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GemGenève Show Wins Industry Hearts and Minds
Inaugural event in Swiss city draws 147 exhibitors and effusive praise
May 13, 2018 7:50 AM
By Sonia Esther Soltani
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RAPAPORT...
Within 48
hours of its Thursday opening, exhibitors were already hailing the GemGenève trade
fair as a success.
Words like “jolly,” “friendly” and “good vibe” peppered descriptions of the Geneva-based show, which welcomed 147 exhibitors spanning the full spectrum of the industry.
Booths included
diamond, colored-gemstone and estate jewelry dealers, high-jewelry designers,
up-and-coming designers, and labs such as the Gemological Institute of America
(GIA) and Gübelin.
Foot traffic
was strong during the first few hours of the event and didn’t show any sign of
abating over the next three days. But even before it opened to trade members
and the public, exhibitors felt the fair was living up to their expectations at
a pre-show ceremony on Wednesday night. In attendance were Geneva economy
minister Pierre Maudet and a crowd that one exhibitor described as “everyone
who’s anyone in Geneva high society.”
“People always come if there’s free food and drinks,” said a New York-based
colored-diamond supplier, “but what we noticed was people doing business on the
opening night. They managed to attract quality people from the moment the
ribbon was cut.”
‘We feel
truly appreciated’
One reason
the participants cited for the show’s promising start was that it brought together
disparate elements of the industry. Another was the care and understanding the
organizers displayed for exhibitors.
“For the
first time, we feel truly appreciated,” an emerald dealer said on the first day,
comparing his positive experience with the disillusionment he’d felt at
Baselworld. Most of the participants who spoke with Rapaport News said
they had no intention of going back to the Basel-based watch fair now that
GemGenève offered them another level of exposure, and at a lower cost.
Everyone
praised the elegant design, intimate booths and excellent organization.
One estate jewelry dealer put the show’s success down to its organizers — Ronny Totah and Thomas Faerber — being industry professionals who understood the needs of other dealers.
Exhibitors
were not shy about inviting their own clients to the event, because “we respect
each other’s clients, and it’s good for the overall business,” said another participant.
Perfect
timing for auctions
Further
support came from auction house Christie’s, which set up a dedicated booth in
the city center on Friday for its Magnificent Jewels sale preview. Hostesses
there gave out information about the fair, as well as free taxi rides to
Palexpo, where GemGenève was taking place.
GemGenève’s
timing worked out well with the auction houses’ schedules: Christie’s Geneva sale
is on May 16, and Sotheby’s is on May 15. Christie’s chairman for Europe and
Asia, François Curiel, has been enthusiastic about the new event since its
inception.
“When Thomas
and Ronny came to see me in May last year, talking about their project, I liked
it a lot for two reasons,” he said. “First, it would increase the number of
people coming to our auction. It would probably bring new clients to Geneva who
never came for the auction, but now the auction plus the fair would drive them
to come here. And in fact, we have some people who came here this weekend just
because there was a fair.”
Second of
all, he went on, “there’s nothing much going on in Geneva, [and the show] would
create a bit of animation. It’s good for Geneva, good for our business.”
Curiel
recalled the founders thinking they would manage to secure 40 or 45 exhibitors
for the first show. “In fact, they have over 140. And there’s room to grow. I
hear only good things. I spoke to some dealers who already made sales.”
Better
than Baselworld?
Besides
dealers, the event is open to consumers who care enough about jewelry to pay CHF
50 — about $50 — ensuring that only serious buyers attend the show. A
Geneva-based couple who came on the first day, which was a bank holiday in
Switzerland, were attracted by the prospect of buying diamonds in their
hometown. After experiencing disappointment with Baselworld’s most recent
offering, they appreciated GemGenève’s slightly cheaper ticket price
(Baselworld is CHF 60).
“We’ve been
to Basel for years, and sometimes we bought there, but this year wasn’t a good
show for diamonds,” they said. “We’ve heard about GemGenève, and from the first
impression, it’s a much nicer experience. If we see something we like, we will
surely buy.”
Buyers from Richemont, Chanel and Louis Vuitton also
attended the show, according to the event’s organizers.
In the weeks
after the show closes Sunday night, exhibitors will be able to assess the full
measure of GemGenève’s success. The presence of Chow Tai Fook’s chief buyer,
Kent Wong, as well as other key players in the industry who made their way to
Geneva to check it out, is surely an indicator that GemGenève has disrupted the
traditional fair circuit and is one to watch carefully.
Image: GemGenève
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Tags:
basel, Baselworld, Chow Tai Fook, Christie’s, Europe, events, Exhibitions, François Curiel, GemGenève, Gemological Institute of America, geneva, GIA, Gübelin, Kent Wong, Magnificent Jewels, Pierre Maudet, Ronny Totah, shows, Sonia Esther Soltani , Thomas Faerber, trade fairs, Trade Shows
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