Indians’ fascination with gold remains undiminished, but soaring prices of the precious metal over the past several quarters have pushed consumers to adopt smarter purchasing strategies that reduce costs while retaining the appeal and weight of jewellery. Increasingly, buyers are opting to recycle or exchange old gold stored in households instead of making entirely fresh purchases. Every time old jewellery is exchanged with a retailer, the gold gets recycled and reused, effectively lowering the need for fresh imports, reported TOI.
India’s gold imports rose sharply in value from $58 billion in FY25 to $72 billion in FY26, according to government data. At P. N. Gadgil Jewellers, the share of gold exchange and recycling, which stood at around 25-30% until FY25, has jumped to nearly 50-60% in recent quarters, said COO & CFO Aditya Modak. In such transactions, the old gold is adjusted as credit against new purchases, while the remaining amount is paid in cash, reported TOI.
The volume of fresh gold purchases has declined by nearly 30% in gram terms in recent quarters, said Modak. “This shift indicates that rising gold prices and ongoing volatility have prompted consumers to increasingly opt for recycling and upcycling existing gold jewellery instead of purchasing entirely new pieces,” Modak told TOI.
Titan Company, through its jewellery brand Tanishq, has also been actively promoting gold exchanges. The company said exchange programmes helped record a 35% growth in both gold and studded jewellery portfolios alongside new collections. “Over 30 lakh Indians have partaken of Tanishq's gold exchange programmes for years, recycling close to 1.7 lakh kg of gold,” the brand had said in a note last year, highlighting that recycling is not a new trend among consumers. However, the share of exchanges has risen significantly in recent times due to volatile gold prices.
“Industry wide, there has been a significant increase in gold recycling,” said Saumen Bhaumik, MD at CaratLane, adding that gold exchanges at the company rose 15-20% above normal levels during the March quarter.
Industry executives believe consumers may further alter their buying behaviour following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to avoid non-essential gold purchases for a year. Bhaumik expects buyers to shift towards lower gold caratage jewellery and increasingly choose silver and lightweight diamond jewellery for regular use. “The brand might have to revise its medium to long-term forecast after assessing the impact over next few weeks,” said Modak.
At BlueStone, gold exchanges have doubled year-on-year, with the company offering additional benefits to consumers opting for exchanges, said founder and CEO Gaurav Singh Kushwaha. Many consumers now view old jewellery not merely as stored wealth but as an asset that can be redesigned into more modern and wearable pieces, said Ankur Daga, co-founder at Angara.
