The useful comparison for a wedding shopper is what a piece costs today and what the buyer could recover if they exchanged it later. A lower-carat piece can open up a design at a lower price. Its value still depends on how much gold is in it and how the retailer treats the making charge, stones and purity at exchange.
On Titan’s 5 November results call for the September quarter, management described work on 18-carat gold for wedding and daily wear, 14-carat studded jewellery at Tanishq and options down to nine carats at Mia. Management said adoption varied by geography, with faster adoption in the North and West, and said the company continued to carry 22-carat pieces. These are management observations. The call does not provide a comparable sales series for each caratage. Titan earnings call, Mint
Judge the offer at the counter
Product, Innovation & Delivery in WCRC’s Powerful Brands methodology gives the reader a practical test. Compare pieces of a similar design and ask for a price breakdown that separates gold, stones and making charges. A lighter piece and a piece of lower purity can both lower the purchase price, through different changes to the amount of gold. Ask how those differences affect the retailer’s exchange calculation. The customer can then judge whether the design is within budget on terms they understand. Powerful Brands methodology
For Titan, the evidence of delivery would include whether a shopper can find the advertised designs in stores, whether staff explain purity consistently and whether customers return after an exchange. A higher share of lower-carat purchases could reflect a preference for new designs or a response to household budgets. The two stories have different implications for what the brand should stock after the wedding season. WCRC MegaBrands Titan record