How this jewellery brand skips ads and still grows fast

New Delhi: Walk into a De Beers, Hazoorilal, DP Jewellers or a leading family-owned jewellery store anywhere in India, and chances are that the coloured diamond catching a customer’s eye did not originate with the retailer itself.

Behind many of these display cases sits Anan Jewels, a largely invisible B2B manufacturer that supplies natural coloured diamond jewellery to some of the country’s most recognisable jewellery brands, while deliberately staying out of public view.

In an era where brands are aggressively adopting AI-led marketing, influencer-driven storytelling and always-on digital campaigns, Anan Jewels operates with a playbook that feels almost vintage. The company does not advertise on television, does not run mass digital campaigns, and does not maintain a consumer-facing brand identity.

Instead, it relies on word of mouth, door-to-door relationship building and physical presence in markets, spending an estimated Rs 2.5-3.5 crore annually on travel-led marketing and partner engagement.

Yet, over the past eight years, its India business has scaled from a single-digit annual turnover to a three-digit crore operation, according to Ankita Kothari, Managing Director of Anan Jewels India, without deviating from its deeply traditional approach to building trust and demand.

The company operates in a niche segment that is becoming increasingly visible. Natural coloured diamonds, spanning pinks, yellows, blues and greens. These stones have their colour derived from nature, not treatment.

Anan Jewels operates offices across Thailand, India, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and the United States, employing nearly 600 people globally.

A B2B-only play by design

Despite its scale, Anan has remained firmly B2B. The company supplies jewellery to retailers rather than selling directly to consumers, a choice Kothari described as structural rather than tactical.

“A consumer-facing showroom cannot survive on one product,” she said, adding that customers expect a wide assortment across categories when they walk into a retail store. “We don’t believe in being a jack of all trades,” she observed.

By focusing on a single category, Anan is able to scale distribution through its partners rather than tying capital into physical retail. Its jewellery typically retails in the Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh bracket, with designs positioned as wearable, non-repeatable pieces rather than occasion-only purchases.

“Every piece we make is non-repeatable. We don’t do multiples of the same design,” Kothari said, explaining that the intent is to cater to consumers looking for distinction rather than volume-driven designs.

She added that this approach resonates particularly with buyers who seek jewellery as an extension of their personal identity.

Human networks over mass media

At a time when marketers across categories are diversifying spends across digital, influencer-led and programmatic media, Anan’s marketing playbook remains notably traditional.

The company spends approximately Rs 20-30 lakh per month on travel and relationship-building, which Kothari said amounts to under five per cent of annual revenue.

Anan operates four regional teams across North, South, East and West India. Each trip, she noted, costs between Rs 5-8 lakh per person, reflecting the company’s reliance on physical presence rather than media amplification.

“Jewellery is built on trust, and trust comes from human interaction, not websites or Instagram,” Kothari said, emphasising that relationships, not reach, drive business outcomes in this category.

The company currently works actively with around 100-105 retail partners every month. Its services extend beyond supply, covering display planning, lighting guidance and in-store training.

Coloured diamonds are typically given a dedicated section within partner showrooms.

“We don’t just supply products. We guide how colour diamonds should be displayed and sold,” she said, pointing out that differentiation at the point of sale is critical for conversion.

Exclusivity as strategy

Anan’s avoidance of mass media is intentional. Kothari believes visibility can dilute aspiration in a category built on rarity and controlled access.

“These channels work for mass products, not rare art,” she said, arguing that high-value jewellery purchases are driven by assurance and credibility rather than impulse. “A woman spending Rs 5-10 lakh doesn’t buy jewellery from Instagram,” she noted.

The company does maintain an app, but access is restricted to 50-60 selected partners. Designs are tightly controlled, and Anan does not sell the same design to multiple partners within the same market, a safeguard aimed at preventing internal competition and copying.

“Exclusivity is the foundation,” Kothari said, explaining that geographic protection is essential to sustaining long-term partner trust and pricing integrity.

Growth without public branding

Financially, Anan’s India business has expanded steadily. Kothari said the company has grown from a single-digit annual turnover to a triple-digit crore turnover over the past eight years. Marketing expenditure has remained stable at around five per cent annually, even as revenues have scaled.

She estimates the Indian coloured diamond jewellery market at around Rs 1,000 crore today, projecting it could reach Rs 5,000 crore within three years, driven by changing consumer behaviour.

“India today wants to spend and invest,” Kothari said, noting that jewellery is increasingly being purchased for personal milestones rather than being limited to weddings and festivals.

A different equation across markets

Internationally, Anan’s positioning shifts sharply. In Dubai, for instance, its lowest-priced pieces start at Rs 40-50 lakh, catering to private clients, royalty and ultra-high-net-worth buyers.

“It’s a completely different market,” Kothari said, explaining that purchasing motivations and customer expectations differ significantly outside India. India, by contrast, is seen as a volume-and-scale market, where education and trust play a larger role, particularly amid the rise of lab-grown diamonds and treated stones.

“Transparency, sourcing and certification are our biggest marketing tools,” she stated, adding that education is conducted selectively through trained retail partners.

Staying invisible, by choice

Despite its scale, Anan has resisted the temptation to launch a consumer-facing brand, even as other manufacturers move up the value chain. Kothari said doing so would risk undercutting existing partners and disrupting long-standing relationships.

“If I open a store in a market where my partners already exist, I undercut them on price,” she said, explaining why the company has chosen restraint over expansion.

That said, Kothari was careful not to frame the decision as ideological or irreversible.

“Never say never,” she said, noting that while the possibility cannot be ruled out entirely, it is not part of the company’s current thinking or priorities.