Value Addition
Value addition is the combined charge added over raw metal cost for making, wastage, design and finishing, often shown together as VA.
Value addition, usually shortened to VA, is the single figure that captures everything a jeweller adds over the raw metal cost: craftsmanship, wastage, design and finishing. Rather than list making and wastage as separate lines, many jewellers now roll them into one VA number that, with metal and stone value, builds the retail price.
What VA rolls together
Value addition bundles the labour and loss of turning bullion into a finished, wearable piece. That includes the making charge for the workshop's craftsmanship, the wastage that covers metal lost in cutting, melting and polishing, and any design or finishing premium the piece carries.
Presenting these as one VA figure is simpler for a customer to read. Instead of a tag showing separate making and wastage percentages that a buyer has to add up, the tag shows metal value, stone value and a single value addition, which is easier to compare across pieces.
How VA sits in the price
VA is commonly expressed as a percentage of the metal value. A 40,000 rupees metal value with 18 percent value addition adds 7,200 rupees, before any stone value and GST. Two pieces of the same weight can carry very different VA, since an intricate design demands more labour than a plain chain.
Because VA absorbs both making and wastage, it is the lever a jeweller uses to reflect the effort in a design. A machine made plain band sits at the low end, while a hand crafted temple or filigree piece sits much higher, and the VA figure is where that difference shows up in the price.
- Value addition combines making, wastage, design and finishing.
- It is often shown as a single VA figure over metal cost.
- It is usually expressed as a percentage of metal value.
- Intricate designs carry higher VA than plain pieces.
Value Addition, in short.
Is value addition the same as making charge?
Not quite. Making charge is the labour cost alone. Value addition is broader, folding making together with wastage and any design or finishing premium into a single figure.
How is value addition usually expressed?
Most often as a percentage of the metal value, though some jewellers quote it as a flat rate per gram. Either way it is added over metal and stone value before tax.
Why do some jewellers combine making and wastage into VA?
It is simpler for the customer. One value addition figure is easier to read and compare than separate making and wastage percentages that a buyer would otherwise have to total up.
Related terms
See value addition inside a real jewellery system.
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