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Shows
Hong Kong Shows Compete for Business
Attendance was up but closing the sale was challenging.
By Mary Kavanagh
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| Dehres |
Over 80,000 buyers from 147 countries attended the March Hong Kong jewelry shows, representing an increase in traffic of 5.4 percent over 2015, according to show organizer, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC). The third Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, which took place at AsiaWorld-Expo close to the airport from March 1 to 5, focused on loose gemstones. The thirty-third edition of the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show, which featured finished jewelry, ran from March 3 to 7 in the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Center (HKCEC) in downtown Wan Chai. The two concurrent fairs together featured more than 4,380 exhibitors from 54 countries.
Both shows serve as a sourcing hub for global jewelry suppliers. “Despite global economic challenges, the two shows continued to attract local and overseas buyers,” said Benjamin Chau, deputy executive director, HKTDC. “This demonstrates the international significance of the two shows, which form the world’s largest jewelry marketplace, reinforcing Hong Kong’s position as a proven global sourcing hub for the industry.”
Highlights of this year’s show included a new Rough Stones & Minerals zone at the Asia World-Expo to showcase unpolished and uncut stones and gems, a new Wedding Bijoux zone at HKCEC to exhibit wedding rings and bridal jewelry and a new pavilion featuring watchmaking machinery, equipment, technology and supplies. Lawrence Ma, chairman of the show’s organizing committees, reiterated the fact that the March show is now the largest in the world. “This year we have the machinery hall and we know that machinery and technology will be an integral and an important part of the jewelry industry development,” he said. “The jewelry industry sees the show both as important trade and sourcing platforms and an opportunity for exchanging industry intelligence, understanding market trends and networking.”
The HKTDC organized a total of 35 events — seminars to share industry news, jewelry parades to promote new designs and a series of networking events — that attracted over 5,000 participants. One of the seminars focused on “chuk kam”— pure gold — jewelry with four industry experts sharing their insights on how to increase the value of modern-day gold jewelry by incorporating traditional craftwork, an especially timely subject given that the emphasis in Hong Kong and Mainland China is shifting to creating more innovative and design-focused gold jewelry.
The general consensus among exhibitors was that the shows were quiet, yet those buyers who were present were “serious” and “sincere” and looking to do business. Nonetheless, it proved challenging to close sales and people were buying less. Feedback from exhibitors, in particular those based in Hong Kong, was not overly positive, although those with a presence at the airport venue were generally more satisfied than those at HKCEC. One exhibitor described the HKCEC fair as “the worst show in the past ten years” and others described it as “very quiet” and “very slow.” A spokesperson for Allure Jewellery Manufacturing Co. Ltd. based in Thailand said, “Business is shrinking and the show is getting quieter and quieter.”
Ilya Gostev, sales manager at Finex Jewellery, said their expectations for the finished jewelry show at HKCEC were not very high in view of the challenging global economic environment. “But somehow, you hope for a miracle. Overall the mood is not optimistic and even where there are orders, they are not as big as they could be,” he added.
Vinnie Yiu, Brilliant Trading Company Ltd. (BTC), also came to the shows with low expectations, yet was pleased with business at the airport venue. “I think it was one of the best shows in my eight years at BTC,” he said, noting that he had a good portfolio of goods to sell and that there was less bargaining than at previous shows, making the overall transaction process smoother. “Like every year, traffic was good in the first three days before the Wan Chai show opened, and this year, we had sincere buyers coming with an order list, who actually made their appointments before the show,” he said. “So I kept goods for my regular customers and they bought, even though at a slightly reduced price.”
Some exhibitors expressed concern that traffic from the airport show was not coming into the Wan Chai venue. “We are also wondering if the airport show seems to be gaining in importance,” said Simon Zion, Dehres, one of Asia’s top fine diamond jewelers, who showcased a range of pear-shaped diamond jewelry, each valued at over $1 million, in the Hall of Extraordinary at HKCEC. “Some of the customers that usually come, go to the airport first, spend some money and then don’t come here and email afterward to say sorry they didn’t make it,” Zion added, noting that business was slow and there were no particular trends in terms of what was selling. “A lot of our Asian customers didn’t show up and the Chinese buyers have disappeared,” Zion said, attributing this to the challenging global economic climate.
Considering the two as one big show, Ma said that overall it was better than expected, taking into consideration the challenges facing the world economy over the past six months. “I think the March show in Hong Kong is becoming more important to everybody, because everyone is trying to cut costs and trying to make their business more efficient. So if they used to visit three shows, they now visit one and try to do everything in one show. And I think this March show is perfect for them,” he concluded.Article from the Rapaport Magazine - April 2016. To subscribe click here.
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