Akshaya Tritiya under Covid-19 lockdown
Ishu Datwani, Founder, Anmol said, “The response has been lukewarm as can be expected during this time of uncertainty.” He was not noticing vibrant & also said, “Not fair to compare with previous year because the time we are in is unprecedented.” Well it is true that the 2020 Akshay Tritiya is amid Covid-19 lockdown!
Snehal Choksey, Director, Shobha Shringar Jewellers also said, “Well our regular customers reached out to us for booking gold so we have done their bookings on call and online. As stores are shut and overall sentiment is gloomy! We are not counting this Akshay Tritiya as a contributor to our annual sales target.
The sales we did miniscule compared to every year and it just to cater to our customers’ needs as on Akshay Tritiya, buying gold has sentimental and auspicious value to most Indians.”
Vaibhav Saraf, Director, Aisshpra Gems and Jewels said, “Due to the lockdown, we were not expecting big ticket jewellery sales but for our regular customers convenience we kept the gold booking option open. Customers have done token purchases and have also shown keen interest in gold emis. Gold coins of 2 grams, 5 grams and 10grams were popular. Jewellery too was seen getting booked. The delivery or pickup from store will happen once lockdown is lifted.
Tanya Rastogi, Director, Lala Jugal Kishore Jewellers said: “It’s a very interesting Akshaya Tritiya. Every year there are a lot of preparations, a lot of hard selling. This year we were largely unprepared. But incidentally, this year it’s the customer approaching us to enquire about gold rates and availability of gold coins and jewellery.
The whole market is closed down but the customers have started enquiring about the rates and stuff. The news has declared that gold may touch 70k in not so distant future. That has spurred the watchfulness in the customer. So the customer is very interested and desperate to buy the cash hold of this rate.
Many weddings which were postponed are now being done as a small affair but for that too they need jewellery. We offer customers where they book Jewellery and gold coins at the current rate and receive the Gold ownership voucher of the same and it will be delivered post lockdown.
Gold booking and Gold ownership voucher aimed at attracting young customers those who are tech savvy into our Gems and Jewellery ecosystem. Hence, it is very very interesting and unique Akshaya Tritiya. Had it been an open Akshaya Tritiya it would have been a great one. But it bodes well of the times to come once the lockdown is over.
Suvankar Sen, Executive Director, Senco Gold and Diamonds on Akshay Tritiya Sales said, “We are living in unprecedented times and we at Senco Gold and Diamonds, believe that tough times also help breed innovation. Our Akshay Tritiya offer with price protection guarantee is an innovative way to serve our customers who are under lockdown but at the same time do not want to miss out on purchasing gold or jewellery for the auspicious occasion.
Our discerning customers are not only getting a chance to avail of substantial discounts on gold rates and waivers on making charges but also getting an opportunity to contribute to the COVID-19 relief fund through their purchases.
So far, during the Akshay Tritiya online sales offer that runs from April 22-27, we have witnessed 10-15% sales compared to that of last year's total Akshay Tritiya sales. As all our offline stores are closed now due to lockdown, we are experiencing customers’ preference for buying bars, coins and making token advance through our e-commerce section.
