Precious Materials Insight: Trends for personalisation and gem supply chain scrutiny emerge from lockdown
29 Jun 2020
A deepening desire for personalisation and growing pressure for a responsible and sustainable gemstone supply chain are key emerging global consumer trends as economies slowly reopen during the coronavirus pandemic.
Digital technologies are accelerating in the trading of gemstones and diamonds, creating better opportunities to achieve traceability along the supply chain.
The emotional turmoil triggered by COVID-19 has intensified a desire for self-expression and for bespoke or custom-made jewellery among consumers across income groups, not just among the wealthy, trend forecasters and industry leaders say.
Asked to identify global jewellery design trends as lockdowns ease, celebrated jewellery historian and trends analyst Vivienne Becker said: "The trend towards intense individuality, personalisation, a human connection, and a continued obsession with fine coloured stones, and with their origins."
Becker is curating the Designer Vivarium, a showcase for the high-end Geneva gem and jewellery show GemGenève, which is set to be one of the first trade fairs to open after the lockdown, from November 5-8.
"What’s important in the Designer Vivarium is the variety of different styles, to show the full scope of imagination and innovation that drives our industry forward," Becker said.
Responsibility
As economies gradually reopen, the global industry is spreading the message of increased responsibility in the supply chain of coloured gemstones, most of which are mined artisanally in developing countries.
In the gems and jewellery industry, poverty is a huge challenge facing millions of miners, notably in precious metals and gemstones.
Several studies of the mindset of Millennial consumers have shown a growing insistence that workers are treated fairly throughout the supply chain from mine to finger.
Responsible corporate management will be key for businesses to strive and thrive, says Iris Van der Veken, Executive Director of the London-based Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), the industry's leading standards setting organisation.
"I believe that companies that embrace sustainability as part of their business recovery strategy will be resilient for the long-term," she said.
"We work in an industry of beauty and emotions. We connect hearts and minds. Consumers always expect trust when they buy a piece of jewellery to celebrate a significant moment in their lives.
"Early research shows that the post-COVID consumer will prioritize trust and true purpose even more and will evaluate companies based on how they acted during and after the crisis."
The increased use of digital technologies to trade in coloured gemstones and diamonds can help to create new demand during a severe global economic downturn, and develop a more responsible supply chain by improving the tracking of precious materials.
Now the Indian government-backed Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) is testing virtual buyer-seller meetings for diamonds and jewellery. Buyers will select precious materials in live video calls.
Gem dealers are using new digital platforms like gemcloud.com to find new clients at a time when international travel has largely halted and social distancing is the required norm in brick-and-mortar business dealings.
Such digital platforms will make it easier to incorporate only product that can be traced to its origins.
UN Global Compact
Urgent action is needed in the gems and jewellery industry to improve the plight of millions of workers and their families and drag them out of poverty into more sustainable livelihoods, industry leaders told a virtual UN summit in June.
The RJC has a partnership with the United Nations Global Compact, which encourages businesses to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies.
The RJC staged a session at the UN Global Compact Leaders’ Summit to pursue a pledge to meet 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
“This is a clear global plan: People, Peace, Planet and Prosperity. It is a collective shared responsibility for all industries,” said Van der Veken.
“Every aspect of the supply chain needs to be connected to create a more sustainable future. Transformative partnerships are needed to bring the public and private sector more closely together to create systemic change.”
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Source: David Brough