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Responsible Jewellery Council Appoints Melanie Grant as New Executive Director January 27, 2023 (0 comments)
London, United Kingdom--The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), the world's leading sustainability standard-setting organization for the jewelry and watch industry, announced in a news release that it appointed Melanie Grant as its new executive director.
[Image via The Responsible Jewellery Council]
Ms. Grant brings over 20 years of experience in the watch and jewelry industry's most influential outlets. In addition to commissioning and editing luxury content, she brings significant leadership experience to the role.
Ms. Grant has been a journalist for over 20 years — working at The Times, The Financial Times, The Independent, The Guardian, The BBC, and — until 2022. She also worked at The Economist, where she was the luxury editor of 1843 Magazine, its lifestyle sister publication.
She worked as a jewelry and picture editor at The Economist for 16 years. She took a sabbatical to write her first book on the jewel as art, entitled Coveted: Art and Innovation in High Jewellery, published by Phaidon in October 2020. She has been on a mission for the last decade to dismantle boundaries between art forms so that jewelry is considered equal to fine art.
"On behalf of the board, staff and all our members, I am proud to welcome Melanie as our new executive director," David Bouffard, chairman of the RJC board, said in the news release. "She has a deep love and knowledge of jewellery and watches and a uniquely creative skillset which is both industry and consumer facing. I believe she will successfully take the RJC into a new era as we continue to deliver on our mission of continuous improvement in the integrity of the global jewellery and watch supply chain."
The release noted that Ms. Grant's remit is to continue growing awareness among consumers, collectors, designers, brands, and supply chain specialists in the vital need to strengthen sustainable business practices in the watches and jewelry industry. With nearly 1,700 members in 71 countries, RJC has given her the responsibility of working closely with its board of directors, management team, staff, and outside stakeholders to ensure the future growth of the RJC. She intends to bring clarity and creativity to this complex and vitally important luxury area.
Learn more about RJC's new appointment in the entire release.