Gitanjali to invest Rs 350 cr

As a part of an aggressive marketing strategy, Mumbai-based diamond and branded jewellery outfit Gitanjali group is planning to invest over Rs 350 crore for setting up exclusive diamond and branded jewellery outlets in India and abroad.

"The group is planning to invest Rs 100 crore in the next three years for establishing diamond and branded jewellery outlets abroad. We will also pump in Rs 250 crore by 2007 for exclusive shops in India," said Mehul Choksi, chairman and chief executive officer, Gitanjali group.

The group would be setting up brand kiosks, brand zones, mall shops and outlets in the UK, US and China, Choksi said.

The company already has a presence in Japan and West Asia, he said."We have lined up several joint venture partners for setting up outlets in China. We will be adopting the same strategy in the UK and US," he said.

The group's chairman said it would grow its network of outlets substantially from the current 1,000 and for this, the company would open five exclusive outlets and 30 shops by mid-2006 as a part of multi-pronged international marketing strategy.