My Favorite Jewelry Promotions of 2023

By Rob Bates | December 25, 2023

For the past decade, I’ve done an annual roundup of the most enjoyable and interesting jewelry promotions I encountered over the preceding year.

2023’s choices form an electric and sometimes surprising group, with promotions that are funny, creative, inspiring, and touching—sometimes all at once. They feature jewelers both large and small, from the United States and abroad. I hope they demonstrate that ingenuity and resourcefulness still exist in the jewelry business, even in a mixed year like we just had.

10. Hari Krishna – International Day of Yoga

Hari Krishna Exports seems to have a thing for Guinness World Records. In March, the Indian manufacturer created a ring with the most diamonds ever (50,000). And in June, it recruited more than 1,700 employees to participate in Surat’s International Day of Yoga, which helped the “diamond city” set a record for world’s largest yoga session. (Final tally: 150,000 people.) HK founder Ghanshyam Dholakia said he hoped the gathering would lead to “a healthier and more peaceful world.” That hasn’t happened yet, but by participating in this event, Hari Krishna clearly hit an om run.

surat yoga day — *Surat’s International Day of Yoga (photo courtesy of Hari Krishna Exports)*

9. De Beers/A Diamond Is Forever – Yuri Lamasbella collab

I am not a fan of marketing that jabs at another product, and while this video arguably does so, it’s amusing enough that it works. It stars influencer Yuri Lamasbella—whose specialty is imitating Kim Kardashian (making her an influencer who impersonates an influencer)—in a spoof of this well-known scene from Keeping Up With the Kardashians. If nothing else, it shows that stodgy 135-year-old De Beers can keep up with pop culture; at press time, it had racked up 6 million views—almost Kardashian-worthy.

@yurilamasbella

My natural diamond earring came off in the ocean & it’s gone! #ADiamondIsForever #NaturalDiamonds #NaturallyGifted @A Diamond is Forever #Debeerspartner

♬ original sound – Yuri Lamasbella

8. Rolex – Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36

The Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36 is not the first watch to include emoji. What was surprising is that such a watch came from Rolex—a company, it’s safe to say, not known for flights of whimsy. (We have a hard time imagining the CEO of Rolex knowing what an emoji is, never mind using one.) So when the storied brand unleashed this candy-colored creation at this year’s Watches of Wonders, it inspired its share of 😲s. Wired said the brand was “effectively committing the horological equivalent of getting slightly drunk,” noting it made “a day/date that displays neither the day nor the date.”

7. Evry Jewels – TikTok

A lot of jewelry brands do person-on-the-street videos for TikTok; I like these examples from the Clear Cut and TraxNYC. But Canadian brand Evry Jewels has garnered headlines and over 1 million followers with interviews that sometimes feel like bizarre psychology experiments. Among the best she-probably-shouldn’t-ask-that questions: “What is the worst name a guy can have?,” “What’s one major you would never date?” and, below, “What’s a secret you’ve been hiding from your parents?”

@evryjewels Can’t believe she hid this from her MOM? #fyp #foryou #publicinterview #interview #secret ♬ sonido original – ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪

6. Shane Co. – earn $1,000 for making your bed

In today’s media environment, you need a genuinely unusual idea to stand out. Denver-based Shane Co. has done that with a series of original and funny contests. Last month, the 22-store jeweler announced it would pay $1,000 to a random person who agreed to make their bed for a month and then journal or vlog about the experience. Previously, the company had offered the chance to win $1,500 for binge-watching wedding movies or going on 15 first dates. This particular contest may not get more people to make their bed, but Shane clearly knows how to make waves.

5. Tanishq – The Superwoman

For the third year in a row I’m featuring an ad from Indian brand Tanishq, which has begun opening stores in the United States. This spot is similar in subject matter and approach to last year’s “The Interview.” It’s also just as thoughtful and compelling.

4. Jack Lewis Jewelers – conducting the orchestra

Bloomington, Ill., jeweler John Carter admits that conducting the Illinois Symphony Orchestra was outside his comfort zone and not something he was excited to do at the height of the holiday season. But he did it—and while he’s not about to quit his day job, he considers his four minutes at the podium a win, both personally and professionally. “I’ve become conditioned to shut things down in December so I can just focus on the store and selling,” he told JCK in January. “Music is soothing. It allowed me to focus on something other than just business. It brought me some peace during the Christmas season.”

carter conductor — *John Carter spreading the word about his conductor gig*

3. TAG Heuer – The Chase for Carrera

After playing a goofy Ken doll in Barbie, Ryan Gosling plays an even goofier version of himself in yet another fourth-wall-breaking extravaganza.

2. iLAH Cibis Jewelry

I haven’t visited Ilah Cibis’ store in Worcester, Mass., but I certainly hope to. Cibis, a designer and bench jeweler, spent two years transforming a former garage into a space that delivers an “immersive experience” that’s part theme park, part jewelry store. You enter through faux forest, complete with an owl-and-cricket soundtrack, and necklaces dangling from trees. Beyond that is a library-apothecary where rings pop out of books, as well as a portrait gallery with serious Harry Potter vibes. Cibis says she was inspired by Disneyland—particularly how it gets the details right. “I wanted everything done with precision,” she says. “When people open the front door, they’re really kind of transported.” Take a virtual trip through this mini magic kingdom here.

Ilan Cybis — *(Photos courtesy of iLAH Cibis Jewelry)*

1. Bernie Robbins Jewelers – giving away the store

While this may not be considered a promotion, it was one of this year’s most magnanimous gestures. After Bernie Robbins Jewelers owner Harvey Rovinsky couldn’t work out a suitable exit strategy for his three locations, he decided to give them away—for free—to six longtime employees. It’s not your usual succession plan, and certainly not for everyone. But to Rovinsky, it makes perfect sense: “This is like a third generation taking over. Because even though they’re not family, they’re family.”