Post updated: Jul 19, 2020
Buying gold is a serious matter, since the cost of the precious metal is relatively high and such acquisitions are not made every day. Where is the best place to buy gold? The answer to this question depends on the purpose of your purchase. You can buy jewelry for yourself or as a gift, invest in a gold bar or collectible coin. For jewelry you need to go to a jewelry store or salon, for coins or bars - to the bank. How to find the best offer with the maximum benefit for you?
Buying decoration
When buying a ring, a pair of earrings or a chain, many try to save money, but it’s still not worth going to a dubious place to buy it. Where can you buy gold in the form of jewelry cheaper than in a regular jewelry store? Please note the following options.
You can buy a gold item at the lowest price at a pawnshop. Many pawn and do not buy back really good jewelry. Buying from a pawn shop has a couple more advantages. Here you can find antique jewelry at an affordable price; pawn shops often hold auctions, selling off their stockpiles. For those who want to make themselves an exclusive new piece of jewelry, you can buy scrap gold suitable for secondary casting at a pawn shop.
In jewelry stores, gold and other precious metals are relatively expensive due to the organization’s trade markup. If you want to purchase jewelry at a lower price, visit stores at jewelry factories or factories. In such establishments, the cost of the ring will be much lower than its price tag in the salon, since the manufacturer does not make any mark-ups.
You can also buy gold cheaper than usual in jewelry chains - wait until the sales season. Many large stores sell old collections at very reasonable prices. If your first priority is the quality of the alloy from which the jewelry is made, and not whether it belongs to fashion collections, then such a purchase will be the most optimal decision for you.
Another option where you can buy fairly cheap gold is Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia. But here you need to be very careful. Sellers often offer tourists fake or low-grade gold. At one time, Turkish jewelry was very popular; everyone visiting Turkey sought to bring several items for themselves and for relatives. In fact, it turned out that the material of the rings and bracelets had nothing in common with gold or the precious metal corresponded to the Russian 375 standard.
The situation is further complicated by the fact that a different test system is used abroad - a numerical value in carats is placed on products. Counterfeits can be found even in large jewelry stores, so tourists need to ask for certificates, carefully study the labeling and, if the authenticity of the jewelry is in doubt, refuse to purchase.
Top 10 jewelry chains
The main trend in the jewelry industry today is the development and expansion of online sales. In 2021, according to the Association of Internet Trading Companies, sales of precious items via the Internet increased by 60% compared to 2021, to 12 billion rubles. Marketplaces played an important role in this, pulling sales onto themselves. Jewelry is sold on such platforms as Wildberries, Lamoda, Ozon. The sites sell products from the largest Russian manufacturers, including market leader Sokolov, Moscow Jewelry, Balex and others.
Ozon noted that the company began selling jewelry in February of this year. There are currently about 10,000 product items in this category, but the retailer continues to expand its range.
“Since the launch, jewelry sales have grown on average by 40% monthly, and in July they increased by 70% compared to the first summer month. Silver items are the most popular - earrings and chains are among the top sellers, and before the start of the wedding season, the number of orders with wedding and engagement rings has increased noticeably - since May, sales of these jewelry have increased almost 3 times. Most often, Ozon clients purchase jewelry with clothing, sales of which at the end of 2021 at Ozon grew by 70% year-on-year (5 times faster than the pace of online retail in general), and at the beginning of 2021 - by 105% year-on-year.” ,” noted the Ozon press service.
Another marketplace reported that their jewelry sales increased by 50% in the first half of 2021 compared to the first half of 2021. Aliexpress also has a “jewelry” section, but unlike competitors, its assortment does not include gold products, only silver and costume jewelry. Some experts suggest that this may be the marketplace's reaction to the growing demand for silver products.
To find out why the demand for silver jewelry is growing, read the interview with Alexey Feliksov, co-owner of 585.Zolotoy.
In many retail chains, more than half of sales come from silver items (the margin on these items is several times higher than on the sale of gold jewelry).
At the same time, jewelry retailing has its own peculiarity. In Russia, Presidential Decree No. 179 of 1992 is still in force, according to which the sale of precious stones and materials is prohibited, including remote sales. And although, as Eduard Utkin, General Director of the Guild of Jewelers of Russia, previously stated in the media, this ban does not apply to jewelry, nevertheless, some regional supervisory authorities are blocking online stores selling jewelry.
Over the past few years, attempts have been made at the legislative level to remove these legal conflicts, but so far to no avail. Perhaps the situation will change this year. The Ministry of Finance has developed a draft government resolution regulating the sale of jewelry with precious stones via the Internet. Public discussions of the project ended on August 5, and the document was sent to the Russian government.
A recent report by the Russian Jewelers Guild states that there are no prerequisites for an increase in demand for jewelry in the country. Incomes of the population continue to fall (over the past 5 years, Russians have become poorer by 8.3%), debt levels are growing (about 60% of bank borrowers and 65% of MFO borrowers have difficulty repaying debts to banks and MFOs), 48.2% of families in Russia is in a consumer risk zone (there is only enough money for food and clothing), housing and communal services costs are rising. All this will affect the decrease in demand for jewelry and increased competition between jewelry manufacturers, jewelers believe. This is partly confirmed by the recent statement by the management of the Valtera chain, owned by Vladislav Kochetkov, about the closure of its own stores and the liquidation of goods with discounts of up to 90%. Valtera currently has seven of its own salons.
For the second year in a row, the company reports the liquidation of balances due to the closure of specific retail outlets, however, stores at the specified addresses are still operating.
The SunLight network periodically reports about the closure of salons and large discounts due to the liquidation of goods. The company could not be reached for comment. At the same time, market participants assure that such statements are nothing more than a marketing ploy to attract customers: for the second year in a row, the company has announced the liquidation of balances due to the closure of specific retail outlets, but the stores at the specified addresses are still operating.
In general, market participants say that today there is no talk of developing jewelry retail; companies are relocating their retail outlets: closing some stores and opening others, while practically not increasing the size of the network.
According to the Russian Jewelers Guild, in 2021, the market capacity of gold products decreased by 2.14% by weight and by 2.70% by number of products, and for silver products increased by 27.76% by weight and by 2.74 % by number of products. The average price for a piece of jewelry over the past 8 years has increased from 1,374 rubles in 2010 to 3,554 rubles in 2018.
If the consumer trend continues in 2021, the forecast for the capacity of the Russian gold and silver jewelry market in terms of the cost of the metal will be about 101.3 billion rubles, which is 0.6% less than in 2021.
Alexey Feliksov co-owner, general director of the 585.Zolotoy chain
The main trend is the development of online commerce. Leading Internet players (Wildberries, Ozon, etc.) are actively present in the market. Although their share is small in online jewelry sales (I think about 5-7%), it also has a significant impact on the market. They eat away a share of the money, plus there is a redistribution of clients, which creates nervousness.
As competition from online players increases, the least effective networks will close. In general, the market will change greatly in 2 years: a large number of large and medium-sized players will leave, and the majority of sales will go through online channels.
Our company is currently experimenting with its assortment; we are expanding into all related areas - watches, optics, accessories, costume jewelry. I think we'll add cosmetics too.
We are also actively increasing our production volumes. Over the course of a year, we rose in the ranking of gold jewelry manufacturers from somewhere from 10th position to 2nd after Sokolov (processes hundreds of kilograms of gold and a ton of silver per month).
Top 10 jewelry chains
1. "585.
Gold". The company left the 585 holding, founded in 2000 by St. Petersburg entrepreneur Alexander Smirnov. In 2006, St. Petersburg businessmen Anton Petrov and Alexey Feliksov became Smirnov’s partners. In 2011, three co-owners divided the business: Alexander Smirnov began to develop the chain under the brand “585. Gold", and Anton Petrov with Alexey Feliksov - under the brand "585. Gold". Turnover “585. Zolotoy" in 2021 exceeded 30 billion rubles, including franchising. The network has 928 points.
2. Sunlight.
Part of the Moscow Onyx Group of Companies, founded in 2000. According to Kontur Focus, ONIX Trading LLC (operator of the Sunlight network) belongs to Sergei Gribnyakov.
Initially, the company worked as a distributor of Russian and foreign jewelry manufacturers, and in 2005, the business owners founded their own jewelry brand, Sunlight. The first store opened in 2009. Currently there are 397 retail outlets operating. This is the first Russian retailer to operate in a hypermarket format. The network’s revenue in 2021 amounted to almost 9 billion rubles.
3. Moscow Jewelry Plant was founded in 1993 and is the predecessor of one of the oldest jewelry enterprises in Russia - the Moscow Jewelry Factory (founded in 1920).
MUZ OJSC is 98.6% owned by Ruiz Group of Companies LLC (owned by a Cyprus offshore company). The group of companies, which includes MUZ, carries out a full cycle of operations - from processing raw materials to selling finished products. MUZ has its own retail network - more than 300 stores in Russia. Since 2021, the company is relying on its own production, the share of which has increased by 50% in the assortment since 2015. The revenue of OJSC "MUZ" in 2021 amounted to 8.8 billion rubles (in 2021 - 9.5 billion rubles), net profit - 1.5 billion rubles. 4. Pandora.
Founded by the famous entrepreneur, ex-owner of the Svyaznoy group Maxim Nogotkov in 2010. After the businessman went bankrupt, his assets went to pay for his debts. The holding company Trellas Enterprises, owned by Nogotkov, came under the control of Oleg Malis. Among the assets was the Pandora network (PanClub JSC), whose shares were pledged to Sberbank. In November 2021, Malis, in an interview with RBC magazine, stated that his main task related to the Pandora brand is to return money to Sberbank. The network’s revenue in 2017 was 6.4 billion rubles. The chain currently has 297 stores.
5. "585. Gold."
The St. Petersburg company was founded in 2000 by entrepreneur Alexander Smirnov. The network’s revenue in 2021, according to RBC Market Research, is 3.1 billion rubles. It currently has 250 stores in Russia.
6. "Adamas"
The plant was founded in 1993. The first jewelry store was opened in Sochi in 1994. In 2015, bankruptcy proceedings were initiated against the network operator Adamas-Juvelir LLC at the request of Otkrytie Bank; other legal entities of the Adamas holding also went through bankruptcy proceedings. By decision of the Moscow Arbitration Court on May 11, 2017, Adamas Jeweler LLC was declared bankrupt. The register of claims of the debtor's creditors includes claims in the total amount of 28.4 billion rubles. The debtor's bankruptcy estate (all his property) was formed in the amount of 4.2 billion rubles. In July 2021, the court will complete bankruptcy proceedings, and the claims of creditors that were not satisfied due to the insufficiency of the debtor’s property will be considered extinguished. This legal entity is in the process of liquidation. The company continues to operate under other legal entities. The network has 200 salons in Russia. In 2021, Adamas announced plans to open franchise stores in Belarus and Kazakhstan, but this project was not implemented.
7. "Almaz-Holding".
The company was founded in 1993. Products for the chain, which consists primarily of franchise stores, are produced by Krasnoselsky Yuvelirprom. The chain has 200 stores. The plant, founded in 1919, is located in the jewelry capital - the village of Krasnoe-on-Volga, Kostroma region.
8. “Line of Love.”
The network belongs to Nadezhda Ryzhenko (operates as an individual entrepreneur, registered in 2015 in the Kostroma region). According to RBC Market Research, the chain’s revenue in 2021 amounted to 2.8 billion rubles. The chain has 133 stores in Russia.
9. “Our gold.”
The company was founded in 1999 in the Samara region by Andrey Borisov (operating as an individual entrepreneur). The chain has 118 stores in Russia.
10. “Red gold.”
The chain belongs to a jewelry store established in 2011 in the village of Krasnoe-on-Volga, Kostroma Region. The first store of the chain was opened in 2021. The company belongs to Evgeny Dmitriev. Revenue in 2021 is 45.8 million rubles, and net profit is 1.6 million rubles, according to SPARK. The network has 93 salons in Russia.
Purchasing bars and coins
To purchase gold bars and coins, you must contact the bank. Any individual can purchase the precious metal in this form at any commercial bank that carries out gold purchase and sale transactions. The cost of the bullion will be determined by the price of 1 gram of precious metal. When investing in bullion, you need to understand that gold quotes are determined by the London Stock Exchange, based on this fixing, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation sets the discount price for the precious metal, and commercial banks offer their purchase and sale prices taking into account these indicators.
Gold bars must comply with state standards. GOST differs depending on the type of ingots: one standard applies to measured ingots weighing from 1 to 1000 g, and another applies to standard ingots from 11.3 to 13.3 kg. If the product does not meet the GOST parameters, it is sent back to the refinery for remelting.
Each ingot has a manufacturer's mark and its own number; using these values, you can easily track their path. Ingots from foreign refineries cannot be purchased in the Russian Federation, the reason for this is very high duties. Control over the sale of precious metals by banks means that the answer to the question of where you can buy high-quality gold is clear: in a bank in the form of bars.
But purchasing an ingot of the yellow metal also brings with it a number of problems for a novice investor. When purchasing a product, you will also have to pay VAT, which significantly increases the cost of the bar. If you sell it back to the bank, you will not receive the tax amount back. It is important to organize proper storage of bullion; such bank services will also provide you with additional costs.
Investment coins made from precious metals have a number of their own characteristics. The coins themselves, in addition to the cost of the precious metal, carry historical or collection value. Selling a purchased coin years later can become a serious problem finding a buyer.
The liquidity of bars and coins is low. If necessary, you will not be able to turn your gold savings into cash in the shortest possible time.
The spread, that is, the difference between the buying and selling rates laid down by the bank, can completely “eat up” all the profit accumulated due to the increase in precious metal quotations.
In recent years, many people prefer investing in impersonal metal accounts over bullion. Now opening such an account is included in the list of services of any large bank. Having made a purchase, you will not receive metal in physical form: a metal account will be opened in your name, which will contain a certain amount of gold in grams.
Compulsory medical insurance has a number of advantages. Gold in the account does not require storage costs; there are no additional costs on your part for drawing up a storage agreement with the bank. The liquidity of a metal account is quite high, you can close it and receive the amount of money due to you from the bank. Many banks charge interest on the compulsory medical insurance amount, so using gold in the form of a metal account you can get additional profit that does not depend on the quotes for the precious metal.
Where can you buy gold from a bank cheaply? All commercial banks are guided by discount prices of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, but purchase and sale prices may differ both between credit institutions themselves and between branches of the same bank. Before investing your savings in gold, it is recommended to study the offers of large reliable banks and choose the best option.
