Craftier Revolutionizes Diamond Industry with Lab-Grown Sustainable Luxury

India's $50 billion jewelry industry stands at a fascinating crossroads. For decades, the market has been dominated by traditional family jewelers and large corporate brands, with transparency issues and lack of consumer trust plaguing the sector. But a quiet revolution is underway, led by visionary entrepreneurs who see the future in lab-grown diamonds and sustainable luxury.

Enter Achel Gupta, founder of Craftier, a first-generation entrepreneur who's spent nearly two decades mastering the jewelry industry's intricacies. From starting his first venture Rivera Diamonds in 2007 to partnering with major brands like BlueStone, Tanishq, and MMTC, Gupta has witnessed the industry's evolution from every angle. Now, with Craftier, he's betting big on lab-grown diamonds and a revolutionary franchise model that could democratize luxury retail in India.

This isn't just another jewelry success story – it's a blueprint for transforming one of India's oldest industries through transparency, technology, and sustainable innovation.

The Problem: Transparency Crisis in Diamond Industry

The diamond and jewelry industry has long suffered from a fundamental trust deficit. When Gupta entered the industry in 2007, he discovered that transparency wasn't just missing – it was actively avoided by many players.

"This transparency was not there and especially in gold most of the jewelers used to sell substandard products," Gupta reveals. "They used to charge for 22 carats and giving them 20 carats or 18 karat or even lesser than that also."

This lack of transparency created several systemic problems:

• Quality Deception: Consumers paying for pure gold but receiving lower purity
• Price Opacity: No standardized pricing for diamonds and jewelry
• Limited Resale Options: Unlike gold, diamonds lack established resale markets
• Knowledge Gap: Consumers unable to verify authenticity and value

The Gold vs. Diamond Disconnect

One of the industry's fundamental problems lies in how consumers perceive diamonds versus gold. While gold functions as a commodity with established trading platforms and transparent pricing, diamonds operate in an entirely different paradigm.

"Gold is a commodity which you can trade on any platform. It's like an international currency," Gupta explains. "Diamonds are not. It's a pure luxury product, a way of achieving your aspirations."

This disconnect creates confusion among consumers who expect diamonds to function like investments when they're primarily luxury purchases. As Gupta points out, "Diamonds never have that transparency since it's been marketed in the industry. It's a stone that's being driven by demand and supply."

The Natural Diamond Environmental Cost

Beyond transparency issues, traditional diamond mining carries significant environmental and social costs. The process involves extracting diamonds from deep within the earth through mining operations that:

• Cause extensive land pollution and environmental damage
• Threaten miner safety in often dangerous working conditions
• Require massive energy expenditure for extraction and processing
• Have been associated with conflict zones ("blood diamonds")

These environmental concerns, combined with changing consumer preferences toward sustainability, created a perfect opportunity for disruption in the diamond industry.

The Solution: Lab-Grown Diamonds and Sustainable Luxury

Craftier's approach to solving these industry challenges centers on two revolutionary concepts: lab-grown diamonds and a reimagined retail experience that prioritizes transparency and sustainability.

The Science Behind Lab-Grown Diamonds

The technology behind lab-grown diamonds represents one of the most significant innovations in jewelry history. Using a process called Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), scientists can create diamonds that are chemically, physically, and optically identical to mined diamonds.

"Only difference between these two products is the origin," Gupta explains. "The same process follows inside the laboratory in a closed chamber where you put an original diamond seed and the same sort of gases, heat and pressure accumulates on that particular seed for a couple of weeks."

The Price Revolution

Perhaps the most compelling aspect of lab-grown diamonds is their pricing advantage. Craftier offers diamonds that are 50-90% less expensive than their mined counterparts while maintaining identical quality and appearance.

"It's not about that if it is lesser in price it doesn't mean that it's a fake diamond. This is also real diamond," Gupta emphasizes. "The costing of mining is not there. You're making this product inside a laboratory rather than mining it from the earth core."

Building Craftier: Four Pillars of Innovation

Gupta's vision for Craftier rests on four strategic pillars that differentiate it from traditional jewelry retailers:

• Lifestyle Focus: Beyond diamonds, offering a complete luxury lifestyle experience
• Luxury Accessibility: Making luxury products more affordable through technology
• Sustainability: Prioritizing environmentally conscious products and practices
• Affordability: Breaking the traditional link between luxury and exclusivity

"We really want to come into this segment of affordability," Gupta states. "When we talk about luxury and lifestyle with affordability, it becomes a new segment. It opens new doors for us."

Implementation: The Omni-Channel Revolution

While many new jewelry brands focus exclusively on online sales, Gupta has taken a contrarian approach. His experience with brands like BlueStone taught him valuable lessons about jewelry retail's unique requirements.

The Digital-Physical Balance

Craftier operates on a sophisticated omni-channel model that leverages both online and offline touchpoints. This approach recognizes that while consumers research jewelry extensively online, the purchase decision often requires physical interaction.

The omni-channel strategy works in several stages:

1. Digital Discovery: Customers browse designs and learn about products online
2. Education Phase: Understanding diamond quality, certifications, and pricing
3. Physical Experience: Visiting boutiques to touch, feel, and try products
4. Purchase Decision: Making informed choices with expert guidance
5. After-Sales Service: Access to physical locations for maintenance and buyback

Why Instagram-Only Jewelry Brands Fail

Gupta is particularly critical of the trend toward Instagram-only jewelry brands that attempt to sell luxury products without physical infrastructure. He identifies several fundamental flaws in this approach:

"End of the day if you're not opening these stores, you're not giving that personal experience to the clients. You don't have those expenses. So what these people try to do is they try to disturb the market by giving much lesser prices," Gupta observes.

However, this approach fails in the long term because:

• Trust Issues: Consumers question product authenticity without physical verification
• Service Limitations: No after-sales support or maintenance services
• Buyback Concerns: Customers worry about future resale options
• Brand Permanence: Digital-only brands can disappear overnight

"In jewelry this thing will not work for the long term because when it comes to buying the product, customer needs that physical attention, physical service, physical store," Gupta insists.

Rapid Expansion Strategy

Despite launching only 8 months ago, Craftier has already established a significant physical presence with three retail boutiques in strategic locations:

• Hisar: Tapping into tier-2 city demand
• Gurugram: Capturing affluent NCR consumers
• Noida: Serving the Delhi-NCR market

Additionally, the brand maintains a robust online presence through craftier.in, creating a comprehensive omni-channel ecosystem that serves diverse customer preferences.

Revolutionary Franchise Model: Equity Partnership

Perhaps Craftier's most innovative aspect is its approach to franchising. Having experienced the pitfalls of traditional franchise models firsthand, Gupta has developed a revolutionary system that aligns long-term interests between the brand and its partners.

The Traditional Franchise Problem

Gupta identifies a critical flaw in conventional franchise arrangements: "After 5-10 years down the line, that franchisee is alone standing and then he needs to start his journey again from the scratch."

Traditional franchises suffer from several issues:

• Time Investment Mismatch: Partners invest years building brands they don't own
• Brand Disassociation Risk: Successful brands often drop franchise partners once established
• Unequal Value Distribution: Partners bear local risks without sharing in brand equity growth

The Equity Solution

Craftier's solution is inspired by employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) but adapted for franchise partnerships. Instead of traditional franchise relationships, Gupta offers equity partnerships where business partners receive shares in the main company.

"We offer certain equity, certain shares in the main company where you can stand along with the brand as a business partner in long term," Gupta explains. "Once we create that company at that level, that particular day that franchisee partner will also feel that yes, I had created something with this company."

This approach transforms the franchise dynamic from transactional to transformational, creating genuine partners who share in the brand's success rather than temporary operators.

Market Impact and Future Vision

Craftier's launch comes at a pivotal moment for India's jewelry industry. The market is experiencing significant shifts driven by changing consumer preferences, environmental awareness, and technological advancement.

The Generational Shift

Younger consumers, particularly Gen Z and millennials, approach jewelry purchases differently from previous generations. Gupta identifies key changes in consumer behavior:

• Demand for Transparency: Clear pricing and certification requirements
• Sustainability Focus: Preference for environmentally conscious products
• Digital Research: Extensive online investigation before purchase
• Experience Value: Willingness to pay more for better service and experience

"Nowadays the new generation, the new Gen Zs and the new buyers in the industry, they are really looking for transparency. They are really looking for in-store experiences. They are looking for designs. They are looking for unique products," Gupta observes.

The Sustainable Luxury Market Opportunity

Craftier is positioned at the intersection of several massive market trends:

• Growing Luxury Market: India's affluent consumer base is expanding rapidly
• Sustainability Movement: Environmental consciousness driving purchasing decisions
• Technology Adoption: Acceptance of lab-grown products as genuine alternatives
• Experience Economy: Consumers valuing experiences over mere products

The brand's focus on sustainable luxury represents a new category that combines premium quality with environmental responsibility and accessibility – a combination that Gupta believes will define the future of the industry.

Expansion Roadmap

Looking ahead, Craftier has ambitious plans for growth and product expansion:

1. Retail Network: Expanding boutique presence across tier-1 and tier-2 cities
2. Product Diversification: Adding more lifestyle products beyond diamonds
3. Technology Integration: Enhanced digital experiences and virtual try-ons
4. International Markets: Taking the sustainable luxury concept global

"In future we'll be coming up with many more other sort of SKUs also apart of diamonds and jewelry which will be falling under the category of sustainability, affordability and lifestyle," Gupta reveals.

Key Takeaways: Entrepreneurial Wisdom from the Diamond Industry

Achel Gupta's journey offers valuable lessons for entrepreneurs looking to disrupt traditional industries. Here are the key insights from his experience:

1. Master the Industry Before Disrupting It

The Insight: Successful disruption requires deep industry knowledge.

The Reality: Gupta spent 17 years learning every aspect of the jewelry business before launching Craftier.

Your Action: Don't rush into entrepreneurship without understanding industry fundamentals. Work within the system first, then innovate.

2. Transparency Is the Ultimate Competitive Advantage

The Insight: In opaque industries, transparency becomes a powerful differentiator.

The Reality: Craftier's success stems from addressing the industry's trust deficit head-on.

Your Action: Identify transparency gaps in your industry and build your business model around solving them.

3. Balance Technology with Human Touch

The Insight: Digital-first doesn't mean digital-only.

The Reality: Luxury purchases still require physical interaction and personal service.

Your Action: Design omni-channel experiences that leverage both digital efficiency and human connection.

4. Create Aligned Incentives

The Insight: Traditional franchise models create misaligned incentives.

The Reality: Equity partnerships ensure long-term alignment between brand and partners.

Your Action: Reconsider standard business models. Can you create more aligned stakeholder relationships?

5. Timing and Market Readiness Matter

The Insight: Innovation must be preceded by market education.

The Reality: Lab-grown diamonds are gaining acceptance now after years of market development.

Your Action: Assess market readiness for your innovation. Be prepared to educate as well as sell.

The Future of Sustainable Luxury

Craftier represents more than just a jewelry brand – it's a harbinger of a broader shift toward sustainable luxury consumption. As environmental consciousness grows and technology makes sustainable alternatives more accessible, consumers are redefining what luxury means.

The brand's success suggests that the future of luxury lies not in exclusivity and scarcity, but in accessibility, transparency, and sustainability. By making high-quality diamonds affordable while maintaining environmental responsibility, Craftier is challenging traditional notions of luxury consumption.

For Gupta, this vision extends beyond business success. "Sky is the limit in this industry," he believes. "You just need to be transparent, truthful with your clients, and give the best pricing, best designs."

As India's luxury market continues to evolve, Craftier's omni-channel approach, commitment to transparency, and focus on sustainable luxury position it well to capture the next generation of consumers who value both quality and conscience in their purchasing decisions.

About the Guest

Achel Gupta is a first-generation entrepreneur and founder of Craftier, a sustainable luxury brand specializing in lab-grown diamonds and lifestyle products. With nearly two decades of experience in the jewelry industry, Gupta has established himself as a visionary leader in India's evolving luxury retail landscape.

His entrepreneurial journey began in 2007 with the launch of Rivera Diamonds, a D2C jewelry brand that he successfully scaled across multiple retail formats including manufacturing, exports, and wholesaling. Over the years, he has partnered with major jewelry brands including Tanishq, BlueStone, and MMTC, gaining comprehensive understanding of both organized and unorganized retail sectors.

Gupta holds specialized education in jewelry design from JDTI in Noida and diamond grading from the Indian Diamond Institute in Surat. His unique combination of technical expertise and retail experience has positioned him as an innovator in the sustainable luxury movement, particularly in the emerging lab-grown diamond market.

Craftier, launched in October 2024, represents Gupta's vision for the future of luxury retail – combining transparency, sustainability, and accessibility to create a new category of affordable luxury products for India's evolving consumer market.