The escalating West Asia conflict is starting to derail Indian jewellers’ overseas growth plans at a crucial juncture, with the country’s largest jeweller Titan Co Ltd pausing rollout of its Gulf subsidiary Damas Jewellery stores in the region, three people aware of the matter said. This will delay its push into the $4 billion Gulf jewellery market, complicating an already fragile turnaround.
Titan had acquired a 67% stake in Damas Jewellery last year, and the firm is run by its parent Damas LLC.
“They had plans to expand about 15–20 stores across the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) this quarter, which has now been paused,” said one of the people in the know. The region covers the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain.
All the three people cited above said fresh inventory orders have come to a halt, as slower store expansion has stalled exports to Dubai. The plan is now likely to be delayed by two to three months or longer, depending on how the conflict evolves, they said.
Even Titan’s rivals, such as , Joyalukkas and Jos Alukkas, are not buying fresh inventory and are feeling the heat of the crisis, according to the same people.
Titan and Kalyan Jewellers declined to comment to Mint‘s queries. Queries mailed to Joyalukkas and Jos Alukkas did not elicit a response until press time.
Gulf turnaround plan
This setback amid the escalating war between the US-Israel and Iran comes at a crucial juncture, as Titan’s Gulf business is in a turnaround phase.
In the company’s post-acquisition call, chief financial officer Ashok Sonthalia had said 2025 would be a “restructuring year”, with the business expected to remain earnings-dilutive until 2027, and turn positive only from 2028, making any delay more consequential.
According to Titan’s December earnings call, it has completed acquisition of a 67% stake in Dubai-based Damas Jewellery, marking the closure of the $283 million deal and indicating that all required regulatory approvals have been secured. The transaction gave Titan majority control and made Damas a subsidiary, with its financials being consolidated from 1 January 2026.
Strategically, Titan plans to retain Damas as a distinct brand in the Gulf region, catering to the local segment rather than folding it into . Any store conversions will be selective and based on catchment suitability, with no large-scale rebranding planned. The company has kicked off the early integration steps. However, its key aspects remain evolving. Titan has not disclosed a final number of store conversions or a long-term network restructuring plan.
After the acquisition, Titan’s store network in the region expanded to 161 outlets, including 146 Damas stores, alongside its existing Tanishq and Mia presence, capturing about 75% market share. This put it ahead of Indian rivals such as Malabar Gold & Diamonds, Kalyan Jewellers and Joyalukkas, which operated 113, 36 and 36 stores respectively.
Of the 146 Damas stores, 70 are in the UAE, followed by 40 in Saudi Arabia, 15 in Qatar, 7 in Kuwait and 4 in Bahrain.
Titan’s international revenue rose to ₹1,058 crore in the December quarter of FY26, an 83% jump year-on-year, while Ebit for the segment surged from ₹4 crore to ₹110 crore during the period.
In a post-acquisition note, analysts at HDFC described the deal as a “high margin of safety” bet. The acquisition gives Titan instant scale in the GCC and a platform to improve margins through sourcing and operational efficiencies. They, however, cautioned that the business could drag earnings in the near term, given Damas’ weak track record and the need for a turnaround.
Damas has struggled financially, with revenues declining around 5% annually over the past decade and seeing only a modest recovery since 2019. Profitability has remained thin, with net margins of about 1% over the last three years and occasional losses.
One bright spot has been its premium ‘Signature’ jewellery segment, which caters to Arab consumers and has been growing in double digits. In contrast, stores focused on South Asian buyers have underperformed, and Titan is likely to shut down or convert some into Tanishq outlets.
Despite a nearly 19% annual rise in gold prices between 2019 and 2024, typically a tailwind for jewellers, Damas did not fully benefit, pointing to deeper structural issues.
Given this backdrop, analysts say Titan acquired the company at a reasonable valuation of about 0.9 times sales, reflecting cautious near-term expectations while leaving room for an upside if the turnaround succeeds.
“The for the Arab segment is $4 billion, and it is an accessory market, very high diamond jewellery, very high share of value-added gold jewellery, gross margin is very strong,” said former managing director C.K. Venkataraman, underlining the company’s rationale for the bet.
For the Bengaluru-headquartered retailer, the GCC is central to its ambition of becoming a “global jewellery brand” after dominating the Indian market for nearly three decades. Before the acquisition, Titan had about 15 stores in the region, but limited resonance with Arab consumers.
“We do not play there… the brand name is not relevant for them, the products that we make are not relevant… it is not meant for Arabs,” Venkataraman had said.
War hit on industry
Industry executives say the war’s disruption is widespread.
“This is the toughest time the industry is facing, not just from one front, but multiple,” said Kirit Bhansali, chairman of the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). “In the last 20 days, the GCC market has been affected very badly, business in Dubai is down by more than 50%.”
Volatile gold prices have further dampened demand.
“Our business runs on stability. When prices are stable, consumers are confident. Right now, that confidence is missing,” Bhansali said, adding that uncertainty has hit retail sentiment sharply.
Gold prices in India hit a record high of over ₹1.80 lakh per 10 gm late January before correcting sharply to around ₹1.4 lakh levels this week amid the geopolitical uncertainty, a stronger dollar and shifting rate expectations. It is currently at around ₹1.46 lakh per 10 gm.
The impact is rippling through the supply chain. Exporters heavily reliant on the Gulf are struggling to move inventory, with some redirecting shipments to Southeast Asia and newer markets such as Australia and New Zealand.
“Now the question is what to do with the stock that’s already been produced,” two of the people said. Some are moving their inventory to markets such as those in the Asia-Pacific (Apac) region—Singapore and Malaysia for gold and Australia and New Zealand for diamond jewellery.
Per GJEPC data, India’s jewellery exports to the key market of the UAE totalled ₹73,186.61 crore during April–February, nearly 10% higher than a year ago.