Gili, the diamond jewellery brand of Gitanjali group, is betting on high-value jewellery to help it evolve into a “more mature” brand from its current positioning as an affordable brand for working women and teenagers.
“As our brand equity has been growing over the years since launch in 1994, we want to be seen as a mature brand,” says Mr Mehul Choksi, Chairman, Gitanjali group.
Gili now wants to reach older buyers and cater beyond work-wear to occasions such as weddings and festivals with more expensive jewellery.
Gili is better known for its affordable jewellery for working women (the ‘9 to 5’ range) and teenagers at an average unit price of Rs 15,000. For the last two years it has been offering high-value products — at an average unit price of Rs 50,000 — for festival and wedding wear.
Today, the share of high-value jewellery is over 50 per cent, says Mr Choksi. Gili is consolidating itself into two brands — a main brand catering to the high-end segment and a sub-brand for teens in the affordable segment.
Apart from jewellery, Gili is considering launching products such as eyewear, perfumes and scarves under the ‘Gili Lifestyle’ label.
It currently sells diamond jewellery in 18K gold, and is now looking to sell 22K plain gold jewellery under the ‘Gili Gold’ label.
The company’s retail network is spread across 175 departmental stores and 20 exclusive outlets in 30 cities. In two years, it hopes to have 500 selling points and cover 50 tier II and III towns.
Present in Singapore and Dubai currently, it wants to set up shop-in-shops in Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, America and London.
It envisages Rs 50 crore investment for its plans.
The Rs 325-crore brand is eyeing a turnover of Rs 500 crore this year. By 2012, it hopes to become a Rs 1,000-crore brand.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
