Among the items that caught my attention during "Las Vegas Jewellery Week" was the number of exhibits from producers or marketers of jewellery-making materials. This has been going for the past few years but there were three exhibitions in particular that were on target in terms of communicating an industry-wide message: * The LoveGold exhibit, an extension of the fashion jewellery initiative of the same name by the World Gold Council; * Mining company Rio Tinto Diamonds "Diamonds with a Story" exhibit; and * Swarovski Elements, the premium brand division of the Swarovski crystal company, exhibit titled "World Jewelry Facets."
The LoveGold exhibit at the Couture Show LoveGold was appropriately presented on a stage in the ballroom of the Wynn Las Vegas above the exhibitors and buyers at the Couture Show. The exhibit included art creations, curated gold jewellery used at red carpet events and rotating selection gold jewellery from the vendors at the tradeshow. Among the show stopping attractions was a 27-pound gold bar valued at more than $500,000.
Many of the pieces were from the catwalk at Cannes curated by Carine Roitfeld, the former editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris. The pieces were used as part of a special fashion show benefitting amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research. "We want to showcase the best that gold can be regardless of origin or price point," said Sally Morrison of the World Gold Council. "The exhibition at Couture was a way of introducing the beginning of this activity to the brands and press at the show." Over at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center where JCK Luxury and JCK Las Vegas were held, Rio Tinto exhibit featured jewellery created for the US market by eight North American designers based on the following four topics: "Origin," "Cutting Impact," "Mixed Medium" and "Color My World." The designers created their works using Rio Tinto's coloured diamonds from its Argyle mine in Australia and white diamonds from its Diavik mine in Northwestern Canada. The exhibit is part of a marketing program by the mining company for the jewellery trade based on its own consumer research. The jewellery collections based on the four stories identify consumer's desire for the following attributes: • Identifying the place of origin of the diamonds they buy.
