Jewelry sales continue to plummet. Are iPhones and Kindles to blame?

I used to dream of taking over my dad’s jewelry business. I would spend summer vacations in his Los Angeles office taking orders, weighing sparkly loose diamonds no larger than specks of dust, oohing and aahing over cases of bejeweled rings the size of my nose as he prepared for sales trips, and often being reminded that if I wanted to be paid that week, for the last time, food was not allowed to be eaten on the diamond desk. This was back in the '90s, and while some part of these fond memories can be chalked up to youthful revisionist history, it does seem—even now—like the phone never stopped ringing. There was always one more order to fill, always one more ring to be picked up from the setter to polish and send off to a nervous groom-to-be.

A large part of the charm in ascending to the head of the family business was the glamour. Sure, some people’s parents might have corner offices in high-rise buildings, but spreadsheets never set anyone’s world on fire. But diamonds ... everyone loves diamonds. Shah Jewel Inc. wasn’t just in the business of making sales; it was in the business of making memories, one fancy piece of jewelry at a time.

Blake Brothers International, a one-stop shop for jewelry retailers’ needs for over 40 years, has announced they will have three locations in Tucson, AZ at the largest, oldest and most prestigious gem and mineral show in the world.

With 3 huge locations you won’t miss the exciting new lines and offerings from Blake Brothers International. Two 40-foot containers from Bali and one from Thailand have arrived just in time for the shows. Large assortments in sterling silver from Thailand, Bali, India and Italy will be offered. Additionally, a vast assortment of stainless steel pieces will be available along with displays and supplies.

Highlight of new souvenir jewellery collection is 'banned from sale' at Royal gift shop

It was expected to be the glittering centrepiece of a new collection of replica Royal jewellery going on sale to the public – a copy of the Duchess of Cambridge’s £1 million sapphire and diamond engagement ring.

But although the replicas have been manufactured, they have mysteriously vanished from the collection of souvenirs.

Royal sources believe that Kate herself may have banned their sale because the real ring has such deep personal significance for her and her husband, Prince William.

(IDEX Online News) – Nineteen people are to face trial over involvement in the $50 million diamond heist at Brussel’s airport in February 2013, according to the Belga news agency.

During the daring robbery, one of the world’s largest thefts, a large shipment of diamonds was stolen as they were loaded onto a Helvetic Airways plane to Zurich.

To pull off the attack, eight armed and masked men in two vans crashed a fence surrounding the tarmac. The two vans then rushed to a Brink's vehicle as the security team was loading the cargo on the plane. Once they had the goods in their possession, they left the airport through the same opening in the fence.  

More than 30 people were detained in Belgium, France and Switzerland in massive coordinated police operations over a diamond heist in Brussels

Shortages supporting the market as RAPI for 1ct. rises 1.5% 

(NEW YORK) - Polished diamond market sentiment improved in December as shortages supported prices and dealers filled last-minute holiday orders. Initial reports about U.S. holiday season jewelry sales are positive. General retail sales were up about 8 percent with online mobile sales up 50 to 60 percent. However, there is still very limited dealer and retailer diamond inventory buying due to uncertainty about U.S. post-holiday demand and the Chinese New Year.

The RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI™) for 1-carat, GIA-graded diamonds rose 1.5 percent in December. RAPI for 0.30-carat diamonds advanced 4.7 percent and RAPI for 0.50-carat diamonds grew 3 percent. RAPI for 3-carat diamonds fell 0.1 percent.

(NEW YORK) - The Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC) announced the issuance by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) of the proposed revisions to the FTC Guides for the Jewelry Industry. This latest draft was issued by the FTC after consideration of the industry’s comments and answers to a series of questions posed by the FTC (submitted 9/28/12). It also follows an FTC-hosted business roundtable on June 19, 2013 in Washington, DC to discuss additional questions pertaining to certain provisions of the proposed revisions, involving precious metal items and products made of corundum and leaded glass.