Akshaya Tritiya: Price hike redefines Lucknow’s love for the yellow metal

With soaring gold prices, Lucknowites are transforming old jewellery into modern designs, opting for lower-carat gold. This sustainable approach maximizes value

With gold rates soaring each day, Lucknowites are finding a way out by revamping and recycling old or vintage jewellery, and opting for lower-carat versions of the pricey alloy.

Price hike redefines Lucknow’s buying this Akshaya Tritiya (Photo:Deepak Gupta/HT)

Revamping the new normal

Jewellery and aesthetics designer Vibha Suran says, “Be it festivals like Akshaya Tritiya or weddings, the tide has changed. Consumers are opting for a lower-carat version of gold, revamping their old designs, or even trading old items for new designs rather than buying new at high premiums.”

Twist the vintage

People are turning old or broken pieces into new, modern, and customised designs, ensuring the gold stays within the family while getting a fresh, wearable look. “Consumers are exchanging old jewellery,” Suran adds.

Maximising value

Ankur Anand, owner of Harsahaimal Shiamalal Jewellers (HSJ), Gomti Nagar, says, “With prices of 24 carat touching ₹1,54,000 and 22 carat not far behind, such trends are popular as they reduce making charges to an extent and maximise the value of existing gold, saving costs during times of intense price volatility. People have swiftly shifted to 14 and 18 carat, and it was expected. We are making these available in the best of designs, keeping up with the demand.”

Balancing the value

Revamping is seen as a sustainable choice that preserves sentimental value. Riva Vinod Senapathi, a bride-to-be and a teacher at a private school, states, “With prices making holes in our purses, my family and I have opted for adding a bit of craftsmanship to our older pieces, which obviously have higher purity than modern alternatives. But we still have to purchase a few items, and thankfully for that, we had the 18-carat option, especially for regular jewellery like a gold chain and rings.”

Strategic buying for Akshaya Tritiya

Another seller, Vinayak Rastogi of BD Jewellers, Alambagh, shares that this is still a good time to invest in gold in any version. “Just buying gold can be the focus; the version doesn’t really matter, as with the kind of volatile market we are witnessing, no one can assure that the prices won’t go further up. What better occasion than Akshay Tritiya to make that investment?”