CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation, has appointed De Beers veteran Jonathan Kendall (pictured) as its executive vice president.

His nomination was tabled by CIBJO president Gaetano Cavalieri and approved by the CIBJO board of directors.

Long active in CIBJO, Kendall has served for years as president of the group’s marketing and education commission, authoring a series of guides on responsible business practices, advertising, and human resource management, including the association’s guide to marketing to Generation Z.

Kendall also helped create CIBJO’s Retailer’s Reference Guide, soon to be released in its second edition. In 2014, he established CIBJO’s Jewellery Industry’s Greenhouse Gas Measurement Initiative, which helps companies within the jewelry and gemstone industries understand their environmental impact, offset and reduce it, and protect themselves and the sector as a whole.

Kendall began his luxury product career in the cosmetics and fragrance industries, holding positions at Revlon, Procter & Gamble, Elizabeth Arden, and Unilever. In 2001, he joined the De Beers Group, where he served as senior executive for 19 years. He was instrumental in developing De Beers’ Best Practice Principles, as well as commercial initiatives like Forevermark, the International Institute for Diamond Grading & Research, and the De Beers Group Institute of Diamonds.

“[Kendall] will be a trusted advisor on all issues, but in particular will play an instrumental role in plotting a course for the 21st century, helping us develop solutions for a business environment and a marketplace that are more digital, interconnected, and socially and environmentally conscious,” said Cavalieri in a statement.

(Photo courtesy of CIBJO)

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