Articles and News
INDUSTRY NEWS; JEWELRY, WATCHES TOP ONLINE SPENDING; PUSH TO REDEFINE CONFLICT DIAMONDS; MORE May 16, 2012 (0 comments)
Jewelry, Watches Help Drive 17% Gain in Online Spending
Reston, VA—Jewelry and watches were among the strongest categories for online spending, helping to drive total online sales in the United States up 17% in the first quarter of the year. According to figures released this week by comScore, an analytics agency that measures performance in the digital world, online spending reached $44.3 billion the first quarter of 2012. The gain marks a return to pre-recession growth figures, according to comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni, and is both the tenth consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth, and the sixth consecutive quarter of double-digit increases.
Jewelry and watches, along with computer software, consumer electronics, event tickets, and digital content and subscriptions, was a top performer. Each of these categories posted more than 17% in year-over-year gains individually, but at press time, ComScore did not release additional data for jewelry and watch sales.
Industry Leaders Call for Broader Definition of “Conflict” Diamonds
Vicenza, Italy—Both the World Diamond Council and the chair of the Kimberley Process support a broader definition of a “conflict” or “blood” diamond. The current definition under the Kimberley Process, drafted in response to the brutal civil wars in Africa (especially Sierra Leone) in the 1990s, refers specifically to rough stones used by rebel movements to fund war against legitimate governments. It doesn’t cover violence committed by governments themselves, such as has been taking place in Zimbabwe. The new, broader definition would define conflict stones as any that help foster violence or human-rights abuses.
But a new definition is far from a done deal. While both the WDC and KP chair Gillian Milovanovic have expressed support for it—or at least for discussions about it—any change still must be voted on by all KP members, which isn’t likely to happen before the end of the year at best, and, if past history is any guide, may meet with strong opposition from some participants.
Diamond Empowerment Fund Announces Special Seminar, Giant TV Raffle at JCK
New York, NY—The Diamond Empowerment Fund will be hosting a special panel discussion during the JCK Show, titled “Diamonds for GOOD: What Your Customers WANT to Know and What You NEED to Know.” The session—targeted to retailers who serve the socially-conscious Millennial generation—will examine the contributions diamonds have made to the economic development of both individuals and communities in Africa, especially through education.
DEF also will host a fundraising raffle for a 51-inch Samsung plasma television, at its booth at the JCK Show, L-200. Proceeds will go, to support its mission of funding education initiatives in diamond-producing nations in Africa.
The Diamonds for GOOD panel discussion will be held Saturday, June 2 at 4:00 p.m. in the Tradewinds B Ballroom at Mandalay Bay. The panel, moderated by Rob Bates of JCK magazine, will open with remarks from DEF president Phyllis Bergman and will include:
- Varda Shine, CEO of the Diamond Trading Company, who will discuss the social and economic growth of Botswana as a result of the diamond industry
- David Bouffard, vice president of public relations for Sterling Jewelers, who will explain how train store sales staff to connect the “diamonds for good story” with customers
Left to right: Varda Shine, CEO of the Diamond Trading Company; David Bouffard, vice president of public relations for Sterling Jewelers Inc.; and Joseph Munyambanza, an ALA graduate who grew up in a refugee camp in Uganda, will speak on the DEF panel about how diamonds can help build the future of African leadership.
- Joseph Munyambanza, a graduate of the African Leadership Academy, one of three DEF-funded schools, who will tell his personal experience of how diamonds helped him build a future from a refugee displaced from his home in the Democratic Republic of Congo at age 6, to an ALA graduate, and now a student at the University of Missouri.
- Dr. Benjamin Chavis, senior strategic advisor for the Diamond Empowerment Fund, who will discuss “Development Diamonds,” a case study of diamonds used to educate, empower, and transform an entire community.
- Cecilia Gardner, CEO and general counsel of the JVC and general counsel of the World Diamond Council, who will address how the U.S. chairmanship of the Kimberley Process can bring an added emphasis on development and an added level of credibility.
The DEF booth, located at L-200 just outside the area encompassed by Luxury by JCK, will feature a raffle for a 51-inch Samsung plasma television. Raffle entries will be on sale throughout the show and the drawing will be held Monday, June 4 at 11:15 a.m.; the winner need not be present.
Student and panelist Joseph Munyambanza will be present at the DEF booth to meet with the industry and discuss his DEF-funded education, and two renowned international runway and beauty models, Flaviana and Nicola Breytenbach-Steiner, also will be on hand to meet and greet. Both women are of African birth—Flaviana from Tanzania and Breytenbach-Steiner from South Africa—and serve as DEF Ambassador Angels.
Also at the DEF booth, retailers may preview the new merchandising materials being developed to accompany DEF’s line of Empowerment Jewelry. The Empowerment Jewelry line features a range of pieces that earmark a portion of their proceeds for DEF’s mission of education in Africa. The Empowerment Jewelry collection features, in addition to the iconic Green Bracelet, an Empowerment Charm in sterling silver and Swarovski crystal, developed by Richline, and two diamond rings, specially developed for the Shining Star and Star of Africa collections by Royal Asscher.
Separately, DEF recently hosted a “Diamonds at the W” party in Miami, FL, during the AGS Conclave held there last month. The evening featured celebrity appearances by Charlotte Bobcats shooting guard Morris Peterson, one of DEF’s “Athletes for Africa” ambassadors, and international supermodel Nicola Breytenbach-Steiner. The evening also featured a DEF Raffle for Education, at which more than $4,000 was raised.
DDI to Present Artisanal Diamond Mining Seminar at JCK
Ottawa, Canada—Dorothée Gizenga, executive director of the Diamond Development Initiative (DDI), will present “Your Business and Artisanal Diamond Mining: What You and Your Customers Should Know” at the JCK Las Vegas show on Friday, June 1 from 2:30 – 3:45 p.m. The session will be held in the Tradewinds D ballroom. Joining Gizenga will be DDI supporter Jeff Corey of Day’s Jewelers, Waterville, ME, a contributor to the Friends of DDI program.
The session will provide participants with information on DDI’s efforts to address challenges in the artisanal diamond mining sector, and why this is relevant to retailers.
“I’m proud to support an organization that’s working so hard to make diamonds a vehicle for positive economic development at the source,” says Corey. “Today’s customers want to know that the companies they buy from are ethical and responsible, and that the positive emotions surrounding a jewelry purchase carry over throughout the supply chain.”
To learn more about the session or the Friends of DDI fund raising campaign, contact Patricia Syvrud, (760) 525-9393 or at friends@ddiglobal.org.