N0ew Delhi, Dec 1 (IANSlife) Experimental handcrafted silver jewelry brand, TRIBE Amrapali, has a loyal and exponentially growing fan club. With innovative designs that are modern, affordable and fashionable, the baubles made out of silver, gold-plated silver and fashion jewelry are a winter essential this season. Inspired by the cultural and artistic Indian roots, the accessories can be worn with both ethnic outfits but look absolutely glamorous when teamed with a pair of jeans and a white shirt.
IANSlife spoke with Creative Director and CEO, Amrapali Jewels, Tarang Arora, to get more information on how a young brand has quickly captured a slice of the market. Tarang joined the Amrapali group of companies in 2004 and today, heads the International Operations and Design team. He was instrumental in getting Amrapali to Harrods and Selfridges, amongst other world-leading department stores.
Read on to get the details.
Despite its huge popularity, tribal and experimental jewelry was never a high street option,; do you think Tribe Amrapali saw the gap and has the first-mover advantage?
Arora: Possibly. Because there has always been more than adequate knowledge and immense fondness amongst people for silver jewelry. My wife, Akanksha started Tribe knowing that this interest exists, however, there weren't many brands that could translate it into contemporary pieces.
Tribe Amrapali jewelry has the traditional silver setting with a very modern make - which makes it every-day wear yet statement-y for evenings out. And we take pride in creating our own niche consumer base in the industry for tribal jewelry.
You have tied up with designers like Manish Arora and Masaba in the past, how much does designer collaboration help in propelling originality and exclusivity?
Arora: More than exclusivity, the idea was to collaborate with creative geniuses like Manish and Masaba who are naturally inclined to jewellery, as they are to clothes. Our consumer base constitutes of people that follow, engage with and appreciate the play of different sensibilities.
Talking about the collaboration - Manish Arora was able to envision the outstanding motifs and introduce ultra-vibrant hues for the exclusive collection whereas Masaba brought in her love for quirk through making every piece spectacular with its own story.
What are your expansion plans for the future?
Arora: We have opened our second store in Kolkata, two months ago, we are planning to grow and expand our presence online as well as offline, we are trying to cater a bigger market by increasing geographical presence. We have five standalone stores and two stores-in-store across India. We are looking at expanding aggressively into tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
In terms of e-commerce do you think boutique brands like yours are getting a lot of traffic and conversions from tier 2 and tier 3 cities?
Arora: Yes, definitely we are getting a lot of traffic from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, they are becoming as important, if not more, as Tier 1 cities. They have a lot of potential and aspirational value, they want to try experienced brands and e-commerce gives them the access that was missing before. In terms of the number of orders it's 35 percent and in terms of value it is 39 percent of sales.
Drama or usability, when it comes to jewelry which does you feel is more important?
Arora: I would say both! In addition to our striking designs, the utility is the baseline to every creation of Tribe Amrapali. You would be surprised to learn that our larger, elaborate pieces end up selling as well, if not more, as the simple, everyday ones. And with this price point and easy maintenance, we have been able to make a place in the picks of both the categories.
--IANS
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