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FASHION
In 1988, when Poonam Soni started with her own line of branded hi-fashion jewellery in Mumbai, many were surprised. She was going against the time-tested tradition of trust Indians have reposed on family jewellers and goldsmiths and seeking to make a name for herself. In a couple of years, she created a niche within the very personalised and exclusive segment in the jewellery business. Watching her, many others (including her daughter) stepped in. And now it is the turn of the city’s celebrity to create another revolution of sorts with their own signature styles and add glamour to the glittering industry. Names like Neelam Kothari, Queenie Dhody and Saba Ali Khan are already hot brands, thanks to their linkages with Bollywood. The latest to pitch in is Farah Khan, actor-filmmaker Sanjay Khan’s daughter, who has tied up with a well-known jewellery chain to showcase her designs. "The opportunity to retail from their store marks a fine combination of marketing strategy and creativity," declares the designer, a qualified gemologist from the Gemogical Institute of America. With a decade of experience behind her, she believes that the trend for personalised jewellery will catch on in a big away. "People have become increasingly discerning and are moving away from locker-bound jewellery," observes yesterday actress Sharmila Tagore’s daughter, Saba Ali. "What matters to them now is the design aspect and exclusivity." Clearly, these designers are capitalising on an attitudinal change in their clients who, unlike the earlier generation, do not purchase gold ornaments as another mode of investment. For these buyers, jewellery has to be with the times and part of everyday wear rather then to be tucked away in some bank locker. Secondly, the association of a celebrity tag to the jewellery increases its snob value in much the same way, traditional jewellers use film actresses as brand ambassadors to promote their products. But then, as Saba Ali points out, star power does not always translate into sales as the general presumption is that the pieces would be prohibitive. Neelam, the Bollywood actress who joined her family jewellery business and opened her signature showroom Neelam Jewels, endorses this view. She points out that she had to apprentice with her father (who has been selling American brands like Fred Leighton and Cellini) for 10 years and like any goldsmith worked on building a loyal and trusting clientele. "The celeb tag might work to a certain extent, but it largely depends upon your credibility," opines former Miss India (Queenie Dhody, who has held exhibition of her creations in Delhi, Mumbai, Dubai and New York. "Buying jewellery is more of a commitment than buying designer clothes." Where does this leave the traditional jewellers? Significantly, most of them have come to terms with the fact that customers are looking for innovations and freshness in design concepts, distinct from run-of-the-mill patterns they have been hawking on the pretext that old is actually gold. They also realise that a major handicap
is their inability to adopt or adapt according to changing fashion
trends. That is where individual designers come in and the fact they
hold a celebrity tag. they are quick to exploit the aspirational levels
and higher spending capacity of a target clientele. (MF) This feature was published on August 21, 2004 |
