Asia’s Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Fair Reports Strong Growth in Buyers and Exhibitors

Asia’s Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Fair – March reported an attendance increase of 9.7 percent compared to the prior year’s edition. The event held March 4 – 7 in Halls 3, 6 & 8 of the AsiaWorld-Expo, Hong Kong had a total of 4,255 unique visitors from 89 countries and regions.

“The fair results are certainly very encouraging,” said Celine Lau, director of Jewellery Fairs at UBM Asia Ltd., which owns the trade fair.

The United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Taiwan region, Japan, Russian Federation, Germany and Korea were the top visitors at the show (not including mainland China and Hong Kong). The top 10 altogether accounted for 36.5 percent of the total number of visitors.

Meanwhile, the fair hosted 411 exhibitors—up 6.5 percent from last year—from 21 countries and regions. There were four group pavilions and three theme pavilions. Group pavilions from mainland China, Korea, the Philippines and Taiwan region demonstrated distinct market specialties. Three theme pavilions—“Sense Zone”, “Fashion Accessories Zone” and “Stainless Steel Jewellery Pavilion”—provided a range of on-trend fashion jewelry and accessories.

Please join me on the Jewelry News Network Facebook Page, on Twitter @JewelryNewsNet and on the Forbes Web site.

Buyers Market Show Provides Smart Phone Map for Jewelry Retailers

A digital and customizable floor map is one of several buyer services that will debut at the Buyers Market, Feb. 16-18, 2013, and its annual Jewelry Preview on Feb. 15, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.

Premier Jewelers occupy a pavilion together on the show floor but additional jewelry designers are located throughout the hall. In addition, Buyers Market provides gift and fashion products made by nearly 800 U.S. and Canadian studio artists. 

“The combined square footage of exhibitor booths alone is nearly the equivalent of two football fields,” said Rebecca Mercado, show director. “We’re excited to introduce mobile technology to help our buyers find the merchandise they need.”

Retailers who plan to attend the trade-only show can begin charting their course on the show floor through the digital floor map already in place on the Buyers Market’s website. New exhibitors are added weekly and the artists have begun posting their product keywords in the search list.

The website is also where to register. The $35 basic registration fee includes admission for up to four members of a store’s buying staff, plus access to all retailing seminars, fashion shows and Buyers Market events. Pre-registration ends February 11. On-site registration will be $50. To take advantage of discounted rates at Buyers Market contract hotels near the convention center, register before Jan. 25. For customer service call 866.341.2001 or e-mail BMACregistration@jspargo.com.

Please join me on the Jewelry News Network Facebook Page, on Twitter @JewelryNewsNet and on the Forbes Web site.

Shanghai Fair Provides Buying Opportunities for Upcoming Holidays

Jewelry retailers in Asia will have a final opportunity to stock their shelves for the upcoming Christmas holidays and Chinese New Year festivities during the China International Gold, Jewellery & Gem Fair – Shanghai (Shanghai Fair), from November 9 – 12 at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center.

More than 300 exhibitors from 18 countries and regions will showcase the latest contemporary jewelry, classic bestsellers and trends during the eighth edition of the annual trade fair, organized by UBM Asia.

In 2011, retail sales of consumer goods in Shanghai exceeded RMB677 billions, up 12.3 percent from 2010. Retail sales of gold and jewelry alone grew roughly 25 percent, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China.

Given its November schedule, the Shanghai Fair provides the last-minute opportunity for buyers wanting to add to their inventory for the busy Christmas and Chinese New Year festivities.

Pavilions dedicated to luxury jewelry manufacturers, jadeite manufacturers from Taiwan and gems from Sri Lanka are among the features of the fair.

Please join me on the Jewelry News Network Facebook Page, on Twiitter @JewelryNewsNet and on the Forbes Web site.

Asia’s Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Fair Attracts Nearly 4,000 Buyers

Asia’s Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Fair, held at the AsiaWorld-Expo center in Hong Kong, attracted 3,878 buyers from 84 countries and region, according to UBM Asia, which owns and operates the trade fair. More than 75 percent of buyers were from outside the Hong Kong region.
 
The four-day event, which ended February 21, was held earlier than its usual March schedule in order to suit the international trade event calendar. The Top 10 visiting countries (excluding mainland China and Hong Kong region) were the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Japan, Korea, Germany, France and Russian Federation. They accounted for 34.6 percent of total visitors.

“We are happy to note that the United States was the source of the biggest number of visitors, which accounted for 10 percent of total visitors,” said Celine Lau, director of Jewellery Fairs at UBM Asia.

The exhibition space near the Hong Kong International Airport was expanded by 17.6 percent from last year’s edition, UBM Asia said. It housed 386 exhibitors from 17 countries and regions, an 18 percent increase over the 2011 edition of the trade fair. The exhibitors were from Australia, Canada, mainland China, India, Indonesia, Israel, Korea, Nepal, Netherlands, the Philippines, Samoa, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and Hong Kong and Taiwan regions. More than 80 percent of them are from outside Hong Kong region.

Asia’s Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Fair is held three times per year. Upcoming dates are: June 21 – 24, September 19 – 22, and March 4 – 7, 2013.

JewelleryNetAsia Enters Turkish Jewelry Market

The global jewelry trade portal, JewelleryNetAsia, announced Tuesday its participation at the Istanbul Jewelry Show 2012, which will open its doors on March 22 at the CNR Exhibition Center.

At the stand of JewelleryNetAsia jewelry buyers can make use of the free-of-charge sourcing support as well as access the internet free of charge. As official media partner to the jewelry show, JewelleryNetAsia is providing the online exhibitor list, show photo galleries and product previews.

The Turkish jewelry market is one of the most dynamic globally, with Istanbul being one of its trade centers. Thousands out of the estimated 40,000 jewelry-related firms in Turkey are active also on international markets. The majority of the Turkish jewelry exports is gold jewelry, mostly to the Middle East, the USA and CIS countries.

More than 600 Turkish Jewelry Suppliers are represented at both the Istanbul Jewelry Show as well as in the online directories of JewelleryNetAsia. Many specialize in wholesale gold jewelry and wholesale diamond jewelry but there is also a large amount of technology vendors and suppliers of findings and mountings.

‘It is not only the Turkish market that attracts us, but also the fact that the whole region congregates here for business. Also the region is not yet very sophisticated when it comes to using the internet for sales and sourcing, so this is a perfect timing for fast growth’ said Jerome Hainz of JewelleryNetAsia.

For inquiries, contact:
Fiona Wong, Marketing Manager, JewelleryNetAsia
Tel: +852 2586 2180 Email: Fiona.Wong@ubm.com

JNN at the Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair

The registration area at the Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair.

The Jewelry News Network (meaning me) will be leaving for Hong Kong tomorrow to attend the Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair. The former British colony, with its bustling port, international banks and robust stock market, is the gateway to China, the most dynamic jewelry and luxury market in the world. This alone makes it one of the most important events in the jewelry industry calendar. But there’s more.

The event—being held September 19-23 at the Asia World-Expo on Chek Lap Kok island, next to Hong Kong International Airport for diamonds, colored gemstones, materials and equipment and September 21-25 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre overlooking the beautiful and busy Victoria Harbor for finished jewelry—is one of the three largest jewelry trade fairs in the world and the largest in Asia. Nearly 1.4 million square feet of exhibition space will be used by more than 3,300 vendors from 45 countries to display their products and services to an estimated 45,000 buyers from 135 countries.

While Asia is the focus, this fair is truly an international affair. There will be 20 country pavilions from all the major jewelry markets, with France being the newest group to have its own pavilion. Thailand, a gemstone manufacturing center, has the largest overseas pavilion at the Hong Kong show with more than 150 exhibitors at the AWE and more than 200 at the HKCEC.

The International Colored Gemstone Association, which represents the global colored gemstone industry, also has its own pavilion.

The AWE portion of the fair boasts the world’s largest diamond pavilion, with more than 430 exhibitors.

The luxury market and fine jewelry design have become more of a focus in Asia and the fair responded with pavilions dedicated to high-end jewelry and gems as well as internationally inspired designer jewelry. It includes the following:
 
* Fine Design Pavilion in the Grand Hall of HKCEC with more than 70 internationally renowned jewelry and timepiece companies;

* Fine Gem Pavilion in – Hall 9 of AWE with more than 50 exhibitors deemed “world class” selling top quality gems;

* Hong Kong Premier Pavilion showcasing the top-notch craftsmanship and exceptional creativity of 30 Hong Kong avant-garde jewelers; and
* International Premier Pavilion with more 50 prominent jewelry companies from around the world showcasing cutting-edge jewelry designs.

I will be spending nearly all of my time at the convention center with the finished jewelry vendors and buyers. The last time I attended the show was in 2005, the year before it moved to two venues. I’m looking forward to seeing how much the show has changed and grown since that time. I will be blogging live from the show as often as possible.

Las Vegas Jewelry Week

Mandalay Bay, the new home of JCK Las Vegas

The upcoming week in Las Vegas is going to be one of the most important for the U.S. jewelry industry in some time. The performance of jewelry trade shows for the next several days will help determine whether the industry is returning to a period of sustained growth following the single event of the economic meltdown of 2008, or if it is the victim of something bigger and more widespread—a cultural and technological change that is steamrolling traditional ways of assessing luxury, beauty and fashion; while providing new ways of delivering messages and products that are beyond the reach of an aging industry.

Of course the big news is that one of the largest and most successful shows in the international jewelry industry—JCK Las Vegas and its affiliate shows, Luxury at JCK and Swiss Watch at JCK—will be held for the first time at Mandalay Bay.

The change is the result of some downsizing and rightsizing due to recent economic realities and competition within the industry. Celebrating its 20th year, JCK Las Vegas has always been held at the Sands Expo & Convention Center, one of the largest conventions facilities in the country, which along with the adjacent Venetian Las Vegas offers approximately 1.8 million square-feet of space. The show was so successful that even in this space there was an annual waiting list of hundreds of companies.

Things changed dramatically during the 2008 global economic meltdown, which resulted in a dramatic shrinkage of the jewelry industry. No more waiting lists. More empty spaces. Fewer buyers. So now the show will be held at the newer, nicer although smaller space. Still, at 1 million square feet, it is huge by normal expo space standards.

Things have been changing for some time as other jewelry shows have opened and taken away some JCK exhibitors. The most notable change is that what has been termed JCK Las Vegas for years by the industry is now known in the industry as “Las Vegas Jewelry Week” or “Las Vegas Jewelry Market Week.”

The week begins with JCK at Luxury (May 31 – June 6). The first three days of the show is an invitation only gathering of luxury jewelry retailers and consumer press, which the show has been since its inception. The next four days, the show is open for all of those attending JCK Las Vegas. This is in no doubt in recognition of the only segment of the jewelry industry that continues to grow during this sluggish recovery. Autore, Breuning, Carl Messler and Danhov are among the approximate 230 luxury exhibitors at the show.

Swiss Watch at JCK (June 2 - 6) remains an appointment only event. There is no desire and seemingly no need for the luxury Swiss watch industry to change the way it does business as it continues to experience exceptional sales growth and consumer passion for its timepieces. Exhibitors run from Breitling to Zenith who will be seeing buyers in suites at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and the Four Seasons Hotel in the same building.

Wynn Las Vegas, home of the Couture Show.  Photo Credit: Destination360

The Couture Show, over in the Wynn Las Vegas (June 2 – 6), features some of the best-known high-end jewelry brands in the world, including Damiani, John Hardy, David Yurman, Judith Ripka, Kwiat, Mikimoto, Roberto Coin and Stephen Webster. These are among the companies that broke off with JCK Las Vegas to form a show that is specific to their niche in the industry. In the past, the show lived off its close proximity to the Sands Convention Center. The question this year is whether enough buyers will want to make the trip from the south end of the strip to the Wynn. There are certainly enough destination brands for buyers to make the trip.

The American Gem Trade Association attached itself to JCK Las Vegas a number of years ago with its own show, AGTA GemFair Las Vegas. The collection of gem and pearl dealers from all over the world will continue its successful association with JCK at Mandalay Bay (June 2 – 7).

Then there’s JCK Las Vegas (June 3 – 6), still the dominate jewelry trade show on “The Strip” even if its status is slightly tarnished. This show contains all aspects of the jewelry industry from bridal to manufacturing equipment and technology suppliers. Low-, mid-, and high-end tiers of the market are resented as well as international jewelry manufacturers.

Planet Hollywood is the location for Niche: The Show

Finally there’s Niche: The Show at Planet Hollywood (June 4 – 6). This is show dedicated for designers of handcrafted jewelry and other materials and mediums, such as glass, ceramic and wood. This event is an answer to the long-term struggle small jewelry designers had at JCK. The show was just too big and attracted too many buyers from large-scale operations with orders that these types small businesses couldn’t fill.

There are other shows as well, specializing in antiques, dedicated for watch dealers and for bead makers that round out the festivities. But it’s the major trade shows that will determine the shape and scope of what the U.S. jewelry industry will look like in the coming years.

Many in the industry will be crossing their fingers.