Vicenzaoro January, the first event of the year on IEG’s Jewellery Agenda, closed with over 35,000 visitors at the six-day show and a tangible upsurge in international visitors.
The six-day Vicenzaoro January (VOJ) held from January 18th to 23rd, 2019, organised by Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), was inaugurated in the presence of the Minister for Regional Affairs and Autonomies, Erika Stefani, who in her address, stated, “Vicenzaoro brings with it all the territory’s dynamics and ability to promote development and training within the sector.”
In his greetings, IEG president, Lorenzo Cagnoni, referred to Italian Exhibition Group’s role as the leading Italian trade show player in terms of the number of shows organised directly, announced that this edition of VOJ, which hosts the most famous international brands alongside the more recent and emerging companies, is totally sold out.
Managing director, Ugo Ravanelli, proclaimed the theme of this year’s show: Sustainable Creativity, which is no longer a trend but, fortunately for our planet, the direction in which the whole sector is decidedly steering towards.
Vicenzaoro January saw formidable growth in foreign participation. According to a press release, over 60% of operators came from foreign countries. The number of buyers from Germany, Switzerland and Austria registered a + 12% rise, the United Kingdom walk-ins saw a growth of 11.7%, France, 10.5%, and Spain marking a 9.6% jump. Northern Europe also grew by 10.5%. The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia registered a strong recovery despite the ongoing issues in regard to the taxation of the former, marking a 24.2% rise in visitors. Russia and Ukraine, fundamental markets, not only for the Made in Italy gold and jewellery supply chain, but also for the demand on a global scale, grew by 10.4%. The number of buyers from Kazakhstan was up by 46%
Fundamental once more at this edition was the support of the Ministry of Economic Development – MISE and ICE Agency. Thanks to this collaboration, over 400 buyers were welcomed at Vicenzaoro January, selected from the main markets in addition to over 2,000 buyers managed directly by Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), a leader in Italy for holding organised trade fairs.
The recently concluded edition featured 1,500 brands, 42% of which came from 35 countries and from the most important production areas within Italy.
Now at its 41st edition and organised by IEG on the same dates of Vicenzaoro January, the T Gold show confirmed its international leadership and its role as a representative of Italian technological excellence.
The quality of buyers at the trade show has been growing, attracted by the physical and digital Vicenzaoro business platform, with its matchmaking ability. The new #primavicenzaoro project, in collaboration with Confindustria Federorafi, attracted selected buyers from among the most influential in the world for highend jewellery purchases.
The presence of independent designers in the Design Room, as well as the increasingly successful trend of the big brands to present new collections and a new space at the trade show, the Fashion Room, a workshop dedicated to fashion jewellery, the seminar of the Vicenzaoro observatory, Trendvision Jewellery + Forecasting dedicated to the profile of consumers, transformed the six days of the event into a ‘Trend Show’, an inspiration for exhibitors and visitors.
The ICON Community
The section ICON Community was dedicated to fine jewellery brands. The community included Italian and international companies that combined classic design and the heritage of artisanal tradition with avant-garde and contemporary styles, enriching their creations with materials and precious stones of the utmost value.
The essential but highly evocative lines of the Petals collection by the maestro Roberto Coin, were enriched by malachite, nacre, diamonds, while Damiani Fine Jewelry presented precious extensions of the D.Side and Eden collections. The Florentine brand Anna Maria Cammilli showcased a new exclusive gold hue, a result of years of research and experimentation. The colour called Chocolate Brown is a sophisticated original shade in strictly 18-karat gold, an uncommon colour that further enhances the unique shapes and the recognizable design of Cammilli jewels.
Fope, Crivelli, Leo Pizzo, Palmiero, Picchiotti andGiorgio Visconti, to name a few, were among the most anticipated Made in Italy brands.
The Design Room
Twelve top independent designers were the life and soul of The Design Room section with participation from the likes of Alessio Boschi and Alessa Jewelry, as well as interesting new entries on the international scene, such as Anna Maccieri Rossi, Lydia Courteille and Sicis.
The Melting Arctic ring with a global warming theme, encloses a miniature story just waiting to be discovered and is a perfect balance of white gold, diamond, topaz, precious stones and South American walnut: this was the star feature by Alessio Boschi, the ace Italian designer.
Time, on the other hand, is a priceless luxury to which designer Anna Maccieri Rossi dedicated fine jewellery creations characterised by an automation that makes the item a constantly changing lucky talisman, inspired by the designer’s inherited watch-making profession.
Other presentations were the creations that “came to life” and changed colour by following body movements thanks to the ingenious mechanism by French designer Marie Mas, a new entrant in the jewellery panorama, the modern geometries by Cedille, the innovative jewellery by Vicenzaborn Mattia Cielo that united goldsmith craftsmanship with modern industrial design, and the proposals by Eclats Jewels. Attention to the tiniest details and selecting precious stones by hand and raw materials from every corner of the world characterised designer Alessa Jewelry, while the jewellery presented by French gemmologist, traveller and collector, Lydia Courteille, was ironic and surreal.
The Design Room also displayed the necklace medallions by Monica Rich Kosann, the micro and nano-mosaics by Ravenna-based Sicis Jewels created with ancient techniques entrusted to innovative languages, the Bee Goddess Turkish jewellery inspired by archaic shapes and talismans by Tanita Tasarim, and miniature sculptures from the Spanish company, Magerit.
Exhibitors’ View
Exhibitors were satisfied with the response they received at the fair. Divyanshu Navlakha, owner of Sutra, said, “VOJ has always been an important meeting point for the international jewellery sector. It is a strategic moment for us because, every year, we always meet potential new customers. I think that Vicenzaoro has improved greatly in recent years, and we now see many top-quality selected buyers at the show. There was also good attention from the Italian market.”
Chiara Carli, creative director, Pesavento, observed, “We witnessed huge enthusiasm and we had numerous meetings and now it is up to us to select who could become our partners. We also saw the potential opening of new international markets where we are not yet present, for example, Kazakhstan, which would be a really interesting market to get into.”
Natasha and Julian Tirisi, owners of Tirisi, revealed, “Thanks to the format of the show, buyers have enough time to look at the jewellery and, exhibitors can explain details in terms of production, design and pricing. In this way buyers feel more confident. During the show we met three new customers, of which one was based in Dubai; a high-end store in Palestine, was an unexpected client at the show. Finally, we found a company that was transparent in its dealings and placed a good order.”
Andrea Visconti, CEO Giorgio Visconti, noted, “The contacts were mainly international from China to Dubai, from South America to Northern Europe, with a significant increase in the German market, which we did not record during previous years. We were extremely pleased to have met buyers from the Russian market again, who usually only attend Baselworld or Hong Kong. Also, the fact of having invested more heavily in Vicenzaoro this year, and giving up on Basel, seems to have been the right move for us, judging from the contacts we made.”