Jewelers of America released a statement saying that 30 of the 39 state and regional JA-affiliated associations have already agreed to move forward with JA’s new partnership agreements, which are now in effect, and others have indicated they are in the process of doing so.

In June, Jewelers of America announced it would be restructuring its relationship with its affiliate associations, in order to improve its direct support to JA members. It presented the state and regional jewelers associations with revised agreements that reflected a better business model while still providing support to those that remained aligned with JA.

“Jewelers of America is pleased that the majority of the state associations have signed the new agreements quickly, and we believe that almost all associations will follow suit in the coming weeks,” says President and CEO Matthew A. Runci. “We remain committed to strengthening the state and regional associations, so that they may better serve the needs of industry professionals on local and regional issues.

“To that end, we are exploring the concept of an Affinity Group Support Fund. The primary goal of this fund would be to provide state and regional associations with a supplemental source of capital in 2010 and beyond, for initiatives that will have a direct impact on their members, encouraging institutional change that leads to financially stable and effective organizations.”

Jewelers of America will continue to develop new benefits for individual JA member businesses as well as look for ways to strengthen its partnerships with state and regional associations, the statement said.

JCK