Bengaluru’s old jewellery hubs losing sheen

BENGALURU: Not too long ago, jewellers on Avenue Road or in

Chickpet

couldn’t even catch their breath on Dhanteras, that brought with it a deluge of shoppers. But things have changed, and jewellers are blaming the downturn in their Diwali fortunes on traffic and encroachments.


Jewellers on Avenue Road admit to a 15%-20% drop every year in business on Dhanteras.

“Customers of Avenue Road and Chickpet jewellery shops have moved on to big, branded stores that have come up in the city. Our shops are unapproachable because of encroachments by street hawkers and traffic. No one would like to waste time on the road on a day like Dhanteras. Some shops are even losing their old, loyal customers,” Srinivas R, from Sharda Silver Craft, a 92-year-old shop off Avenue Road, said.

There are nearly 400 jewellery shops in the Chickpet-Avenue Road belt. They include 120 retail shops and about 280 wholesalers, most of which are 60 to 100 years old.

With business dipping, the

nextgen

in jewellers’ families are either moving away from the line or setting up branches in other parts of the city.

“Family members taking to the jewellery business is declining. We still have old customers looking for traditional jewellery at the best price coming to us, but if the challenges are not addressed, they too will go to jewellers that assure them a hassle-free shopping experience,” Y S Nagaraj, who owns 60-year-old Sunrise Jewellers on Avenue Road, rued.

“Roads, encroachments and connectivity need to be worked upon to keep the traditional jewellery hub of Bengaluru alive,” he added, managing his customers.

Other jewellery hubs of the city like City Market and Nagarthpet, too, are losing their sheen due to traffic and encroachments, people in the know said.