Sam Gin, the proprietor of the Hong Kong based jewelry company HKJT and vice chairman of the Hong Kong Jewellery and Jade Manufacturers’ Association, was upbeat about business. Like many other Hong Kong exhibitors at the show, Gin was hopeful that “better times” lay ahead of them as recession continued to retreat. Gin discerned a “distinctive improvement” in business at the New York show. “The United States is still the biggest market for Hong Kong jewelry products, even though many are looking at China whose economy is not as open as many believe,” he said in an interview.

“India is also becoming an increasingly important market for us. More and more Indians come to Hong Kong to buy from us. Although Chindia (China and India) will be an important region for our business, the United States will continue to be the biggest market for Hong Kong manufacturers,” Gin summed up.
But the drop in the number of Hong Kong exhibitors was quite conspicuous at the JA winter show; Hong Kong exhibitors usually occupy several rows of booths of exhibitors, but their numbers were clearly much lower this time. 

“This is because Hong Kong has its own jewelry show whose dates overlap the JA New York show,” explained one Hong Kong exhibitor who had to rush back to Hong Kong to set up his company’s booth at the show.

“The Hong Kong pavilion has about 60 booths this year down from 100 in 2008 because many had to stay back or return home earlier to participate in the Hong Kong jewelry trade fair. But there will be space between our show and the Hong Kong show next year,” said Drew Lawsky, the group show director of the JA New York show, who keeps a good overview of the jewelry fair.

But Lawsky admitted that the overall number of exhibitors at the New York show had been lower than the previous year’s number by 5%. “We have nearly 600 exhibitors this year,” he said, attributing the over decline to the drop in the number of Hong Kong exhibitors.

On the overall business climate, Lawsky said that 2010 was still an “extremely challenging” year but “it is definitely better than the last year”. “We do see the light at the end of the tunnel. The vibes at this show are better than last year. Exhibitors have been telling us that they expect more business this year. There is a good feeling amongst the exhibitors,” he added.

The JA winter show also provided clues about popular colors and designs for jewelry products that could possibly attract a respectable customer following.
While almost all the exhibitors – and buyers, too – spoke about the industry making a recovery, many described this year’s show as a harbinger of innovative designs and colors that would dominate the next season or two.

Some designers and buyers said that while the previous year’s trends dwelt on embellished pieces and offbeat necklaces, there was now a conspicuous shift towards richer and brighter colors. 

Talking to some jewelry exhibitors, who keep a close watch on the changing patterns of designs and colors, one got the impression that Russian folklore themes, for example, could dominate the color and design of jewelry in Europe and even in the US; jewelry products such as necklaces, earrings, bangles and rings would be characterized by intricate designs and rich colors such as cobalt blue, purple, ruby, forest green, black and gold.

Take the so-called chandelier earrings, particularly the turquoise colored ones, which were a rage last year. “While chandelier earrings will continue to be worn, the color will probably transit to a darker shade. The shift will generally be from a bright color to a darker shade,” Ruth Aranson, a New York jewelry buyer, said at the recent JA Jewelry New York show.

While this color shift may be true of chandelier earrings, it would not necessarily apply to all the jewelry products.

Also, many US based jewelry dealers believe that given the continuing frugality exercised by customers, despite growing signs of recovery, manufacturers would have to supply jewelry pieces with a high-end appearance at affordable prices, rather than concentrate on expensive pieces of jewelry, with semi-precious and opaque stones with striking colors.

An interesting fashion statement made by consumers in the West is the so-called east-west hybrid designs which some Asian jewelrs are now offering. Tarang Arora, a designer with Amrapali Jewellers of Jaipur, India, said that it is not uncommon for contemporary jewelry pieces to derive “inspirations” from both Asian and Western designs. Amrapali Jewellers, which specializes in Indian ethnic contemporary products, has also supplied jewelry for films made both in Hollywood and Bollywood.

“Because consumers are looking for quality and are reluctant to pay high-end prices, they want the high-quality appearance at affordable prices. Consumers want simpler designs, not the complex intricate ones with double shades – dark and light, for example - of the same color. People prefer pastilles, blues and greens as their colors. However, I expect colors to become brighter … we may see turquoise, coral and funky colors as summer approaches.  People tend to wear dull colors in winter and brighter ones in summer, a choice that is also reflected in jewelry,” Arora said in an interview.

But as the average consumer’s passion for color stones increases, jewelry designers are also turning to new sources of stones which, traditionally, were sourced from Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar. Brazil is becoming an important supplier of dazzling stone colors, and will play an increasingly key role in the jewelry industry.

Denoir of Sao Paulo, Brazil, which supplies 18 karat gold jewelry studded with colored stones, was upbeat this year, expecting its business to rebound as the economic recovery strengthens and also “because the colors of our stones are unique”, as Gustavo Lerner, Denoir’s owner, put it. Denoir uses, mainly, quartz as well as white stones such as onyx in combination with two different colors, usually light and dark ones, and different sizes and shapes. “Onyx is a cryptocrystalline form of quartz. The colors of its bands range from white to almost every color, except for some shades such as purple or blue,” Lerner explained.

Onyx has been used in jewelry manufacturing since a long time, and is usually cut as cabochon or into beads.

Though price is – still – a major criterion in difficult economic times, many jewelers in Europe and the USA contend that there is “always a niche market for selling upper-end jewelry products”. Italian jewelers, usually present in large numbers at major international shows, have fiercely resisted customer pressure on pricing and concentrated, instead, on providing value for money with innovative designs and striking colors.

Zydo Italy of Milan, with a production unit in Valenza, manufactures diamond-studded jewelry.  Jack Zybert, the vice president of the company, said in an interview that his company manufactured jewelry pieces that were “different” from what others made. “We make pieces that are extremely difficult to produce. We offer high-quality products unlike the low-priced products that come from China.  Indeed, our high-end products are becoming popular even in China,” Zybert maintained. He believed, however, that a price surge was imminent, pointing to a recent industry report prepared by Rappaport.
Zydo’s mantra for survival in difficult times has been innovation. “The people who have the courage to buy in the midst of a crisis, will be the ones who will do well,” Zybert said. Customers were also buying diamonds which are a safe buy, though some were also buying colored diamonds, mother of pearls, etc. 

Innovation is also the key word for “Marc”, New York based designer brand jewelry company. Susan Rizzo, the managing director, happy with the buoyant mood at the show, said that customers are now looking for “new pretty pieces, designs and colors”. “Though people are not spending much, they are buying ‘affordable products’. We do see positive signs at the show,” she averred.

“I was quite satisfied with the turnout at the show as well as the state of the economy. We received many visitors at our booth, showing interest in buying. We got good vibes at the show which confirmed that there are opportunities in the designer niche market,” she said.

Rizzo, who has her products manufactured in Thailand, discerned a trend amongst customers to buy blue topaz, citrine, etc. which had the strongest appeal as far as colors were concerned.

New York based designer Halley Barney, who owns the F.N.U.E. (From Now Until Eternity) Jewelry, introduced a collection featuring keepsake jewelry pieces crafted from sterling silver, 14K gold, 18K gold vermeil, and certified precious stones. Barney’s jewelry products are intricately handcrafted creating detail that makes mass production impossible, and offers distinctive combinations of high-quality choices in metals and stones. “These products reflect our creative prowess and are appreciated by the customers,” a company spokesman said.

Thistle and Bee, another New York based jewelry company, presented its gemstone collections in sterling silver. T & B focused on colorful gemstones in their new sterling silver collections, concentrating on what it described as “affordable luxury” – the art of bringing fine design and elegance to the company’s sterling silver collections – and the sterling jewelry segment in general. The company’s new collection included the Bamboo and Gemstone collection, Sterling and Gemstone collection, and Bamboo and Cabochon Collection.