Here's a brief report on the five-day evet.
Highlights-
The Show, held from July 14 to 18, was inaugurated by Chief Guest Praful Patel, Minister of Civil Aviation, Govt. of India. Also present were Consul-General of Belgium in Mumbai Herman Merckx, Jaywantiben Mehta & P.K. Mahapatra of the Commerce Ministry, Govt. of India.
In his inaugural address Bakul Mehta, Chairman of the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), the organizer of the Show, said: "With IIJS 2005, the Indian gems & jewellery industry will be moving a step further to strengthen its foothold on the global map. A multi-purpose vehicle, the IIJS is a one-stop-shop for all the requirements and offerings of the world gems and jewellery sector."
He highlighted the industry's remarkable growth of 29.27% compared to the last fiscal year. Total exports registered US$ 15,677 million.
Praful Patel remarked in his address about the lack of a world-class exhibition centre in Mumbai. He assured government support to the industry and that area near the international airport and at the Bandra-Kurla Complex is being considered to erect an exhibition centre.
Entry Fee Hike:
"The Show is okay but the entry is very expensive. Goods are very nice and innovative. It provides a good platform for us to promote our goods," said Jean-Michel Roux, Vice-President Operations at Signity.
The hike in entry fee evoked the ire of many exhibitors who felt it discouraged the number of visitors both Indian and international. Exhibitors felt that this year IIJS did not see many international buyers. Many exhibitors in the machinery section complained that the high entry fee has turned away a lot of buyers and visitors leading to lack of fruitful business. While many others in the machinery section did roaring business with orders crossing million dollars.
Closed Market:
Talking about the duties applied at various stages, Ermanno Panozzi, Marketing Manager of Tecnor SpA, Italy, said, "The import duty is an obstacle. The market is closed. No big names have contacted us. The market is still a blocked one." Ermanno has come with the expectation to strike a deal with big names in India but did not get the right response. He said that he is uncertain over participating in IIJS 2006. On a similar note Giorgio Merlo, Sales Director of Tecnigold S.p.A., also from Italy said the Show is good.
Though there is not much business but it's okay. "We are used to it", he said.
Neglected lot: Machinery section
"We are happy." Many participants were regular exhibitors and hoped to participate in the coming year too. Though most of them gave a positive expression, there were some who faced hardships in getting their products from outside Mumbai. "They have neglected us. No facility was provided by the organizers to store the heavy machinery. We had to make our own arrangements."
There were some like Milano International who were at IIJS "to make our presence felt", said CEO A.M. Gidwani. Milano sells Japanese casting machine and did not expect to do much at IIJS but he said "we would be participating in the next IIJS too". Superfit Continental Pvt Ltd said that it did less business compared to the previous year.
Alpha International did excellent business bagging over half a million dollar worth of business in two days. Overwhelmed by the success this year, Mayur Sheth, owner of Alpha International said, "We will double the size of the stall in IIJS 2006." Most enquiries came in from the Middle-East, he disclosed.
Kirit Shah of Shah Tools was highly upset with the entry fees and lamented that most of his clients turned away due to strict procedures and high fees. He warned that the coming year will not see even 50 stall holders in the machinery section. Year after year the number of participants has been depleting.
What began with over 200 stall holders in the Machinery Section alone has been reduced to around 100 or so this year.
Foreign Delegations:
According to the GJEPC, several international delegations were at the IIJS Show, including those from Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Poland, Italy, Hungary, Europe, Turkey and Mexico. The Council held talks with delegations from Italy and Mexico among others briefing them about the potential of the Indian industry, said Bakul Mehta during a press conference at the IIJS.
Laying emphasis on the importance of the Italian delegation, Bakul Mehta said that it was essential to obtain Italian technical knowhow. Italian companies source diamonds from India and set them in the jewellery manufactured in Italy. So far only one company from Italy brings mountings from Italy and manufactures jewellery in India. The main aim is to get Italian companies to manufacture jewellery in India.
He explained that the results of meeting the delegations will take affect only after the Show. "Usually delegations are briefed about the Indian industry and they take a look around the Show and come back to us later," he said.
Trends at the Show:
The present demand trend is for bigger size diamonds because they are scarce, said Hasmukh Shah of Shital Diam, who have been in the market for the last 15 years and are a sister concern of Gembel Group of Companies. "The 3 and 5 caraters sold well at the IIJS. Usually, in any show about 15% are actual buyers and the rest are either casual visitors or those who come to study designs. They could also turn out to be potential customers in the future. We did average business at IIJS, better than last year. We did get orders from Delhi and other places."There was also movement of big size cubic zirconia. Said Abhishek Saraf of Hariprasad Gopikrishna Jewellers Pvt. Ltd: "This is the only true B2B Show and that is why we participate in this show." They deal with Signity which markets cubic zirconium.
Last year saw a range of small diamonds set in invisible setting and much in vogue. With increasing shortage of big size diamonds this demand for smalls is on the rise. India specializes in cutting and polishing small size diamonds.
In the jewellery section, international buyers were awed by the Indian chunky jewellery but were more interested in Italian designs.
Patricia Armendarr, Director-General of Credipyme, a bank in Mexico stated, "This is my first visit to India. I am here to study the market and meet banks that provide credit to the gems and jewellery industry". She was awed by the jewellery on display at the Modern Impex stall. Her first reaction was: "do they really wear this kind of heavy jewellery?" Kunal Doshi of Modern Impex said that this kind of jewellery is popular in the Middle-East and caters to consumers in Saudi Arabia and India too on special occasions.
The heavy gold jewellery drew the attention of buyers from Dubai and the Middle-East.
Hussein Bahamdein of Masag Gold and Jewellery of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a gold jewellery dealer, said the Show was promising. "This is the first time I am coming to this Show. I have come to buy jewellery. We do not manufacture but sell gold jewellery." Hussein is in this field since 1979.
Seminars & Workshops:
Navin Jashnani: "In an era when knowledge is power, the fortunes of many organizations are increasingly decided by the knowledge bank at its disposal and the skill-competitiveness of its human resources. Seminars and workshops at IIJS are designed to fulfil this specific need of the gem and jewellery industry."
Under the Spectrum Seminar Series, the Council hosted educative seminars and workshops. Seminars focused on building the knowledge base of the industry while workshops aimed at enhancing the skill of the industry professionals.
The major seminars covered an array of topics, including sales training for jewellery retailers, arranging finance and minimizing risks in jewellery business, identifying synthetic diamonds and diamond simulants, new trends in diamond cut grading, current trends and technology for retailers, fashion trends, professionalizing family business-role of family members and outsiders, gem identification, cost-effective sales promotion for small jewellers, visual merchandizing.
Focusing mainly on the retail front, most of the seminars dealt with topics useful to retail business. Amitabh Basu of Idendesign Strategies Ltd. expounded the importance of retailers creating identity and personalizing products while Sanjeev Agarwal, Managing Director, Indian sub-continent World Gold Council, deliberated on gold business and the risks involved at each stage right from mining to retailing.
While others including, Rajan Venkatesh, Director-India of Scotia Mocatta; Joseph Massey, Deputy Managing Director of Multi-Commodity Exchange; Amit Kapoor of GIA; Dr. K. Ramachandran and Dr. J. Panjikar from the various institutes, took up various topics. The seminars were interactive and informative.
Special Corner:
As a part of a special effort by the GJEPC to revive traditional Indian arts, there was on display at the IIJS traditional Indian jewellery such as Theva work, Rewa work, Bikaner work, Filigree, and Minakari at the India Traditional Pavilion, while the Designers Gallery showcased jewellery designed by budding, young Indian jewellery designers.
ABN-AMRO Solitaire Awards:
The ABN-AMRO Solitaire Design Awards were open to exhibitors at the IIJS 2005 and recognized the talent and creativity in jewellery design and craftsmanship. The awards were announced in the Couture, Daily Wear, Plain Gold and Best Stall categories. The Chief Guest for the occasion was Somnath Chatterjee, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, who presented the awards to the winners.
Category | Award | Company | Name of the piece | |
Couture | ||||
Neckwear | Winner | Jewel Trends | Diamante Flames | |
Runner Up | Ansaa Jewels | Venus - The Necklace | ||
Earrings | Winner | Bapalal Keshavlal | Rosy Reflections | |
Runner Up | Sama Jewellery | Twilight | ||
Rings | Winner | Lucky Jewellery | Abacus | |
Runner Up | Bapalal Keshavlal | Journey of Life | ||
Bangles Bracelets & Accessories | Winner | Sama Jewellery | Freeflowing Raza | |
Runner Up | CVM Exports | Rainbow Rays from the Junagadh Collection |
Daily Wear | |||
Neckwear | Winner | Prism Enterprises | The Mystique of a Honey Drop |
Runner Up | Sama Jewellery | Firewood | |
Honorable Mention | Kinubaba Jewellery Pvt Ltd. | Heavenly Drop | |
Earrings | Winner | Jewels Emporium | Lissom Leaves |
Runner Up | Summit Jewellery | Scallops | |
Rings | Winner | Diatrends Jewellery Pvt Ltd | Giro |
Runner Up | Fine Jewellery (India Ltd) | Embezzlement Defied | |
Bangles Bracelets & Accessories | Winner | Krishna Jewels | Turquoise Heavens |
Runner Up | Anmol Jewels | Serendipity |
Plain Gold | |||
Winner | Sangam Chains | The Beauty of Curls | |
Runner Up | Ansaa Jewellers Pvt Ltd | Cleopatra | |
Second Runner Up | Kinubaba Jewellery Pvt Ltd | Desires | |
Stall Designs | |||
Jewellery Stalls | Winner | Suashish Diamonds Ltd | |
Runner Up | Shobha Asar | ||
2nd Runner Up | Amrapali Jewels Pvt Ltd | ||
Honorable Mention | Sama Jewellery | ||
Machinery | |||
Winner | Nikunj Exip Enterprises Pvt Ltd | ||
Runner Up | Indutherm | ||
Allied | |||
Winner | International Gemological Institute |
SIDELIGHTS
Celebrity Attraction:
Karishma Kapoor made her presence felt as she visited the Eros Jewellery stall. Other personalities who visited the stalls were Simi Garewal at the Jewelex and Hema Malini at the Hammer Plus.
The final day of the IIJS saw celebrities like Subhash Chandra of Zee TV and Bollywood personality Smita Thackeray visiting the Show.
New launch:
Exhibitors & Visitors Incurred Losses:
The visitors' losses are being taken care of. The visitors, who registered on Sunday (July 17), will be allowed to enter the Show today (July 18). We intend to extend the timing of the Show tomorrow by a few hours. The problem arose in a small section of the exhibition but it was not advisable to take chances in other areas also. We shut down at 2 p.m. and there was a four hour loss. We will extend the timing by two or three hours according to the requirement.
It is Unprecedented & Very Embarrassing!
It is very regrettable we do not have a proper infrastructure in Mumbai. There is urgent need for a convention centre. We are in contact with the authorities and hope that in course of time a centre will come up where exhibitions of this magnitude can be held safely.
The Indian exhibitors were taken aback with the loss of business hours and the loss of potential clients from abroad who had planned to visit the Show on Sunday. Nevertheless, the 'Show must go on' as many agreed after a word with Bakul Mehta. The next and the final day of IIJS did see many visitors and business deals being finalized. The positive part of it all is that many international buyers were more understanding and agreed that had there been a proper centre, this problem would not have occurred at all. It's high time the gems and jewellery industry and the GJEPC joined hands to work towards building a state-of-the-art Convention Centre to ensure success of IIJS year after year.
Rains plays havoc:
Business had to be shut down early on the fourth day of IIJS owing to heavy rains that flooded Hall 5.
For security reasons Chairman Bakul Mehta ordered shut down four hours early. In a briefing to the press, Mehta clarified the cause behind the unfortunate incident.
How did it Happen?
This was in stark contrast to the earlier generosity of the organizers who used to offer travel and hotel facilities plus free entry to overseas visitors.
Reactions:
Good Show:
Lic. Rafael Solorzano Kruker, Director General of Impsa in Mexico: We have been in this profession for the last 25 years.
We have visited several shows abroad, but this is the first time we are in India. India is beautiful. The jewellery is very good. This is a very huge Show. We are here to buy precious metal. We are dealers. We are also looking to strike a deal between Indian suppliers and Mexican manufacturers.
Council's Great Job:
"Generally speaking, the infrastructure was poor this year looking at the size of the exhibition and what is available internationally. Every year there is some minister or the other who visits the IIJS and talks about the pressing need for a Convention Centre for Mumbai, but nothing happens after that. It's been going on for years. But I wouldn't blame the Council for it," said Russell Mehta, CEO of Rosy Blue. "The Council has done a wonderful job with the IIJS. It is unfortunate that owing to lack of proper infrastructure there was water seepage and clogging. Such incidents are exceptional but they do affect our image in the international community. Some of the foreign buyers also faced hardships in getting their goods cleared. However, the Council had done its best to erect such a huge hall temporarily".
10% Loss of Business:
Commenting from the business point of view as far as Rosy Blue is concerned, Rajiv Beri, CEO of Josh Diamonds, an offshoot of the Rosy Blue Group, said that the Show was good. "We did better business by over 30% compared to last year. The high entry fee saw serious customers and buyers unlike last year where 50% visitors were a general crowd. This time 75% were serious buyers. In fact we would have done 10% more business had it not been for the Sunday tragedy (flooding in Hall 5). It was something natural, you can't blame the organizers for it". Elaborating on the behavior of many, Rajiv sternly said that the Council should not allow such exhibitors to participate in the Show. This is our show. What is the use of ruining one's own house? It has lowered our image amid international buyers. We had quite a few appointments to seal deals on Sunday but it could not be done as the buyers had to fly back," lamented Rajiv.
Fruitful Business:
IIJS 2005 was fruitful, says Sohail Kothari, Director, and Umesh Desai, General Manager Marketing, of Fine Jewellery (India) Ltd. The response was good. About 75% of our invitees turned up. Jewellers and dealers of the A and B category visited us. Over 70% who visited us were from the Indian market while 30% were export-oriented. Of this 40% are those who have been visiting us for the last four editions of IIJS. The trend has been more inclined towards big sizes. There has been more demand for diamonds of 3 carats and above. On the jewellery front our 'Mystery Setting' which we launched at the IIJS, drew a lot of attention. It has more of solitaire look but comes in various shapes. Overall IIJS has been very good and we are very happy.
Need for Suitable Convention Centre:
Ajay Kala of Sara Jewels noted the positive side of the Show. "The Show is good now. It has improved with time. Business is also improving. It represents a contemporary jewellery show in line with international shows. Nevertheless, it can be improved further. IIJS is lagging behind in infrastructure, including cooling. A city like Mumbai needs a big Convention Centre for IIJS. The GJEPC must look into this".
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