Mumbai: The 33rd edition of India International Jewellery Show (IIJS), organized by the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) was inaugurated at Mumbai on Thursday.
Mr. Bruce Cleaver, CEO of De Beers Group who was the chief guest at the five-day show’s inaugural function said, “India is of central importance to De Beers’ future and is at the very heart of the diamond pipeline”
Hailed as one of the largest gem and jewellery trade shows in Asia, IIJS is a five-day B2B event and a great platform that allows the global gem and jewellery industry an excellent business opportunity to explore the various multi-faceted aspects of the Indian gem and industry.
The IIJS has 1,200 exhibitors, over 2,000 booths, 50,000 sq. ft., over 35,000 visitors from more than 800 Indian cities and towns and 80 countries around the world.
Chairman of GJEPC, Praveenshankar Pandya, said, “At IIJS 2016, we are hoping to increase the transacted business by at least 15% over and above that generated at IIJS 2015.”
Manoj Dwivedi, joint secretary, Union ministry of commerce, government of India, who inaugurated IIJS said, “The most significant reform after the 1991 liberalization – GST has become a reality and the key is seamless implementation. One country, one tax, one market will infuse new energy into the economy and growth will materialize. The Skill Council of India has targeted to train 5 million workers and upgrade skills. The other key initiative is to geographically map, tag and brand the unique jewellery of different parts of the country – be it jewellery from South or North East or Jaipur – to highlight the craftsmanship of that particular area.”
Three MoUs Signed:
Three important Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with De Beers, The Guangzhou Diamond Exchange, China and The Guangdong Gems and Jade Exchange (GDGJE), China respectively at the Show today.
The MoU between GJEPC and De Beers says that the two organizations will undertake joint promotional activities to drive consumer demand for diamond jewellery in India. The marketing campaign will be run over the key selling season later this year. Details of the funding are being discussed and will be subsequently decided by both GJEPC and De Beers, representatives of the two organizations said.
Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Cleaver said, “I have said before that we must be unrelenting in driving consumer demand so we are very excited about this partnership with GJEPC, a globally acclaimed export trade body. India is already one of the world’s most important markets for consumer sales of diamond jewellery and we believe it has an exciting opportunity for further growth.”
Mr. Cleaver added that the campaign would run along with the Forevermark promotions, and its messages and focus would be decided by the two organizations. He further mentioned that De Beers has already undertaken some detailed consumer research in the Indian market, and he expected that the campaigns would cover promotion of small diamonds and would encompass gifting.
Cleaver also clarified that De Beers would ensure that there were no unnecessary overlaps between the promotions being undertaken by DPA, Forevermark and the generic category marketing campaigns taken up in India since the company was directly involved in all of them.
The MOUs of GJEPC with GDGJE and GZDE, will have a framework to established cooperation and facilitate collaboration between the Parties, on a non-exclusive basis, in areas of mutual interest and understanding in the diamond industry, promotional activities and trading.
The two Chinese bodies are among the largest in southern Mainland China. Mr Liang Weizhang, GM of the Guangzhou Diamond Exchange Co Ltd said that the MoU was a “very good start, and would be an important milestone in co-operation between the Indian and Chinese diamond industries.” He clarified that Indian companies could bring goods to display at GDE without paying any duties if they were traded within the exchange or sold to traders from other international markets. Only goods that were entering the Chinese domestic market would attract duties as per the local laws. “It is a unique opportunity for companies to explore new avenues,” he concluded.
