No better marketing than trust built through transparency: Pelki Tshering

A few weeks ago, Tanishq launched a campaign featuring actress Manisha Koirala. The campaign was an instant hit among audiences who grew up humming the ‘Aaj Main Upar’ tune. The campaign delivered a powerful dose of nostalgia, celebrating the timeless elegance of diamonds and their role in marking personal milestones. The brand is stepping up its efforts to promote natural diamonds by educating consumers and empowering them to make informed choices. 

To enhance customer confidence, Tanishq is setting up expertise centres within its stores, offering customers a first-hand experience in understanding the light performance of natural diamonds with live demonstrations.

“We believe there is no better marketing than one that builds trust through transparency and demonstration,” says Pelki Tshering, CMO of Tanishq, highlighting the brand’s dedication to educating and empowering customers in their diamond-buying journey. These centres are critical for Tanishq as gold remains India’s first choice when buying jewellery. 

Tshering explains that diamonds, unlike gold, do not hold the same deep-rooted traditional value in Indian households, and consumers often find themselves uncertain about what to look for when making a diamond purchase. 

“When it comes to diamonds, everybody understands that they are precious. However, unlike gold, customers are not as clear about what they should look at when buying a diamond. It’s about the clarity in the buying process, where Tanishq is trying to enable customers by talking about the 4Cs and setting up the expertise centres,” she explains.

This is precisely why Tanishq has focused on educating its consumers. Tshering highlights how the brand has been at the forefront of empowering customers by providing knowledge. 

“We were among the first to introduce and talk extensively about the 4Cs of diamond quality - cut, clarity, colour, and carat. We’re taking it further by encouraging customers to go beyond the 4Cs and understand the importance of light performance in diamonds. After all, a diamond’s true beauty lies in how it interacts with light,” she elaborates.

When asked about consumer behaviour and whether most buyers start with smaller diamonds before gradually moving to bigger ones, Tshering shares an interesting observation: “Traditionally, gold jewellery is one of the first pieces of jewellery that an individual owns. Diamond jewellery usually enters the collection later,” she explains. 

However, she notes a shifting trend, particularly among younger generations across metros and smaller cities and towns. “Millennials and Gen Z buyers consider diamonds a symbolic representation of self-worth and personal expression.”

On the question of whether consumers typically transition from gold to diamonds or if they buy diamond jewellery outright, Tshering shares that both behaviours are prevalent. 

“Many customers first enter the Tanishq ecosystem through gold jewellery and eventually migrate to diamonds, particularly in the daily wear segment. But in the last two years, we’ve also seen many new buyers who enter directly through diamonds,” she reveals.

Further, she shares: “Gold is frequently purchased by the family, often starting from the birth of a daughter. It’s seen as an asset that belongs to the household,” she notes. “Diamonds are more of an individual choice. We see a higher percentage of people buying diamonds for themselves compared to gold.

Recognising this shift, Tanishq has been expanding its diamond jewellery offerings. “Recently, we introduced around 15,000 fresh designs of diamond-studded jewellery at accessible price points, starting at Rs 15,000,” she says. This strategic move caters to first-time diamond buyers looking for quality but at an affordable price.

In sync with Tanishq’s commitment to promoting the rarity and authenticity of natural diamonds, the brand partnered with De Beers last year for a long-term collaboration. This partnership focuses on enhancing consumer education, fostering greater interest, and building confidence in natural diamonds across India. Building on this commitment, Tanishq will launch a special Valentine’s Day collection, designed for couples looking to mark their love with the timeless elegance of natural diamonds, formed together over millions of years.