COMINGS AND GOINGS
>> Stuller promoted Stanley Zale to merchandise vice president of diamonds and gemstones. He was previously VP of only the diamond unit.
>> Citizen Watch Company of America hired Scott Wolfe as senior vice president of merchandising for the Citizen Watch Company of America. Wolfe will be responsible for product development, merchandising, packaging, and in-store displays used throughout the U.S., Canada, and U.K. markets.
Duvall O’Steen
>> Duvall O’Steen has joined Yvel, the Ramat Motza, Israel–based pearl jewelry manufacturer. O’Steen will represent the brand in the U.S. and Canadian markets. She joins Yvel after spending 11 years with the World Gold Council’s U.S. division.
>> Ostbye hired Dan Bredow as the national sales manager for the OstbyeBlue division.
>> Joel Hassler will assume ownership of Rasmussen Diamonds in Racine, Wis., in August after longtime owner Bill Sustachek retires.
>> Patrik P. Hoffmann was appointed CEO of the Ulysse Nardin watch company on April 27, following the unexpected death of president and CEO Rolf Schnyder on April 14. Hoffmann joined Ulysse Nardin in 1999.
REMEMBERED
>> Mort Abelson, 87, former director of JA International Jewelry Shows, died March 28 in Fairfield, N.J.
>> Freddy Hager, 62, treasurer general of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses and president of the London Diamond Bourse, died April 7 after collapsing at his home in London. Harry Levy was appointed bourse president following Hager’s passing.
>> Bijan Pakzad, an Iranian-American jewelry, fragrance, and luxury menswear designer, died April 16 in Los Angeles after being hospitalized following a stroke. According to the Los Angeles Times, there is dispute over his age, but public records listed it as 71.
Artur Beller
>> Artur Beller, president of Antwerp trading club Beurs voor Diamanthandel and the Belgian Federation of Diamond Bourses, died April 24 at age 77 in Antwerp, following an illness.
>> Third-generation Bayonne, N.J., jeweler Joseph Wigdor, 73, died April 23 after a long illness. Wigdor, former president of the New Jersey Jewelers Association, ran Wigdor’s Diamond Jewelers until he sold the store in 1997.
>> Gemologist W. Norman Baker, 89, died in Marietta, Ohio, March 30. Baker joined the family business, Baker & Baker Jewelers, in the early 1940s.
OPENINGS
>> Three new Bloomingdale’s Outlet stores will open in fall 2011 in Miromar Outlets (Estero, Fla.), Wrentham Village Premium Outlets (Wrentham, Mass.), and Woodfield Village Green (Schaumburg, Ill.).
FINANCIAL
>> New York City diamond manufacturer Lazare Kaplan International once again filed an incomplete financial report April 14, as it is unable to resolve a “material uncertainty” concerning the collectability and recovery of certain assets. However, the company reported its third-quarter sales were up.
>> Chinese jewelry manufacturer Fuqi International was delisted by Nasdaq on March 29 after the exchange sent the company a notice of noncompliance. It now trades on the “pink sheets.” Fuqi said it anticipates applying for relisting on Nasdaq when it is able to comply with its requirements.
LAWSUITS
>> New York jewelers A+A Diamonds and Rafello & Co. settled a nonpayment lawsuit with Dallas Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant over nonpayment for $246,000 in jewelry purchases that Bryant made in 2010.
MJ Christensen Diamonds
ASSOCIATIONS
>> The Jewelers Board of Trade is offering an easier way for members to confidentially share and view customer payment data on its online platform JBT CreditShare, the organization announced April 20. The platform is available on jewelersboard.com.
HONORED
>> Readers of the Las Vegas Review Journal voted MJ Christensen Diamonds their favorite jewelry store in April. The store said it was “deeply humbled.”
READING
Cutter Nizam Peters’ new book
>> Cutting expert Nizam Peters has released Diamond Inclusions, a 200-plus-page textbook that offers an “in-depth study” of the subject.
>> Bill Boyajian, former president of the Gemological Institute of America, recently published a book on the principles of leadership titled Developing the Mind of a Leader: Your Path to Lead and Inspire People. It is available at billboyajianassociates.com.