Vicenza: The Fiera di Vicenza, Europe’s leading jewellery trade fair organizer, and the World Diamond Mark Foundation (WDM), a non-for-profit organization established in 2012 by the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB), secured collaboration in the realm of diamond and diamond jewellery promotion and marketing. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed on Saturday during the international press conference of VICENZAORO, the international trade show organized by Fiera di Vicenza.

Through the agreement, Fiera di Vicenza and WDM will work to sustain and improve image and consumer confidence for diamond and diamond jewellery. The partnership aims particularly to enhance business opportunities of WDM Authorized Diamond Dealerships (ADDs) and to establishing VICENZAORO as the major European platform for the promotion and the trade of diamonds and precious stones.

“Our markets are in a continuous flux, not only due to economic uncertainty, but first and foremost due to the changing behavioural purchasing patterns among the new generation of consumers, Generation Z, or in other words, the Millennials,” Corrado Facco, Managing Director of Fiera di Vicenza stated. “The Fiera, which provides thousands of diamond, gem and jewellery companies that exhibit at our shows, sees it as an important service to work with the WDM and join it in its efforts in increasing the desirability of diamonds and in helping retailers enthuse consumers for diamonds and diamond jewellery.”

“Our cooperation with the Fiera is a dual-prong effort,” Mr. Alex Popov, Chairman of WDM, said. “The Fiera di Vicenza organizes Europe’s most important trade shows and therefore serves as an excellent and important platform for the WDM, as we need to raise awareness not only of the WDM itself, but most importantly for its goals and objectives: building toward greater desirability of diamonds and consumer confidence in diamonds and those who sell them; increasing market share of diamonds and diamond jewellery, and improving the profitability of all players in the supply pipeline!”

“Our industry will need to take drastic and dramatic steps if it is to bring back diamonds and diamond jewellery into the top performing categories in the luxury product consumer market,” Mr. Facco said. “Furthermore, it is necessary to pay more attention toward transparency and ethical themes, promoting policies of Corporate Social Responsibility, in order to enhance the consumer’s confidence in the jewellery and diamond sectors”.

Thanks to the agreement, Fiera di Vicenza becomes a World Diamond Mark strategic partner, promoting the WDM Authorized Diamond Dealer (ADD) network, its activities and events during the trade show organized by the Italian company in Italy and abroad. Fiera di Vicenza will also participate in further WDM events such as diamond exhibitions and WDM conferences. Furthermore, it will use its global influence to promote the fund-raising for WDM promotional campaigns and events.

WDM will actively promote Fiera di Vicenza through its worldwide retailer network, and through all WFDB bourses and partner organizations. Recognising Fiera di Vicenza as the Exhibition Partner in Europe, WDM will endorse the presence of the most influencing opinion leaders in attending the show and will promote the opportunity to exhibit in VICENZAORO to the most relevant diamond jewellery producers and diamond dealers.