Jewelers Circular Keystone articles from November 2006

Jewelers Circular Keystone archives from November 2006

Robbins Diamonds" high-flying superstore.
November 1, 2006... By Anthony DeMarco, Senior Editor If the Robbins Diamonds business model were simplified, it could read: Build it bigger, make it fun, and they will come. For the past 10 years the venerable Philadelphia jeweler has been in the...

JCK's Annual Salary Survey Industry Pay Jumped in 2006.(Jewelers Circular Keystone)(Editorial)(Survey)(Statistical data)
November 1, 2006... By Hedda T. Schupak, Editor-in-Chief There's good news and not-so-good news in this year's report. On average, median salaries in retail jewelry stores grew 16.1 percent in 2005 over 2004's figures. That's very good news--it's...

Appointments.(Leach and Garner Co. appoints Maureen McAvoy)(Super Bell Jewelry Company Inc. appoints Lee Rothman)(deBoulle Diamond and Jewelry Inc. appoints Alan Katz)
November 1, 2006... By Staff IceLink Watch has hired Mark Schatten and Wallace Roberts for two newly created positions in its sales and marketing division. Schatten was appointed worldwide director, and Roberts, with 21 years of watch industry experience, was...

WJA Metropolitan Chapter Hosts Party.(Women's Jewelry Association)
November 1, 2006... By Staff The Women's Jewelry Association Metropolitan Chapter will host its annual holiday party Nov. 8 at New York City's famed Yale Club from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. The party is sponsored by Carrera Casting and Kwiat. A piece of...

JFC Unveils CD Program.(Jewelers for Children)(Totally Anonymous Music Inc.)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Staff Jewelers for Children has partnered with Totally Anonymous Music Inc. on a program for retailers to raise funds for JFC. Compilation CDs are now available for retailers to sell in their stores, with a significant portion of the...

New Distinction Categories for MJSA Vision Awards.(Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America)
November 1, 2006... By Staff Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America has announced new categories for its 2007 MJSA Vision Awards (formerly known as the American Vision Awards). This year also marks the first time international applicants are eligible....

E.E. Robbins Jewelers.(Emerson Robbins discusses how to keep a business competitive)(Interview)
November 1, 2006... By Glen A. Beres Emerson "Skip" Robbins is the owner of E.E. Robbins, a three-store chain based in Seattle. Although the company, which specializes in engagement rings, has been in operation only since 2000, Robbins and his family have...

Consumer Research.(Survey)
November 1, 2006... By Elizabeth Chatelain Have the dynamics of your marketplace changed significantly? If you don't regularly research your consumer base, you won't know. Consider the demographic shift in married people versus singles. According to...

Understanding the Changing Market.
November 1, 2006... By Hedda T. Schupak, Editor-in-Chief Your customer base is not the same as it was even a decade ago. Here is what you need to do to appeal to today's new consumers. The face of America is changing. The past 10 years in particular have...

Gem Pricing.
November 1, 2006... By Staff Market in brief: The colored stone market continued to strengthen during late summer, but sales activity is concentrated at the low and high ends, while the middle is flat. Buying patterns have remained largely unchanged. Dealers...

How Can I Avoid Seeming Pushy and Aggressive?
November 1, 2006... By Brad Huisken First, avoid these words: "referral," "feature," and "benefit." In addition, avoid these inquiries: "If I could get it for less, would you buy it today?" and "Can I help you?" All these do is remind customers that your...

Flex for Success.
November 1, 2006... By Martin C. Shanker I often hear sales associates complain, "The client didn't know what he wanted!" or "He couldn't answer my questions." Male clients, especially, are often in a hurry and unsure what they want. They may have limited...

The GIA Symposium: You Should Have Been There, Part 2.(Gemological Institute of America)(Column)(Conference notes)
November 1, 2006... By Frank Dallahan In my first year with JCK I had the assignment of showing the flag at industry functions. The magazine had just gone through a wrenching period with the departure of many of the staff to form Professional Jeweler . The...

Jaywalking in India.(jewelry marketing)
November 1, 2006... By Hedda T. Schupak Traffic in Mumbai (still called Bombay by many locals) is beyond the scope of imagination. More congested than Manhattan at noon or the 405 freeway in Los Angeles at 5:30 p.m., the cacophony of horns is deafening....

Are We Listening to the Echo?(jewelry and consumer behavior)
November 1, 2006... By Ben Janowski I spent many days at the summer trade shows and listened carefully to what suppliers and retailers had to say. Business is strange. Some people are doing very well while others are struggling or worse. We've heard about all...

A New Magazine, a New Show, and Amazing Places.(JCK Publishing Group and Infomedia launches JCK India magazine)
November 1, 2006... By Mark Smelzer So there we sat: Hedda Schupak, Dave Bonaparte, and me in a broken-down cab in New Delhi. Traffic rushed by on both sides as we contemplated the fact that we were going to have to leap out, dash across five lanes of...

Newspaper Ads Tout World Diamond Council Site.
November 1, 2006... By Rob Bates The World Diamond Council is upping its campaign to counteract any fallout from the Leonardo DiCaprio Blood Diamond movie, running newspaper ads to tout its diamondfacts.org Web site. WDC's ads ran in September in...

Another Antwerp Vet Goes to Dubai.(Dubai Multi Commodities Centre appoints Youri Steverlynck)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Rob Bates Another veteran of Antwerp, Belgium's HRD has joined the "competition" in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Youri Steverlynck, former HRD director of marketing and public relations, has been appointed general counsel for the...

Industry at Crossroads, Tempelsman Says.(Maurice Tempelsman speaks at Gemological Institute of America's Symposium)
November 1, 2006... By Rob Bates The diamond industry is at a "crossroads," with some form of correction "inevitable," Lazare Kaplan chairman Maurice Tempelsman warned in his strikingly dire closing speech at the GIA Symposium in San Diego. Tempelsman...

Seymour Rosenthal Dies.(World Federation of Diamond Bourses)(Obituary)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Rob Bates Seymour Rosenthal, former president of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses, died recently at age 89. Rosenthal entered the diamond business at the age of 18. He eventually served two terms as president of the...

De Beers Signs New Deal With Alrosa.(De Beers Group S.A., Alrosa Company Ltd.)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Rob Bates De Beers and Russian producer Alrosa recently signed a deal to jointly explore and prospect properties inside and outside of Russia. In February, the European Commission told Alrosa it could no longer sell its stones to De...

Get to Know … Janet Mavec.(jewelry designer)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Jennifer Heebner Janet Mavec likes fraise des bois (wild strawberries). "Like wild ones you find growing in Spain or in France," she says. The owner of Janet Mavec Fine Jewelry in New York City grows a variety of the tiny berries at her...

Music Inspired Jewelry.(musical symbol jewelry for music lovers)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Jennifer Heebner Music lovers have a host of ways to enjoy their favorite tunes: iPod, radio, television, Internet downloads, CD, even vinyl. Now they can pledge allegiance to their favorite instrument or celebrate a musical era by...

More on Glass-Filled Ruby.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA Large numbers of glass-filled ruby are entering the marketplace, according to a pair of articles featured in back-to-back issues of Gemworld International's Gem Market News . ("Lead Glass Filled/Repaired Rubies,"...

Gübelin Unveiled.(lifelik bust of Dr. Edward J. Gubelin at Gemological Institute of America's campus)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA A lifelike bust of the late Dr. Edward J. Gubelin now resides in the Salvador J. Assael Grand Atrium lobby of the Gemological Institute of America's Robert Mouawad campus in Carlsbad, Calif. The bronze sculpture...

Tanzanite Foundation Announces Winners.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA The Tanzanite Foundation has announced the winners of the first Tanzanite Celebration of Life Jewellery Design Awards. Designers from over 20 countries entered the competition. Designs were judged on their...

Debate Over 'Synthetic' Is Real.(Gemological Institute of America's Fourth International Gemological Symposium)(synthetic minerals in jewelry, trends and forecast)(Conference notes)
November 1, 2006... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA The Gemological Institute of America's Fourth International Gemological Symposium hosted dozens of seminars and panels, some of which took place in rooms labeled "The Jungle," "The Pit," and "The Ring," names that...

Sapphire Used on Watch Bracelets.(SARO-Gem Jewellery Watch Co. uses synthetic sapphire in watches)
November 1, 2006... By Gary Roskin, G.G., FGA SARO-Gem Jewellery Watch Co., Bettlach, Switzerland, has found a new use for synthetic sapphire in watches. SARO, which stands for Sapphire Round Over, uses synthetic colorless sapphire not only as the crystal...

Global Perspectives, Part 2.(jewelry market)
November 1, 2006... By Hedda Schupak Global shifts in the jewelry industry were the focus of a session called "Business Perspectives: Charting the Globe," held during GIA Symposium, Aug. 27-29. A panel discussion moderated by Anna Martin, senior vice...

Newswire.(Council for Responsible Jewellery Practices)(Annual Rapaport International Diamond Conference)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Staff CRJP Releases Code of Practices The Council for Responsible Jewellery Practices released its finalized Code of Practices at the Hong Kong Jewellery & Watch Fair. The 16-page code articulates the ethical, social, and...

Holiday Forecast Decent, but Not Dazzling.
November 1, 2006... By Rob Bates It looks like it will be a solid but unspectacular holiday for jewelers, retail analysts tell JCK . The National Retail Federation predicts a "subdued" 5 percent overall sales gain this holiday, compared with last year's...

Indian and Thai Jewelry Industries Threatened by GSP Fate.
November 1, 2006... By Staff Possible nonrenewal or changes in the U.S. government's Generalized System of Preferences could raise the price of imported jewelry from India, Thailand, and Turkey. The GSP is a 30-year-old program that lowers tariffs for...

Thai coup won't affect jewelry industry.(Thailand)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Gary Roskin and Anthony DeMarco September's coup in Thailand has had little to no effect on the gem industry in the Southeast Asian country, several persons told JCK . "All is well in Bangkok," said Randy Park, director of GIA...

SEC Drops Zale Investigation.(Securities and Exchange Commission)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Staff The Securities and Exchange Commission is terminating its investigation of Zale Corp. with no enforcement action being recommended. (See "SEC Probes Zale," JCK , June 2006, p. 69.) "We are pleased to put this matter behind...

Aaura Closes Its Doors.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Staff Gold jewelry manufacturer Aaura has gone out of business. The Chicago-based company announced the move in a message e-mailed to clients and friends and placed on the company's Web site. It had been in business for 23 years. ...

De Beers Gets U.S. Rep.(De Beers Group S.A.)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By Staff In a sign that De Beers is feeling more confident in its dealings with the United States, the company is getting its first-ever American representative. While De Beers has long promoted its products through ad agency JWT, and...

Tourneau to Be Sold for $300 Million.(Tourneau Direct Inc.)
November 1, 2006... By William George Shuster Tourneau Inc., the leading U.S. watch retailer and one of the world's largest, announced Sept. 6 that it had "a definitive agreement" to be acquired by an investor group led by Green Equity Investors IV L.P. The...

Swatch Group Posts Big Half-Year Gains.
November 1, 2006... By William George Shuster The Swatch Group, based in Biel, Switzerland, reported half-year results in late August, including first-half net profits of $265.7 million, a 23.6 percent gain. Sales rose 13.1 percent to 1.8 billion, while...

Swiza Acquired by Bedonia.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By William George Shuster Swiza S.A., a 102-year-old Swiss family business that specializes in making travel and alarm clocks for its Swiza and Matthew Norman brands as well as for prestigious private brands, has been acquired by Bedonia,...

'Spectacular Rise' in quartz chronometer submissions.(Controle Officiel Suisse des Chronometres)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... By William George Shuster There was a "spectacular rise of quartz chronometers" submitted in 2005 for testing and certification by COSC (Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres), the Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute, says...

Who Says You Can't Sell More Jewelry? Part 1.(platinum bridal products are now the trend)
November 1, 2006... By Rick Bannerot If customers comment about jewelry price increases, consider it an opportunity to reset their perceived value framework. Shock them and say, "Yes, this is true." Then add, "However, what is more accurate to say is that...