Titan saw its diamond jewellery business grow nearly in line with its gold jewellery segment in the June quarter, unlike the pattern seen in recent quarters, CFO Ashok Sonthalia said.
In an interview with NDTV Profit, Sonthalia said gold jewellery and diamond jewellery both grew in the range of 34-35% during the quarter, a rare instance of parity between the two categories.
"This was the quarter where gold jewellery and diamond jewellery almost grew in tandem, you know, 34, 35%," he said, noting that in previous quarters, studded jewellery growth had consistently trailed gold jewellery even when it was expanding.
He attributed the shift to strong acceptance of lower-carat diamond jewellery, particularly in the 14-carat and 18-carat range, which he said was becoming "a sizable part" of overall jewellery sales and lifting margins in the process.
Sonthalia said buyer growth in studded jewellery had been "pretty encouraging," aided by new product launches at accessible price points across Titan's portfolio.
However, Sonthalia said the shift was more visible on a quarter-on-quarter basis, adding that the overall product mix remained largely unchanged from a year ago. He expects the trend to continue in the second quarter, which coincides with Titan's annual Festival of Diamonds.
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"We find customers are kind of liking that very much and coming and buying it," he said, adding that the combination of factors painted "a very attractive or encouraging picture for coming quarters."
Speaking about the company's June-quarter performance, Sonthalia said jewellery margins beat expectations, helped by an inventory gain of around 230 basis points linked to the customs duty cut. He added that the benefit is expected to be sustained.
A smaller mark-to-market gain of 75-80 basis points tied to inventory valuation is expected to unwind over the following two quarters, he said.
Sonthalia's remarks on the diamond segment come at a time when Titan has also been navigating a modest shift in consumer behaviour following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's public appeal in May urging restraint in gold purchases, with the company reporting only a marginal uptick in gold-exchange transactions, which now form 45-50% of jewellery sales.
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