Mar 28, 20232 min read

Aashna Shah | The Entrepreneurs of India Magazine March 2023

Aashna has done her undergraduate degree in Investment and Finance Management from London. She worked for PwC Dubai as an M&A advisory consultant. A love for the corporate world’s competitive and professional environment matched with one for numbers, Aashna drove her desire towards the entrepreneurial line. On being stuck in Mumbai during the lockdown, she made an observation of the spike in sales of luxury jewellery amidst people. It was then that her mind was made to make a name for herself in this very field.

Her father was into the sourcing of diamonds and her mother had her own natural diamond jewellery brand so with aid from such owners of already well established businesses, she took the family legacy forward. However, she did so in her own way. The youth is a smart buyer with a tight budget who wishes to enjoy luxury at minimum remuneration. Being one from the same category, Aashna began by sourcing lab-grown diamonds to create statement jewellery.

Perfection is a dangerous attribute because it is enough to drive one insane. In working to strive for accuracy, you not only overwork and exhaust yourself, but you also delay the output by much. “Your idea of perfect might not be theirs. You should have the rigour to accept mistakes and be on the same page as the client to avoid hiccups.” One of the mistakes, rather learnings, experienced by Aashna was to be engulfed in the wide ocean of marketing and not targeting her product. This just led to burnt pockets and not-so well spent money. In the options available on social, it would be impossible to try everything. One should have a standard to examine whether any strategy is advantageous or not.

When it comes to jewellery, offline reach is a much preferred option because of the huge amounts of monetary transactions and in-person judgement of the product required. Therefore, for her area, putting up billboards, hosting events and exhibitionism is what works best. Another problem Shah mentions when speaking of what is unique to her industry, is lack of awareness. The Indian client has stereotyped lab-grown diamonds as a ‘down-graded’ version of the real deal which makes selling them a tedious task. They overlook it’s advantages of being environmental-friendly, lustrous, high-quality and still cheaper. Aashna believes that this is the future and aims to work hard to make the belief come true.

‘Arctic Star Fine Jewellery’ is a one of a kind brand that provides its customers with quality, financial relief and variety. They make all sorts of pieces for different occasions like everyday wears and cocktail jewellery.

An interesting thing about their Capsule Collection is that the piece bought by someone once remains theirs solely, for there will not be a design made similar to that again. The jewellery is bold, modern and special for each one who buys it.

The central aim is to make Indians believe in the authenticity of lab-grown diamonds as well as to be a trustable medium to provide them with quality products. Aashna’s efforts are working towards a mission to make the Indian consumer aware and informed. She is an entrepreneur who is fit to be called a visionary.