JCK - Price Pressure is On, Cocktail Rings Are Popular

Strong traffic continued Monday, the fourth day of the JCK Show. But happy exhibitors with busy booths could not hide price pressure by buyers, once again causing many to wonder when the turning point will be. If indications at this show are anything to go by, it appears the turning point is almost round the corner.

Buyers and retailers are slowly, and we emphasize slowly, beginning to accept price increases, or as one major diamond jewelry exhibitor noted, “Finally they've turned the light back on at the end of the tunnel.”

Style-wise, color once again dominates. Perhaps not as strongly as in some of the European shows earlier in the year, but large cocktail rings with smoky center-piece gemstones are certainly many buyers' rings of choice this year.

Most designers are featuring the large centerpiece stone in a variety of designs, with or without diamond accents, with or without detailing covering the stone. Price-points of these items are lower - again the big look without the big price tag.

Although the DPS recently announced new guidelines for what constitutes a Right Hand Ring (any diamond-only ring worn on the right hand, with at least one stone of .20 upwards), manufacturers are still reluctant to carry more than just a handful of the Right hand blingers.

Buyers, too, are yet to ask in any great numbers for a Right Hand selection. The focus is firmly on cocktail-style zingers with color and a flash of diamond.