Indians adore jewellery in silver, gold, platinum, diamond-studded and more on various occasions and also as a daily wear. It is part of Indian culture and especially important during weddings, parties, family functions, etc. Of course, the rising gold and real jewellery prices are big deterrents to buying jewellery in India. But, Indians are not to be undone, and their love to show off jewellery has resulted in a booming market for artificial jewellery over the years.
The costs are negligible; it looks authentic and is available in modern design. It is even customizable! The demand for the artificial jewellery business in India, in a recent research publication, states that the growth has been exponential and increased by nearly 85%. This trend for the imitation jewellery business today is significant. It contributes 5.9% of the country's GDP. Want a slice of the market? Now is the time, and here’s why!
Why start jewellery making business from home?
The pandemic that started in 2019 has provided the impetus for entrepreneurs to start small online businesses and from the privacy of their homes. Those whose income was affected by COVID-19 ventured into selling a range of products on online platforms, from their homes, by leveraging their circle of contacts etc., to augment their income. The online platforms provide entrepreneurs with the right cheap infrastructure and opportunity to fuel their growth and threaten the existence of brick-and-mortar stores that suffered losses in lockdown one after another. Indian jewellery making at home also picked up pace.
Women especially ventured into the fashion industry, fancy ornaments making, selling garments online, selling cosmetics online, and of course, jewellery making business from home or selling imitation jewellery online. And, many made a great business, since the imitation jewellery business from home market is booming and decently profitable.
Did you know? It takes hardly four- five days to start a business in the United States of America.
Why is artificial jewellery a good business idea?
- The cost-effective imitation jewellery ornaments are handmade, customizable and relatively cheaper than ornaments made from precious metals and diamonds.
- It can be used for daily wear and accessorize your costumes and dressing style.
- Women appear to adore jewellery for all occasions in India.
- The market for the jewellery online business is huge, and the venture costs are comparatively smaller than having a shop or store.
- Online platforms have come to the rescue of small entrepreneurs providing visibility, selling infrastructure and more.
- The profits to be made from business can spiral from decent to phenomenal depending on your efforts and business plans.
How to start an imitation jewellery business?
If you opt for making jewellery at home, manufacturing or an offline shop, remember that this option involves large volumes of manufactured products. With this also comes the hefty cost of setting up a brick-and-mortar shop, employees, manufacturing process know-how, power, licensing and more. But be cautioned that the frequent lockdowns, high initial investments and break-even periods can be quite long. Another extremely popular option with women and working professionals alike is to start an online artificial jewellery business.
Also Read: Most Profitable Manufacturing Business to Start in India
How to start an artificial jewellery business at home?
Our step-by-step 'How to start artificial jewellery business in India' guide leads you in 6-easy steps to how you can take your business online from the comfort of your home.
1. Decide on how you want to sell:
Firstly, decide how to start a jewellery business and how you want to sell your products or artificial jewellery.
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Start a wholesale imitation jewellery business at home: You will need to contact manufacturers of imitation jewellery items and buy from them depending on their wholesale business model criteria. Most of your sales will come from selling to jewellery item retailers. The downside here is that you have to maintain an inventory of products, sell in volumes, and you will need adequate space for your stocks. Yes, the investment and budget are higher, while the profits are nominal compared to selling to customers directly at the maximum retail prices.
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Start reselling business: You resell another’s products in imitation jewellery online to earn a fair profit margin in this business model. Since you do not need to maintain any minimum stocks, there is no space for storage or big investments required. In reality, this is a low-budget business, where you buy nothing and ensure the products are promoted and resold among your contacts or customers to earn a margin on their purchases. Since you do not handle or see the product’s quality, there could be damages, low quality, transit damages and such issues to deal with. Returns from dissatisfied customers is a definite area of concern.
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Sell on online platforms: The market has a range of online selling collaboration platforms where you can resell handmade and manufactured imitation jewellery, like Amazon, Flipkart, Etsy, and more. You can approach them directly if you start a jewellery-making business at home. This option costs less than starting your e-store, website, etc. Yes, you may need to adhere to the rules for GST taxation, industry licenses, raw materials, etc.
2. Find your USP:
After deciding how to start your jewellery business, you will need to find your USP or Unique Selling Proposition. This makes you unique, different from competing imitation jewellery sellers, and quickly promotes your sales. Question yourself on what motivates and interests you, how your products are different, what market you are selling in, what kind of inventory you need, what can make your sales go up, and more. Proper research and planning followed by selecting your products will keep your motivation high during periods when sales may be dismal.
3. Name your business:
It takes a lot of creativity to find the right name for your business and brand of artificial jewellery.
Ensure the factors below in your naming process.
- Your name should be unique and not one used by any other business.
- The unique name needs to be short, easy to read, remember and pronounce.
- Your name should convey your message, brand, and style to your customers and targeted audience.
Once you have named your business, get it registered and licensed. This one move can make a huge difference to authenticate your business in the minds of your clients. Selecting a proper name is essential for an online as well as brick-and-mortar showroom.
4. Research the fashion and jewellery industry trends and prices:
A smart entrepreneur bases decisions on diligent research. Research on competitor products, designs, styles trends, etc. Clients need you to give them unique products and designs that are brand new and trending. Of course, jewellery is an ‘Owner’s pride and neighbour’s envy’ story, even in imitation jewellery. A twist is to produce handmade unique, one-of-a-kind items. You can also follow the trending designs worn by celebrities to inspire your creations. Ultimately the aim is to maximize your profit with your style and well-researched unique products.
5. Go for your website, logo, blog and stories:
Having an online presence is essential for your brand. Plus, it speaks highly of your brand and business. Launch a blog to speak about how you are unique, tell satisfied customer stories and see your profits skyrocket in today’s tech-oriented world. Your website also helps with shipping, delivery of products, payments, displaying new arrivals, inventory control and more. You can also analyse sales from your website and understand the areas you need to improve. Ensure your logo identifies your brand and business.
6. Effective Marketing:
You cannot wait for customers, and you will have to reach out to them in a planned and strategic manner to boost your sales. Marketing is essential to all businesses, small and large. Use social media platforms, SEO, effective content writing, referral marketing, discounts, email campaigns, blogs etc., to reach more and more clients.
Build your mobile e-commerce website and application with help from tools available in websites like Magento, Thycart, Big Commerce, Woocommerce, Open Cart, etc. This can help you offer your handmade or unique products at a reasonable price. Displaying your products, maintaining your inventories, tracking your profits and more can be achieved using Google Analytics and syncing your products.
Where to buy jewellery supplies?
Here’s a helpful list of Indian imitation jewellery wholesalers.
- Chinabrands is a reputed wholesaler/ drop shipper offering a wide variety and reasonable wholesale prices. They also sell home décor items, beauty products, clothing, accessories, etc., with 24-hour shipping across the globe. Their offer for collaboration is low risk and involves zero investment.
- Manekratna.com is Mumbai based and offer traditional jewellery items in Beaded, American Diamond, Kundan, Polki, Antique, etc., designs. Free shipping is available, and the discount is proportional to your purchases.
- Kanhaijewels.com is also Mumbai based wholesaler of imitation jewellery, western-wear items of jewellery and more. They ship in 4 to 5 days and have a zero discount policy.
- Eindiawholesale.com is a Jaipur based artificial jewellery wholesaler. They provide free shipping if the order value exceeds ₹ 15,000/-. Discounts depend on your purchasing capacity.
- Padmavatijewellery.com are wholesalers with a very wide and exciting range of imitation jewellery.
Also Read: Successful Small Business Ideas for Indian Entrepreneurs
Conclusion:
Artificial jewellery is a great alternative to real gold ornaments as they are cheaper, can be used to accessorize your outfits, and have a wide product range readily available in the market. Women and men adore the grace and élan it brings to their dressing styles. The basic rules to practice in starting your own artificial jewellery business would be to maintain ethical standards, have a great and well-researched business plan and stay motivated through poor returns times. It is always recommendable to test the waters with an online jewellery business from home to gauge the market, profitability and gain the wholesale market’s trust. Bad times will be there, and a lot needs to be learnt by first-hand experiences. Yet, stay motivated and persevere.
Did you know that Khatabook is a great application available on your mobile phone if you are an entrepreneur in the imitation jewellery business? It can help you track your GST, employee attendance, accounting and profitability and more. Say goodbye to your accounting problems with it, and all the best to your venture!
