Top Execs, Industry Gurus Meet at Fine Jewelry CEO Summit

Top Execs, Industry Gurus Meet at Fine Jewelry CEO Summit
Diamonds.net, NY

RAPAPORT… Nearly 200 top executives in the diamond and jewelry industry met at the Rio Tinto Diamonds sponsored and Nielson Jewelry Group produced 2nd Annual Fine Jewelry CEO Summit in Atlanta, February 20-22, 2007.

The event was designed specifically for executives from the “majors” – jewelry firms that command 38 percent of the market in the United States, making this very different from other jewelry tradeshows or conferences, said Nielsen Jewelry Group vice president Lee Arevian

Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind, started the summit with a discussion of “artistry, empathy, and creativity,” the three elements vital of management in the jewelry industry. “Speakers like Daniel Pink help to introduce the jewelry industry to cutting-edge management best practices, and plant the seeds of forward-thinking ideas that will help our market segment as a whole,” said marketing manager Nirupa Bhatt, of Rio Tinto Diamonds.

Tom Peters, legendary management guru, was the next speaker, who urged attendees to innovate and “stop thinking so much.” He also expanded upon his four “laws” of business excellence: De-centralize; Execution; Accountability; Working Harder.

Collectors Universe companies GCAL and AGL also sponsored a “leadership chat” with Peters, where attendees had an opportunity to field questions and seek advice on difficult management challenges.

During the following two days panel presentations and roundtable discussions addressed retail case studies and encouraged executives to rethink and re-motivate the way they conduct business. Managing director Janie Curtis of Frank About Women lectured on how to speak the language that women speak in order to engender trust and long-term relationships. “Women love words of encouragement and a brand that speaks to them of empowerment,” she said, “It’s a two-way dynamic dialog.”

Le Vian sponsored Internet strategy expert and author Jeffrey Rayport, who asked retailers to examine how their companies interact with customers, detailing new Internet trends in technology, as well as some of unintended consequences of it, such the acceleration of product lifestyles and downward price pressures that create overcapacity. “Your customers are wearing your store fronts in their shirt pockets.”

The summit concluded with Apple co-founder and former vice-president of research and development Steve Wozniak, who in addition to creating the first personal computer is a collector of watches and gadgets. Wozniak talked about future trends on the Internet: Increased personalization, faster broadband, cooperation among online vendors, and more realism on the Internet in general, as influenced from video games. He told attendees that he prefers the shopping experience of brick and mortar retailers over the web. “You have much more help in the store,” he said.

Next year’s event promises to be bigger, and will be expanded to include a wider scope of jewelry executives, and was officially re-named “The Nielsen Fine Jewelry Leadership Summit” to reflect those changes.

“The Nielsen Jewelry Group is continuing to shape the model of the Fine Jewelry CEO Summit to produce an event that truly serves the educational needs of jewelry community,” Arevian said. “Our goal is to nurture the current and future leaders of our industry, connect our attendees with a variety of the best international suppliers, and to create collaboration and camaraderie among retail executives.”

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