Titan Company wins gold for outstanding performance
Even as India Inc struggled with the two Covid waves in 2021-22, the jewellery-to-watches maker posted strong growth and continued adding stores.
The fiscal year 2021-22 was impacted as much as the first year of the pandemic, as the country dealt with two Covid-19 waves that also saw lockdowns across states. But trouble for the retail industry in particular didn’t end there; the third wave, which didn’t last as long but still managed to eat into almost a month of the fourth quarter of the fiscal, coupled with geopolitical conflicts that began in February 2022, caused gold and commodity prices to soar, impacting consumer sentiment.
While all this was reason enough for retail companies to see muted a financial performance, it did not deter Titan Company from posting strong revenue and profit growth in 2021-22.
It closed the year with revenues from operations rising by a substantial 33.05 per cent to Rs 28,799 crore, while profit after tax was Rs 2,198 crore, up a staggering 125.7 per cent over 2020-21. While profit growth was among the best in the industry, Titan’s profit after tax for 2021-22 was much higher than the combined profit of Rs 1,425 crore reported by 11 other players in the gems and jewellery sector, according to Capitaline data.
The jewellery business, which is also the biggest contributor to the company’s top line, saw revenues from operations surge 33.9 per cent year on year (YoY) to Rs 19,427 crore, while watch revenues grew 52.9 per cent to Rs 1,804 crore, and revenue from the eyewear business also grew 34.4 per cent YoY to Rs 293 crore in 2021-22.
In the jewellery business, the company’s growth in 2021-22 in the more profitable studded category was significantly higher, leading to better gross margins and higher overall profitability. Also, CaratLane (an online jewellery brand, which is being extended offline) sustained good top-line and bottom-line growth. The omnichannel approach, technology capability, innovative product lines, and the new-age employee culture have combined well for the business.
Despite external challenges triggered by the two Covid-19 waves that impacted consumer sentiment in April-May 2021 and again in January 2022, the watches business witnessed a recovery. Consumption and retail bounced back during the festival quarter, and even in February 2022 the watches & wearables division (W&W division) witnessed good retail growth across both ground and online channels.
