Riya and Abhishek, who are set to wed in January 2025, have decided to opt for lab-grown diamond jewellery to cut their wedding expenses, with plans to invest the unused amount in gold bonds.
"Initially, we planned to buy a diamond jewellery set of around Rs 35 lakh but when we found a similar design of man-made diamond in the Rs 7.5 lakh range, we preferred the latter one. Now, we will be investing the remaining amount in Sovereign Gold Bonds," Riya told Storyboard18.
Indians have begun embracing lab-grown diamonds during their weddings to reduce jewellery expenses. While the country's gems and jewellery market is close to $80 billion, only 5 percent market share is in diamond jewellery.
According to Rajat Gaur, co-founder at The6C, a lab-grown diamond startup, nearly 30 percent of the Indian customers who never purchased a diamond piece are looking to buy one.
Vidita Kochar, co-founder at Jewelbox told Storyboard18 that her startup has witnessed a notable rise in the acceptance of lab-grown diamonds in the wedding jewellery market in India.
She said, "The combination of quality and cost-effectiveness is resonating well with Indians. However, widespread adoption across all wedding jewelry segments is still in progress". The Kolkata-based jewellery brand appeared in Shark Tank Season 3 wherein Kochar secured the investment of Rs 2 crore from all five judges.
