As ecommerce in Asia is growing by leaps and bounds we have asked Yusuf Motiwala, CEO of recently launched jewellery retail site Zevarr about the ins and outs selling jewellery online in India.
“Jewellery Ecommerce is in its very early stages in India, where consumers have only recently opened up to the concept of buying jewellery online. A jewellery purchase traditionally contains the involvement of spouses, family and friends in a physical store of a family jeweller. But the phenomenal growth of the Indian economy and the westernization of the Indian consumer are transforming the jewellery buying process. Buying jewellery is increasingly an individual decision. You may call her nascent, but Indian jewellery ecommerce is a gem waiting to be polished..”
“Certification and hallmarking standardization have reduced the trust issues many people faced during the early years. People have now started buying products of small ticket sizes, which we predict will slowly increase with time and confidence. Right now companies are mainly concentrating on offering online standard products like Engagement rings, Solitaire Rings and Pendants”.
“The industry is alight with sophisticated innovation and the customer is at the middle of it all. I am seeing some pretty cool concepts doing the rounds. Companies in India are starting off with low ticket items and providing customized value added services like free engraving, shipping etc. to penetrate this dynamic market. Discounted pricing and options like 'Free Try at Home' service are being implemented by some brands as well.”
“Second tier cities are fueling e-commerce in India, and incidentally it is these cities that are showing tremendous engagements on Facebook, too. It was a no-brainer for us to decide to use FB as a prime source of news, updates, contests and exclusive content to be consumed by our fans.”
“E-commerce in Jewellery is way more complicated than just pricing. If you look at the Indian customer you have cauldron of expectations with price lingering somewhere at the bottom. As 98% of the jewellery industry is unorganized, there have been many issues in the industry, like low product quality, limited design and inventory, bad customer service, bad packaging and even fraud. Jewellery ecommerce is trying to bring standardization to this industry. Consumers don't only get discounted prices when buying online due to its low operating cost business model, but they also get access to huge inventories, high quality products, premium customer services, certified and hallmarked products and latest designs.”
“Still the main challenge will be to sell high ticket items, which are above Rs. 1,00,000 [USD1, 900] and penetrate into the bridal section. We have taken up this challenge and offer diamond rings up to Rs. 8,00,000 [USD 16,000] on our site. The secret sauce to selling high ticket is premium customer service and trust. We are not afraid to let this out, as delivering premium customer service is easier said than done. If you can pull it off, the high ticket sales will follow. Also, as most of the customers still prefer to have a touch and feel of products before making a purchase, we are planning pop-up shops and kiosks for 2013 that complement our online offers.”
“Zevarr’s strategy is focused on bringing our consumers an excellent experience online including an outstanding product catalogue, smart user interfaces, efficient customer service and packaging. For instance we even offer customers the possibility to communicate via Blackberry messengers.”
