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Swarnamahal Jewellers Ltd., has conceived strategy to become a brand of promise in purity and value locally and globally. The new strategy is to ensure proper positioning, build a brand culture in the jewellery market and also strengthen its prospects in international markets.

Spearheading the new initiative is the Company's newly appointed Director Sales and Marketing Hafeez Rajudin who has over 20 years experience in brand building and marketing locally and internationally.

A Chartered Marketer, Hafeez said that the vision of Swarnamahal Managing Director Jeevaka Edirisinghe, has already taken several steps towards brand building in tandem with planned expansion.

Though the jewellery industry in Sri Lanka has been in existence for a long period not many had focused on branding or brand marketing. "At Swarnamahal we will not limit ourselves". "We will position the Swarnamahal brand as a promise and thereby build trust and loyalty,"

"Swarnamahal will live up to jewellery customer expectation of purity and validity of the gold at 24 carat. The brand will be supported by after sales service. Customers will also have further value as needed. Swarnamahal will provide pawning services at attractive rates of interest through our branch network," he said.

The Company is increasing its focus on manufacturing customised or personalised jewellery as part of the brand building initiative. Each of the 14 Swarnamahal branches is having a full-time designer to enable customers to express their innovative ideas. Each branch is also manned by trained staff capable of varied jewellery design. As part of the business expansion strategy, Swarnamahal plans to set up a minimum of three more branches next year.

The Company sees the jewellery market growing as improved and changing lifestyles are generating new customer segments with different needs. Swarnamahal also sees early signs of the market shifting to being brand conscious. In that context the Company's strategy is timely, he said.

Another initiative in the brand building process is the setting up of a product designing and development division, whose main objective is to create innovative designs, introduce limited editions and add value to Swarnamahal jewellery.

"We guarantee purity and quality. We are also striving to differentiate ourselves from the rest in the industry in terms of design and range," Hafeez said. Last year the Company put out over 100 new designs.

Swarnamahal is also investing in new machinery from Singapore to improve its manufacturing process.

Tapping prospects in export markets, Swarnamahal has already drawn up plans. "Initially we will look at the South Asian markets, probably Maldives first and also Singapore which is a major shopping hub," said Rajudin who had expanded the Marlboro brand to become number one in the Maldives while he was also the Regional Manager for the global brand in South Asia.

Swarnamahal jewellers under their subsidiary company EAP Expo is the largest exporter of ready-made jewellery in Sri Lanka to the United States, Rajudin said.

STONE 'N' STRING

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