Jewellery business to recover slowly this year, says Titan

BENGALURU: Titan expects its jewellery business to have a muted recovery this year, unlike a V-shaped one last year, mainly due to the more devastating impact of the pandemic, which spread to the rural areas and resulted in more loss of lives.
Jewellery, sold under the brand Tanishq, is the biggest business for the company, contributing about 80% to the annual topline.However, demand is expected to pick up in the second half of the year, with the onset of the festive season. “From what we gather looking into other FMCG and white good companies, not specifically jewellery, the recovery this time will not be a V-shaped one,” said Ajoy Chawla, CEO of the jewellery division.
The recovery was rapid last year after a near twomonth lockdown, due to pent up demand, which saw sequential rise in revenue, with the company eventually crossing over to the growth phase from a recovery phase in the third quarter on the back of strong festive season sales.
272 out of the 350 stores have reopened till date, with more expected to in the coming weeks as states loosen restrictions. But product launches, which were planned during Akshay Tritiya, have been pushed back to July. The first quarter is expected to be a washout as nearly all stores were shut from the end of April till May. Some markets, Chawla said, have now been open for three weeks. "...we have seen some green shoots in Gujarat, Punjab and Haryana, Mumbai has been wobbly, Madhya Pradesh has been tepid while Tamil Nadu is still shut,” he said.