Post-Covid DESIGNING becomes a ‘force majeure' in the jewellery sector
The Retail Jeweller|July - August 2020
The times are changing and so are jewellery designs. Trying to worm its way out of the devastation that Covid-19 has impaled on us, the design sector is adapting like never before. The Retail Jeweller looks through the closed chapters and the booming way ahead.
Post-Covid DESIGNING becomes a ‘force majeure' in the jewellery sector

Jewellery is a luxury buy, but a secure investment too. With fluctuating markets and a drop in customer interests, thanks to the pandemic, the sector is looking at its lowest ebb. What was previously appreciated for grandiosity is now a matter of ‘too much’. In such a time, jewellery designs also need to change with the capricious minds of buyers and become more sustainable and nature friendly. Designers across the country are working towards more functional and multi-use designs to keep up the morale, for both customers and retailers.

For it to really play its role, designers are working hard to understand the consumers’ attitudes and perspective towards buying jewellery post-Covid. It’s precarious. With low capital flow, no physical exhibition and shows to get feedback, and all-virtual modes, more work and time need to be put into understanding the customer, the market and its variations. “New habits, new essentials, new thoughts, the new normal and new events, all lead to a new place for design and innovation play. Some people are looking towards science, and some inwards --- towards the science of the soul,” says Pallavi Dudeja Foley, founder of Pallavi Foley Boutique Jewels.

DESIGN INSIGHTS

Take De Beers, for instance. They conducted a survey for an in-depth look into their diamond-buying strength. What they found: With buying capacity slashed to a borderline, most people are now looking to go for fewer, but better things. More people are looking for stones that are one-of-a-kind. Increased time in confinement has also made people appreciate the forces of nature, so sustainable and organic designs that can stand the test of time are the order of the day.

This story is from the July - August 2020 edition of The Retail Jeweller.

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This story is from the July - August 2020 edition of The Retail Jeweller.

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