Cash may be an endangered species. Think about it: Around $60 billion in cashless consumer transactions occurred in 2010. In 2016, the Federal Reserve has estimated that figure will rise to $616.9 billion.  Certainly, the move toward a cashless society is already well under way around the world. In Sweden, an estimated 59 percent of…

SHOWS In 2019, after eight years at Mandalay Bay, JCK Las Vegas, LUXURY, and Swiss Watch will move back to where it all began—the Sands Expo and Convention Center. The Sands has undergone some changes since JCK departed, including major renovations to its escalators, lighting, air-conditioning, and lower floor, says Yancy Weinrich, senior vice president…

From diamonds to pearls (of wisdom), we’ve got everything you need for a happy, successful, and nonstressful holiday sales season If anyone knows how to get through the holidays, it’s your fellow retailers. So in the spirit of the season, we asked them to share their tales from the tinsel-dusted trenches. (One recurrent theme: keeping…

“Pearls with a nod to simplicity and trends become everyday staples.” —Photo editor Leah Rudolfo     These elegantly shaped drop earrings with diamonds and pink mother-of-pearl inlay exude feminine charm. (Kabana, $4,466, kabana.com)   The rectilinear grid, brilliant stones, and randomly placed pearls make an architectural statement on a modern brooch. (Jewelmer, $4,800, jewelmer.com)  …

Back in July, as I made my way to the LUXURY Privé show taking place in the ballroom of New York City’s Waldorf Astoria, I veered off course to pop by the Cellini watch and jewelry boutique inside the hotel. I wanted to check out the mechanical and bejeweled wonders in its cases. After about…

Greetings from Lancaster, Pa.! My family and I moved here in July to raise our son amongst family. Moving to a small city after 36 years in Los Angeles and New York City has revealed a whole other side of our wonderful country.  My new situation involves a “co-working” facility, a national phenomenon of communal…

When akoya pearl sales shot up 40 percent in 2015—and then another 10 percent this year—Daven Sethi, vice president of New York City–based Tara Pearls, knew the classic white pearl was on the brink of a new crest of popularity. “The majors have been doing superb with akoya,” Sethi says. White akoyas have been a…

Between the Women’s Jewelry Association’s Awards for Excellence fete and the American Gem Society’s Circle of Distinction gala, NYC was abuzz in July. AGS  (Above) JCK’s Katie Dominesey, Yancy Weinrich, and Sarin Bachmann with the JIS show’s Jordan Tuchband AGS  (Inset) Ed and Pam Bridge of Ben Bridge Jeweler with Triple Zero Award winner Stewart…

The character of America’s two most prominent diamond and jewelry districts—in New York City and Philadelphia—may change dramatically as developers increasingly scout them for non-jewelry tenants. In New York City, speculation is centered on the intentions of Gary Barnett, the former diamond trader who built and still owns the 47th Street International Gem Tower. According…

Andrey Polyakov, vice president of Russian diamond producer Alrosa, became president of the World Diamond Council in May. He spoke to us at the JCK Las Vegas show in early June.  JCK: Recently, the WDC attempted to mediate the ongoing dispute between the current Kimberley Process chair—the United Arab Emirates—and the NGO coalition, but the…

REMEMBERED >>?Robert “Bob” Gannicott, who ran diamond miner Dominion for 16 years, died Aug. 3 of leukemia. He was 69. >> New Hampshire jeweler ?R. Normand Alie died June 21 at age 94. COMINGS AND GOINGS >>?The Contemporary Jewelry Design Group has elected Julie Romanenko (pictured, inset) president. She replaces Malak Atut, whose term ended in June. >>?Colleen Caslin, the chief…

From akoya to freshwater and Tahitian to South Sea, whether perfectly round or beautifully baroque, these oceanic jewels are a pitch-perfect mix of style and salability. Photographs by Ted Morrison • Guitars provided by Matt Umanov Guitars NYC THE SWEETEST SOUNDS COME FROM THE SOUTH SEA. (Above) Bracelet in 18k rose gold with white South Sea pearls, amethysts, and…

Allison Newbauer Strongin Kirk Jewelers Miami Co-owner  kirkjewelers.com What has been your biggest challenge, and how have you resolved it? The biggest challenge for us, being in Miami, is that we have a big gray market for timepieces and jewelry. We’re always working to give customers that peace of mind that they’re buying something genuine.…

When the next edition of the Jewelers International Show is held at the Miami Beach Convention Center Oct. 14–17, attendees will want to take a good look around. With a $596 million renovation to the center beginning in 2017, this fall will be the last time they’ll experience the current layout.  An updated facility is…

New jewels at the Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair, held Sept. 13–19, celebrated nature motifs and enamel. (Top) Butterfly bracelet in 18k gold with diamonds, Paraiba, and spinel; $58,000; Sutra, Houston; 713-984-4987; sutrajewels.com (Inset) Necklace in 14k gold with enamel, mother-of-pearl, and diamonds; $1,137; Roberto Bravo, Istanbul; 90-212-458-1720; robertobravo.com   Ring in yellow and white gold with a South Sea pearl and…

218 Church St., San Francisco Those who say size matters clearly haven’t visited Fiat Lux. The jewelry store, founded in 2011 by husband and wife Alexei Angelides and Marie McCarthy, is no larger than a standard walk-in closet—about 100 square feet in all. Yet miraculously, the owners have managed to imbue the Mission District space…

Take flight this season with fashionable avian-inspired jewelry. Thanks in part to Asian influences on the runway, jewelry designers are capturing the beauty of birds like never before in gold, silver, and precious stones. Sparrows, peacocks, and parrots are some favorite motifs, but wings always seem to surface as a subtler nod to our fine…

Vendors with a line to the U.S. market were all smiles This year’s India International Jewellery Show (IIJS), held Aug. 4–8 in Mumbai, was a leaner affair: After five editions of the fashion show–focused India International Jewellery Week, organizers nixed the event to allow interest to build. Elsewhere around IIJS, organizers promoted numerous initiatives to…

Miami’s JIS show welcomes retailers in the market for holiday jewels Retailers in search of holiday product and a brief respite in one of America’s top vacation destinations—have you considered the Jewelers International Showcase in Miami? The show runs Oct. 14–17 at the Miami Beach Convention Center and is, according to Yancy Weinrich (pictured), senior…

Online video was once considered the frosting atop a brand’s digital marketing plan. Sure, it was nice to have that little “play” arrow pop up in your social media, but text and photography were the reigning kings of content.  No longer. Video’s sky-high (and growing) conversion rates have transformed the medium from an afterthought to…

WHO, WHAT, WEARABLE NFC Ring Now you can pay for your morning coffee with a gentle, Jedi-like wave of your hand. The NFC Ring is billed as the first-ever payment-enabled ring, and allows wearers to pay for goods and services using NFC (near field communication)—the same contactless payment technology used by Apple Pay. The brand,…

“These long sautoirs were very fashionable in the 1970s, and now they are coming back into style.” French jeweler Louis Gérard isn’t a household name, but “his work was of no less quality than a Cartier or Van Cleef & Arpels,” says Daniela Mascetti, a senior jewelry specialist at Sotheby’s. In fact, Gérard honed his jewelry skills…

Carrie Underwood The always-chic country singer looked like a walking watercolor painting at the 2016 CMT Music Awards in a flowy chiffon gown by Canadian designer Mikael D. As a counterpoint to the ultrafeminine floral style, her jewels—which included a chained two-finger ring and Deco-inspired earrings—gave her a bit of a rock-star edge. ON UNDERWOOD (Inset)…

If his wives and companions over the years have been many, it seems Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger is a loyalist when it comes to watch brands. And one particular mark stands out as his favorite: Heuer (before Techniques d’Avant Garde, or TAG, acquired the brand in 1985).  In several photographs from the 1970s, a…

TREND GAME Arrow Smiths Jewelry designers are besotted with arrow motifs. Both Sofia Kaman and Samuel B. have transformed the ancient weapon into wrap-around-the-finger–style rings, while Lynn Ban’s blackened arrow jewels evoke notions of armor, defense, and protection. Ban tells JCK she especially loves “the tribal aspect of the arrow piercing through the lobe juxtaposed with…

The utopian concept of a peaceful planet inspired Coomi Bhasin’s playful pendant, which is composed of seven B.C.-era antiquities. “With all the problems in the world today, I wanted to show that if we have unity, we can work together to solve things,” says Bhasin. “Every antiquity in this piece is from a different area…

CAN’T-MISS COLLECTION Greatest Hits Boxing icon Muhammad Ali is the inspiration for a new men’s jewelry collection that pays homage to one of the greatest athletes of all time. New York City–based Twenty Three 9 Design’s licensed line in sterling silver with CZ features three subcollections focused on the champ’s inspirational quotes, signature, and portrait.…

“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful,” wrote essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson. In retailing, it could also be said that opportunities to make something beautiful are equally worthwhile. After all, humans are visual creatures—around 20 percent of our brain cells are used solely for vision (how wild is that?). With the holidays around the corner,…

Angela Jonsson held us spellbound at this issue’s cover shoot. Born in Chennai, India, to an Icelandic father and an Indian mother, the New York City resident glammed up the season’s athleisure styles with a generous helping of trendy pearl jewels. For the cover of the wedding supplement that comes with this issue, however, she…

Bill Rudd & Lynda Rasco Harvest Gold Gallery Center Lovell, Maine harvestgoldgallery.com facebook.com/harvestgoldgallery Instagram: @harvestgoldgallery   Lynda Rasco and Bill Rudd debuted their handcrafted gold and silver line, Harvest Gold Jewelry, in 1985. But after a decade of making the collection—and wholesaling to major department stores—they decided to create a space to highlight not only…