669861 1505911 1354106 1141578 965483 740811 595078 418983 327900 194311 103228
G 1060191 974519 888847 813884 744276 610413 503323 348043 273080 165990 91027 G 1202300 1105145 1007989 922978 844039 692233 570789 394694 309683 188239 103228
H 824593 771048 717503 680022 631831 546159 471196 321270 257016 160635 85672 H 935122 874400 813678 771172 716522 619367 534356 364333 291467 182167 97156
I 669313 647895 610413 562223 519387 471196 428360 294498 246307 149926 80318 I 759028 734739 692233 637583 589006 534356 485778 333972 279322 170022 91083
J 535450 514032 492614 460487 428360 390879 364106 267725 224889 133863 80318 J 607222 582933 558644 522211 485778 443272 412911 303611 255033 151806 91083
K 481905 465842 449778 417651 390879 353397 326625 257016 192762 128508 74963 K 546500 528283 510067 473633 443272 400767 370406 291467 218600 145733 85011
L 374815 364106 353397 337334 305207 278434 251662 214180 165990 123154 69609 L 425056 412911 400767 382550 346117 315756 285394 242889 188239 139661 78939
M 321270 315916 310561 305207 262371 235598 214180 187408 139217 112445 69609 M 364333 358261 352189 346117 297539 267178 242889 212528 157878 127517 78939
N 267725 267725 267725 243601 219535 192762 176699 160635 118108 101736 69609 N 303611 303611 303611 276254 248961 218600 200383 182167 127517 115372 78939
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 3756710 2911148 2585003 1999150 1582408 1044873 773085 507337 434860 229510 126834 D 4177489 3237218 2874542 2223069 1759650 1161906 859676 564162 483568 255216 141041
Round 3.00 (3.00-3.49)

Round 3.50 (3.50-3.99)


E 2850751 2591043 2174302 1739441 1455574 984475 730807 483178 404662 223470 120795 E 3170056 2881258 2417839 1934271 1618609 1094744 812663 537298 449987 248500 134324
F 245816922648981908554 1582408 1352899 924078 700608 459019 380503 211390 114755 F 2733501 2518582 2122325 1759650 1504433 1027582 779081 510433 423122 235068 127608
G 1968951 1769640 1594488 1419336 1189826 833482 664370 434860 362384 205351 108715 G 2189488 1967852 1773082 1578312 1323095 926838 738784 483568 402973 228351 120892
H 1491813 1431415 1328740 1159628 996555 718728 634171 410701 344264 199311 108715 H 1658906 1591744 1477568 1289514 1108176 799230 705203 456703 382825 221635 120892
I 1062992 1032793 996555 893880 761006 628132 549615 374463 320106 187232 102675 I 1182055 1148474 1108176 994001 846244 698487 611176 416406 355960 208203 114176
J 863681 851601 821403 742886 670410 543575 483178 344264 283867 169112 96636 J 960419 946987 913406 826095 745500 604460 537298 382825 315662 188054 107460
K 797244 761006 730807 664370 597933 465059 404662 314066 253669 157033 96636 K 886541 846244 812663 738784 664906 517149 449987 349243 282081 174622 107460
L 597933 567734 537536 513377 465059 350304 295947 259708 199311 150993 90596 L 664906 631325 597744 570879 517149 389541 329095 288797 221635 167905 100743
M 495258 483178 465059 434860 398622 314066 265748 235549 175152 138914 90596 M 550730 537298 517149 483568 443270 349243 295514 261933 194770 154473 100743
N 392582 398622 392582 356344 332185 277827 235549 211390 150993 126834 90596 N 436554 443270 436554 396257 369392 308946 261933 235068 167905 141041 100743
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 4829395 3837893350924928296802222525 1353568 974791 564162 483568 255216 141041 D 6773027 5128547 4615692 38854322954489 1800566 1220817 613196 483568 262002 141041
Round 4.00 (4.00-4.99)

Round 5.00 (5.00-5.99)


E 3826753 3492539 301906825288882099979 1303435 946940 537298 449987 248500 134324 E 5078376 4571096 402479534840672787254 1666778 1181796 579749 449987 250853 134324
F 3453547 3013498 2718276 2339500 1921732 1236593 924659 510433 423122 235068 127608 F 4459606 4013646 3679175 3261087 2397038 1521841 1131625 557451 423122 239704 127608
G 2606871 2339500 2194673 2066558 1687782 1097337 852246 483568 402973 228351 120892 G 3344705 3010234 2770530 2547550 2118313 1404776 1070305 535153 402973 228555 120892
H 1983004 1882740 1754625 1632079 1370278 980362 785403 456703 382825 221635 120892 H 2675764 2424911 22298032006823 1677927 1220817 964390 479408 382825 222980 120892
I 1431551 1359138 1303435 1203171 1052775 818825 696280 416406 355960 208203 114176 I 1928780 1806140 1744821 1560862 1404776 1031284 836176 423663 355960 211831 114176
J 1153039 1097337 1063915 980362 868957 718561 607156 382825 315662 188054 107460 J 1449372 1376903 1282137 1226392 1170647 919794 741410 384641 315662 200682 107460
K 980362 919089 885668 824395 735271 584875 518032 349243 282081 174622 107460 K 1131625 1048007 997837 942092 886347 724686 613196 351194 282081 183959 107460
L 673999 640577 612726 584875 518032 417768 362065 288797 221635 167905 100743 L 830602 797155 758133 724686 668941 557451 423663 306598 239704 167905 100743
M 579305 557024 540313 506892 462330 373206 323074 261933 194770 154473 100743 M 719111 685664 657792 629919 602047 501706 379067 273151 206257 154473 100743
N 484611 473470 467900 428908 406627 328644 284082 239520 167905 141041 100743 N 607621 574174 557451 535153 535153 445961 334470 239704 172810 141041 100743
Disclaimer: This Diamond Retail Benchmark India (DRB™) is an informational and educational tool for diamond consumers. Organized around the “the 4C’s” - Carat, Cut, Color & Clarity - the DRB India is based on
market data from the diamond trading centers Worldwide and market research assessment of customary retail mark-ups. Endorsed by the All India Gem & Jewelry Trade Federation (GJF), as well as the World Federation
of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) The DRB™ should be used as background information only. Actual diamond sale prices may be differ compared to this benchmark, depending on demand and supply at time of transaction;
source of the diamond certificate; fluorescence; cut specifications; payment and other terms of business; foreign exchange rates; special stones and other business considerations. This is published jointly by The All
India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation (GJF), a trade body headquartered in Mumbai, and IDEX, a diamond research house headquartered in Tel Aviv Israel, with a view of unbiased service to the consumer

DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011 37


DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011

THE DIAMOND RETAIL BENCHMARK - INDIA


Diamond Retail Benchmark for Polished Diamonds

Prices are in Rupees Per Carat Powered by www.idexonline.com


IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 114564 107173 96086 88695 73912 66521 55434 51739 44347 33261 22174 D 130497 122078 109449 101030 84192 75772 63144 58934 50515 37886 25257

Fancy 1/4 (0.23-0.28)


Fancy 1/5 (0.18-0.22)

E 107173 99782 88695 73912 62826 59130 51739 51739 40652 29565 22174 E 122078 113659 101030 84192 71563 67353 58934 58934 46305 33677 25257
F 99782 92390 77608 66521 59130 55434 48043 48043 36956 25869 18478 F 113659 105239 88401 75772 67353 63144 54725 54725 42096 29467 21048
G 92390 81304 70217 62826 55434 51739 44347 44347 33261 25869 18478 G 105239 92611 79982 71563 63144 58934 50515 50515 37886 29467 21048
H 73912 70217 62826 59130 51739 48043 40652 40652 29565 22174 18478 H 84192 79982 71563 67353 58934 54725 46305 46305 33677 25257 21048
I 59130 55434 51739 51739 48043 44347 36956 36956 29565 22174 14782 I 67353 63144 58934 58934 54725 50515 42096 42096 33677 25257 16838
J 48043 44347 44347 40652 40652 36956 33261 33261 25869 18478 14782 J 54725 50515 50515 46305 46305 42096 37886 37886 29467 21048 16838
K 40652 36956 33261 33261 33261 29565 25869 25869 22174 18478 14782 K 46305 42096 37886 37886 37886 33677 29467 29467 25257 21048 16838
L 36956 33261 33261 29565 29565 29565 25869 22174 14782 14782 11087 L 42096 37886 37886 33677 33677 33677 29467 25257 16838 16838 12629
M 33261 33261 33261 29565 29565 29565 25869 22174 14782 11087 11087 M 37886 37886 37886 33677 33677 33677 29467 25257 16838 12629 12629
N 33261 33261 33261 29565 29565 29565 25869 22174 14782 11087 11087 N 37886 37886 37886 33677 33677 33677 29467 25257 16838 12629 12629
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 152499 142661 127903 118064 98387 88548 73790 68871 59032 44274 29516 D 171324 157433 143542 134281 115759 101868 92608 83347 60195 46304 37043

Fancy 3/8 (0.38-0.44)


Fancy 1/3 (0.29-0.37)

E 142661 132822 118064 98387 83629 78709 68871 68871 54113 39355 29516 E 157433 148172 134281 125020 111129 92608 83347 78716 55565 41673 32413
F 132822 122983 103306 88548 78709 73790 63951 63951 49193 34435 24597 F 148172 138911 125020 115759 106499 87977 78716 74086 50934 37043 27782
G 122983 108225 93467 83629 73790 68871 59032 59032 44274 34435 24597 G 138911 125020 115759 106499 97238 83347 69456 69456 46304 37043 27782
H 98387 93467 83629 78709 68871 63951 54113 54113 39355 29516 24597 H 120390 111129 101868 97238 87977 78716 64825 64825 41673 32413 27782
I 78709 73790 68871 68871 63951 59032 49193 49193 39355 29516 19677 I 97238 92608 87977 83347 74086 69456 60195 60195 41673 32413 23152
J 63951 59032 59032 54113 54113 49193 44274 44274 34435 24597 19677 J 78716 74086 74086 69456 60195 55565 50934 50934 37043 27782 23152
K 54113 49193 44274 44274 44274 39355 34435 34435 29516 24597 19677 K 69456 60195 55565 50934 50934 46304 37043 37043 29516 24597 23152
L 49193 44274 44274 39355 39355 39355 34435 29516 19677 19677 14758 L 60195 55565 50934 46304 46304 41673 37043 32413 27782 23152 18522
M 44274 44274 44274 39355 39355 39355 34435 29516 19677 14758 14758 M 50934 46304 46304 41673 41673 39355 34435 29516 23152 18522 18522
N 44274 44274 44274 39355 39355 39355 34435 29516 19677 14758 14758 N 44274 44274 44274 39355 39355 39355 34435 29516 19677 18524 18522
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 178043 163607 149171 139547 120299 105863 96239 86615 62556 48120 38496 D 246033208896190328 171759 157833 129980 111411 102127 88201 69632 51064

Fancy 1/2+ (0.50-0.69)


Fancy -1/2 (0.45-0.49)

E 163607 153983 139547 129923 115487 96239 86615 81803 57744 43308 33684 E 213538 190328 176401 153191 139264 116053 92843 92843 83558 64990 46421
F 153983 144359 129923 120299 110675 91427 81803 76991 52932 38496 28872 F 190328 176401 157833 143906129980 111411 88201 88201 78916 60348 46421
G 144359 129923 120299 110675 101051 86615 72179 72179 48120 38496 28872 G 176401 157833 143906129980 116053 102127 83558 83558 69632 55706 41779
H 125111 115487 105863 101051 91427 81803 67367 67367 43308 33684 28872 H 157833 143906 134622 120696 111411 88201 78916 78916 64990 51064 41779
I 101051 96239 91427 86615 76991 72179 62556 62556 43308 33684 24060 I 134622 120696 116053 106769 97485 88201 78916 74274 60348 51064 37137
J 81803 76991 76991 72179 62556 57744 52932 52932 38496 28872 24060 J 106769 97485 92843 88201 83558 78916 74274 64990 55706 51064 37137
K 72179 62556 57744 52932 52932 48120 38496 38496 29516 24597 24060 K 83558 74274 74274 69632 69632 64990 60348 60348 51064 46421 32495
L 62556 57744 52932 48120 48120 43308 38496 33684 28872 24060 19248 L 69632 64990 64990 60348 60348 60348 55706 55706 46421 41779 32495
M 52932 48120 48120 43308 43308 39355 34435 29516 24060 19248 19248 M 55706 55706 55706 51064 51064 51064 46421 46421 41779 37137 27853
N 44274 44274 44274 39355 39355 39355 34435 29516 19677 19250 19248 N 46421 46421 46421 41779 41779 41779 37137 37137 37137 32495 23211
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 346054270206255985 241763 227542203840 175397 161176 123252 85328 56886 D 393677 311280 302124 283814265503 251770 219727 178528 132752 96130 59509
Fancy 0.90 (0.90-0.99)
Fancy 3/4 (0.70-0.89)

E 274947255985246504227542208580 180137 156435146954 118512 80588 52145 E 311280 302124 283814 270081 256348238037205994 169373 128174 91553 54932
F 260725246504237023 218061 194359 170657 146954 137473 113771 75847 52145 F 302124 283814265503256348242615228882 201416 164795 128174 86975 54932
G 246504232283 218061 199099 180137 151695 137473 132733 109031 75847 47405 G 283814265503256348 247193 228882 210571 187683 160217 123596 82398 50354
H 222802203840199099184878 161176 137473 127992 123252 99550 71107 47405 H 247193228882 219727 210571 196839 187683 164795 151062 114441 82398 50354
I 189618 175397 170657 156435 132733 118512 109031 104290 90069 66366 42664 I 219727 205994201416 192261 178528 173950 151062 132752 109863 77820 45776
J 151695 142214 137473 127992 123252 113771 94809 90069 75847 61626 42664 J 187683 183106 178528 169373 164795 155640 137329 119019 96130 68665 45776
K 127992 118512 113771 109031 104290 94809 85328 80588 66366 56886 37924 K 151062 146485 141907 137329 137329 128174 119019 105286 82398 59509 41199
L 104290 99550 94809 90069 90069 85328 80588 71107 56886 47405 37924 L 119019 114441 109863 105286 105286 100708 96130 86975 64087 50354 37924
M 80588 80588 80588 75847 75847 75847 71107 71107 47405 42664 33183 M 91553 91553 91553 86975 86975 86975 82398 77820 50354 45776 36621
N 66363 66363 66366 61626 61626 61625 61626 37919 37924 37924 28443 N 73242 73242 73242 68665 68665 68665 68665 68665 37924 37924 36621
Disclaimer: This Diamond Retail Benchmark India (DRB™) is an informational and educational tool for diamond consumers. Organized around the “the 4C’s” - Carat, Cut, Color & Clarity - the DRB India is based on
market data from the diamond trading centers Worldwide and market research assessment of customary retail mark-ups. Endorsed by the All India Gem & Jewelry Trade Federation (GJF), as well as the World Federation
of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) The DRB™ should be used as background information only. Actual diamond sale prices may be differ compared to this benchmark, depending on demand and supply at time of transaction;
source of the diamond certificate; fluorescence; cut specifications; payment and other terms of business; foreign exchange rates; special stones and other business considerations. This is published jointly by The All
India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation (GJF), a trade body headquartered in Mumbai, and IDEX, a diamond research house headquartered in Tel Aviv Israel, with a view of unbiased service to the consumer

8
3 DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011
DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011

THE DIAMOND RETAIL BENCHMARK - INDIA


Diamond Retail Benchmark for Polished Diamonds

Prices are in Rupees Per Carat Powered by www.idexonline.com


IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 590389 396597 356036338009310968 274914 229846 189285 144217 99149 63095 D 767688 528091 484084 469415 440076 410738 337392264046200479 127133 73346
Fancy 4/4 (1.00-1.49)

Fancy 1.50 (1.50-1.99)


E 396597 356036 342516 328996 301955 261394 220833 184778 139710 94643 58588 E 528091484084469415 454745 430297400958332502 259156 195589 122243 73346
F 356036 342516 333502 315475 283928252380 216326 180272 135204 94643 58588 F 484084 469415 454745 430297 410738 386289 317833 249376 185810 117354 68456
G 342516 333502 319982 297448 270407 234353202805 171258 126190 90136 54081 G 469415 454745 430297 415627 386289 352061 298274 239597 180920 112464 63567
H 283928 265901 252380238860216326 198299 175765 162244 121683 85629 54081 H 381399 371620 356951 342281 322722 298274 259156 215148 161361 107574 58677
I 243367 234353 225339 216326 198299 180272 157738 148724 117176 81122 49575 I 327612 317833 312943 298274 283605268935224928 195589 151582 102684 58677
J 207312 198299 189285 180272 171258 157738 139710 126190 99149 68665 49575 J 254266 249376 244487 234707 224928 215148 185810 161361 127133 92905 53787
K 171258 166751 162244 157738 148724 139710 126190 112670 90136 59509 45068 K 220038 215148 210259 200479 190700 185810 166251 141802 112464 83125 53787
L 139710 135204 130697 126190 117176 108163 103656 90136 72109 54081 40561 L 185810 180920 176030 171141 156472 151582 136913 117354 97795 73346 48897
M 121683 117176 112670 108163 103656 94643 90136 85629 63095 49575 40561 M 156472 151582 146692 141802 132023 127133 117354 107574 83125 68456 44008
N 103656 99149 94643 90136 90136 81122 76615 68665 54081 45068 40561 N 127133 122243 117354 112464 107574 102684 97795 97795 68456 63567 40561
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 1146484 833388 768927 699862 653818 529501 386766 290074 225613 133526 82878 D 1313488 954785 880934 801808 749058 606631 443105 332328 258478 152977 94951
Fancy 2.00 (2.00-2.49)

Fancy 2.50 (2.50-2.99)


E 833388 768927 699862 653818 589357 506479 377557 280866 221009 128922 78274 E 954785 880934 801808 749058 675207 580256 432554 321778 253203 147702 89676
F 768927 699862 653818 589357 543314 483457 368348 271657 211800 124318 78274 F 880934 801808 749058 675207 622456 553881 422004 311228 242652 142426 89676
G 681444 635401 589357 543314 520292 437414 354535 257844 202592 119713 73670 G 780708 727957 675207 622456 596081 501130 406179 295403 232102 137151 84401
H 547918 501875 455831 432809 409788 368348 303887 230218 184174 115109 69065 H 627731 574981 522230 495855 469480 422004 348154 263753 211002 131876 79126
I 432809 409788 386766 363744 340722 322305 276261 216405 170361 110504 69065 I 495855 469480 443105 416729 390354 369254 316503 247928 195177 126601 79126
J 331513 317700 303887 290074 271657 257844 230218 174965 138131 101296 64461 J 379804 363979 348154 332328 311228 295403 263753 200452 158252 116051 73851
K 280866 267053 257844 244031 239426 230218 211800 156548 124318 96691 59857 K 321778 305953 295403 279578 274303 263753 242652 179352 142426 110776 68576
L 202592 193383 184174 171141 165757 161152 151944 128922 105900 87483 55252 L 232102 221552 211002 195177 189902 184627 174077 147702 121326 100226 63301
M 165757 156548 147339 142735 138131 138131 128922 115109 96691 82878 50648 M 189902 179352 168802 163527 158252 158252 147702 131876 110776 94951 58026
N 128922 122243 119719 115109 115089 105879 105900 101296 87483 78274 46044 N 147702 137151 137158 131876 131853 121303 121326 116051 100226 89676 52751
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 2053905 1659870 145792811968801024490 733889 502394 403885 344780 182241 103434 D 2070498 1673280 146970612065491032767 739818 506453 407148 347566 183713 104270
Fancy 3.00 (3.00-3.49)

Fancy 3.50 (3.50-3.99)


E 1600765 1472704 1354494 1127924 960459 709262 477767 384184 320153 172390 98509 E 161369814846021365436 1137036 968219 714992 481627 387287 322740 173783 99304
F 1393897 1310165 11968801039266 886578 660008 458065 369407 305377 162539 93583 F 1405158 1320749 12065491047662 893740 665340 461766 372392 307844 163852 94339
G 1231358 1147625 1083595 906279 792994 586126 448214 349706 290600 152688 88658 G 1241306 1156897 1092349 913601 799401 590862 451835 352531 292948 153922 89374
H 1019564 970310 881652 758516 650157 492543 413736 320153 265973 142838 88658 H 1027801 978149 888775 764644 655410 496522 417079 322740 268122 143991 89374
I 778218 733889 694486 635381 522096 433438 359556 285675 241346 132987 83732 I 784505 739818 700097 640514 526314 436940 362461 287983 243296 134061 84409
J 556574 531947 507319 472841 428513 344780 300451 231495 192092 123136 78807 J 561070 536244 511418 476661 431974 347566 302879 233366 193644 124131 79444
K 448214 433438 413736 398960 354631 295526 261048 206868 172390 113285 73881 K 451835 436940 417079 402183 357496 297913 263157 208539 173783 114200 74478
L 325078 310302 295526 270899 256122 211794 192092 167465 142838 103434 64031 L 327705 312809 297913 273087 258192 213505 193644 168818 143991 104270 64548
M 241346 231495 216719 201943 192092 162539 147763 132987 118210 98509 59105 M 243296 233366 218470 203574 193644 163852 148957 134061 119165 99304 59583
N 157614 152688 137912 132987 131853 121303 121326 116051 100226 93583 54180 N 158887 153922 139026 134061 131853 121303 121326 116051 100226 94339 54617
IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3 IF VVS1 VVS2 VS1 VS2 SI1 SI2 SI3 I1 I2 I3
D 285964323077822077004 1836192 1595380 963248 662233 481624 391320 210711 120406 D 4315218 3287785 3020653 2702149 22192551340800 868181 565088 421248 241447 138703
Fancy 4.00 (4.00-4.99)

Fancy 5.00 (5.00-5.99)


E 22425622077004194154716856841479991 928130 637148 456539 366235 200677 115389 E 3231277 3010379 2774069249666220702771294566 842495 534265 395562 231172 128429
F 2026834 1941547 1791039 1545210 1314432 867927 617081 431455 346167 190643 110372 F 2748383 256858224144672208981 1792870 1176411 796261 513716 380150 220898 118155
G 1715786 1555244 14248041359585 1138840 802707 602030 406370 326100 180609 105355 G 225007820548661926437 1746636 1479503 1053119 760300 493168 359602 210624 113018
H 1399720 1319449 1209077 1123789 948197 702368 531793 371252 306032 170575 100338 H 1952123 1798008 1618207 1479503 1274017 914415 657557 446933 339053 200349 107880
I 1028468 983316 928130 862910 807724 612064 466573 326100 265897 160541 95321 I 1330526 1232920 1155862 1053119 965787 719203 554814 395562 313367 190075 97606
J 747521 717419 692335 652199 622098 496675 406370 280947 225761 150508 85288 J 960650 914415 863044 801398 744889 595911 498305 349327 282544 174664 92469
K 591996 561895 536810 516742 481624 386303 346167 265897 205694 135457 80271 K 765438 729477 693517 642146 616460 488031 416110 323641 256858 159252 87332
L 421421 411387 401353 381286 366235 295998 260880 215727 170575 120406 75254 L 539402 513716 488031 472619 462345 369876 308230 277407 226035 143841 82195
M 331117 316066 306032 295998 290981 240812 210711 175592 140474 110372 70237 M 452070 436659 410973 390425 369876 308230 267133 215761 169526 128429 77057
N 240812 220744 220707 210711 210685 185626 160541 135457 110372 100338 65220 N 364739 359602 333916 308230 277407 246584 226035 154115 113018 113018 71920
Disclaimer: This Diamond Retail Benchmark India (DRB™) is an informational and educational tool for diamond consumers. Organized around the “the 4C’s” - Carat, Cut, Color & Clarity - the DRB India is based on
market data from the diamond trading centers Worldwide and market research assessment of customary retail mark-ups. Endorsed by the All India Gem & Jewelry Trade Federation (GJF), as well as the World Federation
of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) The DRB™ should be used as background information only. Actual diamond sale prices may be differ compared to this benchmark, depending on demand and supply at time of transaction;
source of the diamond certificate; fluorescence; cut specifications; payment and other terms of business; foreign exchange rates; special stones and other business considerations. This is published jointly by The All
India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation (GJF), a trade body headquartered in Mumbai, and IDEX, a diamond research house headquartered in Tel Aviv Israel, with a view of unbiased service to the consumer

DR AF T – JANUARY 1st 2011 39


IDEX ONLINE 3GS

Mobile technology may be the next big trend,


but many retailers and business owners
have been slow to meet this new advertising,
marketing and sales stream head on.

40 IDEX MAGAZINE – INDIA RETAIL | NO 02: GOING MOBILE


13 : 42
Tuesday, 11 January

According to a Shop.org survey released last money transfers initiated from mobile phones will
year, while nearly three-quarters of retailers were leap to $630 million by 2014, up from $70 million
exploring mobile strategies as an additional sales last year. “Mobile retail represents both a new way
channel, the number of retailers who had begun to shop and a new payment paradigm,” said the
implementing their mobile technology plan was NRF.
much smaller. The survey revealed that 62 percent
of retailers had either not yet begun or were only While there is a big difference between buying
in the early stages of planning their mobile strategy. an item of jewelry and buying a coffee, those
interested in how to use a mobile phone as a means
The fact that they are planning at all is good of payment should follow the latest development
news, but with technology moving so quickly and from Starbucks.
so rapidly in so many different directions, it is
imperative that businesses take the mobile plunge, The coffee behemoth launched its mobile payment
diamantaires and jewelers among them. “Retailers test via the Starbucks Card Mobile App in fall 2009
who ignore mobile retailing risk being ignored in 16 stores in Seattle and Northern California and
in return by current and future generations of at more than 1,000 Starbucks in U.S. Target stores.
shoppers,” stated a white paper sponsored by the In October 2010, the company expanded its mobile
National Retail Federation (NRF). payment test to nearly 300 company-operated
stores in New York City and Nassau and Suffolk
The “Mobile Retail Initiative” white paper counties on Long Island.
succinctly summed up the importance of this
new sales channel, and went so far as to say it “Mobile technology is part of our customers’
was changing the way retailers conduct business. daily routine and with the expansion of mobile
“Because [mobile phones] are always with us – and payment in our test cities, we’re seeing more and
always on – they connect retailers to current and more customers using their smartphones as their
potential customers regardless of location or time mobile wallets,” said Brady Brewer, vice president
of day,” the report said. Starbucks Card and Loyalty. “We’ve heard from our
customers on My Starbucks Idea that they want
The numbers are worth considering. In 2015, a faster, more convenient way to pay… Mobile is
shoppers are expected to use mobile phones to just one of the ways we continue to innovate and
purchase goods and services worth close to $120 enhance the experience for our customers.”
billion, which is in the region of 8 percent of
the total e-commerce market. The white paper To pay for their beverages using their smartphones,
estimated that payment for goods and services and customers must first download the free Starbucks

IDEX MAGAZINE – INDIA RETAIL | NO 02: GOING MOBILE 41


IDEX ONLINE 3GS Going Mobile

Going Mobile
Card Mobile App onto their supported BlackBerry now accept Chip and PIN payments on their mobile
smartphone, iPhone or iPod touch. This gives them phone, without the hassle of checks or cash. Provided
a barcode on their screen that they hold in front of they have a mobile signal or Wi-Fi connection, a
a scanner on the counter to pay for their purchase, smartphone, and the special Chip and PIN pad, card
which is pretty nifty. payments can be taken anywhere, anytime.” If it’s
successful, who knows where it will end. Ultimately,
In addition to the mobile payment feature, the it could spell the end of credit and debit cards, as
app allows customers to manage their card well as the hassle of carrying cash.
account, reload their card balance directly from
their smartphone with a major credit card, check Those who are hesitant to embark on a full mobile
their My Starbucks Rewards status or find nearby marketing campaign should at the very least embrace
Starbucks stores. social networking, a strategy that has been written
about many times in these pages. While setting up
“With the expansion of mobile payment to a Facebook page or launching a Twitter account is
New York City, we expect to see more and more not going to revolutionize a company’s business,
customers trading their plastic Starbucks Cards for with young consumers spending more and more
the digital version on their mobile phone,” said time on these sites, it provides important exposure.
Brewer. “Expanding our mobile footprint gives our “Social networks are the fastest growing engagement
customers a new way to connect with Starbucks on point between brands and customers and will grow
the go and transforms the way customers experience more quickly than any other form of interactive
their Starbucks Card through the mobile app.” marketing,” NRF estimated in its white paper. “A
social media strategy and a mobile strategy will be at
In the UK, the smartphone as payment device is the forefront of a successful retail market strategy in
being taken even further. CreditCall, a specialist years to come,” it continued.
payment services provider and transaction gateway
with global recognition for innovation in credit Estimates of the number of active users of mobile
card acceptance, has embarked on a “Smartphone social networking sites, according to the NRF, is
Payment Acceptance Trial” that allows companies expected to rise from 55 million in 2010 to nearly
to accept Chip and PIN credit and debit card 730 million in 2013. “With people now spending
payments with their smartphone. more time on Facebook than Google, social media
optimization strategies have become the new
According to a press release from CreditCall, black,” said a recent report from L2, an NYU Stern
“Businesses operating outside the ‘normal’ retail organization driving digital innovation. Clearly, if
environment who need to accept payments on you are not online and actively engaging current and
the go, such as trades people, mobile retailers, potential consumers, you are missing out on a large
beauticians, delivery services and exhibitors, can and vibrant audience.

42 IDEX MAGAZINE – INDIA RETAIL | NO 02: GOING MOBILE


13 : 58
Tuesday, 11 January

Prioritize what things you want


to accomplish, because you can’t

3
get them all done. For example,
if you want to sell, make sure
you are tracking conversion rates.
Make the experience Alternatively, if you are optimizing the
frictionless – minimize the in-store experience, focus on making

2
clicks, give them a buy product information easily accessible.
button and make checkout
simple. Keeping it simple,
easy, and fast will improve
bout e
conversions.
n k a
thi t th
e g in to tegy? A s Consider all
u b t ra w a
n yo keting s , which ith
platforms. You might

how
c a
mar
So, mobile Boot Ca sion dea NRF’s
mp lt w 4 miss out on most
of your customers
Customers are
o u r b i le s e s t h e Ma rci if you focus only on
y o e n
expecting a rich ’s M year, on Listed o itemini’s
1 R F delivering to high-end
experience, so N l ast e ct. from S nelists
ld b j n d devices.
retailers need to he hat su n tips e rt pa igby, a on
t t v e x p
jus are se ee s, D ted
d th tbiscuit get star og.
figure out how to
l o g a n
b n e ://bl
deliver.
tma al, N dees
Trou Wet Se lp atten See http 34e86fr
( /
from bi to he ourney. url.com ).
m o j n y s t
Zu mobile tp://ti full po
ir h t th e Know where your
the m/ or t o
o nk customers are going
nrf.c direct li on your site and make
for a
5
Don’t check it easy. Whether it’s
“mobile strategy” a store locator or
off your list and a specific category

7 walk away. Never


stop working to
of items, help your
customers get there
make it more Know your customers. quickly.
effective. Wet Seal knew that

6 their customers were


fashion focused, and so
focused on imagery and
featuring products.

IDEX MAGAZINE – INDIA RETAIL | NO 02: GOING MOBILE 43


Global Polished
Diamond Prices

Prices Up in November
By Ken Gassman

W
orldwide polished When consumers feel wealthy, While the economic recovery has
diamond prices they increase their discretionary been slow, the economy is clearly
rose significantly in spending. improving. As a result, consumers
November, according to the IDEX appear to have breathed a sigh of
Online Global Polished Price Index. • U.S. consumers began their relief and loosened their purse
At the beginning of the month, the holiday shopping earlier in 2010. strings.
IDEX Online Index stood at 117.1.
By the end of the month, it had
reached 118.5, a rise of 1.2 percent. Graph 1
This would equate to an annualized IDEX Online Global Diamond Price Index
14 percent price increase.
Peak 118.5
119
Several factors drove higher prices,
118.5 Peak 118.5
including the following:
118

• October jewelry sales in the U.S. 117.5

showed a solid recovery from 117

lackluster demand in the late 116.5

summer period. An improving 116


5 10 15 20 25 30 5 10 15 20 25 30 5 10 15 20 25 30
stock market and a bottoming real
September 2010 October 2010 November 2010
estate market were responsible for
Source: IDEX Online Research
a rising consumer wealth factor.

44 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: POLISHED


However, it is clear that we are
Graph 2
still in the recovery phase of the
IDEX Online Polished Diamond Price Index current economic cycle. As a
24 Months
November 2010 = 117.8 result, demand will be choppy for
Peak August 2008 = 128.9
the next several months. Thus, we
could see short-term swings in
demand that might obscure the
long-term potential for higher
Average April–November 2009
108+ diamond prices.

Graph 2 illustrates that diamond


D J F M A M J J A S O N D J F M A M J J A S 0 N prices are recovering, even though
2008 2009 2010 there may be daily or weekly swings
Source: IDEX Online Research By Month that are unfavorable. ■

• The holidays in the Indian market as this three-month daily price


are over, and traders were buying summary shows.
The IDEX Online
goods.
Diamond Price Index
Outlook More Rosy The IDEX Online Diamond Price
• The overall mood has improved in Last month, IDEX Online Research Index is a real-time index derived
the diamond industry throughout was bearish on diamond prices, from actual asking prices in the global
the entire distribution pipeline. especially after weak September diamond industry. The IDEX Online
Emboldened diamantaires have jewelry sales in the U.S. market. Diamond Price Index objectively
begun to raise polished diamond reflects price trends as they happen.
The Diamond Index and Diamond
prices. It now appears that consumers were
Drivers were formulated following
in the malls, and that holiday selling
comprehensive research and analysis
The IDEX Online Global Polished season sales will be up – though of the IDEX inventory database,
Price Index averaged 117.9 for the modestly – from 2009. Further, early aggregated since 2001. Research
month of November, barely up from indicators suggest that jewelry was and development were conducted
an average of 117.8 for October. on consumers’ shopping lists. in cooperation with Dr. Avi Wohl,
However, the “average” obscured senior lecturer of Finance at the
daily trends, as graph 1 illustrates. Capitalism sets prices based on Faculty of Management, Tel Aviv
University, Israel.
The IDEX Online Index reached supply and demand. Now that
118.5 in early September (peak at demand for jewelry – and perhaps
Further information is available
left on graph 1), then fell for the diamond jewelry – is strengthening, from IDEX Online Research, contact
balance of September and October, diamond prices will likely trend research@idexonline.com
and began rising in early November, higher.

The full analysis of the polished diamond prices


is available to IDEX Online Research subscribers
and IDEX Online members.

For more information on how to subscribe or to become a


member, contact research@idexonline.com

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: POLISHED 45


U.S. Market
Window
Third Quarter U.S. Jewelry Sales
Trends Positive
U.S. jewelry sales trends for the third quarter of 2010 The following trends were reported by a majority of
were encouraging. Total jewelry sales rose, and specialty jewelers in the third quarter:
jewelers, whose sales represent just under half of all U.S.
jewelry sales, posted revenue and profit gains. • Jewelry sales trends by month were mixed. Sales
were relatively strong in July, but weakened
The table below summarizes quarterly jewelry sales trends in August and September. In October, sales
in the U.S. market for both the calendar third quarter and strengthened significantly, as the table below
the fiscal third quarter, since some companies are on a illustrates.
fiscal third quarter ending on the last day of October.
• The average jewelry ticket was up, generally in the
U.S. Jewelry Sales Trends mid-to-high single digit range.
Third Quarter 2010 vs Third Quarter 2009
Percent Change Year-to-Year
• Most specialty jewelers reported an increase in
Third Total Sales Total Total Total Sales
Quarter Jewelry & Sales Sales Specialty customer traffic.
Watches Jewelry Watches Jewelers

• The number of transactions rose, though it was


Calendar 8 +6.6% +4.3% +3.0%
inconsistent. This is good news, since it means that
Fiscal 81 +6.3% +3.8% +3.0%
jewelers’ conversion ratio – browsers to buyers – is
Calendar third quarter = July, August, September
increasing.
Fiscal third quarter = August, September, October

Source: Department of Commerce • Unit sales were up for most specialty jewelers.

U.S. Jewelry Sales Trends • Sales growth was the greatest for big-ticket statement
Monthly Sales 2010 vs 2009 jewelry.
Percent Change Year-to-Year
• Demand for designer name jewelry was strong.
Total Sales Jewelry Total Sales
Month Demand for one-of-a-kind jewelry was solid.
& Watches Specialty Jewelers

July +8.0% +7.6%


• Bridal demand was particularly strong.
August +5.9% +2.9%

September +5.1% (1.3%) • Proprietary branded jewelry sold well.


October +7.0% +7.3%
• Pandora demand continues to be exceptionally
Source: Department of Commerce
strong.

46 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: U.S. MARKET WINDOW


• Jewelers’ credit sales mix rose marginally. This is a Outlook Improves
hopeful sign, since lack of consumer credit has hurt Most of the publicly held companies reported a
jewelers’ sales. brightened outlook.
• Sales per store continue to rise. This helps to absorb • Management of publicly held companies guided Wall
relatively fixed overhead costs more efficiently. Street analysts toward higher sales and profits than
previous forecasts, especially for the fourth quarter
• Jewelers who sell warranty and insurance plans for of 2010.
jewelry say that this business has been strong.
• Many jewelers are stepping up their new store
• Most jewelers reported an increase in their gross openings in 2011 and beyond. Real estate is cheap
margins, though greater sales of higher ticket goods and available.
– with an inherently lower margin – had a negative
impact on their margins. • Several jewelers mentioned that they will increase new
proprietary product introductions 2011.
• New product introductions seem to be well received.
Preliminary results for the all-important holiday selling
• Sales of colored diamonds and leather accessories season of November-December suggest that jewelry
were solid. sales will be stronger than expected.

• Watch sales seem to have improved notably. The The following table summarizes sales performance for the
LGI Network Watch Tracker service reported that major publicly held specialty jewelers for their U.S. stores.
lower-priced (under $500) fine watch sales and very All specialty jewelers on the table above gained market
high-end fine watch sales (over $1,500) were stronger share in the third quarter except Zale (stores), Movado,
than watches priced in the mid-range of $500 to Sterling’s regional brands, and Tiffany’s New York
$1,500. Flagship store. ■

Third Quarter 2010 Sales Trends


Approx. Total Stores $ Millions Total Sales % Chg Y/Y Total Sales % Chg Y/Y Total Sales
High-End Jewelers Inflation Index Same-Store
Harry Winston US 8 $80.2 75.6% Sales
Tiffany US * 81 $298.6 9.0% 5.0%
New York Flagship 1 n/a (3.0%) n/a
US Branches 80 n/a n/a 8.0%
Online/Catalog n/a n/a 7.0% n/a
Jared (Sterling) *** 180 $164.4 16.9% 14.3%
Mayors US ** 29 $24.0 n/a 2.0%
Mass-Market Jewelers
Sterling (All brands) 1,342 $497.0 8.8% 9.7%
Kay *** 915 $276.3 7.4% 8.6%
Regionals *** 250 $56.3 (5.0%) 2.6%
Zale (All brands) 1,891 $327.0 (0.7%) (1.1%)
Stores **** 1,218 $277.7 (1.8%) n/a
Movado 33 $12.8 3.1% n/a
Popular-Priced Jewelers
Zale Kiosks ***** 673 $46.4 6.2% n/a
Notes:
* Tiffany's sales for the Americas (Canada, US, Mexico, Central & South America) were $331.8 million.
U.S. sales were an estimated 90% of reported Americas sales.
** Mayors US sales estimated; same-store sales are for six-month period ended September.
*** Sterling's store counts are estimates, but are within 5 stores of the actual number.
**** Zale stores include Zale's, Zale's Outlet, Gordons, Peoples, & Mappins.
***** Zale kiosks include Piercing Pagoda, Plumb Gold, and Silver & Gold Connections.
Source: Company Reports

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: U.S. MARKET WINDOW 47


ADVERTORIAL

Clarity
Treatments
M
ost diamonds found in nature have some A variation on laser drilling is
“birthmarks” or inclusions that influence called internal laser drilling
their value or grade. Cutters can remove (ILD), a technique that
some of the clarity characteristics so they uses a laser to expand an
don’t detract from appearance or durability with innovative existing cleavage or create
cutting process, but some require more than that. The a new cleavage between an
early 1970s brought many advances in diamond clarity inclusion and the surface.
treatments. This allows the introduction
of a bleaching solution, which
People have experimented with many ways to change and results in the lightening of a dark
modify diamond’s appearance. inclusion, making it less visible.

LASER DRILLING The cleavage created by this procedure is more natural-


Diamond manufacturers have used lasers to drill tiny tunnels looking than a traditional laser drill-hole. When you examine
– thinner than a human hair — into diamonds to remove a diamond treated with ILD under the microscope, you see
or reduce dark inclusions since the early 1970s. The laser a step-like series of tiny cleavages. These wormhole-like
drill-hole makes it possible to vaporize the inclusion with channels are definite signs of ILD treatment.
laser, bleach it, or etch it out with acid. This lightens a dark
inclusion and can make the diamond more marketable. There’s industry wide agreement that laser-drilled diamonds
should be clearly disclosed all the way from wholesaler to
In spite of the fact that it disguises an existing inclusion, consumer.
laser drilling often doesn’t improve the clarity grade. In fact,
the drill-hole itself becomes a clarity characteristic. FRACTURE FILLING
The first fracture filling treatment for diamonds was
DETECTION introduced in 1980s and many manufacturers of filling
You can detect a laser drill-hole with careful examination materials have emerged since. The exact composition of
under 10X magnification, although higher magnification is filler varies from manufacturer to manufacture, but they
sometimes necessary. A laser drill-hole can be very difficult are primarily molten glass.
to detect if it is very small, short or covered under
the prong during setting. The refractive index (RI) of diamond makes light behave
in a predictable way. When a diamond has a fracture that
Once drilled, the hole is a reaches the surface, the air in the fracture (with its lower
permanent characteristic of RI) interrupts light’s path through the diamond and makes
the diamond, so all major gem the fracture reflective and easier to see.
labs, like the GIA Laboratory,
will grade laser-drilled stones. The filling has an RI closer to diamond than the air it replaces,
They report the drill-hole as a so it makes the filled fracture almost invisible to the casual
clarity characteristic. observer.

48 Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: GIA


ADVERTORIAL
If a fracture doesn’t reach the surface, The most obvious evidence of fracture filling is called the
a laser drill-hole provides a route flash effect, which is a flash of changing colour that shows
for the filling. up with proper lighting under magnification. The flash
effect results because glass fillers don’t precisely match
Fracture filling has become diamond’s RI for all wavelengths of light.
a fact of life in the diamond
industry — many more diamonds To see it, you must look parallel to the fracture and rock
are subjected to this treatment the diamond back and forth. The colour of the flash will
than to irradiation, coating, heat, change as the stone is shifted and the background moves
or pressure. from dark to a light.

Diamonds that once were considered unsuitable for gem Other signs of fracture filling include gas bubbles trapped
use can be treated and made attractive and affordable to in the fracture or in the filler itself. The injected filler can
a wider range of consumers. also have a crackled texture. When you see these features
under magnification, it’s obvious that they’re not part of
Diamonds as small as melee have been filled, but because the diamond’s original internal structure.
of the cost of the treatment, most filled diamonds
weigh more than one carat. The marketability Always make sure you examine the diamond from
of larger stones takes a higher leap with an many different angles. Fibre-optic illumination
apparent clarity improvement. makes the flash effect more evident.

Fracture filling has its advantages — it Because fracture fillings can be semi-permanent,
makes a diamond look better — but it also most gemmological laboratories, including the
has some disadvantages. For one thing, the GIA Laboratory, don’t grade filled diamonds.
filler sometimes lowers a diamond’s colour (They do, however, report the presence of fracture
slightly. filling.) Its only function is to make a diamond more
marketable by disguising its inclusions.
Fracture filling can last for years with proper care, but
it’s important to know that the fillers can sometimes be If you’re ever unsure about the presence of fracture filling
damaged by common jewellery repair procedures, such in a diamond, send it to a gemmological laboratory for
as the high temperatures created during recutting or identification.
repolishing and the torch heat generated during retipping
or repair. To be absolutely sure –
Over time, repeated cleaning can also harm fillers, especially
take it to the GIA India
when the method involves steam, acid, or ultrasonics. Laboratory
Prolonged exposure to UV radiation — even sunlight — Like all GIA laboratories worldwide, GIA India tests every
can discolour filler and make it look cloudy over time. diamond it grades for laser drilling, fracture filling, irradiation,
high pressure/high temperature (HPHT) and chemical
It’s possible to replace the filler if it melts and leaks out, vapour deposition (CVD) to detect known treatments and
but if it turns dark, there’s no way to make it colourless to separate natural diamonds from synthetics. Grading reports
again. The only solution is to remove it and replace it with are not issued for diamonds that have undergone unstable
new material. treatments such as coating or fracture filling. And, while
grading reports may be issued for diamonds that have been
Many major manufacturers of fracture fillings offer lifetime laser drilled, irradiated or HPHT processed, these treatments
guarantees on their treatments for just this reason. are prominently disclosed on a GIA Report.

DETECTION Want to learn more?


The ability to identify filled diamonds is always essential, About GIA Lab Services, email us at lab.giaindia@gia.edu and for
especially if you have to take jewellery in for repair and GIA India’s training programmes email us at education.giaindia@
cleaning procedures that can damage a treated stone. gia.edu. You can also visit GIA India at www.giaindia.in.

Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: GIA 49


Focus
Bailey Banks & Biddle

Re-inventing The Shopping


Experience For Jewellery Consumers
Combining bricks-and-mortar with the internet helps firm rise from ashes

T
his is a story of how success was crafted Bailey Banks & Biddle was part of a larger company
from failure. The story of a once successful named Finlay, that operated a larger number (between
company that stumbled and went under 500 and 700 outlets) of leased jewelry departments in US
financially and how the vision and determination of a Departments stores such as Macy’s and Bloomingdales.
group of managers enabled a small but viable part of And though Finlay was a successful company, things
the company to rise phoenix-like from the ashes of went wrong financially. Basically, their expenses
the first failure. It is also the story of re-invention and exceeded their gross margin dollars and the result
how the internet can be used to give the consumer a was a financial failure.
previously unimaginable range of choices and options
and deliver a custom solution with economy of scale As the post-failure process got under way, with
that bulk manufacture offers. assets being disposed of to try and recover as much

BBB’s varied product offering

50 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: FOCUS


bridge the gap between online and in-
store shopping.

The centerpiece of the new Bailey Banks


and Biddle is “Bailey’s Design Studio,”
which puts the customer in charge, whether
online or in-store.  Customers can select
a favourite mounting from hundreds of
high quality design samples. Then, if in-
store, they can settle into a comfortable
leather chair and surf the Bailey Banks and
Biddle website for a diamond (over 25,000
are available via IDEX’s virtual inventory
and online purchasing tools specially
customized for BBB’s requirements) on
one of several 55-inch flat-screen monitors. 
The external website will be launched this
spring, so customers will then be able to
BBB’s varied product offering purchase from home.  This hybrid online/
in-store experience was inspired by the
of its debt as possible, a group of BBB employees unique interactive experience Apple, the creator of the
concluded that a core part of the company was Mac computer, the iPod, iPhone and iPad as well as the
essentially healthy and could definitely be turned on-line iTunes music store, evolved to attract customers
around and that they had the necessary expertise and deliver value.  The new Bailey Banks and Biddle
to do so. They believed that the brand itself has tagline is “Online Pricing…In-Store Service”.
a tremendous amount of consumer awareness, as
well as a storied history dating back to 1832.  In The current management team includes  a number
addition, current CEO and president Paul Leonard of key executives who were part of the successful
had previously led the successful consolidation, turnaround in the 1990s, in addition to store managers
repositioning, and turnaround of Bailey Banks and from recent years.  The knowledge base of the group
Biddle in the mid 1990’s as its then parent company, was instrumental in determining the group’s strategy to
Zale Corp., emerged from bankruptcy. reinvent the company.  Since the company had ceased
operating at the end of 2009, with the closing of all
Market data also indicated that the time was ripe for a stores, the new Bailey Banks and Biddle is really a
fundamental change in the whole jewellery shopping start-up rather than a turn-around.  However, the group
experience for consumers. A completely new approach was able to acquire rights to the brand and negotiate
to how jewellery was retailed was called for. US favourable leases for five former BBB stores.  The stores
customers are generally dissatisfied with the overall are located in Austin, Dallas, Houston, St. Louis and
shopping experience and the value of offerings in Philadelphia.
traditional jewellery stores.  Saddled with the highest
cost structures in retail, traditional brick-and-mortar As a virtual start-up, the new company was a clean
jewellery stores have lost sales to online jewelry retailers slate and the management team clearly recognized the
at twice the rate of the total retail industry. The new need to reinvent BBB in order to be successful. They
management team evolved a strategy that recognizes evolved an innovative economic model that significantly
and embraces the change in consumer attitudes and reduces inventory costs with design samples consisting
behaviour by becoming the first jewelry retailer to of silver and cubic zirconia, which serves as a “virtual

IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: FOCUS 51


One of the key changes that the
new team made was to combine the
traditional sourcing and stocking model
with a cutting-edge digital one. As with
most other brick-and-mortar jewellery
stores, the current BBB uses traditional
channels for “live” merchandise.  But by
combining it with online sourcing the
new company can provide the consumer
access to a much larger inventory of
diamonds. The new BBB uses the
IDEX online Guaranteed Diamond
TransactionsTM virtual inventory
and purchasing system to provide
its customers with the widest choice
possible with prices that are competitive
compared to the online-only players.
BBB’s varied product offering

The biggest advantage to the online


inventory.”  In addition, Bailey’s Design Studio’s offers model, is the ability to reach a much wider audience
more than 25,000 diamonds from around the world without the expense of a large number of stores and
at prices below those at traditional jewellery retailers. a large inventory. The new company plans to grow
The value-oriented emphasis of the new BBB business to about 50 stores within five years, which will once
model has the potential to appeal to a much broader again give it a national footprint in brick-and-mortar
base, especially the increasingly price-conscious affluent terms. However, the company believes that the customer
customer and younger tech-savvy customers who have will increasingly research online, even if they decide
gravitated to online jewellery offerings.  In addition, the to make their purchase in a store, and the fact that it
new BBB carries a wide assortment of finished jewellery.  will have a store in most cities, the management team
Consistent with its heritage, all merchandise is made believes, will give it a competitive advantage compared
with the finest diamonds, gemstones, and precious to online-only retailers. The fact that the company is
metals. pricing solitaires competitively with online retailers
gives it a competitive advantage against traditional
But the turnaround didn’t go like clockwork and it jewellery stores.
wasn’t all smooth sailing for the new management team.
Basically, as with all start-ups, nothing was in place at Assessing its prospects for the future, the new Bailey
the beginning. The new managers secured an office Banks & Biddle believes that its opportunity lies
building and furnished it, including the installation with being the first jewellery retailer to embrace the
of a vault. They had to establish relationships with hybrid online/in-store model. It realises, however,
banks, utilities, phone-, and cable companies. And that this alone will not be enough to carry it forward
while the core group of eight executives was in place successfully. The challenge will be learning how to
at the outset in May, the group had to hire a central compete successfully against established retailers in each
organization and selling staff for the five stores. In channel simultaneously. The new company is confident
addition, they negotiated with landlords for many that it will meet the challenge and looks forward to
of the closed BBB stores before selecting five and a future where it is the master of a completely new
remodelling them to incorporate the new Bailey’s and memorable shopping experience for the jewellery
Design Studio. consumer of tomorrow. ■

52 IDEX Magazine – India Retail | NO 02: FOCUS

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