The 8th edition of the Antwerp Diamond Trade Fair, now renamed as BrilliANT, opened in the halls of the Antwerp Diamond Bourse and Diamond Club of Antwerp yesterday with 95 exhibitors from different parts of the world, including an India Pavilion hosted by GJEPC. This marks the first time the organisation has taken part in this Antwerp show, which runs till Jan 31.

The India pavilion comprises six companies, said GJEPC officials, including Janam Corporation Pvt. Ltd., Parishi Diamond, Sejal Exports (India), Unique Gems, Venu Diamond and Venus Jewel.

The BrilliAnt trade fair is a joint initiative of the Bourse, Club and the Antwerp Diamond Kring, and is powered by the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC).

This year the fair has a fresh, new 'look' that includes newly designed exhibition booths. On display are diamonds in all possible sizes, qualities and shapes, as well as coloured gemstones and a wide array of industry services. One of the highlights of the fair's special exhibits is Aaron Shum's "Eden of Coronet," a Gibson Guitar adorned with over 400 carats of Coronet® diamonds, set in approximately 1.6 kg of 18K white gold. The masterpiece was awarded a Guinness World Records™ title for the Most Valuable Guitar in 2015 and has been valued at US$2 million.

The organisers said that hundreds of retail jewelers, jewellery manufacturers, and other diamond buying visitors attended the show on the first day itself.

The BrilliAnt seminar programme began with a well-attended presentation by the World Diamond Mark entitled 'Driving traffic to retailers - the World Diamond® Mark Model.' The WDM offered a preview of the WDM's new consumer oriented website and programmes and demonstrated how it uses digital marketing channels as the most effective and affordable marketing tools to reach consumers and drive traffic to retail jewellers.