After a 15-month expansion frenzy across malls and high streets, India’s organised jewellery industry is entering a strategic reset. With gold prices at record highs, import-duty pressures mounting, and the Prime Minister publicly urging consumers to avoid gold buying for a year, India’s largest jewellery retailers are rapidly recalibrating their growth strategies—moving beyond bullion into lifestyle ecosystems, lightweight luxury, silver, lab-grown diamonds, fashion adjacencies, and destination retail.

For nearly three years, India’s organised jewellery retail industry appeared unstoppable.

National chains and regional family enterprises aggressively expanded across metros, Tier-II and Tier-III cities, luxury malls, premium high streets, transit corridors, and emerging Bharat markets. Large-format flagship stores, destination bridal centres, omnichannel jewellery ecosystems, and IPO-led expansion became defining themes across the sector.

The momentum was unprecedented. Organised players leased thousands of square feet across malls and high streets, jewellery became one of the strongest contributors to organised retail leasing in India, and investors began viewing the category as one of the country’s most compelling formalisation stories.

But by mid-2026, the environment had changed sharply.

Gold prices surged to historic highs. The 18.4% effective import-duty structure significantly increased inventory carrying costs. Working capital pressures intensified. At the same time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s public appeal urging consumers to avoid buying gold for one year to reduce import dependence sent visible ripples across the industry.

For a sector deeply dependent on sentiment, weddings, and investment-linked buying behaviour, the combined impact triggered a sudden strategic reassessment.

According to the newly released IMAGES Group intelligence report “THE $100 BILLION RECALIBRATION — From Gold Retailers To Lifestyle Empires,” India’s ₹8.3 lakh crore jewellery industry is now entering one of the most important structural transitions in its history.

The report maps and analyses more than 100 organised jewellery brands and retail ecosystems across India and GCC markets, tracking revenue growth, retail footprints, expansion patterns, format evolution, international ambitions, leasing strategies, and emerging business models shaping the next phase of organised jewellery retail.

What is becoming increasingly evident is that the next decade of growth may not belong to businesses that simply sell more gold. Instead, the winners are likely to be those capable of building broader lifestyle ecosystems around jewellery consumption.

This is precisely where India’s large national players are beginning to learn from South India’s deeply entrenched family-led retail enterprises.

For years, several South Indian jewellery groups quietly diversified beyond traditional gold retail into adjacent categories including sarees, silks, fashion, hospitality, malls, watches, wedding retail, hypermarkets, and lifestyle formats. While many North and West Indian jewellery chains remained heavily bullion-centric, these southern enterprises built multi-frequency consumer ecosystems that insulated them from pure gold-cycle volatility.

Today, that model is beginning to influence the broader industry.

The IMAGES Group report highlights that organised retailers are increasingly pivoting toward higher-margin and higher-frequency categories such as studded jewellery, lightweight collections, diamonds, silver, everyday wear, gifting-led accessories, and lab-grown diamonds.

This transition is particularly visible among younger consumers, who are moving away from heavy investment-led purchases toward aspirational, wearable, design-led consumption.

The rise of lab-grown diamonds represents one of the strongest examples of this shift.

Several new-age brands are aggressively building businesses around affordable luxury, Gen-Z aspiration, sustainability narratives, and high-frequency purchase behaviour. Unlike traditional bridal gold purchases, lab-grown diamonds offer lower-ticket accessibility, faster inventory cycles, and stronger appeal among urban younger consumers.

Similarly, silver is rapidly emerging as a strategic category rather than merely a festive or utility segment. Organised retailers are increasingly exploring premium silver gifting, fashion jewellery, contemporary ethnic collections, and occasion-led consumption formats.

The report also points to the rise of lightweight jewellery ecosystems designed specifically for office wear, daily use, and fashion-led styling rather than wealth accumulation.

This marks a major behavioural shift in Indian jewellery consumption.

The industry is simultaneously witnessing the emergence of destination-led retail ecosystems. Several South Indian enterprises have evolved from standalone jewellery businesses into integrated retail environments combining jewellery, sarees, hospitality, food, lifestyle retail, and wedding commerce under one roof.

These ecosystems are now being studied closely by organised retailers across India.

Instead of relying solely on high-volume gold transactions, the new strategy focuses on increasing customer frequency, improving margin mix, expanding ecosystem engagement, and reducing dependence on bullion volatility.

This transition is already influencing store formats.

The report notes that many retailers are becoming increasingly selective about future expansion. Several brands that aggressively expanded over the past 15 months are now prioritising:

• Store productivity
• Inventory optimisation
• Margin management
• Experience-led retail
• Omnichannel integration
• Destination formats
• Portfolio rationalisation

Rather than pure store-count velocity, the industry’s next phase may be defined by operational efficiency and category diversification.

The report also identifies growing interest in GCC and international expansion corridors, particularly among South Indian players with strong diaspora connections. Businesses such as Malabar Gold & Diamonds, Joyalukkas, Bhima, and others continue to deepen international presence while simultaneously strengthening domestic retail ecosystems.

At the same time, organised retail consolidation is accelerating. Corporate governance improvements, IPO pipelines, investor scrutiny, and institutional capital are increasingly reshaping the industry’s operating framework.

Importantly, the recalibration currently underway should not be interpreted as a slowdown of the jewellery industry itself.

India remains one of the world’s largest jewellery consumption markets, supported by weddings, gifting traditions, rising aspirations, increasing organised penetration, and expanding premium consumption.

However, the nature of growth is changing fundamentally.

The industry is moving:
from bullion to lifestyle,
from accumulation to aspiration,
from jewellery-only retail to ecosystem platforms,
and from fragmented family stores to institutional-scale retail enterprises.

For mall developers, leasing teams, investors, fashion brands, and retail strategists, this shift could reshape not only jewellery retail, but the broader architecture of organised consumption in India over the next decade.

The IMAGES Group report “THE $100 BILLION RECALIBRATION — From Gold Retailers To Lifestyle Empires” offers one of the most comprehensive deep dives into this evolving landscape, covering more than 100 jewellery brands, organised retail ecosystems, expansion strategies, category pivots, and next-generation growth corridors shaping the future of India’s jewellery industry.

The report is available at:
https://www.imagesbof.in/book-store/

U.S. Polo Assn. is India’s leading casualwear brand and the official brand of the United States Polo Association (USPA). Over decades, the legacy American brand has built credibility by balancing sport and fashion—pioneering silhouettes such as the quintessential polo shirt, along with shirts, shackets, outerwear, denims and chinos. The brand offers classic, comfortable and accessible menswear that has remained core to the Indian consumer’s wardrobe.

One of the key highlights of U.S. Polo Assn.’s Spring Summer’26 collection is its denim offering—engineered for modern Indian lifestyles that blur work, travel and leisure. As India’s fashion market matures, the balance between function and style is becoming central to consumer choice. USPA Denim, with its versatility and cultural resonance, has consistently delivered on these evolving expectations.

Denim 2.0 in India

Long treated as a utilitarian staple—price-driven, repetitive, and largely commoditised—jeans in India are undergoing a transformation. The category is moving away from being a wardrobe default and toward becoming an experience-led segment shaped by fit innovation, faster trend cycles, and digital-first discovery. Consumers no longer shop denim as an afterthought; they seek nuance in silhouette, comfort in construction, and clarity in how a piece fits into their lifestyle.

This is what Denim 2.0 looks like in India.

U.S. Polo Assn. has positioned itself squarely within this new language. Its denim strategy is no longer limited to producing reliable jeans—it is about redefining how denim participates in everyday life.

In 2025, the brand launched World Denim—a collection that brings together denim fabrics from across the globe, celebrating the individuality of each origin through a USPA lens. This season, the focus shifts to Egypt and Japan.

• Egypt: These limited-edition jeans are crafted using premium imported denim from Egypt. Egyptian cotton, particularly long-staple Giza, enhances softness while increasing strength and durability—creating denim that feels elevated yet effortless.
• Japan: These limited-edition jeans use premium imported selvedge fabric from Japan, powered with imported shanks and rivets. Known globally for precision and depth, Japanese denim adds structure, character, and craftsmanship to the product.

Arvind has also joined hands with Doctor Denim, a pioneer in Japanese design, to craft a vintage-led collection for USPA that intertwines tradition, innovation, and sustainability. The collaboration celebrates authentic, cutting-edge technology—offering denim that is both timeless and future-ready, pushing the boundaries of fabric design, aesthetics, and sustainability.

U.S. Polo Assn. offers fashion anchored in the sport of polo and the off-field sporting lifestyle—an identity that resonates deeply with Indian consumers who increasingly expect versatility from what they wear. Brand credibility, product quality, and range place USPA among the top denim choices globally.

USPA denims make a statement with varied fits and advanced fabrics offering superior stretch, soft hand-feel, and distinctive washes. The current architecture spans classic slim straights (Harold), tapered profiles (Brandon), cropped comfort styles (Henry, Cole), relaxed forms (Shawn, Connor), and loose, movement-forward silhouettes (Logan). Each fit responds to a different need state—reflecting how men today move between roles: from structure to ease, from city to coast, from routine to escape.

Two key fits this season—Shawn (Relaxed) and Logan (Loose)—mirror the shift away from skinny silhouettes toward comfort-led, contemporary forms.

Speed, Scale & Consistency

U.S. Polo Assn. delivers at scale—across hundreds of stores, thousands of touchpoints, and a pan-India footprint. Its fashion philosophy is not confined to niche segments; it is embedded into India at large.

As the market moves toward experience-led retail, and as consumers demand more from a pair of jeans than durability alone, USPA is building the operating system for India’s next denim era.

If denim is being re-imagined as a lived experience, the way it is discovered must evolve alongside it. In India, where fashion adoption is shaped by digital fluency, the journey from interest to intent is layered. A consumer may encounter a style on social media, check availability online, try it in-store, and complete the purchase elsewhere. Retail today is not linear—it is fluid.

Phygital Retail in Action

U.S. Polo Assn. has built its strategy around this reality. Backed by Arvind Fashion Group’s early investment in omnichannel infrastructure, the brand operates within a truly phygital ecosystem—where digital discovery and physical retail function as a single continuum. A large share of store sales is now driven through omni-channel journeys, signalling not just scale, but behavioural change.

USPA’s digital presence across D2C and marketplaces maintains a consistent narrative across touchpoints, ensuring that what a consumer experiences on screen aligns with what they experience in-store. More importantly, it creates a unified customer view—integrating browsing, purchase, and interaction into a single intelligence layer. Online and offline, consumers receive richer context: fit guidance, styling cues, and content that mirrors in-store engagement.

Behind this seamlessness lies a data engine shaping how the brand designs. Sell-through analytics now inform everything from rise and leg opening to wash depth and price architecture. Rather than relying on seasonal intuition alone, the brand reads the market in near real time. Regional preferences—between metros and tier-two cities, coastal climates and northern winters—translate directly into product direction.

Strong sourcing partnerships, vertically integrated manufacturing, and a wide retail footprint allow innovation to move quickly from concept to consumer. In a market where speed often compromises consistency, U.S. Polo Assn. operates with both.

A new fit does not remain a capsule. A successful wash is not confined to one channel. Learnings travel across formats—EBOs, MBOs, and online—ensuring momentum compounds rather than fragments. This ability to scale without dilution positions the brand uniquely: global in heritage, local in insight.

As Amitabh Suri, CEO, U.S. Polo Assn. India, puts it:

“Denim today isn’t just about fabric or fit—it’s about how people live. Our role is to design for movement: between work and leisure, online and offline, structure and ease. At U.S. Polo Assn., we’re building denim that adapts in real time to culture, climate, and consumer behaviour. That’s what Denim 2.0 means to us—not chasing trends, but engineering relevance at scale.”

The Road Ahead

As India’s fashion market continues to mature, denim will remain its most democratic fabric. What will change is its role. It will no longer be what people reach for by default. It will be what they choose with intent.

In a market defined by speed, USPA is choosing movement.
And in denim, movement is everything.

On Akshaya Tritiya 2026, India’s jewellery market delivered more than just strong sales—it delivered a structural signal. Initial industry estimates pegged festive sales at Rs 20,000 crore, up from ~Rs 16,000 crore last year. However, as the day progressed—with packed stores, extended shopping hours, and sustained footfalls across metros and Tier II cities—trade feedback increasingly pointed to actual sales surpassing early projections by a meaningful margin.

What makes this surge particularly significant is the context in which it is unfolding. Gold prices, hovering at Rs 1.55–1.58 lakh per 10 grams, are among the highest ever recorded. Yet, instead of dampening demand, they appear to have reshaped it. The contradiction is stark, but it is also revealing—it signals not a slowdown, but a market that is recalibrating in real time.

A Market Where Value Is Rising Faster Than Volume

Beneath the headline growth, the underlying dynamics present a more nuanced picture. While overall sales value has risen sharply, volumes have remained stable or moderated, reflecting the impact of elevated gold prices. Footfalls, on the other hand, have strengthened further, indicating that consumer intent remains intact even as purchasing patterns evolve.

This divergence between value and volume highlights a critical shift. Consumers are not stepping away from jewellery purchases; instead, they are recalibrating their choices. Spending is increasingly being redistributed toward lower-weight pieces, design-led offerings, and alternative categories such as diamonds, silver, and lab-grown stones. The market, therefore, is not contracting—it is evolving in composition.

The Big Backdrop: 1,000+ Stores Added Before the Festival

If demand tells one side of the story, supply tells another—far more aggressive one. Over the past 12 to 18 months, the Indian jewellery industry has added more than 1,000 stores across formats and geographies. This expansion spans national chains such as Titan (Tanishq, Mia, CaratLane), Kalyan Jewellers, Malabar Gold & Diamonds, and Reliance Jewels; mid-sized players like Candere, Indriya, Kisna, ORRA, PNG, and Senco; as well as strong regional players including GRT, Bhima, Lalithaa, and TBZ. Alongside them, a new wave of digital-first brands such as GIVA, BlueStone, Limelight, and Jewelbox has rapidly built offline presence.

This level of expansion is unprecedented in the category. More importantly, it signals a deeper shift: the industry is no longer expanding in response to demand alone; it is proactively building retail capacity in anticipation of future consumption. In effect, supply is beginning to lead demand.

This expansion is not being driven by large national players alone. A strong layer of mid-sized and regional chains is adding depth to the market, particularly across Tier II and III cities.

Mid-Sized & Emerging Jewellery Chains – Expansion Momentum (FY25–FY26)

Mid-sized and regional players are no longer peripheral—they are driving depth in the market. While national chains build scale, these brands are capturing local trust, wedding demand, and value-conscious consumers, especially in Tier II and III cities. Their expansion is often more aggressive in terms of pricing and promotions, making them critical to understanding real demand beyond metros.

Malls Emerge as the New Centre of Gravity

A defining feature of this expansion cycle is its concentration within organised retail environments, particularly malls. These spaces are increasingly becoming the primary interface between brands and consumers, offering a combination of trust, visibility, and experiential engagement that traditional formats struggle to replicate.

At Nexus Elante Mall in Chandigarh, the Jewel Souk concept exemplifies this shift. By bringing together leading brands such as Tanishq, Malabar Gold & Diamonds, CaratLane, Reliance Jewels, and Indriya into a single curated zone, the mall has effectively created a modern jewellery marketplace within a controlled retail environment.

Within this ecosystem, brands layered their individual campaigns—ranging from steep making charge discounts to gold rate protection schemes and bridal-focused experiences. The result has been a noticeable shift in consumer behaviour, from single-store transactions to multi-brand exploration, and from planned purchases to experience-led discovery. Malls, in this context, are no longer just retail venues; they are becoming active facilitators of jewellery consumption.

Demand Is Not Weak—It Is Being Rewired

Industry sentiment reinforces the idea that demand has not weakened—it has evolved. Retailers consistently point to a more intentional, value-conscious, and design-driven consumer. Buying decisions are increasingly influenced by practicality and versatility, with a clear preference for jewellery that can be worn frequently rather than stored for occasional use.

Even emerging segments such as men’s jewellery—particularly chains and bracelets—are gaining traction, indicating a broadening of the consumer base and a gradual normalisation of jewellery as an everyday category across demographics.

The Festival Has Evolved into a Retail Event

Akshaya Tritiya itself is undergoing a transformation. What was once a largely cultural and ritual-driven buying occasion has now evolved into a fully orchestrated retail cycle. Brands across the spectrum—ranging from large national chains to regional players and lab-grown diamond specialists—have aligned around a common strategy: reducing friction and increasing conversion.

This has been achieved through a combination of pre-booking schemes, price protection offers, making charge waivers, cashback incentives, and exchange benefits. Together, these mechanisms have reshaped the buying journey, making it more flexible, less risky, and more appealing in a high-price environment.

As a result, Akshaya Tritiya 2026 reveals a market that is not slowing down, but shifting gears. Value growth continues to outpace volume, retail expansion is running ahead of demand, and consumption is becoming more fragmented yet more frequent. Most importantly, the industry is no longer waiting for demand to emerge—it is actively engineering it.

THE GREAT INDIAN JEWELLERY RESET 

From Gold Buying to Jewellery Consumption

If the scale of expansion defines the market externally, the real transformation is unfolding within the consumer. The traditional jewellery buyer—largely driven by occasions, family decisions, and gold as a store of value—is gradually being complemented by a more diverse and dynamic set of consumers. Working women are increasingly driving self-purchase, Gen Z is entering the category through accessible formats such as silver, 14K gold and lab-grown diamonds, and consumers in Tier II and III cities are upgrading from unorganised to branded retail environments. Even segments that were historically under-penetrated, such as men’s jewellery, are beginning to show meaningful traction.

This diversification is critical to sustaining growth in a high-price environment. It ensures that demand is no longer dependent on a single buying cycle or consumer type. Instead, it is being distributed across multiple occasions, use cases, and price points. Jewellery, in this context, is steadily transitioning from an inheritance-led category to one that is driven by identity, self-expression, and everyday relevance.

18K and 14K: Redefining the Economics of Jewellery Buying

The clearest manifestation of this shift is the rapid rise of 18-carat and 14-carat gold formats. Once positioned as alternatives to traditional 22K jewellery, these formats are now moving to the centre of consumption, driven by both affordability and functionality.

The pricing differential is substantial enough to influence behaviour at scale. For a typical 10-gram purchase, the savings between 18K and 14K can approach ₹30,000, fundamentally altering purchase decisions. What emerges from this is not a decline in demand, but a recalibration of how value is optimised. Consumers are effectively managing rising prices by adjusting purity levels, without stepping away from the category altogether.

This economic logic is further reinforced by product functionality. Lower-carat gold is more durable, better suited for daily wear, and structurally more compatible with diamond and gemstone settings. As a result, it aligns seamlessly with contemporary design sensibilities and evolving usage patterns.

The Rise of ‘Lived-In Luxury’

The shift in purity is closely linked to a broader change in how jewellery is perceived and used. Increasingly, jewellery is being designed and purchased not as a static asset, but as something to be worn regularly. This has given rise to what can best be described as ‘lived-in luxury’—pieces that balance aspiration with practicality.

Across brands, demand is strongest for lightweight, versatile designs such as minimalist studs, stackable bracelets, delicate chains, and personalised pendants. These products are not tied to specific occasions; instead, they integrate into daily wardrobes, encouraging more frequent usage and, by extension, more frequent purchase cycles. The emphasis is shifting from ownership to usability, and from occasional indulgence to everyday relevance.

Diamonds and Lab-Grown Alternatives: Expanding the Consumption Base

Parallel to the evolution in gold formats is the growing traction of diamonds, particularly lab-grown diamonds. While natural diamonds continue to hold aspirational value, lab-grown alternatives are expanding the category by lowering the entry barrier.

Brands operating in the lab-grown segment are not merely competing on price; they are redefining value by offering larger stones, contemporary designs, and strong buyback assurances. This combination allows them to attract a new cohort of consumers who might otherwise have deferred or avoided diamond purchases altogether. In doing so, they are adding incremental demand rather than redistributing existing demand.

A new set of specialised players is leading this shift, each targeting distinct consumer segments and use cases.

Lab-Grown Diamond (LGD) Brands – The New Demand Creators

LGD players are not just competing with traditional jewellers—they are expanding the category itself. By combining lower prices, strong design appeal, and buyback assurances of up to 80–90%, they are addressing both affordability and trust. Their real impact lies in bringing first-time buyers into the diamond category, especially younger consumers who may not have participated otherwise.

Smart Buying as the New Consumer Behaviour

Taken together, these shifts point to a new pattern of behaviour that can best be described as “smart buying.” Consumers are no longer making jewellery purchases purely on sentiment or tradition. Instead, they are evaluating multiple variables—price, purity, design, resale value, and flexibility—before making decisions. This includes pre-booking gold rates, choosing lower-carat formats, opting for lighter designs, and comparing offerings across brands and channels.

The cumulative effect is a market that is becoming more rational, more segmented, and more responsive to economic realities. Jewellery is no longer defined solely by what it represents symbolically; it is increasingly defined by how effectively it fits into the consumer’s lifestyle and financial framework.

The transformation underway is structural rather than cyclical. Consumers are not exiting the category—they are reshaping it through their choices. As jewellery becomes more wearable, more accessible, and more aligned with everyday life, its role within the consumption basket is expanding. The shift from gold buying to jewellery consumption is no longer an emerging trend; it is becoming the defining characteristic of the market.

Engineering Demand and Redefining Trust

If consumer behaviour explains why demand has held up, brand strategy explains how it has been converted into sales at scale. Akshaya Tritiya 2026 was not driven by passive demand; it was actively shaped through a combination of pricing innovation, promotional engineering, and trust-building mechanisms that collectively reduced friction in the buying process.

From Promotional Offers to Structured Value Creation

Across the industry, brands moved beyond traditional discounting to introduce more sophisticated value propositions. Gold rate protection schemes allowed consumers to lock in prices with minimal upfront commitment, effectively shielding them from volatility. Making charge waivers and cashback incentives reduced the perceived cost of purchase, while bundled benefits such as free coins and vouchers enhanced the overall value proposition.

These mechanisms worked in tandem to address the key barriers to purchase in a high-price environment. Instead of waiting for prices to stabilise, brands created conditions under which consumers felt confident proceeding with their purchases.

Buyback and Exchange: The New Trust Infrastructure

Perhaps the most significant evolution has been in the area of buyback and exchange policies. Leading brands have standardised frameworks that offer full value on exchanges within the same brand and high buyback percentages, effectively turning jewellery into a more liquid and flexible asset.

This shift fundamentally changes the nature of jewellery ownership. Purchases are no longer seen as final decisions but as part of an ongoing cycle of upgrade and exchange. The perceived risk associated with high-value buying is significantly reduced, making consumers more willing to transact even at elevated price levels.

Risk Reduction as a Demand Driver

At current price levels, the biggest barrier to purchase is not affordability alone, but hesitation. Brands have responded by systematically addressing this hesitation through structured interventions—price locks to manage volatility, exchange options to provide flexibility, and buyback guarantees to ensure value retention.

By removing uncertainty at multiple points in the buying journey, the industry has effectively converted intent into action. Jewellery buying, once characterised by high commitment, is becoming increasingly fluid and reversible.

Competitive Intensity and Market Maturity

The combination of rapid store expansion and aggressive promotional strategies has intensified competition across the sector. Consumers today have access to a wide array of brands, formats, and price points, making differentiation more challenging. In this environment, success is increasingly determined by a brand’s ability to integrate product design, pricing strategy, customer experience, and trust mechanisms into a cohesive offering.

The market is, therefore, moving toward a more mature and competitive equilibrium, where scale alone is insufficient and value creation becomes the primary differentiator.

Beyond the Gold Rush

Akshaya Tritiya 2026 marks a defining moment for the Indian jewellery industry. It reflects a market that is expanding ahead of demand maturity, diversifying across categories, and adapting rapidly to changing consumer expectations. The convergence of retail expansion, product innovation, and financial structuring has created a new growth model—one that is less dependent on traditional triggers and more aligned with contemporary consumption patterns.

At its core, the shift is unmistakable. India is moving away from a purely gold-centric, savings-driven approach toward a broader jewellery consumption ecosystem. In this new paradigm, value is defined not just by purity or weight, but by design, usability, flexibility, and relevance to everyday life.

The crowds seen this Akshaya Tritiya tell one story, and the data tells another. Together, they point to a deeper transformation.

India is not just buying more jewellery—it is redefining how jewellery is bought, worn, and valued.

3 CORE PILLARS

• Improving internal operations
• Working closely with the value chain, and
• Strengthening governance and planning.

On the operations front, LS&Co. aims to cut scope 1 and 2 emissions through energy-efficient technologies, renewable energy adoption, and a Global Energy Management System.

For scope 3 emissions, the company is collaborating with suppliers worldwide through SBTi-aligned targets, investments in sustainable materials, supplier financing, renewable energy, circularity initiatives, and sustainable cotton farming practices.

KEY GOALS 

• A 90% reduction in scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2025 (from a 2016 base year)
• A 42% reduction in scope 3 emissions related to purchased goods by 2030 (from a 2022 base year)
• 100% renewable electricity across company-operated facilities by 2025
• 50% reduction in freshwater use in high-stress manufacturing regions.

Aligned with global frameworks such as TCFD and CDP, the plan emphasizes transparency, regular updates, and collaboration with NGOs, investors, and industry partners to build long-term climate resilience.

When we started Spykar in 1992, that feeling was just emerging in the market. Jeans were available, sure, but they didn’t have a soul. It was either a pale imitation of the West, too heavy, too stiff, and far too expensive, or it was a characterless commodity sold in local markets that fell apart after three washes. There was a gap, a very human, very Indian gap, and that is where our story begins.

This isn’t a corporate success story. This is a chronicle of how Indian denim grew up, found its own voice, and how ‘Made in India’ stopped being a label on a box and started becoming a matter of profound national pride.

1992: The Start

In 1992, in the humid, high-energy heart of Mumbai, we decided that “good enough” wasn’t enough. In those early days, and let me tell you, it wasn’t glamorous. We didn’t have a glass office or a fleet of designers. What we had was a deep technical obsession with fabric and a front-row seat to the Indian street.

The early days were defined by the smell of wet indigo and the relentless heat of the laundry. Back then, “washing” denim wasn’t a standardized industrial process in India; it was a gritty, trial-and-error art form. We were the “mad scientists” of denim. We were experimenting with stones, with temperatures, and with chemicals to see how we could break down the stiffness of the raw fabric without destroying its spirit.

I remember the first time we got a “distressed” wash right. Today, you buy ripped jeans at every corner. In 1992, if you had a hole in your jeans, your grandmother would try to stitch it up. We had to convince the market that a “wash” wasn’t a defect, it was a story. It was the “lived-in” feeling that symbolized the hustle of the Indian youth.

We didn’t have a massive marketing budget, so our product had to be our voice. We had to be faster than the global giants. We had to be edgier. We weren’t just selling clothes; we were selling a feeling of “belonging.”

Redefining ‘Made in India’ (Before it was Cool)

Today, “Make in India” is a powerful national roar, a point of immense collective pride. We were the silent pioneers who proved that Indian craftsmanship wasn’t limited to heritage handlooms or intricate embroidery; it could be applied to the high-stakes, precision-engineering of global-standard denim.

From day one, we knew that if we wanted to build a serious brand, it had to be rooted in India. Not just manufactured here, but thought through here. Indian men and women are not one-size-fits-all. We are a diverse nation of body types, movements, and habits. We bend, we stretch, we squat, we ride bikes, we dance at weddings, we work twelve-hour shifts, and we still expect our jeans to look sharp by evening. Our approach was simple: Listen first, design later.

We spent thousands of hours on the shop floors. We watched how people tried on jeans. We watched where they felt uncomfortable, where the fabric pinched, and where they finally smiled in the mirror and said, “Yeh fit sahi hai.” That sentence, that small moment of satisfaction, mattered more to us than any fashion award.

This is what redefining ‘Made in India’ really means. It means empathy before aesthetics. It means engineering a garment that respects the wearer’s life. We have always been “Make in India.” We didn’t wait for a campaign to start; we started because we believed that Indian hands could create world-class products.

Fabric Is Not Just Fabric

Denim is science, craft, and a whole lot of patience. Indian weather alone demands a completely different technical approach. Our summers are brutal. Our monsoons are unpredictable. Our winters vary from the dry chill of Delhi to the mild breeze of Bangalore. You cannot sell the same heavy-ounce denim in the humidity of Chennai that you sell in London.

So, fabric selection became our obsession. We didn’t just buy what was available in the market; we worked with mills to create what was needed. We developed lighter denims that didn’t lose their rugged structure. We experimented with blends that breathe, ensuring that a young professional could wear his Spykars to the office and then straight into a night out without feeling like he was wearing armor.

Because we owned our specialized washing units and processing plants, we treated the laundry like a laboratory. We experimented with textures and shades that mirrored the grit and glory of the Indian landscape. We ensured that every pair of Spykar jeans had a “hand-feel” and a structural integrity that rivaled the finest premium labels in London or New York.

Fit Is a Conversation, Not a Formula

One of the biggest mistakes global brands make when they enter India is assuming fit is universal. It’s not. A “Slim Fit” in Paris is not a “Slim Fit” in Ludhiana.

Indian bodies are different because Indian lifestyles are different. Our posture, our movement, our eating habits, everything plays a role. At Spykar, fit became a constant conversation between us and our customers.

Loose, Super Skinny, Slim, Regular, these are not just names on a tag. They are solutions to real problems.

We didn’t want people to squeeze themselves into trends that didn’t suit them just to feel “cool.” We wanted the trends to adjust to the people. We looked at the way a biker in Pune sits on his machine, how the back-rise of the jeans needs to be just a little higher so it doesn’t slip. We looked at the college student in Kolkata who spends his day walking through a crowded, humid campus, how he needs a bit more room in the thigh but a sharp taper at the ankle.

That mindset helped us build long-term trust. In the world of fashion, “loyalty” is hard to come by. But when someone finds a fit that finally respects their body, they don’t just buy once. They become a part of the family. They come back. Again and again.

Sustainability: Responsibility as Common Sense

For us, sustainability was never a marketing trend or a “green-washing” exercise. It was common sense. We’ve been focusing on it for over 15 years because we believe denim needs responsibility.

The old way of making denim was incredibly wasteful, thousands of liters of water for a single pair. I’m particularly proud of how we’ve managed our water usage. We use ozone and laser technologies instead of harsh chemicals to achieve those iconic distressed looks. This doesn’t just protect the environment; it protects our workers from harmful fiber inhalation. A big part of our energy now comes from solar power.

We follow these global ethical standards because people matter as much as products. Honestly, good denim itself is inherently sustainable. It’s not meant to be thrown away after three wears. It lasts longer, it needs fewer washes, and it stays relevant for years.

From Import-Led to Innovation-Led

For a long time, Indian fashion looked outside for validation. We were told that if it worked in Milan or Paris, it must be good for us. That era of insecurity is over.

Today, Indian denim brands are not following trends; we are setting them. We innovate in washes, silhouettes, finishes, and styling that match how Indians actually live.

Take the rise of “denim-on-denim” or the way we’ve integrated stretch into every category. These didn’t come from copying foreign lookbooks. They came from watching our customers. We saw the need for versatility.

Earlier, jeans were “weekend wear.” Today, denim is the uniform of the new India. It’s in the boardroom, it’s at the airport, it’s at the music festival, and yes, it’s even styled for weddings. The rise of the Indian denim brand has gone hand in hand with the rise of denim as a total lifestyle category. We are no longer just selling jeans; we are selling the confidence to navigate a multi-faceted life.

‘Daur Apna Hai’ Is Not a Line. It’s a Fact.

When we say Daur Apna Hai, we’re not shouting. We’re stating a fact. This is the time of Indian brands. Indian creators. Indian confidence. Young India doesn’t wait for approval anymore. It experiments. It questions. It builds. Spykar’s journey is deeply tied to this mindset. We grew with our audience. We learned from them. And we evolved with them.

That’s the beauty of being homegrown. You don’t have to pretend. You just have to listen.

Retail, Relationships, and the Small-Town Soul

At Spykar, we believe retail is a relationship, not a transaction. Our stores, partners, and teams are the heartbeat of this brand; denim may begin its journey at the factory, but it only truly comes alive on the sales floor through human connection.

We thrive on the feedback that bridges the gap between a flagship mall in Mumbai and a local shop in a town in Bihar. This ground-level honesty prevents us from becoming “ivory-tower” designers—it keeps us hungry and ensures we never lose touch with what a 19-year-old in a Tier-2 city actually dreams of wearing.

The Hands Behind the Brand This journey is fueled by our people—the true architects of our legacy. We are proud to have team members who have spent over 20 years with us, their passion is woven into every seam; they don’t just “work” for a brand, they have spent decades building an Indian icon with a level of dedication that no machine can replicate.

We still remember the days when an Indian denim brand was a rarity, fighting for the right to sit on the same shelf as legendary American labels. Because we honor those early struggles, we never stop innovating. We stay “small” in our heart—agile, listening, and always slightly rebellious.

The Future

The next phase of Indian denim is incredibly exciting. Technology is becoming more personal. Fit is becoming smarter. And storytelling is becoming more real.

Indian denim brands are uniquely positioned to lead this change because we understand scale and sensitivity at the same time. We know how to produce responsibly on a massive scale, and most importantly, we know our people.

If you ask me what redefining ‘Made in India’ denim really means, I’ll say this: it means building with honesty.

• Honest pricing that doesn’t exploit the consumer.
• Honest fits that respect the human form.
• Honest storytelling that reflects the real India.

Indian denim has arrived not because we tried to look global, but because we finally looked inward. We stopped trying to be someone else and started being the best version of ourselves.

As I look back on thirty years of Spykar, I don’t see a corporate history. I see a sea of blue, thousands of pairs of jeans worn by millions of Indians as they went out and changed their lives. Building Spykar has been the greatest hustle of my life. It’s been a journey of steam, sweat, indigo, and immense pride. And trust me, the road ahead is even more exciting.

Daur apna hai.

The headline finding is a geographic one: 55% of all maternity fashion orders now originate from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, with Jaipur, Indore, Coimbatore, and Nagpur emerging as the fastest-growing markets. The maternity category, long assumed to be a metro-driven segment, is being reshaped by aspirational, working women in smaller cities who are investing more intentionally in their pregnancy wardrobe than ever before.

Yet the same report surfaces a harder truth: the women driving this retail revolution are, in many cases, navigating pregnancy and postpartum recovery with little to no support, revealing a sharp and uncomfortable gap between India’s growing maternity economy and the maternal health infrastructure that serves it.

Hina Priyadarshini, Co-Founder, House of Zelena, said, “What this report tells us is that India’s maternity market is maturing in two very different directions at once. On one hand, we are seeing women from Jaipur to Nagpur making deliberate, informed choices about what they wear during pregnancy, investing in comfort, quality, and longevity. On the other, the same women are stepping into postpartum with almost no structured support around them. At House of Zelena, we believe these two things are deeply connected, and that a brand serving mothers has a responsibility to address both.”

Tier 2 India Is Rewriting the Maternity Fashion Map

The geographic shift in demand is one of the most significant findings in the report. 55% of orders now come from outside India’s major metros, with Jaipur, Indore, Coimbatore, and Nagpur leading non-metro demand. This rise signals a broader shift in purchasing power and aspiration, consumers in these cities are engaging with specialised, premium maternity categories that were, until recently, largely inaccessible or unaffordable for them.

The typical Tier 2 maternity shopper today is 31 years old, financially independent, and shopping in her second or third trimester. 72% are first-time mothers, women who are approaching pregnancy as a lifestyle moment worth investing in, not just a phase to get through.

What She’s Buying, and Why It’s Changing

The report reveals a consumer who is functional-first but increasingly fashion-conscious. The top five categories in demand are innerwear, dresses, tops, bottoms, and nursing covers, with workwear emerging as a fast-growing segment driven by women continuing into their professional roles well into their third trimester.

Fabric choices are becoming more deliberate and health-led. Sustainable cotton and modal are the materials of choice, with women actively avoiding polyester and chemically-treated synthetics. This is part of a wider global shift, even international brands are responding to this demand, moving toward natural, skin-safe fabrics as the default.

Multi-stage clothing, pieces that transition seamlessly from pregnancy into the postpartum period, is also seeing strong adoption, reflecting a more conscious approach to consumption where women prioritise value, longevity, and practicality over volume.

Behind the Purchase Data, a Postpartum Health Crisis

The report’s health findings are where the picture becomes significantly more complex. Despite the growth in maternity fashion and the rise of the confident, investing mother, the postpartum experience for most Indian women remains marked by isolation, anxiety, and a near-total absence of support.

House of Zelena’s position, sitting at the intersection of maternity fashion, community, and maternal health, gives it a rare and credible vantage point from which to surface findings like these, and a genuine stake in what happens next.

For brands, healthcare providers, and policymakers, the message is clear: India’s maternity market is no longer niche, no longer metro-only, and no longer just a fashion story. It is a health and wellness story, and one that demands a much more complete response.

House of Zelena is a community-led D2C maternity and women’s comfortwear brand focused on pregnancy, postpartum recovery, and the evolving needs of women through motherhood. Through product innovation and its wellness platform ZelenaCare, the brand supports mothers with both comfort and community-driven care.