Jewelers Circular Keystone articles from March 2008

Jewelers Circular Keystone archives from March 2008

The Best! The Brightest! The Jewelers Choice Awards.
March 1, 2008... Staff The first annual JCK Jewelers Choice Awards drew 430 entries from manufacturers and designers of jewelry and watches and 11,052 votes from retailers. The Grand Prize winner [above], is a platinum ring designed by Christopher Designs...

Cyma The Next Generation.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster, Senior Editor The new management team at the venerable Swiss watch company has grand plans for the future-including a keen focus on the U.S. market. Cyma, one of Switzerland's last family-owned and -operated...

Capital Offensive.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster, Senior Editor Jewelers of America joins the K Street gang in Washington, D.C., as it embarks on its most extensive, high-profile lobbying efforts ever. First lady Laura Bush was impressed. 'I...

Courting the Next Wave of Customers.
March 1, 2008... By Hedda T. Schupak, Editor-in-Chief Understanding what matters to teenagers today will help retailers gain their loyalty as customers tomorrow. Today's teenagers are far more family oriented than their parents were at the same age....

Revere Hosts Annual Masters Symposium.
March 1, 2008... Staff The Revere Academy will hold a series of workshops during the 2008 Masters Symposium, April 5-27. The Academy will host eight master classes taught by leading goldsmiths and other experts. Japanese master metalsmith Naohiro...

Shigley to Receive Bonanno Award.(GIA Gem Trade Laboratory )(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Staff The Accredited Gemologists Association has announced that this year's Antonio C. Bonanno Award for Excellence in Gemology will be awarded to Dr. James Shigley, of the GIA Gem Trade Laboratory. Shigley, a Distinguished Research...

OK, Now What?(Jewelry industry's marketing)
March 1, 2008... By Rick Bannerot The result: Consumer sentiment is in the tank. Politicians exacerbate the problems by pointing fingers at the other party, while news anchors rattle the bars of the recession cage to drum up ratings. None of that means...

Technology Inspires a New Generation.
March 1, 2008... By Mark B. and Lainie Mann This design was sponsored by Gemvison Corp., Davenport, Iowa. For information about Gemvision products and services, visit www.gemvision.com , call (800) 357-6272, or e-mail: info@gemvision.com . For information...

Gem Pricing Report.
March 1, 2008... Staff January produced weak sales for retailers. Consumer confidence slid on negative data from credit, business, and jobs reports. Nevertheless, the gem market is seeing some activity. Dealers report healthy demand for 2.50 ct. to 3.00...

Unleash Your Enthusiasm.
March 1, 2008... By Wayne Levy When you greet a customer, don't rely on the typical 'Can I help you find something?' Instead, try a greeting like this: 'Our buyers just received these brand-new styles of earrings (pendants, rings, etc.). We haven't even...

Principles of Sales Management, Part 1.
March 1, 2008... By Brad Huisken Last month we discussed my philosophy of sales management. This month we get more specific and look at the first eight of 16 principles of sales management. Next month we'll examine the other eight. 1. Manage your...

Six Steps Toward World-Class Service.
March 1, 2008... By Michael Guld Customers tend to remember only those customer-service experiences that are really terrific or really awful. Make sure your customers remember your customer service for the right reasons. Today's business environment is...

Precious Metal for Precious Moments.
March 1, 2008... By Mark B. and Lainie Mann [Part three of a three-part series on manufacturing seamless tubing and design and production methods for palladium wedding bands made from it.] Established in the 1900s, the Lieberfarb company built a...

Reward the 'How'-Not Just the Sales.
March 1, 2008... By Martin C. Shanker A perceptual-and communications-gap between Michael and management lay at the heart of this complaint. Michael's sales volume placed him among the top producers. From his perspective, all was well, and he deserved...

The Sky Is Not Falling.
March 1, 2008... By Frank Dallahan When you pick up a newspaper or magazine today you'll see a wide variety of discouraging reports about society in general and business in particular. The same observation applies to television and radio. With 24/7 cable...

Critical News Analysis.
March 1, 2008... By Hedda T. Schupak It's getting so you don't want to turn on the news anymore, because it's seldom good where the economy is concerned. Perhaps it's because conventional wisdom says good news doesn't sell. But bad news, repeated often...

Reading Tea Leaves.
March 1, 2008... By Ben Janowski One has to wonder about the gurus in the financial market. All through the latter half of last year, most were saying the economy was sound and chances of a recession were low. Either they're inept, or they lied to keep the...

A Celebration!
March 1, 2008... by Mark Smelzer Welcome to our first annual editorial celebration of the winners of the JCK Jewelers Choice Awards! Beginning on page 85, you'll see beautiful, original editorial photography of the winners in each category. Our cover...

Blood Diamonds in Spotlight at War Crimes Trial.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates The blood diamond issue took center stage at the opening of former Liberian president Charles Taylor's trial for war crimes at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. The prosecution asserts that Taylor drove the...

Company Claims It Can Inscribe Photos on Diamonds.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates A Silicon Valley company, Gemory, says it has new technology that can nano-inscribe photographs on diamonds. Another company, Photoscribe, also says it can inscribe photos on gems, but Gemory is the first to claim it can...

Sightholders Dropped for BPP Violations.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates Six sightholders were recently dropped by De Beers' Diamond Trading Company for alleged violations of its Best Practice Principles, a code of ethical guidelines. According to market talk, four had been on the new...

Get to Know - Alexandra Hart.(Brief article)(Biography)
March 1, 2008... By Bacilio Mendez II Born in Salem, Mass., and currently living in San Diego as a full-time metalsmith, Alexandra Hart has found her niche in nature. 'Dramatically alluring yet signally protective natural organic forms inspire me,' she...

Keeping Time, Staying in Style.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... By Bacilio Mendez II Tissot knows what a woman wants-diamonds. But what about ladies who rush rather than lunch? Tissot has them covered, too. The T-Touch Danica Patrick Limited Edition watch-named for professional race-car driver Danica...

Rebecca Comes Stateside.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... By Bacilio Mendez II The philosophy behind Alessandro Testi's fine-jewelry brand Rebecca is based on spontaneity. The brand is named after a character in an Italian noir film, which Testi saw only in passing and whose title he can't...

Gem Labs Introduce New Ruby ID Nomenclature.
March 1, 2008... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA By definition, red transparent corundum is ruby. But in some glass-filled specimens, the filling not only masks fractures but also acts as an adhesive to hold the stone together. Now the New York Gemstone...

Aurora Collection Dawns in London.
March 1, 2008... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA The London Museum of Natural History's new permanent gallery, The Vault, which opened in late November, brings together crystals, gems, rare metals, and meteorites. Alongside the museum's permanent collection are...

Friedman's Jewelers Goes Chapter 11.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates For the second time in three years, Friedman's Jewelers has gone into Chapter 11, this time following a petition by its lenders to force it into Chapter 7 (liquidation) bankruptcy. The chain filed for Chapter 11 in early 2005...

Fortunoff Goes Chapter 11, May Be Purchased by Lord & Taylor.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates The owner of the Lord & Taylor department store chain plans to buy Fortunoff, the famed 20-store jewelry and home furnishing retailer, which has stores in New York and New Jersey. NRDC, which purchased the 182-year-old...

DTC Cuts U.S. Marketing.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates In a blow to the U.S. market, De Beers' Diamond Trading Company has cut its U.S. marketing budget, and 11 people at the DTC account at JWT in New York are leaving the account. Sally Morrison, of JWT's Diamond Information...

Diamond Fund to Open This Year.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates Diapson Commodities Management is planning to open its delayed diamond investment fund this year, reports say. The fund will concentrate on the biggest, most valuable stones. The fund was supposed to debut last year but...

Tiffany Chairman: We're in a 'Good Place'.
March 1, 2008... By Rob Bates In an exclusive interview, Tiffany chairman Michael Kowalski talked with JCK about his company's business, including last year's disappointing Christmas sales. Kowalski's thoughts on the Fair Trade study his company's...

Speaking Out.
March 1, 2008... By Jennifer Heebner The industry's frankest talk Manos Phoundoulakis, CEO of Select Source in Santa Monica, Calif., speaks about palladium and platinum. 'So there is a new cockamamy alloy-palladium -out to make jewelry with. It is...

Wunderman Replaces Orloff as Corum USA President.(Michael Wunderman has been appointed as a president of Corum USA)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster Michael Wunderman, formerly president of luxury watch brand Montres Corum, in January replaced Stacie Orloff as president of Corum USA, in an unexpected restructuring of top management. Orloff had been president...

Harry Winston, Chopard Expand Watch Operations.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster Two luxury jewelers that are well-established watchmakers are expanding their production capacities. Harry Winston opened a new watchmaking facility, with 100 employees, in December in the Plan-les-Ouates,...

Tiffany Aims to Be a Leading Luxury Watch Brand.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster Luxury jeweler Tiffany & Co. and its new partner, the Swatch Group, intend to make Tiffany one of the world's leading luxury watch brands within a decade. A 20-year pact between the two was announced in December....

Vying for 'Watch of the Year'.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster Which timepiece was 2007's watch of the year? A number of brands laid claim at year's end. German luxury watchmaker A. Lange & Söhne was named by two Austrian publications, the daily newspaper Die Presse...

Luxury Watch Business Awards Top 2007 Prizes.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster The luxury watch business awarded its top 2007 awards in November at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Geneve ceremonies in Geneva. The top prize, L'Aiguille d'Or (Golden Hand), was awarded to watch industry...

Breil Milano Sponsors America's Cup Entry.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster Breil Milano is sponsoring Team Shosholoza, the South African challenger for the 33rd international America's Cup yachting competition. It's also official timekeeper and official supplier, and will provide a new...

SIHH Becomes Autonomous.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster The annual international luxury watch show Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie, in Geneva, is now autonomous. The decision was made by the Council of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, which has operated...

Watch Web Sites Keep Growing.(Website overview)
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster The number of watch Web sites keeps growing. Here are three of the most recent. ViaLuxe.com (www.vialuxe.com ) is a luxury watch and jewelry site created by two former executives of Internet search engine...

Newswire.
March 1, 2008... By William George Shuster English jewelry firm Links of London launched its fine-watch collection in the U.S. market in October. Watches for men and women retail for $475 to $10,000. Designs are inspired by classic vintage cars. Swiss...