Making charges, explained without defending them.
This is the line on the bill people find most opaque, and more than one of our own customers has said so publicly. So here is what it actually is, including the parts that are awkward for a jeweller to spell out.
What you are paying for
Gold arrives as metal. Somebody has to turn it into a mangalsutra. The making charge covers the karigar's labour, the wastage that genuinely occurs in working the metal, and the finishing. It is charged either as a percentage of the gold value or as a fixed amount per gram.
Why it varies so much
- Complexity
- A plain band takes an hour. Meenakari with hand-set stones takes days. The charge follows the work, not the weight.
- Handmade vs machine
- Machine-made chains carry lower charges. Hand karigari costs more because it is more hours.
- Hollow builds
- A broad hollow piece uses less gold but often needs more skill, so the making charge can be proportionally higher even as the total falls.
What to ask, at any shop
- Ask
- “Is the making charge a percentage or per gram?”
- Ask
- “What is the net weight, and what is being deducted from it?”
- Ask
- “Can I have the metal rate, weight, making charge and GST written separately before I decide?”
- Ask
- “What happens to the making charge if I exchange this later?”
At Nakoda Gold you get that itemised estimate before anything is packed, and nothing appears on the final bill that was not on it. We also run making-charge offers from time to time — ask what is running when you visit.