How This Brand Became One of the Top Gold and Jewellery Retailers WorldwideMore than 200 stores worldwide and building an INR 27,000 Crore Jewellery brand, the story of Malabar Gold is incredible

MP Ahammed, Founder, Malabar Gold & Diamonds started his entrepreneurial odyssey with spices and copra trade. His first stint imbibed precious business lessons that no top management institute could have ever imparted.

However, he soon realized the limitations of this business and ventured into gold jewellery in 1993 by setting up the first retail showroom in Kozhikode. What started with one store today comprises 250 stores. Let's walk through the global journey of his retailer.

Entrepreneur India got in a conversation with the MP Ahammed, Founder, Malabar Gold & Diamonds who spoke about his journey.

(This article was first published in the March issue of Entrepreneur Magazine. To subscribe, clickhere)

1993

Launch of Malabar Gold & Diamonds in Kozhikode, Kerala with an initial capital of Rs 50 lakh when the economy of the country was in transformation.

2001

Malabar forayed into Gulf Coast Countries to expand their retail presence.

2011

Launch of its store in Riyadh. It was the time when the number of investors from India and abroad reached 1,000 and the annual revenue clocked Rs 2,000 crore.

2012

The company rolled out a popular campaign "Brides of India' – capturing the diverse design essence of brides across regions.

2013

Actor Kareena Kapoor signed up as the brand ambassador. The retail network reached 103 outlets spread across seven countries, becoming the third-largest jewellery retailer in the world in terms of annual turnover. Malabar also opened its 100th store in Gurugram.

2016

Opened 150th store in Belgaum. Diversified its product portfolio by introducing a varied range to attract.

2017

Opened the 200th store in Dubai, UAE, strengthening its global presence.

2018

The company opened 11 showrooms across six countries in a single day, taking the total number of outlets to 208. Malabar also signed up Miss World 2017 Manushi Chillar as brand ambassador.

2019

Forayed into the USA by opening its 250th outlet in Chicago. Onboarded actor Anil Kapoor as brand ambassador to strengthen its domestic and global communication strategy

Big Plans

"We are now targeting a broader market spectrum both in India and abroad apart from consumer demographics and product portfolio. We aim to triple the number of stores to 750 and raise group turnover to US$7 billion in the next five years," shares MP Ahammed, Founder, Malabar Gold & Diamonds.

(This article was first published in the March issue of Entrepreneur Magazine. To subscribe, clickhere)