Signet Jewelers Ltd. appointed Virginia (Gina) C. Drosos as
an independent director on its board of directors. Drosos will retire as group
president for Procter & Gamble’s beauty, skin, cosmetics and personal care
division on September 1.
Jewelers of America (JA) announced the election of six new
members to its board of directors who will serve through 2015. The new
directors are Coleman Clark, president of B.C. Clark Jewelers, Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma; Lane Schiffman, co-owner of Schiffman’s, Greensboro, North Carolina;
James Seuss, president and CEO of Tourneau, New York; Ray Stuart, senior vice
president and chief merchandising officer of Helzberg Diamonds, Kansas City,
Missouri; Cathy Tivol, CEO of Tivol Inc., Kansas City, Missouri and Betsy Wolgemuth,
co-owner of Koser Jewelers, Mount Joy, Pennsylvania.
For the complete list of JA’s 2012-2013 board of directors,
visit www.jewelers.org/aboutJA/board.html.
Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company announced the election of
three new members to its board of directors. They include Alex Barcados,
president of C.D. Barcados Co. Ltd., Toronto, Canada; Jon Bridge, co-CEO and
general counsel for Ben Bridge Jeweler Inc., Seattle, Washington and Craig
Underwood, president of Underwood’s Jewelers in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Botswana’s state-owned Okavango Diamond Company (ODC)
appointed Toby Frears, a former De Beers executive, its first managing director
as the company plans to launch trading in Gaborone by the second quarter of
2013. Frears previously held several positions at the Diamond Trading Company
Botswana (DTCB), including head of diamond sorting and valuing operations and
head of sales.
The Canadian Jewellers Association (CJA) appointed Kim
Markwart as its chairman of the board for the 2012 to 2013 term. Markwart and
her husband Trent own Markwart Jewellers Ltd. in northeastern Saskatchewan.
theCaratDiet.com appointed Carole Dixon as editor in chief
as part of its relaunch strategy. Created by the California Jewelers
Association, the site originally provided content on jewelry news and trends.
As part of its new strategy, it will expand from jewelry to report on other
areas relating to a luxury lifestyle.
Gemological Institute of America (GIA) will open a new
laboratory facility in the Israeli Diamond Center in Ramat Gan in early
September. The new facility will provide onsite lab services, including GIA
Diamond Grading Reports, Diamond Dossiers and related services. The new GIA
facility in Ramat Gan is the eighth GIA laboratory and the sixth outside the
U.S.
BK Jewellery’s patent infringement court action against
Prestige International will proceed unimpeded. The announcement by Rocky Wong,
BK Jewellery’s CEO, followed the July 16 ruling by the U.S. District Court of
New York in which Prestige International was denied any additional stays of
proceedings and ordered that all discovery should be complete by August 31.
The patent infringement lawsuit concerns BK International’s
patented design of its diamond jewelry that was first introduced in 2008 in
Hong Kong by its affiliate Wing Yee of www.BKJewelry.com.
Gemfields opened sales offices in Mumbai and Jaipur to
supply cut and polished Zambian emeralds to India and the greater Asian market.
Gemfields stated that every emerald will be sourced directly from its
distribution partners, which have successfully bid and acquired lots from the
company’s rough auctions.
RAPNET, the Rapaport Diamond Trading Network, announced its
added Gujarati to its multi-language website. Gujarati is the language used by
the majority of India-based diamond manufacturers and traders. RAPNET is the
first diamond-trading network to provide Gujarati speakers access to the local
and international market in their own language.
RAPNET is owned by the Rapaport Group, which also owns Rapaport
Magazine.
IDD Jewelry received the Supplier of the Year award at the
Independent Jewelers Organization (IJO) show in Minneapolis, Minnesota for
outstanding service, ethics and performance. This is the third year in the row
that IDD has been honored with this award.
The United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO)
issued patent number 08239211 to Gemshares LLC of Chicago, Illinois for a
process in which investment-grade natural and synthetic gemstones can be
identified for use in financial investments and commercial trading. The
patented process involves grouping diamonds by an investment standard based
upon their gemological, proportional, optical and light behavior
characteristics. The patent also describes a system for generating an index, or
benchmark, of investment-grade diamonds intended to reflect “the general
market” for the stones.
The USPTO issued the following trademarks:
• “The World’s Most Carefully Selected Diamonds” was issued
to De Beers Centenary AG of Switzerland. The trademark, registration number
4177237, includes jewelry, imitation jewelry featuring diamonds, gemstones and
diamonds, and horological and chronometric instruments featuring diamonds. The
trademark will be used in retail and wholesale store services, advertising and
marketing services, all in the field of jewelry and diamonds.
• “Blackberry Diamonds” was issued to Le Vian Corporation
with the registration number 4183354. Le Vian will use the trademark for
bracelets, earrings, watches and other jewelry made in whole or with a
significant part of diamonds.
• “The Helzberg Solitaria Collection” was issued to Columbia
Insurance Company for Berkshire Hathaway. The Helzberg Solitaria Collection
includes jewelry, namely diamonds and diamond jewelry, and was given the registration
number 4183418.
• “Palak Diam” was issued to Palak Diam Inc. of Los Angeles
with the registration number 4182266. The trademark covers goods and services
related to diamonds and jewelry.
• “Perfection Stylist” was issued to diamond brand Hearts On
Fire of Boston, Massachusetts under registration number 4182007. The term
“Perfection Stylist” applies to Hearts On Fire’s online retail store services
that feature diamonds and diamond jewelry and provide information in the field
of jewelry.
• “The World’s Perfect Diamond” was issued to Colorado-based
retailer Shane Co. under registration number 4192169. The company will use the
slogan in reference to jewelry made of diamonds and precious metals.
• “Steal Her Heart A Diamond As Perfect As She Is” was issued
to Oz’s Jewelers Corporation of Hickory, North Carolina. The trademark, with
registration number 4190694, consists of “Steal Her Heart” in stylized script
with the phrase “A Diamond As Perfect As She Is” in stylized script around one
lobe of the heart.
The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) announced that it
had awarded certification to four companies that met the highest ethical,
social and environmental standards established by the RJCs Member Certification
system. The following jewelry manufacturers received RJC certification: JEM –
Jewellery Ethically Minded, Paris, France; IGC Brand Service LLC, Chicago,
Illinois; Veediam BVBA, Antwerp, PANDORA, Glostrup, Denmark; Lombardi SRL,
Valenza, Italy; Sundiam DMCC, Dubai, UAE and Clogau Gold of Wales, Great
Britain.
The Women’s Jewelry Association (WJA) held its 29th annual
awards for excellence and its hall of fame awards. Pilar Coin of Roberto Coin
received the WJA’s Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award and Rebecca
Forrester accepted the Corporate Hall of Fame Award on behalf of Rio Tinto. The
Ben Kaiser Award was presented to Thomas Andruskevich for his leadership at
Birks & Mayors.
The following received awards for excellence: Kara Ross,
Kara Ross Designs, for design of fine jewelry and watches; Andrea Hansen of
Ivanka Trump for a manufacturer, dealer or supplier of fine jewelry, gems,
metals and watches; Laura Swan of Kohl’s for the retail category for companies
with 15 doors or more; Olivia Cornell, Cornells Jewelers, for retailers with
fewer than 15 doors; Debra Puzio of QVC for nontraditional retailing; Jan
English of Frederick Goldman for sales and merchandising; Lisa Cochin of
Forevermark USA for marketing and communications; Roxanne Robinson of Women’s
Wear Daily (WWD) for media and
Mary Lou Keen of American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) for the special services
category.
The New York State Jewelers Association (NYSJA) will hold
its third annual golf outing on October 1 and will donate a portion of the
proceeds to the Jewelers for Veterans Foundation. The event will be held at the
Willow Ridge Country Club in Westchester County in New York. The Jewelers for
Veterans Foundation connects U.S. military veterans with training and
employment in the jewelry industry.
Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company, along with its consumer
jewelry insurance brand, Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance, partnered with
Jewelers for Children (JFC) for a sweepstakes in which people explore
www.PerfectCircleInsurance.com for a chance to win “Radiance of Hope” jewelry.
The Great Gem Find Giveaway is being promoted on the Perfect Circle Jewelry
Insurance social media platforms. Visitors must find the gem icon in its new
location on the website each week through September 21. Weekly clues will be
available on the Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance Facebook page, with new
prizes awarded every Friday.
Royal Asscher auctioned a Stars of Africa floating diamond
ring to benefit Global Equality Fund, a program of the U.S. State Department,
and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The ring, donated by Royal Asscher of
America’s president, Lita Asscher, sold for $16,000 at the event hosted by the
Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and attended by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
and Sir Elton John.
The Diamond Empowerment Fund (D.E.F.) announced that it
donated $2,000 to Jewelers for Children (JFC), half its share of the proceeds
from the groups’ recent Raffle for Education. The raffle was held during the
American Gem Society (AGS) Conclave in Miami.
Gemological Science International (GSI) adopted a major
jewelry street in Mumbai to give back to the local community and to initiate a
widespread street-cleaning effort. GSI employees, together with municipal
employees, arrived with brooms and helped clean Turner Road in the Bandra
neighborhood.
The Jewelers 24 Karat Club of Southern California announced
that Donna M. Baker, president and CEO of Gemological Institute of America
(GIA), will be honored with the prestigious Excellence in Service Award. The
annual award, which recognizes social responsibility, integrity and honor, will
be presented at the club’s gala on October 6 at the Montage Resort in Beverly
Hills.
Cindy Edelstein was voted a Community Choice honoree in the
2012 Small Business Influencer Awards. Edelstein, an author, speaker, consultant
and owner of Jeweler’s Resource Bureau, was the only nominee from the fine
jewelry industry.
The World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) announced
that Luce Oige passed away. Her tenure at the WFDB extended from 1947 to 2002.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - September 2012. To subscribe click here.