I don’t think I can remember a more volatile time in this part of the industry. Every day I am getting a ton of emails, from speculation on pricing, to new labs, and most disturbingly, synthetics. And let’s be clear, whether you call these diamonds man made, or lab grown, they are still synthetic diamonds.
“The State of Retail – 2016”, a comprehensive report, this group surveyed 5,444 consumers, asking in depth questions regarding their perceptions and behaviors around retail shopping. Some of the key takeaways were very interesting, but the overall message was very clear.
We have to remember in the industry, the tech world is coming. Both manufacturers and retailers need to start paying attention to this category.
So I arrived in Las Vegas this morning to attend the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). What was I expecting? Well, I have been coming here for almost 25 years to the jewelry shows, so how different could this be? Well if we thought it was busy during jewelry week, you have no idea what busy means!
I spend many hours the week between Christmas and New Year analyzing what happened across the country to get a sense of the state of the economy, the industry and the individual jewelry company. I’m looking for context, patterns, signs to be optimistic about and signs of concern that cause me to pick up the phone.
There are those who believe the introduction of synthetic diamonds is a benign inevitability; the marketplace will find a place for them and their introduction won’t have any effect on the natural diamond market. I’m not one of them.
Synthetic diamonds have been around for many years and have naturally been compared with other synthetic gemstones regarding the minimal effect that those synthetics have had on the value and marketability of their natural counterparts. Why should man-made diamonds be more problematic?
Beautiful fall leaves mean that Christmas is right around the corner. Here are five planning tips to get you started.
As many of you know, I love numbers. Maybe that is why I pursued a degree in accounting and got my CPA right after college. I have always said that numbers tell a story to me. That is why I loved this quote so much. It summed up what I have always felt. When I met with Abe Sherman over a year and a half ago, he showed me the Balance to Buy™ system and it was like I heard angels singing! (OK so maybe I am being a little over dramatic right now.)
So as we all settle back in after Las Vegas, it is time to take a moment and reflect back on the craziness of Jewelry Week.It was so nice to see so many friends and colleagues. Every year our industry descends on sin city and eats too much, drinks too much, and has an overall great time! From all the events, like the Diamond Empowerment Fund's "Diamonds Do Good" to the Indian Diamond Council Awards to the Jewelers for Children Gala, we take a week out of our busy lives to enjoy each other's company, while working hard.
