Diligent staff guide you for hours as you collaborate on the design or pick the delicate jewellery to suit you in a cosy and secure setting. With three generations of experience and skilled craftsmanship, Lalitha Jewellers create bespoke heirlooms that last for generations.
Words Keshini de Silva
Precious jewellery, especially gold, takes pride of place across all cultures, with its timeless worth regarded in Asian culture as auspicious or as a token of affection in the West. Lalitha Jewellers is a name that resonates with nearly a century of trust, quality and value in all occasion jewellery. Their roots lie in traditional and classical styles, inspired by ancient Sri Lankan designs both Northern and Southern, and Western styles, notably the Victorian era. Today the hallmark of the Lalitha Jewellers collection is its fusion of traditional and contemporary designs. Presenting a unique collection, they are also sought-after for bespoke designs completed with great finesse.
Lalitha Jewellers work with an extensive range of precious metals including 22k gold, 18k gold with yellow, white and pink hues, white gold and platinum. Once moulded the pieces are delicately embellished with priceless diamonds, sapphires, aquamarines, rubies and emeralds. They also work with semi-precious stones, especially to add colour to certain creations. Intricate beadwork necklaces and pendants incorporating Chinese and Japanese pearls have found a popular following, especially amongst foreign nationals and the young. The other fashionable trend is for reversible necklaces crafted from both yellow and white gold. Customers are welcome to go through the collection on display or online for purchase or inspiration.
As you walk through the glass doors there is a reassuring sense of security. Experienced staff at a spacious table help you decide whether to purchase a carefully crafted item from the collection or have your own masterpiece designed. For customised designs an experienced designer will draft your sketch, which will later be illustrated in a 3D design to ensure an accurate depiction of the customer’s requirements. Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Manufacturing technology is utilised to ensure precision. If through it all, the final product does not meet the customer’s mental picture, they are willing to go back to the drawing board. Lalitha Jewellers knows that customers have chosen them due to their years fulfilling the promise of perfection.
“We have a solution for every jewellery need. At present we have customers who have been with us for three generations, which is a great honour,” says Sellakumar Kandasamy, managing director. It was his father M S Kandasamy and grandfather M Shanmuga Velautham who laid the solid foundation of trust with customers. Today, they have an extensive clientele both in Sri Lanka and overseas who place their trust in Lalitha for engagement and wedding jewellery and even commission their services in crafting timeless family heirlooms. Tourists, notably Russians and the French are huge admirers of the priceless designs and craftsmanship provided here.
“We don’t compromise on quality, therefore we don’t offer anyone discounts or deals,” Sellakumar explains, adding they have not increased the number of outlets, as they do not want to dilute the quality of the specialised service offered to customers. However, Lalitha Jewellers does have a strong online presence, where through their website jewellery can be purchased or orders for customised items can be placed from anywhere in the world. Discussions with designers are carried out through online video conferencing services.
Specialising in bespoke jewellery comes with the great responsibility of being able to keep up with modern trends and techniques, offering customers a product that they can treasure for generations. It is a formidable task involving understanding each customer’s distinctive style, embedding Lalitha Jewellers’ signature of quality, and creating a masterpiece of the future. Evidently, Lalitha Jewellers sets the standard in the artistry of precious jewellery in Sri Lanka.
Lalitha Jewellers
442
RA De Mel Mawatha,
Colombo 3
Tel:(+9411)2577451/2
care@lalithajewellers.lk
lalithajewellers.lk
