Despite the recent focus on gold consumption and imports, with the government signalling restraint in gold purchases, mall operators said that over the longer term, the jewellery sector is set to reinforce its status as a primary anchor.
Jewellery store not only help mall in increasing the consumption, it is also not impacted by online sale.
“The rapid expansion of large-format, experience-led stores signals a structural shift that is reshaping how brands engage with consumers and how developers design their tenant mix,” said Anshuman Magazine, chairman and CEO – India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa at real estate consultancy CBRE.
According to CBRE, sector’s share in total organised retail leasing has risen from 2% in 2019 to 8% in 2025, placing jewellery among the top three demand drivers in India’s retail market, after fashion & apparel and F&B.
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Absorption by jewellery brands doubled from 400,000 sq. ft in 2024 to 800,000 sq. ft in 2025, with Hyderabad, Chennai,Bengaluru, and Delhi-NCR collectively accounting for the majority of that demand.
“As consumer preferences shift towards trusted and organised brands, jewellery retailers are emerging as strong anchor tenants for modern malls. Unlike categories such as fashion or electronics, jewellery buying is still highly experience-led and trust-driven. Buyers prefer visiting stores with family, exploring designs physically, and making informed purchases, which makes the category far less vulnerable to online disruption,” said Shriram PM Monga, Co-founder, SRED.Also, premium jewellery brands like Tanishq, Malabar Gold and Diamonds, Kalyan Jewellers, and CaratLane becoming key traffic drivers in malls across metro and tier-2 cities.
CBRE said that the share of large-format stores (exceeding 8,000 sq. ft.) in jewellery leasing has increased from 14% in 2019 to 50% in 2025.
The tenant mix within the jewellery category is also evolving. Fine Jewellery continued to dominate at 72% of leasing in 2025, but the share of leasing by Lab-Grown Diamond (LGD) brands rose from 5% in 2024 to 8% in 2025, reflecting a broader shift in consumer preferences.
Developers are proactively curating specialised jewellery zones by providing reinforced vaults and high-density specialised lighting, to accommodate the unique technical and operational requirements of jewellery retail.
Nexus Select Trust, the biggest mall operator in the country, in the investor call for quarter ending December 2025 had said that Jewellery, which constitutes approximately 7% of our overall consumption, continued to see very strong sales growth of 57% year-on-year.
“We curated a high-end jewellery zone at Nexus Elante, spanning over 30,000 square feet on the lower ground floor, housing 10+ brands including Tanishq, Indriya, Malabar, CaratLane and Forevermark. We are planning to replicate similar category-specific zones across other malls,“ the firm had said.
Each mall currently has about 8-10 jewellery stores, up from just one or two in 2021.
With many buyers shifting from smaller jewellers, the organised jewellery retail segment has been outpacing other consumer discretionary segments since April 2023. This is evident in the jewellery segment contributing 20-25 % of mall revenues despite occupying only about 5-10% space.
In Delhi-NCR, leading malls are steadily consolidating their position as jewellery destinations.
“At such high price points, buyers cannot afford to compromise on transparency, hallmarking, or physical security. Our mall Omaxe Chowk is designed to bridge the gap,” said Jatin Goel, Executive Director, Omaxe Group.
According to developers, the shift towards organised jewellery retail is also being driven by evolving consumer expectations.
“By integrating top-tier jewellery brands, we are offering our patrons a frictionless, luxury experience defined by variety and trust,” said Manju Gaur, Director, Gaurs Group.
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