How Indian jewellery market will adapt with pandemic

The halt over the market and economy due to the outbreak of COVID-19 has brought a severe economic issue to the industries all over the world. The situation has introduced us to a rapid change in lifestyle as well as the whereabouts of running the economy within the hemisphere of risk and adaptation.

Affected severely by store closures and not responsive to e-commerce, the jewellery industry is one of the luxury segments that has suffered the most from the consequences of the health crisis. The long-term effect of this catastrophe is more intense and consequential to every aspect of society, says Ageerika Hari, Founder, Vaitaanika.

"Many businesses irrespective of their size, were forced to shut down and others were just limping without any precautionary measure and absence of hope to survive. People feared for their jobs, their lives, and their dwindling toilet paper supplies. They went into survival mode, stocking up on essentials and forgetting everything else," she says.

No one — not even the trend analysts are exactly sure what the future of fashion looks like, what they agreed on is that, because of the pandemic, the future of clothing and Jewellery is arriving way ahead of schedule, with back-burner projects front-burner and fashion's never-ending hamster wheel getting a good, hard look.

The pandemic has also forged people to change their taste while adapting to a certain lifestyle including food, cosmetic, jewellery, etc. The current scenario of the fashion life is always on a peak, of course, certain aspects that have affected the industry and declined surplus, Hari says.

"People may have just stopped taking the effort to dress like before. Styles of fashion in a simple and classy Jewellery will emerge largely than before. Choosing Plains or Solids overprints and pattern or neutrals over new trending colours jewels is being seen for workwear fashion. For people who operate a small jewellery business, the impact of COVID-19 has seen a shift from in-person sales to online sales."

"This is perhaps the biggest indicator of where the jewellery industry is headed as a result of the pandemic. Learning a new normal happened nearly overnight for many small businesses and making changes and figuring out how to proceed is something that is going to impact how these small businesses are run for many years to come."

People used their time in quarantine to evaluate their life and their values and many of them are now purchasing jewellery as a self-care measure to reward themselves for their time in quarantine. Others are buying jewellery for loved ones as a way to acknowledge the difficulties we've been through during the pandemic.

Also, people are shopping as a way to escape the reality of what's happening in the world. This pandemic has inevitably changed the fashion industry forever. The necessity to purchase clothing or Jewellery frequently no longer exists.