De Beers is cutting its U.S. marketing budget. Sally Morrison of the Diamond Information Center (De Beer's US marketing arm) confirmed to National Jeweler
that the cutbacks are related to the perception that the United States
is headed into a recession, and that 2008 is expected to be a tough
year for everyone.
The news is the latest in a string of bad news for the jewelry industry
as a whole, as De Beers always has been known for its robust
advertising campaigns. The DIC intends to offset the reduced advertising with more PR -- TIP: that could be good news for you if you've got innovative diamond designs that they can promote in publicity campaigns.
... Read More
Archive for January, 2008
Frank and I were just marveling at how easy it is for history to morph into urban legend.
We just completed work on our first coffee table book, due out this summer, and the galleys are being proofed. Frank did much of the early research interviewing members of the American Jewelry Design Council on the origins of the group. He found several different printed references for how many were at the first meeting, who was there, who organized it, etc.
It seems everyone's recollection is different. We laugh about it because it took him over a dozen interviews, some reinterviews, to nail down what we think (hope) are the facts. Slippery memories are to blame as is the fact that at the time they didn't know what a momentous thing they were creating and it must not have seemed too... Read More
The Accessories Circuit trade show was quite busy on Tuesday when we visited. This 3-day trade show is always fun for us since we get to see more than jewelry -- every accessories category along with some ready-to-wear is on display.
Given the current economic climate we were thrilled to see that many of our favorite designers were working away writing orders and a few were too busy to talk to us despite dropping by a few times.
What we did get to see were some terrific new spring lines and continued growth by some of today's most happenin' designers.
At Mizuki's booth we saw the designer herself chatting with Fragments owner Janet Goldman (middle) and CEO Marla Sabo (left) and we couldn't resist capturing their new year's smiles. Mizuki's collection now features... Read More
