sihh loses muller, but gains 3 brands in 1991, when the vendôme group of high-end watch companies led an ambitious exodus from the basel fair to launch the salon de la haute horlogerie (sihh) in geneva, it was a wild idea. some called it outrageous. today, it has become a necessary stop for luxury retail jewelers.

two decades after the death of legendary jeweler harry winston, the business he founded is likely to pass out of family hands. son ronald winston, the current president and ceo, vows he’ll sell the business “over my dead body,” but he’s been given little choice by a westchester county, n.

new price guide for estate jewelry valuations pricing estate jewelry can be tricky, whether you’re trying to put a price tag on dazzling, jewel-encrusted designer pieces or seemingly throwaway plastic costume jewelry. companies that buy, sell or appraise estate jewelry might want to take a look at the extensive jewelry auction sales data available to them on the recently released jewelry …

those ubiquitous “i love you” and “#1 mom” charms that everyone gave for valentine’s day gifts used to be known in the trade as “talking jewelry.” apparently we still like our jewelry to talk, but the conversation has gotten much more sophisticated. one of the more intriguing trends spotted recently is the “hidden message,” a stylish update …

a blazing return to color was the biggest design trend seen at vicenzaoro i, held jan. 11-18 in vicenza, italy. after seasons of white-on-white looks in diamonds, pearls, gold and platinum, the pendulum is swinging a natural course back to color. white- on-white is far from gone; it’s as prevalent and popular as ever, but now is augmented by a rainbow of color.

some come from a family background of fine jewelry. others fell in love with the product or the challenge and forged their own way. their fields differ, ranging from retailing and design to manufacturing, contracting and stone dealing. their important commonality is vision: each recognized an opportunity to provide a service or product unavailable before.

Ambras, specialist in gold earrings and assorted colored stone and gold jewelry, is now exclusive supplier of 10k and 14k gold Looney Tunes jewelry. It offers cast, electroformed and photoetched pieces featuring such characters as Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird, Sylvester, Marvin the Martian and the Tasmanian Devil. Ambras Fine Jewelry Corp., 48 W. 37 St.,…

the jck orlando show attracted 4,288 buyers in spite of its unusually early timing of jan. 18 to 20. with many jewelers coming off a strong holiday selling season, the mood of the show was upbeat. exhibitors catering to chain stores and mass merchandisers said they were satisfied that most majors attended the show and were interested in doing business.

the federal trade commission’s revised guides for the jewelry industry say it’s ok to sell diamonds with laser drill holes and not tell anyone about them. the 1997 regulations state that “if a diamond has been treated, it is unfair or deceptive not to disclose that the diamond has been treated and that the treatment is not or may not be permanent.

how many times have you heard a fellow jeweler say, “if we have a good december i’ll… go to tucson this year… buy a better computer… redo the carpeting….” there could be a dozen and one items on the list, something that in too many stores probably would be called a wish list.

there still are jewelers across the country who go to work each day – and do their jobs exactly as they did them the day before. they unlock their doors, set out their wares, wait for customers to come in, “help” them if they do, close up shop, then go home to worry about whether tomorrow will be a better day or next year a better year.

cso cuts sights; reports lower sales for 1997 de beers’ central selling organisation reports 1997 sales of rough diamonds totaled $4.64 billion, down 4% from 1996. first-half sales actually rose 5% to a record $2.88 billion, based on trade expectations of good retail sales worldwide. but second-half figures fell 16% in light of continued recession in japan and emerging economic and curren…

sam spear’s looking out the window of his house in del ray beach. actually, he’s watching his friends play golf. vicarious thrill? uh-uh. today he feels a twinge of envy. his back’s out and the weather’s lousy. he’s been in the pool exactly twice since new year’s. “you don’t wanna come to florida this time of year.

larry frederick joins jck as editor in chief larry frederick, an award-winning writer with many years’ experience in publishing, is joining jck as editor in chief. for the past year, he has been editor-in-chief of physician’s management magazine. before that he was with medical economics magazine for 13 years, three as a senior editor and 10 as managing editor.

it set out to meet these criteria executives at nancy b & company wanted to see just where their firm fit in the jewelry industry and where they could expand. a review in 1993 led them to divide the industry into three distinct segments: independent jewelers; chain stores and mass retailers of better-quality merchandise; and other mass retailers, including discount stores.

mccarver & moser of sarasota, fla., was a prominent retail store in a serious financial crisis. payments to suppliers were behind, customers were alienated and the business of one of the nation’s top watch shops was suffering. the owners blamed the troubles on bad store management, a hiring decision gone terribly wrong.

pricing custom work the pricing system for custom work described in the february issue [page 118] is a good once-a-year exercise. i have used two other methods that are quicker and create a more effective price – the comparative method and the relationship method. first some legal background. the fair labor standards act requires workers to be paid by the hour with time and a half for hou…

mjsa and jck hold new york expo the mjsa/jck expo new york will be held at the show piers on the hudson, piers 90 and 92 (711 12th avenue). show hours at 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on sunday and monday, march 22-23; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on tuesday, march 24. shuttle buses will do a continuous loop between hotels, the fashion institute of technology the 47th street jewelry district and the show piers.

jewelers’ market share rose in late 1997 jewelry chains and independents enjoyed a sharp increase in share of market in the final quarter of 1997 – which may help explain why so many jewelers reported a good to excellent sales year. in the 1997 october-december quarter, these jewelers accounted for nearly half of all fine jewelry and watch purchases, compared to about 35% the year b…