BIRMINGHAM, England, December 2011 – The Jewellery Show 2012 will feature prestigious new suppliers, present a new section showcasing watches brands, and focus strongly on new trends.
The event, which will take place from February 5-9 at the Birmingham NEC, will communicate the newest trends in retail in a bid to boost the quality of the experience for both retail buyers and suppliers.
Big brand Swarovski, celebrated for its crystal jewellery, will be exhibiting at The Jewellery Show for the first time and Pandora will return, again sponsoring the popular catwalk.
“From the research that we did in 2011, we understood that buyers want to see something new. They want to see what is the next new trend, what is the next new brand coming through,” said Julie Driscoll, Event Director.
“We’ve got Swarovski at our show – a lot of our clients had said they would really like to see Swarovski — for the first time in 2012.”
The presence of Swarovski and Pandora is a coup for The Jewellery Show in 2012, as Swarovski has not exhibited in the UK for many years, and Pandora exhibits in the UK solely at The Jewellery Show, Driscoll said.
Ti Sento and Ken Carr London will return to The Jewellery Show as exhibitors, and new brands Phantasya, Tresor Paris, London Pearl Company, Dan Jewellers, and Charles Green, will exhibit for the first time
New precious brands are coming too. St. Maurice, which features diamonds and bridal rings, will be at The Jewellery Show for the first time, and Breuning will return after an absence.
HEIGHTENED FOCUS ON WATCHES
The Jewellery Show, responding to strong demand for watches at retail jewellers in the UK, has created a section to bring together watches brands for the first time.
“Watches of a certain level are really moving well in the UK, selling through the retail jewellers,” Driscoll said.
She said that while many retail jewellers visited BASELWORLD to order top-end watches, there will be an opportunity for many of Britain’s 4,500 retail jewellers who do not go to Basel to buy watches at The Jewellery Show.
“We have found that there is a gap in the market, so we have created a section called Time – this is just under 100 watch brands. Brands such as Festina, Storm watches, Oasis, Puma, Switch, Danish Designs, and Alessandro Baldieri,” Driscoll said.
“This is very much a reflection that watches brands are fuelling the jewellery industry to a certain extent,” she said.
MUNICH, Germany, December 2011 – The management of the inhorgenta jewellery and watches fair is planning a strong expansion of the trade show in the coming years.
As part of this re-orientation, the visual design is to be enhanced and associated more closely with the Munich location.
Step by step, the layout and structure of the various exhibition halls will be given a sharper profile and the design of the exhibition space will become more sophisticated, with high-quality lounges and attractive special shows.
The event is to get a new name: INHORGENTA MUNICH. The dates of the next trade show are February 10 to 13, 2012 in Munich.
“Munich is one of the most famous, best loved and most charming cities in the world,” said Renate Wittgenstein, product manager at INHORGENTA MUNICH and one of the driving forces behind the changes being implemented by 2014.
“Our goal is to make better use of the excellent image and attractiveness of the city for the trade show, particularly as regards international competition.”
Events and PR activities at the exhibition center and in the city will also be organized to integrate INHORGENTA MUNICH more strongly into the life of the Bavarian capital.
The first signs of this upcoming quality campaign will be seen at the fair itself next year. At the West Entrance, trade visitors and exhibitors will be able to enjoy a stylishly revamped INHORGENTA MUNICH Lounge.
Plans are under way for exhibitors to be able to use the Lounge area for their own events.
Visual changes will be one outward sign. But on the culinary front, too, the fair will have some treats in store in 2012: celebrity chef Holger Stromberg, who cooks for the German national football squad and who since last year has been actively involved in both ISPO MUNICH and INHORGENTA MUNICH, will be running the “Schlossrestaurant” and the “Buddha Bar”, both specially set up in Hall B2.
The range of food and drink goes beyond the standard fare on offer at many other trade shows, and in doing so echoes in culinary terms the high quality standards of INHORGENTA MUNICH itself.
Holger Stromberg will also be organizing the food at another attraction to visitors and exhibitors – the new Howard Hughes Lounge.
Suitably this will be located in Hall A1, and styled to match the lifestyle watches on display there.
With an appropriate lounge-like design and lots of large-format wall motifs, INHORGENTA MUNICH will be conjuring up the days of this early aviator, film producer and entrepreneur – and of course whetting appetites for the timeless elegance and sporting design of classic pilot´s watches.
All of this will be rounded off with the culinary delights on offer in the premium restaurant in Hall B1.
In the new-style West Entrance area, a day bar and the INHORGENTA MUNICH Lounge will be welcoming attendees with an appealing visual design and atmosphere.
The supporting program to INHORGENTA MUNICH will be redesigned for 2012, and will feature many lectures by selected speakers.
For example, high-ranking representatives from the sector will be taking part in a forum that gives jewellers and retailers a glimpse into what the future holds for their business.
Among the speakers are Professor Dirk Wolfes (“Fashion Future Trends”), Nicolas Tscheche from Airbus (“Luxury in Commercial Aviation”), Björn Theis of Z-Punkt (“Evolution of Luxury”) and Professor Dr. Fritz Frenkler of the Technical University of Munich who will be speaking about “The Future of Industrial Design”.
Panel discussions and lectures on other topical themes will complete this exciting supporting program.
“We have developed a whole range of components that in the coming years will make INHORGENTA MUNICH even more attractive to exhibitors and visitors,” says Renate Wittgenstein.
Just as ambitious is the mid-term goal the team has set itself: “We want to bring INHORGENTA MUNICH onto a sustainable growth path, to sharpen the profile of the event and the segments, and to clearly position the show in relation to the competition.”
NEW YORK, December 14, 2011 – The second day of auctions devoted to the jewellery collection of Elizabeth Taylor achieved US$ 21.3 million on December 14, and was 100 percent sold by lot.
This brings the combined total for the sales of fine jewellery from the collection to US$ 137,235,675 (£87,830,832/ €105,671,470) — making it not only the most valuable private collection of jewellery ever offered at auction, but also the most valuable sale of jewellery in auction history.
The previous evening’s results of $115.9 million set a frenzied pace at the second day of the four-day auction series, with an added element of competition from scores of clients bidding online from around the world.
“The spectacular results of the Evening Sale of Elizabeth Taylor’s iconic jewels sparked a surge of interest from collectors around the world. It took eight hours and three auctioneers to sell 190 more jewels from Elizabeth Taylor’s storied collection,” noted François Curiel, International Director of Jewellery at Christie’s.
“The atmosphere was electric from the very first to the last lot, with collectors from Asia, the Middle East, Europe and America chasing each individual jewel with a tenacity never seen before. All the jewels offered greatly exceeded their estimates, sometimes by much as a hundred times.
This brings the total value of Miss Taylor’s jewellery collection to $ 137.2 million and sets a new record for the largest jewellery sale ever presented at auction.”
The top lot of the Day Sale sessions was an exquisite antique natural pearl and diamond necklace dated circa 1860 that Richard Burton gave to Elizabeth Taylor in 1968.
Featuring a pear-shaped pearl drop reminiscent of her historic “La Peregrina” pearl, the antique necklace was chased by multiple bidders who drove the final purchase price to $1.48 million.
In similar fashion, the most anticipated items of the day – The Burton Wedding Bands – became the subject of a spirited bidding battle between a bidder on the phone and in the room.
The gold and diamond rings (pictured), which were given to Elizabeth Taylor by Richard Burton upon their marriages in 1964 and 1975, were estimated at $6,000-8,000. The final sale price was US$ 1,022,500.
“We are humbled and gratified by these results which are a testament to the public’s overwhelming affection for Elizabeth Taylor and her incredible legacy,” said Marc Porter, Chairman of Christie’s Americas.
“The sale of Miss Taylor and Richard Burton’s wedding bands for over $1 million after an epic 16-minute bidding war was a fitting grand finale to the live auction portion of this amazing jewellery collection.“
LONDON, December 4, 2011 – An invitation-only party at a prestigious London location provided a showcase for luxury jewellery brand, Vendorafa.
The party, which took place in the five-star Grange Hotel St Pauls on November 19, was hosted by the Knightsbridge jeweller Mozafarian, one of the first UK retailers to stock Vendorafa which is being distributed in the UK by Advalorem, part of the WB Creative Jewellery Group.
Some 70 guests were treated to champagne and canapés and given the chance to view and try on jewels from the Vendorafa range in a relaxed atmosphere whilst admiring paintings of The Venice Carnival by the acclaimed artist Lynne Russell.
Jewellery from Mozafarian’s own collection and a number of other key brands was also on display.
“The star of the show was definitely the Dune Collection,” said Advalorem’s business development manager, Ben Williams.
“Everyone seemed to love its tactile quality. The larger statement pieces, particularly the cuffs and bangles, were extremely popular.”
Bahareh Mozafarian, who hosted the event, was also delighted with the evening.
“These events give us the opportunity to entertain our customers and to spend time getting to know them better,” she said.
“We were very pleased that Vendorafa could join us on this occasion. The feedback from our customers was excellent and I have no doubt that the evening is an indicator of things to come with Vendorafa.”
SAO PAULO, November 29, 2011 – Jewellery shoppers in Brazil’s commercial capital have a huge array of choice catering to all tastes – they can trawl the local markets for artisanal accessories or visit the smart malls or elegant shopping streets for more expensive treasures.
A visit to the Municipal Market in the centre of Sao Paulo’s mega-city reveals artisanal jewellery. If your taste is for environmentally friendly pieces at accessible prices, pop into Biojoias Atelie Especiarias, inside the 1930s market building, not far from the tropical fruits, nuts and fresh fish stands.
For more costly, precious items, your best bet is to visit one of Sao Paulo’s flourishing, heavily protected shopping malls, like Iguatemi, Morumbi or Vila Olimpia, where shoppers browse in air-conditioned comfort.
Shoppers visiting Vila Olimpia mall have a good choice of precious items – shops such as Preludio, which sells gemstones and pearls; Sergio Giglioli, which has a range of gold and silver jewellery and stocks Michael Kors and Lancaster watches, and H. Stern, the famous Brazilian upmarket jeweller.
Foreign visitors to jewellers such as H. Stern can benefit from tax-free prices, sometimes representing big discounts from the fully taxed price that Brazilians pay.
The availability of Brazilian gemstones is an attractive feature of jewellery shopping in the South American country.
On a recent visit to H. Stern, a spectacular pendant with a large Brazilian quartz stone and 18-carat gold chain was for sale for U.S. $4,290 to tax-free foreign buyers, compared with a fully taxed price for Brazilian shoppers in the region of $6,000.
Retail jewellers in Sao Paulo’s malls often encourage shoppers to pay monthly payments over an extended period of, say, 10 months.
Many of the top jewellery and fashion brands can be found on or near Rua Oscar Freire, one of Sao Paulo’s most elegant shopping areas.
Jewellers such as Cartier, H. Stern, Vivara, Guerreiro, and smaller houses such as LaSpiniella, which sells gold, silver and pearl jewels, and Edna D’Bezerra Bijoux, which has chunky, colourful statement pieces, featuring dragon flies and lizards, can be found in the area.
LONDON, December 2011 – The Delaire Graff Estate on November 24 hosted a charity art auction featuring the donated works of 15 leading South African artists to benefit FACET (For Africa’s Children Every Time), the charity set up by luxury jeweller Laurence Graff in 2008.
The evening was in support of FACET’s latest partnership with the Pebbles Project, a South African-based charity created to provide support to the vulnerable
children of the Winelands.
The funds raised on the night well exceeded expectations, with a grand total of R1.4 million being raised for a very good cause.
FACET aims to provide a crucial resource for the Pebbles Project through the development of a Graff Leadership Centre that will be built in the Stellenbosch
Winelands.
The Centre will support Pebbles in their mission to better the lives of children from disadvantaged backgrounds with special educational needs, through
providing support and training to local children and establishing after-school provision for older children living in the Winelands.
It is reported that a staggering 12 percent of children in the area suffer from Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.
The evening included a drinks reception, followed by a dinner featuring the work of Chef Christaan Campbell paired with Delaire’s award-winning wines, with entertainment provided throughout the night by one of South Africa’s most celebrated female groups, 3 Tons of Fun.
Former Miss South Africa Jo-Ann Strauss officiated as Master of Ceremonies for the evening’s guests who included South Africa’s top philanthropists and art collectors.
SAO PAULO, Brazil, November 26, 2011 – Designer Táta Moreno presents her Frenesi collection, inspired by a frenetic Brazilian rhythm, Frevo, which originates from Pernambuco.
The collection interprets the surge of joyous people pouring into the street dancing to the beat during Carnival and features an interpretation of a small umbrella used in the dance.
Creating jewellery is a supreme pleasure for Sao Paulo-based Táta Moreno, who seeks to surprise her clients.
“Inspiration simply happens for me. It can be in the interpretation of a shape, a movement or a text,” she says.
“There are no rules. It is important to prepare the spirit and mind to seize the inspiration and transform it into a marvellous piece of jewellery.”
Táta Moreno’s jewels have been shown at the Louvre Museum in Paris.
Oversize watch brand TW Steel has signed singing star anf current The X Factor judge Kelly Rowland as a brand ambassador.
The deal was announced at a party in London last night co-hosted by the brand and the celebrity at The Box in Soho.
Rowland took to the stage to speak to the crowd of press and retailers and spoke about how the deal came together. She said: “I have been a fan of TW Steel for some time now and it all came together very organically. I think the brand is the perfect mix of femininity and masculinity.”
TW Steel chief executive Jordy Cobelens is a huge music fan, having set up his own music label Steel Entertainment, and he spoke of his delight at woring with Rowland. He said: “Kelly’s sheer presence connects her to so many people and her talent is simply phenomenal. We’re delighted to be partnering with her and to have her representing TW Steel. We share her passion for music and we know she enjoys working with many different artists. We’re looking forward to collaborating with her also, we plan to produce a couple of special edition timepieces for her, and I know they’ll be a huge success.”
The planned special edition watches will be co-designed by Rowland herself. Speaking of this new challenge, she said: “I love the statement wearing a big watch makes and they just get what it is to be fun and stylish at the same time. I love fashion – it plays such an important role in the music industry. For me to now channel that passion into designing my own range of watches with TW Steel is pretty exciting.”
The eyes of many TW Steel retailers and executives at Swico will no doubt be glued to TV screens on Saturday night to see whether Rowland will make the most of her partnership with the brand and wear a TW Steel watch during the final of The X Factor, a show that is expected to generate millions of viewers.
Fable Trading, distributor of Trollbeads in the UK and Ireland, has added Buddha to Buddha to its portfolio, a collection of branded contemporary silver jewellery from Holland.
This is the first time the brand has been available in the UK, and Fable Trading will unveil the full collection at its stand at The Jewellery Show at Spring Fair in February.
The collection consists of more than a hundred different silver bracelets, rings, earrings and necklaces, handmade in Bali. Some pieces also feature semi-precious stones and leather and all are individually hallmarked. Prices range from £50 RRP.
Sarah Morfoot, managing director of Fable Trading said: “Buddha to Buddha is an outstanding, contemporary brand for the effortlessly cool.
“This jewellery appeals to both men and women with its clean, powerful, easily recognisable designs combining strength with beauty. These are unique, inspirational quality, hand crafted pieces featuring strong branding and signature patented locks on all bracelets and necklaces. We believe Buddha to Buddha will develop a huge following in the UK and Ireland, becoming a “must have” accessory for the young and fashionable.”
Buddha to Buddha was founded and designed by Dutch entrepreneur Batul Loomans mwho was inspired to create this unique jewellery following a deep conversation session – called Buddha to Buddha – during a mediation holiday in India.
Looman aims to create powerful fashionable jewellery that celebrates “living consciously and embracing life”. During a trip to the Far East in 1997 a bracelet design he had sketched in India was brought to life by craftsmen from the Indonesian island of Bali and on his return to Amsterdam his original creation was displayed in a prestigious fashion store.
The brand is said to have become a hit among the Amsterdam music scene and today boasts international clients.
While visiting Australia for a trade promotion, Princess Mary of Denmark has worn Ole Lynggaard jewellery.Australian-born, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark has continually been described as a ‘style queen’ during her royal engagements in Australia. Throughout her schedule Princess Mary has ensured that she is adorned in Danish jewellery, including Ole Lynggaard Copenhagen.
.jpg)
The Royal Court arrived in Sydney and travelled to Melbourne to discuss growing trade relationships between the two countries.
.jpg)
Whilst attending a business delegation dinner at Sydney’s Doltone House, Princess Mary was spotted wearing a selection of jewellery designs from Ole Lynggaard’s signature collections.
.jpg)
The Princess shone in Ole Lynggaard earrings from both its Lotus and Winter Frost collections as well as a bracelet from the popular Sweet Drops collection.
