Online jewellery brand Melorra aims Rs 40 cr revenue
New Delhi: Online jewellery startup Melorra aims nearly five times jump in its revenue at Rs 40 crore in the current fiscal on bullish demand from non-metro cities, founder and chief executive Saroja Yeramilli said on Tuesday. The company, which sells contemporary lightweight jewellery in gold, diamond and coloured stones, had clocked a revenue of Rs 8.5 crore in the first year (2017-18) of its business, she added. “Much of the demand is coming from non-metro cities. We are getting orders from smaller cities and adding 100 new cities for delivery every month. We expect our revenue to touch Rs 40 crore this fiscal,” Yeramilli told PTI. With rise in internet and smart phones users, the company expects revenue to touch Rs 100 crore mark in the next fiscal and start making profits from 2021 onwards, she said. The company’s unique selling point is affordable rates, modern designs and quality of gold and diamonds from recognised agencies, she added. That apart, the Bengaluru-based company does not carry any inventory as it makes gold jewellery on order and delivers to customers with a return policy in 30 days and lifetime exchange of jewellery at prevailing rates of gold. On investment plans, Yeramilli, who had once headed sales division at Tata group jewellery brand Tanishq, said the jewellery start-up has already raised USD 12 million from a venture capitalist, out of which USD 8 million has been spent on the business. “We still have funds. We will invest that and later look for more funds. Funding has not been a problem. Investors are keen to invest in our company,” she said. Asked if the company would go offline, Yeramilli said: “There are no plans to set up retail outlets. Melorra is an internet brand and it will remain like that.”
LG Electronics eyes higher sales from premium products
Seoul: LG Electronics said on Tuesday it plans to beef up its presence in premium products in India as it looks to increase the share of the segment in overall sales and boost profit margins. The South Korean electronics giant also emphasised that the recent hike in customs duties by India on LED panels imposed customs duty hike on LED panels in India would not have a significant impact on its profit margins from the country. Premium products presently account for 30 per cent of LG's global sales, including in India, but it plans to enhance this to 50 per cent with a renewed focus on the segment and a series of fresh launches. Addressing a delegation of visiting journalists from India, LG Group senior vice-president, head of Appliance Overseas Sales & Marketing, Chris Jung said the revenue growth of LG Electronics in India “will be great”. He noted that the company will have to compete with Chinese firms on their price competitiveness, and therefore it is investing heavily in research and development. Asked about LG Electronics’ threat perception from the presence of Chinese firms in a price sensitive market like India, Jung said: "The Chinese won't catch up so soon. In the future they may get to where we are now but we are not sitting idle, we will also be moving forward.”