National jewellery associations from Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden have come to together under the banner of the Nordic Jewellery Federation with the goal of raising the profile of the jewellery industry and trade in the Scandinavian region, a statement issued by CIBJO yesterday, said.

The federation was formed at a meeting of the various associations in Stockholm, Sweden. Its constituents are the National Board of the Jewellery and Watch Trade from Denmark, the Norwegian Goldsmith and Jewellers Association, the Finnish Goldsmith Association, and the Swedish Jewellery and Watch Industry Association.

They will now function as a united bloc within the World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO), and collectively increase their level of involvement in the global body. While the Danish and Norwegian organisations were already active in CIBJO, the new body brings the Finnish and Swedish Associations into the confederation.

"Establishing the Nordic Jewellery Federation will strengthen the bonds between neighbouring countries. It will also give the Nordic countries a stronger position in the international jewellery market," said Ingebjørg Alfsen, CEO of the Norwegian Goldsmith and Jewellers Association.

According to CIBJO, the region is a highly economically developed area with a population of more than 25 million, and is increasingly influential in terms jewellery design and manufacturing. The Nordic countries are also role models for compliance with contemporary standards of Corporate Social Responsibility and sustainability, it added.

CIBJO President Gaetano Cavalieri, who had strongly lobbied for the establishment of such an organisation, said, “This is most positive step, both the for the jewellery business in the various Nordic countries and for our international community."

Photo caption: Representatives of the founding member organisations of the Nordic Jewellery Federation at the inaugural meeting in Stockholm