News
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Apr- 2019 -25 April
74,400 retail jobs lost in first three months of 2019
The retail sector saw a 2.4% year-on-year drop in the number of employees in the first quarter of this year, equating to a loss of 74,400 jobs. According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), this is a higher reduction than the 2.2% drop seen in 2018. The trade organisation said…
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25 April
Online retail sees ‘subdued’ growth in March
Online retail recorded growth of just 5% year-on-year (YoY) in March, compared with 18.9% last year, according to the latest IMRG Capgemini eRetail Sales Index. While still positive growth, the “subdued performance” fell significantly below the three (+7.5%), six (+7.1%) and 12- (+10.2%) month rolling averages. Breaking it down further,…
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24 April
CIBJO gives ‘comprehensive plan’ to promote responsible sourcing
The World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) president, Gaetano Cavalieri, has outlined a “comprehensive” plan for promoting responsible sourcing practices during a plenary session at the 13th OECD Forum in Paris. The CIBJO president was speaking during a special session on the first day of the OECD forum at which select…
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24 April
International Diamond Council elects new leadership
The International Diamond Council (IDC) has appointed Julien Drybooms as its new chairman, and Pol van der Steen as vice chairman. The IDC was established in 1975 to provide the WFDB and the IDMA with a set of universally accepted standards of nomenclature for polished diamonds within the international diamond…
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23 April
RJC launches new ‘Code of Practices’ standard
The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) has announced it is launching a new Code of Practices (COP). According to the organisation, the COP defines “responsible, social and environmental business practices” for companies in the jewellery supply chain and commits members to adhere to a “robust” set of comprehensive auditable standards. Since…
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23 April
Nancy Liu to become Forevermark CEO
De Beers Group has announced that Nancy Liu will become the new Forevermark CEO, stepping up from her current role as COO and taking over the day to day responsibility for the leading diamond brand. Stephen Lussier, executive VP of consumer and brands for De Beers Group, will continue to…
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18 April
UK retail sector bounces back in March
In the three months to March 2019, the quantity bought in retail sales increased by 1.6% compared with the previous quarter in 2018, according to new figures from the ONS. The sales increase has been attributed to “sustained growth” throughout the first three months of the year, and all store…
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17 April
Breitling to pull out of Baselworld due to later timing
Luxury watch manufacturer Breitling has announced it will not be attending the Baselworld trade show next year and instead it will focus on its own independent communication format, the Breitling Summit. Breitling said it made the decision due to the later date set for the Swiss-based trade show, which could…
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17 April
Police appeal following robbery at Bournemouth jewellers
Officers investigating a burglary at a Bournemouth jewellers have issued a CCTV image of the suspect. At approximately 10.45am on Thursday 11 April 2019 a man entered Ilaria Smart Luxury on Wimborne Road in the Winton area of the town. While inside he distracted staff before stealing two rings and…
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16 April
Gold and platinum up in March hallmarking
Both the number of gold and platinum pieces hallmarked in March 2019 increased significantly by 4.5% and 19.1% respectively, according to figures compiled by the Birmingham Assay Office. The average volume of silver also grew by 1% from 321,910 to 325,093 however palladium decreased by 36.8%% to 3,458 hallmarked items.…
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