"We are expecting 100% closure for Zoya Gallery this festive season"

After a muted festive season last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, this year saw a higher willingness to spend. As per a ZestMoney Survey, 72% of Indians plan to splurge on electronics & gadgets, while 59% prefer BNPL to fund festive purchases. 62% of the respondents revealed that festive budgets have gone up compared to last year. A recent market research by YouGov gives a big boost to the Diwali Expense Index, which is generally indicative of Q3 sales growth in India.

The Indian festive season is a crucial time as consumer demand is at its peak with many planning several small and big-ticket purchases. With increased vaccination and the general opening of the economy, the survey has witnessed a positive sentiment around budgets and shopping at physical stores, even as online shopping continues to be popular among people.

As part of Adgully’s Festive Mood series, we have been covering the market, brand and consumer sentiments during the festive season this year. In conversation with Adgully, Amanpreet Ahluwalia, Business Head, Zoya, speaks about the market sentiment this festive season, the brand’s online and offline business and more.

What kind of sentiments have you seen in the market during this festive season? Are these sentiments close to the pre-COVID levels?

The sentiment was good last month due to Durga Puja. It was slow due to gold rate fluctuations toward the end of October, the weather and a minor increase in COVID-19 spread. The response became better since last week again. We are expecting a 100% closure for the Zoya Gallery.

How are you planning your strategy for online and offline sales? What kind of footfalls have you seen during this festival?

For Zoya as a luxury brand, our focus has always been on personalisation and ensuring the comfort of the customer. Jewellery is a high involvement purchase, therefore we have an omni-channel approach. While the better part of a transaction is done online, the final purchase decision is usually made at the store. Our retail experience carefully considers both online and offline channels of communication. We constantly endeavour to recreate the exclusivity and responsiveness of the offline experience on our online platforms. In keeping with Zoya’s tradition, we have launched our festive collection, Libera, this year. It is an ornate collection, novel and elegant with a lovely pastel palette that employs the finest diamonds, mother of pearl, opal, champagne diamonds and perfect for the festive season.

For the last 2 years we have started virtual assisted selling, wherein we provide patrons to shop from the comfort of their homes over a video call and offline sales are back to pre-COVID-19 levels. The footfalls expectation is positive and expectations are to come out higher than the pre-COVID-19 period.

Any specific campaign strategies you planned for the festival season?

We have rolled out an initiative called Zoya Privilege Benefit for repeat and new customers.