Published: 17 Aug 2017
The millennial way of buying gold
Millennials, the group of individuals born between 1980-2000 , have witnessed rapid changes in technology and economy first hand. Their consumer behavior, expectations, and demands, have thus been different from previous generations, and many companies have had to evolve their business strategies to keep up. It comes as no surprise their ideas and tastes too are very different from those of their parents.
This reflects in the way they buy gold as well.
Evolving tastes
When it comes to money, millennials are not bound to traditional avenues of spending and investing. Today, there are more luxury and fashion products that have caught the eyes of this generation than were ever available for their parents. From high-end jewellery to designer clothes, sports cars, watches, and smartphones- they have so many things that demand their attention When offered Rs 50,000 for a discretionary purchase, 42% of consumers over the age of 34 in urban India said they would buy gold jewellery. This dropped to 33% for millennials aged between 18–33. This suggests that the younger generation of potential consumers have temptations other than gold to consider.
Lower price points instead of auspicious dates
Where religious festivals and certain auspicious dates, such as Akshaya Tritiya and Dhanteras were earlier considered important days to buy gold, the savvy new generation prefers lower price points as the best time to buy gold. Instead of waiting for special occasions to buy gold, they prefer to buy it whenever prices go down.
Creation of sub-brands
With the change in demand patterns, major jewellery brands have started to bring out sub-brands which cater to the specific needs of particular consumer groups. For example, a lot of jewellery brands have now come up sub-brands that use lightweight and minimalistic designs to attract young working women.
Related: A working woman’s guide to investing in gold
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Alternative markets
Millennials are always looking for something new and ‘different’. And the market is striving to meet their demands. For instance, online companies have opened up the market for young shoppers (particularly young women between the ages of 25 to 35) who are ready to experiment with designs and styles. Similarly, traditional brick-and-mortar jewellery stores are creating online platforms to cater to the new market.
Long-term stability
Despite the evolution in demand patterns, experts believe that the demand for gold will remain strong among millennials in the long run. This is because the idea of gold ownership is rooted strongly in the Indian psyche as one of the strongest investment portfolios for thousands of years.
In addition to this, the per capita GDP of India is expected to increase by 35% by 2020, as per a report by the World Gold Council . This means that the income levels of the Indian middle class (which is set to become the largest in the world by 2030) would support the demand for gold in the coming years.
Related: Buying Gold—It’s Time To Embrace Modern Options
The bottom line
Millennials do things differently. It is their one defining feature. The same thing applies to gold. They are looking at new and different ways of buying and investing in gold. On their part, sellers have had to naturally change their strategies to cater to the demands of the millennials, and not the other way around.
