KYC norms unlikely to depress gold demand, says Kalyan Jewellers’ chief Our Bureau

The new Government regulation to make KYC (know your customer) norms mandatory for the purchase of gold worth Rs 50,000 is unlikely to suppress demand, said T.S. Kalyanaraman, Chairman, Kalyan Jewellers.

Speaking at an event to announce its entry into the Mumbai market recently, he said though the Finance Ministry has not officially conveyed its intent to the industry, the new norm will only inconvenience both the buyer and seller.

“Despite the talk of economic slowdown and volatility in gold prices, customers are willing to buy gold jewellery, both for investment and ornamental value,” said Kalyanaraman, who was recently ranked 52nd in the Forbes’ list of billionaires from India. Kalyanraman’s net-worth was $1 billion (about 5,500 crore) as per the list. Attributing his success to the company’s loyal customers and 4,000-odd employees, he said: “God has really been kind to me.”

Kalyan Jewellers will open three large format outlets in Mumbai on March 24. It has 45 showrooms across four southern states and Gujarat. The company opened 15 showrooms this fiscal with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore. It plans to open 20 new showrooms next fiscal with an investment of Rs 1,500 crore.

Kalyan Jewellers is confident of achieving a turnover of Rs 10,000 crore this fiscal and targets Rs 13,000 crore for the next fiscal. It plans to hit the global markets including Middle-East, GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries, Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

“Unlike other jewellers, we are targeting the mass market with a vision of high turnover and low profit market of 5-6 per cent,” he said.

The company has a slew of cine stars to represent it in different markets. Amitabh Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan are the brand ambassadors for the national market, while Nagarjuna will represent the company in Andhra Pradesh. Shivaraj Kumar in Karnataka, Prabhu in Tamil Nadu and Dileep in Kerala have also been roped in.