Naomi Newton-Sherlock named director of Weston Beamor

Naomi Newton-Sherlock, who was promoted to the post of creative director at Domino in 2013, has been made a director of the brand’s sister company Weston Beamor.  Weston Beamor is the longest established of the three companies within WB The Creative Jewellery Group, having been founded just after World War…

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JewelStreet lands £456,000 investment

Online jewellery marketplace, JewelStreet.com, has secured a £456,000 round of investment to fuel further growth.  The investment was led by Polygon Group, an investment company based in Guernsey, and as a result Martin Belcher, chairman of Polygon will join the JewelStreet board. Belcher said: “We are thrilled to take the…

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Telephone fraudsters use jewellery shops to scam elderly

Criminals have been using an elaborate telephone scam to extort money from unsuspecting members of the public, using a jewellery shop ‘ploy’.  In December, a victim was persuaded to purchase a Rolex watch from a jeweller in the Torbay area. The victim then entered the jewellers in person and was…

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Polished diamonds prices fell 8.7% in 2014

Polished diamond prices fell in 2014 as demand in China slowed and liquidity dried up, with polished 1-carat prices dropping 8.7%, according to the RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI).  For the year 2014, 0.3-carat diamonds also declined 6.5% and 3-carat diamonds dropped 6.6%. Only 0.5-carat diamonds increased, by a marginal 0.1%.…

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RapNet launches new Android app to access diamond market

Diamond trading network RapNet has released a new mobile app for Android, allowing its members to follow the diamond market on their smartphones.  Following the successful release of its iPhone app, the Android app will allow RapNet members to follow the diamond market on the go, including access to advanced…

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Shop prices report deflation for twentieth consecutive month

Overall shop prices have reported year-on-year deflation for the twentieth consecutive month, decelerating to 1.7% in December after reporting deflation of 1.9% in November.  This is according to the BRC-Nielsen Shop Price Index which found that non-food deflation slowed marginally in December to 2.8% from 2.9% in November. On a 12-month…

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Holts Academy appoints new MD

  Holts Academy has appointed Anne Angell as its new managing director. Angell was previously head of operations for the firm, and has a background in education and jewellery. The firm said in a statement that she “specialises in employability, training and skills provision for enhanced performance and quality. These…

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Lars Larsen watches to be stocked by Watchshop.com

Danish watch company Lars Larsen has announced a retail partnership with Watchshop.com, the online UK watch retailer.  The announcement, which was made by Ebling Feres, the official UK distributor for Lars Larsen watches, will see Watchshop offer 74 products from the brand, featuring a mix of men’s, women’s and unisex…

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New firm to challenge UKs ‘outdated’ pawnbroking industry

A new online peer-to-peer lending platform has launched in an effort to challenge what it describes as the UKs ‘outdated’ pawn and secured lending industry.  The startup, called Unbolted, lets consumers use their high value personal assets to access loans of up to £1m. Loans can be secured against anything…

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Jason Holt awarded CBE in New Year’s honours list

The chief executive of Holts Group and the government’s apprenticeship ambassador for SMEs, Jason Holt, has been awarded the honour of Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2015 New Year’s honours list. Holt, who founded Holts Academy, was recognised for his services to apprenticeships, his…

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