| P. N. Gadgil Jewellers | |
| Type: | Private |
| Founder: | Ganesh Gadgil |
| Industry: | Jewellery |
| Divisions: | |
P.N.Gadgil Jewellers Limited, also known as Purshottam Narayan Gadgil Jewellers, is an Indian jewelry company founded by Ganesh Gadgil in Sangli in 1832. It's one of the oldest jewelry companies in India, known for its production of jewelry distinctive to the Maharashtra region.[1] [2] As of September 2022, PNG Jewellers had 35 stores globally, with 33 in India, one in the USA, and another in Dubai.[3]
The company was established as Gadgil Jewellers in Sangli on 29 November 1832, by Ganesh Gadgil. Lacking a store, the business was initially run on the pavement of a busy thoroughfare in the city.[4] [5] Gadgil moved the business to a wada he purchased in Sangli, in 1860. Under Gadgil's father, the family had previously served as savakars to the Kolhatkar and Modak families of the Princely state of Sangli, and were thus accorded the office of royal jeweller to the Patwardhan kings of the State after the establishment of their jewellery business.
Gadgil initially intended all three of his sons to succeed him in the business, but after his eldest son Ramchandra became a moneylender and dairy proprietor, and his youngest son Gopal became a lawyer and went on to set up a clothing store, the business was continued by his middle son Narayan and his descendants. After the birth of his eldest grandson Purshottam in 1874, Gadgil changed the name of the company to P. N. Gadgil Jewellers, believing that his grandson's name (Purshottam) would bring the business good luck.
After Gadgil's death in 1890, the company was managed by his son Narayan Gadgil and Narayan's three sons. After Narayan Gadgil's death in 1920, the company was managed by Purshottam and his younger brothers Ganesh Gadgil II and Vasudev Gadgil. After Purshottam's death in 1954, the company's management was inherited by his younger brothers and their sons. In 1958, Anant "Dajikaka" Gadgil, a younger son of Ganesh Gadgil II, and Vishwanath Gadgil (son of Vasudeo Gadgil) set up a branch of the company in Pune under the name P. N. Gadgil Jewellers & Company.[6] After 1958, the two branches of the company continued to function under the same brand. Dajikaka Gadgil, Vishwanath Gadgil and Laxman Gadgil managed the business in Pune, where as Vasudev's son Hari and Shankar (Dajikaka's elder brother) managed the company in Sangli. After Vasudev Gadgil's death in 1965, the Sangli branch of the company was inherited by his son Hari and Ganesh's son Shankar, son of Ganesh and their sons Yashawant, until their own deaths in 2005 and 1980, respectively. Now Sangli branch is managed by Hari's sons Dhananjay and Ganesh and his grandson Siddharth along with Shakar's sons Prakash and grandsons Milind, Raju and Sameer. The two branches were formally separated in 2012, with the Pune branch operating as P. N. Gadgil & Company.[7] Dajikaka Gadgil died in 2014, and few stores of Pune branch of the company was inherited by his son and grandson.[8] [9] [10] In 2014, the company started a diamond manufacturing unit in Mumbai with a capacity to produce 5,000 pieces a month.[11]
In 2015, P N Gadgil Jewellers expanded its operations by opening nine new stores across various states in India, including Maharashtra, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka.[12] They also expanded their business internationally by opening stores in the US and Dubai and collaborated with fashion designer Tarun Tahiliani to launch their own brand of silver jewelry.[13]
Since 2015, the Pune branch of the company, P. N. Gadgil & Company, has expanded operations using a franchising model across various cities in Maharashtra,[14] and in the United States, and the United Arab Emirates.[15] [16] [17]
The Pune branch has also become associated with several Bollywood celebrities, being endorsed by Madhuri Dixit,[18] Salman Khan, Raveena Tandon, and Sushmita Sen. They have also provided jewellery to several Bollywood productions, most notably Bajrangi Bhaijan and Bajirao Mastani.[19] The company has provided jewelry to Marathi movies like Balgandharva and Katyar Kaljat Ghusali, among others.[20]