The 3rd Indo-US Jewellery Business Development Conference held in Chicago from April 30 to May 3, 2015, ended on a positive note with a concluding session in a ‘Town Hall’ format where participants discussed plans and issues of mutual concern. There was a general agreement that some meaningful promotional programmes in the US that focused on Indian diamonds and jewellery would be extremely beneficial to all.

It was also generally acknowledged that the industry needs to go beyond creating awareness about sustainability and ethically responsible sourcing in its promotions, as these were perceived as being ‘defensive’. Participants agreed that promotions centred around warm, emotional connections were critical to enhancing the sale of diamonds & jewellery.

Earlier, in the concluding session of May 2, a panel comprising representatives of both retailers and suppliers had discussed issues of joint concern.

This provided a forum for both groups to voice their individual perspectives on pressing topics, which, was extremely useful in helping each side understand the other’s concerns. The need for industry-collective marketing and advertising was emphasised as being critical.

Prior to this the third day of the conference continued with the format followed on the first two days – a presentation by an outside expert, followed by one-on-one ‘speed dates’ between the participating manufacturers and retailers.  As earlier reported, Ben Smithee spoke on the emerging Millennial jewellery consumers, and Ben Janowski spoke about the state of the state of the jewellery business, after which the individual meetings between participants took place.

 On May 2, Barbara Raleigh made the third presentation focusing on current fashion preferences, and she followed up her session with individual meetings with each of the participating manufacturers discussing issues related to “style & fashion”, which gave some fresh insights to the Indian manufacturers on specific trends and opportunities.

 In fact, the three keynote addresses covered crucial areas such as product innovation/fashion, critical issues trending at both the supply and retail levels, and consumer issues, especially the growing significance of technology in driving the market.

 Initial responses from the participants have indicated an interest in following up on possible joint programmes discussed at the BDC and holding similar events in the future.