Artificial jewellery shines on Eid

With ever-increasing gold prices, gold jewellery has gone out of the reach of most people. In such situation, artificial jewellery is one of the must-buy items when women go shopping for Eid. Since it is cheap, women can afford artificial jewellery despite the neck-breaking inflation in the country.

The most popular areas for artificial jewellery shopping include Hyderi Market, Tariq Road, Bahadurabad, Jama Market, Liaquatabad, PIB, Saddar, Bohri Bazaar, Bolton Market, Gulistan-e-Johar, Shaheed-e-Millat Road, Metro Mall, Gulf Centre, Karimabad, Dolmen Mall and Hyper Star. Women say that changing the design of gold jewellery is difficult. "Nowadays, more than 90 per cent women wear artificial jewellery on Eid, weddings, and other events," one woman told The Express Tribune.

"The best thing about artificial jewellery is that we can have it matching with dresses for different events," she added. Shopkeepers and traders say that artificial jewellery is 20-30 per cent dearer than last year. This year the variety of artificial jewellery is limited because the government has banned imports of several items due to the dollars shortage in the country. Last year earrings from China and India were popular among women, but they have simply disappeared from the market this year. In summer, women prefer light tops, pendants, bracelets, and rings instead of heavy jewellery because they have to prepare meals for their families even on Eid day. On the other hand young girls try to buy the jewellery designs they find on social media.

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic in 2020 had triggered a trend among women to shop for artificial jewellery online. This also led to more and more middle-class women entrepreneurs joining this online business and now we see a large number of ecommerce websites doing roaring business, getting orders not only from Pakistan but also from abroad. Such women are not only financially independent but also employ other women. "Quality artificial jewellery made in modern designs is becoming expensive day by day," said Sana, a woman shopper on Tariq Road.

"In such a situation, it is unimaginable to buy even artificial jewellery manufactured by top brands," she added. Working women prefer to buy foreign artificial jewellery. "There is no point in buying heavy and expensive artificial jewellery on occasions like Eid because these ornaments cannot be worn afterwards," Aliya, a working woman, told The Express Tribune. "Light and sophisticated artificial jewellery, such as pendants and rings, can be also worn in daily life," she added.

According to shopkeepers, women from middle and lower middle classes prefer to buy light jewellery in the range of Rs1,500-2,000 due to the rising inflation. Such jewellery is not only attractive but also affordable. President of Bolton Market Artificial Jewellery Association, Anwar Mamo, said that there is an increasing trend among women to buy jewellery matching with their dresses. "Because of this, jewellery with zircon gemstones has become popular," he said. "Zircon jewellery can cost you from a few hundreds to thousands. The imported zircon jewellery is very expensive," he added. "The best thing about zircon jewellery is that the gems never come off and if it becomes dirty or dusty, it could easily be polished again," he said.

Apart from main market, temporary stalls of artificial jewellery have been set up in different bazaars and markets of the city. Prices of jewellery at these stalls are reasonable compared to shops.