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Showing posts from May, 2019

Rita Ora to Represent German Jewelry Maker Thomas Sabo

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Germany jewelry maker Thomas Sabo, has revealed British pop star Rita Ora as the company’s global brand ambassador from July onward. The two-year collaboration with see the pop star represent the brand as an ambassador from July 1, 2019. The firm, which is based in southern Germany but has around 300 stores worldwide and sells to a further 2,800 retailers in 75 countries, has contracted Ora for two years. Although the singer officially begins her work with the jewelry line when the fall-winter collections come out, Ora posted a thank you note on Instagram on May 25, after she wore what she described as Thomas Sabo custom jewelry at a show a few days earlier in Cardiff, Wales. A woman of many talents — Ora sings, presents and acts — the Kosovo-born star has also been flexing her design skills recently, and these seem to have proven particularly popular in Germany. In 2014, Ora collaborated with  and this year, she will co-design a capsule footwear collection for German s

Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels drive sales growth for Richemont

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Richemont chairman Johann Rupert has described 2018 as a year of transition and consolidation as the group’s audited accounts for the year ending March 31, 2019, were published. Completing the acquisition of Yoox Net-A-Porter (YNAP) and pre-owned luxury watch specialist Watchfinder boosted sales, which rose by 27% to €14 billion (£12bn). Stripping out the turnover added by YNAP and Watchfinder, sales rose by a more modest 8%. The luxury group’s jewellery maisons posted the strongest growth. During the 12 months, Cartier benefited from the enduring appeal of its jewellery collections, notably ‘Juste un Clou’, and the successful launch of the rejuvenated iconic ‘Santos de Cartier’ watch line, while Van Cleef & Arpels celebrated the 50th anniversary of its emblematic ‘Alhambra’ collection with much success, and continued to enrich its jewellery offer, notably with additional ‘Frivole’ creations. At actual exchange rates, a 10% sales progression at Cartier and Van C

Responsible Jewellery Council welcomes new board and committee members

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At it’s first “virtual” Annual General Meeting (AGM) held recently, the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) announced appointments to its Board of Directors; as well as to some of its committees constituted for handling particular tasks. RJC Chair David A. Bouffard made the announcement regarding the new appointments at the AGM. The event was held in partnership with leading software and audience engagement technology provider, Lumi. It was broadcasted to all RJC member companies, globally, from Chatham House in London on Tuesday 14 May 2019. The newly appointed Board members will represent their respective forum in the jewellery supply chain, from mine to retail, the organisation stated. The new appointees to the Board are: James Pounds from Dominion Diamond Corporation and Nelson Zarzosa from Minera Sotrami S.A, who will be representing the diamond, gold and/or platinum group metals producer forum Michael Steinmetz from Leo Schachter Diamonds LLC will represe

LVMH partners with superstar Rihanna on luxury label

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Luxury group LVMH has confirmed a partnership with popstar Rihanna, which will include the launch of a jewellery offer. After months of speculation, LVMH has officially announced it will be launching an original luxury brand with the singer. The first collection from the new brand will be presented in Paris later this month, with publication Business of Fashion, which broke the news, revealing it will include jewellery, alongside shoes and sunglasses. The collection will be named after the singer’s surname, Fenty. LVMH says the new Maison, Fenty, is centered on Rihanna, developed by her, and takes shape with her vision in terms of ready-to-wear, accessories. This is not the first time the luxury group has worked with the star. Rihanna partnered with LVMH beauty incubator Kendo, to launch her Fenty Beauty line, which generated €500 million (£437m) in its first full year in operation. “Everybody knows Rihanna as a wonderful singer, but through our partnership at Fenty Beau

Namibia’s CPB awards disputed US$21-million diamond deal to controversial firm

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The leading daily The Namibian reported that Namibia’s Central Procurement Board (CPB) has awarded an N$300 million [US$21 million] contract to Gem Diamonds Namibia to evaluate Namdeb’s diamonds over the next five years. While it is the country’s Ministry of Mining’s task to hire an independent diamond valuator to ensure that diamonds sold by Namdeb, which is jointly owned by the government and De Beers, are sold at market prices, The Namibian stated concerns “that this tender was turned into a money-making scheme for a clique of well-placed individuals.” The government appointed diamond valuator has a pivotal role in the sales process of Namibia’s rough diamond production since the diamond valuator receives and values the production from Namdeb. The diamonds are consequently passed on to the Namibia Diamond Trading Company (NDTC) – a joint venture between the government and De Beers. The NDTC supplies 85 percent of the rough diamonds to sight holders, while the remaining

Walmart fights back against Amazon with one-day shipping in some U.S. markets

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Walmart Inc is stepping up its battle with Amazon.com Inc by offering one-day delivery without a shipping fee, weeks after Amazon announced a similar offer – a move that will intensify the race to deliver orders to shoppers faster. On April 25, Amazon said it plans to deliver packages to members of its loyalty club Prime in just one day and expects to spend $800 million (617 million pounds) towards the shipping goal in the second quarter alone. Walmart’s offer applies to fewer products. As many as 220,000 items, which are the most frequently purchased, ranging from laundry detergent to toys and electronics will qualify for one-day shipping. The orders have to be worth at least $35 to qualify. The Walmart deal will be available to online shoppers in Phoenix and Las Vegas and then expand to Southern California in the coming days, the head of its U.S. e-commerce service, Marc Lore, told Reuters in an interview. The service will be rolled out gradually, with a plan to

Mysuru based Tholasi Jewels partners with Forevermark

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At Tholasi Jewels, Forevermark had created a special black room enclosure where a Forevermark diamond was on display. A special laser light passed through the centre of this diamond displaying its brilliance Tholasi Jewels, one of the most trusted jewellers and strong believers of innovation have partnered with Forevermark, the diamond brand from the De Beers Group, to exclusively launch the brand at their store in Mysuru. While Forevermark encompasses the promise of beautiful, rare and responsibly sourced diamonds, Tholasi Jewels provides certified jewellery and trusted services to its customers. The synergy of these two brands has brought about an ideal collaboration to offer hallmark diamond jewellery that comes with a unique inscription, assuring you that they are the world’s most carefully selected diamonds. To highlight the exquisite collection, a fashion show was held for the esteemed customers of Tholasi Jewels. Models walked the ramp in stunning Forevermark colle

JCK Las Vegas to Debut Global Gemstone Neighborhood

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New Show Destination Will Feature 175 Gem Dealers, Both New to JCK Las Vegas and Returning JCK Las Vegas, the leading destination to discover what’s new and next in the fine jewelry industry, introduces the Global Gemstone Neighborhood for 2019, an all-new destination under one roof with the JCK show floor featuring more than 175 gem dealers from around the world. The expansive 8,300 square-foot neighborhood is inclusive of the member exhibitors of the International Colored Gemstone Association (ICA) and dedicated ballroom for Fine Gems, spanning five exhibition areas for gemstones. For the first time ever, JCK buyers and visitors will have access to gemstone exhibitors from Australia to New Zealand, Poland to the Czech Republic, Germany, Singapore and an impressive list of esteemed companies from India, Thailand, Hong Kong, and the United States—all in one place. The Global Gemstone Neighborhood will open on Thursday, May 30, 2019, and remain open throughout the JCK Las Vega

Stars play with vibrant gemstones and statement necklaces at 2019 Met Gala

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During the most anticipated fashion event of the year, stars took their red carpet jewellery game up a level last night at the 2019 Met Gala. Dressing to the theme, ‘Camp: Notes on Fashion’, jewellery was used to adorn over-the-top, flamboyant outfits, and dispel the myth that less is more. For last night’s look, the more sparkle, the bigger the gemstone, and the larger the piece – the better! Statement pieces were seen left, right, and centre, with brands such as Tiffany & Co, Harry Winston, and Gucci in the spotlight. Tiffany & Co was seen on the likes of Kendall Jenner, Alicia Keys, and Ezra Miller, all of which were sporting pieces from the brand’s iconic Blue Book. Lady Gaga, who has been named as the star who stole the show, also wore Tiffany jewels, with a striking butterfly necklace anchoring her multiple looks on last night’s red carpet. While usually, statement earrings are the order of the day on the red carpet, this year’s Met Gala them

GIA Seminar, A Date with Diamonds!

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Jewellery connoisseur Shilpa Agarwal EFX hosted “A Date with Diamonds,” a knowledge seminar on diamonds, organised by GIA India (Gemological Institute of America) – the world’s foremost authority in gemmology and the creator of the 4Cs of Diamond Quality – Colour, Clarity, Cut and Carat Weight. Ms Nirupa Bhatt , Managing Director of GIA India and the Middle East presented interesting facts about the fascinating world of diamonds. This was followed by a session by Shilpa Agarwal on the styling of diamond Jewellery on daily and special occasions. The event was an Invite only affair and was attended by select HNI ladies of Pune. Ms Bhatt explained the formation of diamonds billions of years ago, attributes of a diamond, its history and the 4Cs of Diamond Quality. Shilpa Agarwal gave valuable tips on styling for daily and special occasions. Guests also witnessed an exclusive collection of statement diamond jewels for invitees to experience the style and settings of various stunning

TBZ jewellers appoint Sara Ali Khan as its brand ambassador

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India’s wellknown jewellery brand – TBZ- The Original has signed the actress Sara Ali Khan as the official Brand Ambassador to be the face of the brand for the younger and ever-evolving Indian tastes and designs The sparkling Gen-Z star Sara unites with the most iconic jewellery brand to introduce highly stylish and affordable collections for today’s modern woman! India’s most trusted and wellknown jewellery brand – TBZ- The Original (Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri Limited or TBZ Ltd.) has signed the actress Sara Ali Khan as the official Brand Ambassador to be the face of the brand for the younger & ever-evolving Indian tastes & designs. TBZ – The Original’s eclectic timeless jewellery collections will shine with glitz and glamour on the youth icon, who symbolizes the fashion-forward women. Today’s evolved women are privy to the ever-changing global trends, social media know-how & fast moving fashion choices available to them at the blink of an eye or the swipe of a butt

Botswana’s Karowe Mine Yields Another Huge Stone

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Letlhakane, Botswana—Lucara Diamond Corp. announced last Thursday that it found a 1,758-carat piece of rough at the same mine where it recovered the 1,109-carat Lesedi La Rona. Discovered over Easter weekend, the huge stone is still being analyzed, but Lucara described it as being “near-gem of variable quality,” meaning it is an industrial diamond with sections that could produce gem-quality stones. The 1,758-carat is one of the largest rough diamonds recovered in recent history, and the second 1,000-carat-plus stone recovered from Karowe since 2015. The largest known gem-quality diamond in history is the Cullinan, which was found in South Africa in 1905. There has been a larger stone recovered than the Cullinan—the 3,167-carat carbonado diamond dubbed the “Carbonado do Sergio” discovered in Brazil in 1895. Carbonado diamonds are industrial-quality stones that are opaque and believed to be found only in Brazil and the Central African Republic, Stephen E. Haggerty,