Welcome to our first annual editorial celebration of the winners of the JCK Jewelers Choice Awards!

Beginning on page 85, you’ll see beautiful, original editorial photography of the winners in each category. Our cover features the GCAL/AGL Grand Prize winner, a platinum ring with a 5.37 ct. diamond center by Christopher Designs.

We’re thrilled by the excitement and energy these awards have created. From the 430 entries to the more than 11,000 votes, this contest has clearly demonstrated our industry’s high levels of creativity, drive, and involvement.

I’ve just finished a few weeks’ worth of shows (Centurion and the AGTA GemFair in Tucson, Ariz., and Feninjer in São Paulo, Brazil), and people already are talking about their wins. I even came across a few manufacturers who created their own promotional materials for their JCK Show booths prior to our doing so. Talk about initiative!

Beginning with the JA Show this month in New York, keep your eyes peeled for the 192 boards announcing both the winners and finalists in each category of the JCK Jewelers Choice Awards. In April, we’ll publish a special supplement celebrating the winners and finalists. And in June, you’ll see a ton of promotion, including a special photo display of the winners and finalists at The JCK Show ~ Las Vegas Welcome Reception.

Speaking of Centurion, AGTA, and Feninjer, congrats to Howard Hauben, Doug Hucker, and the wonderful team at Brazil’s IBGM (especially our dear friend Clarissa Maciel) on three terrific events. There’s no argument that this is a challenging year on the retail front. Yet, each of these shows provided an upbeat, exciting, and business-writing atmosphere that showed us there’s still a lot of good news in the jewelry industry.

I’m looking forward to this month’s events, beginning with a quick trip to Mumbai, then the Plumb Club Forum at F.I.T. (of which JCK is the exclusive media sponsor), JA New York, and the Rotaforte show in Istanbul, Turkey. All will be great opportunities to see friends, network with industry execs, and strategize with advertisers on the best way to build brands during a potentially recessionary period.

Here’s hoping our paths cross in March!