Mint Explainer | Why Titan is entering the lab-grown diamond business now

The Bengaluru-headquartered company will open its first lab-grown diamond jewellery showroom, branded “beYon" by the House of Titan, in Mumbai’s Andheri on 29 December.

Mint explains what Titan's entry into this segment means for India’s nascent LGD market, and for the smaller, established players already operating in the space.

What is beYon?

beYon is Titan’s new lab-grown diamond jewellery brand, marking its first direct retail foray into the LGD segment. The brand has debuted with a standalone store on New Link Road in Andheri West, Mumbai.

The location places beYon in the middle of one of Mumbai’s most competitive jewellery corridors. Lab-grown diamond brand Origem operates next door, while Bluestone, which listed recently, has a presence nearby. Traditional jewellery chains such as Senco Gold and Diamonds, Kalyan Jewellers, and Joyalukkas line the same stretch, alongside Indriya, the jewellery brand from the Aditya Birla Group. Directly across the road stands a large flagship Tanishq store, creating a striking face-off between Titan’s natural diamond business and its lab-grown experiment.

As of this week, the beYon outlet had security personnel on site, unopened boxes of inventory inside, and no sales staff present. The “House of Titan" branding on the storefront was temporarily covered.

Records from the commerce and industry ministry show Titan received approval for the trademark “beYon" on 8 December. The filing, made under Class 14, signals the company’s intent to sell a broad range of jewellery products under the brand, including lab-grown diamond jewellery, natural diamond jewellery, gold jewellery, rings, necklaces, pendants, bracelets, chains, anklets and ear ornaments, as well as jewellery crafted from gold, silver, precious metals and stones.

In a filing with the stock exchanges, dated 26 December, the company said: “We wish to inform that Titan will launch the brand name 'beYon - from the House of Titan' with an exclusive retail store in Mumbai on 29th December 2025... beYon will offer a curated range of Lab Grown Diamond (LGD) jewellery, making a start in this emerging category with plans to add a couple of more stores in Mumbai and Delhi in the immediate near future."

Why did it take Titan so long to enter the LGD segment?

Titan’s interest in lab-grown diamonds is not new. In 2022, the company acquired a 17.5% minority stake in US-based Great Heights Inc. for $20 million. The stake, which remained unchanged through FY25, was positioned as a strategic investment to understand global trends, technology and pricing dynamics in lab-grown diamonds and to test consumer demand, according to Bhavya Gandhi, equity research analyst at Dalal and Broacha.

Despite this, Titan’s management maintained a cautious stance for several quarters, repeatedly stating that it had not seen any meaningful shift in consumer behaviour in India. In the June FY25 earnings call, Ajoy Chawla, chief executive, of Titan’s jewellery division, said the company was in a “wait-and-watch mode" as it continued to study how the category evolved.

That view was reiterated in the September FY25 earnings call. Chawla said Titan was “not seeing inquiries across our stores other than clarifying that all the diamonds we are selling are natural." He added that lab-grown diamond jewellery in India largely remained a sub- ₹1 lakh category, noting that “the moment lab-grown jewellery goes beyond ₹1 lakh, the customer interest significantly falls."

If consumers were meaningfully switching away from natural diamonds, he had said, Titan would have seen weakness in its core jewellery business—which it had not.

Titan’s managing director, C.K. Venkataraman, echoed this position in the same earnings call, stressing that the company’s absence from the segment was a strategic choice rather than a limitation.

“Why do you think anything is stopping us from getting into this? We have not yet launched," he said, adding that such decisions would be announced “when we are ready."

What does India’s lab-grown diamond market look like today?

India’s organised jewellery retailers have already been adapting to changing consumer preferences. Rising gold prices have pushed companies such as Titan to expand offerings in 14- and 18-carat gold, aimed at younger buyers. At the same time, lab-grown diamonds are emerging as a trendy, sustainable and more affordable alternative, appealing to millennials and Gen Z consumers looking for everyday and gifting jewellery without the high cost of mined diamonds.

Beyond Titan, Trent operates a lab-grown diamond range called “Pome" within its Westside stores, making both Tata group companies present in the segment. Goldiam International Ltd sells lab-grown diamonds under its ORIGEM brand, while Senco Gold and Diamonds offers LGD jewellery under the “Sennes" brand. Mint had reported earlier that Malabar Gold and Diamonds was also exploring the segment.

According to an October IBEF report, India’s LGD market was valued at $300–350 million in 2024 (around ₹3,452 crore), driven largely by younger consumers seeking affordable luxury. The market is projected to grow rapidly, potentially surpassing $1 billion by 2033, with a CAGR of 14-15%.

Why is Titan entering now—and what does it mean for the industry?

According to Dalal and Broacha’s Gandhi, several key uncertainties around the lab-grown diamond segment have reduced.

Prices, which were earlier volatile, have stabilized closer to production costs. “If it had been a commodity, nobody would have entered into this space. It has already hit the cost of production," he said, making the category more predictable for a large, risk-averse brand like Titan.

Even so, Titan’s move remains measured. Gandhi described beYon as a pilot, with the company opening “one or two stores."

“This is still at a pilot stage only," he said, adding that Titan’s board-led structure ensures it will not take actions that could threaten its core business. “They will not do anything that risks the existing business, because that is the bread and butter."

Titan’s entry also coincides with a surge in investor interest in India’s LGD sector. Startups such as Limelight, Onya, Giva, Jewelbox, Lucira Jewellery, and Aukera have raised significant funding in recent months. Limelight alone is looking to raise $20 million for store expansion and brand building. Tracxn data shows that nine pure-play LGD startups raised a record $26.4 million in 2025, up from $4.7 million the previous year, underscoring the acceleration in capital inflows.

For the broader LGD industry, Titan’s arrival is likely to be more validating than disruptive in the near term. “In the initial phase, you don’t feel the heat of competition because customer awareness itself is at play," Gandhi said. “If a bigger brand enters that space, it increases funnelisation, it helps them co-market rather than create competition."

Competition, he said, will intensify later as the market deepens and execution becomes critical. At that stage, differentiation will hinge less on pricing and more on “design, marketing, branding and distribution."

Over the longer term, Titan’s presence could significantly expand diamond consumption in India. Gandhi said lab-grown diamonds would coexist with natural diamonds, serving different consumer segments. While older and high-value buyers may continue to prefer natural diamonds, “price-sensitive customers, youngsters, Gen Zs and millennials" are likely to gravitate toward lab-grown options.

This, he said, could “increase the penetration of diamonds in India big time," tapping into a large aspirational base that currently finds natural diamonds unaffordable.