What is the general concept of the jewelry exhibitions announced by your company?
The essence of our concept is that the Crocus-Expo International Exhibition Center and Jeweler-Fest have presented Crocus-Jeweler, an annual program of jewelry exhibitions, in the most advanced exhibition complex of Moscow which will meet the interest of the jewelry industry by all parameters, from prices to economic results.
On November 11-14, 2010 the 1st Pavilion will host the 5th Moscow International Jewelry Fair, Golden Globe, which will appear in a new quality as the largest international exposition, the concluding exhibition of the year structured by sectors: gold, silver and platinum products; jewelry watches; authorial design; religious jewelry; jewelry gems and materials; and pavilions of foreign companies. This fair offers a lot of advantages: optimal terms for wholesale and retail trade; reasonable prices (5 600 rubles per 1 square meter including VAT which is twice cheaper than prices at similar Moscow exhibitions!) and an opportunity for junior companies to take part; stable conditions of participation registered in the Regulations and supervised by the Exhibitors Committee; the Business Meetings Day for manufacturers and sales representatives on the eve of the exhibition, etc. As we believe, the next year it will turn into the main jewelry industry show of Russia.
One more wholesale-retail exhibition, which is planned for April 21-24, 2011, pursues two targets - to support direct retail sales of manufacturers during the seasonal slump of wholesale purchases and create an alternative to May wholesale exhibitions by participation cost (5 600 rubles per square meter) and more friendly terms. Having passed through the April exhibition, manufacturers will get real orders for summer sales, while wholesale companies and retail networks in their turn will tie up contracts and will prepare actions for farewell parties at schools rich in early summer. And having done their job well both manufacturers and wholesalers will have a chance to rest during May holidays.
The program also contains seasonal and pre-holiday trade fairs for the jewelry market - Diamond Parking to be kicked off within the frames of the Moscow International Motor Show (August 25 - September 5, 2010) and Top Line - World of Beauty and Luxury (December 3-5, 2010).
Participation in Crocus-Jeweler will allow jewelry companies to satisfy their needs in Moscow-based wholesale and retail exhibitions essentially reducing their expenses and attaining predictably high economic results since Crocus-Expo has a number of important advantages: all the necessary infrastructure (transport, customs, public catering, etc.), including the many-tier parking place for 40 000 cars, Aquarium Hotel (3 stars, 225 rooms). After the Myakinino metro station located on the Crocus territory was put into operation in December 2009 some of the large Moscow “dormitory” districts including Mitino, Strogino, Tushino and all the Kiev metro line area happened to be at arm’s length from the Moscow Exhibition Center. Besides, the Moscow Northwest includes also such city areas as Kurkino and ‘Rublevka’.
What is the reasoning behind the exhibitions schedule?
Planning wholesale and retail exhibitions, we first of all took into consideration the interests of jewelry manufacturers and suppliers. September jewelry industry shows are the legacy of the Soviet planned economy in terms of time. As a matter of fact, their timing is extremely inconvenient. In September the trade is not ready to make serious purchases: there is the “unsellable” October ahead while the New Year and Christmas are still very far away. A credit taken in September will start to be repaid only by the end of November when sales will revive. However, in the middle of November wholesalers will come to buy. September is the time for numerous foreign exhibitions which are visited by many heads and experts of Russian manufacturing and trading companies. November is also more convenient in this respect for foreign exhibitors as well. We have already received interested response from associations and pace-setting companies from Italy, Thailand, Turkey and Hong Kong.
A leading industry show should be really international and not just called so due to 15-20 foreign companies taking part. Today domestic producers are protected by the 20-percent import duty, and the matter depends only on turning supplies to Russia legal. It is no secret that the main vice of our jewelry market is the low-grade illicit production made in Turkey, China and even in Italy by third-rate "firms" which are ever ready to put false Russian seals and special hallmarks of leading Russian manufacturers on their products. Meanwhile in Turkey, Thailand and Hong Kong there are world-renowned companies successfully working in the markets of the United States, Europe and Japan. We see our task in attracting worthy foreign manufacturers to the exhibitions within the Crocus-Jeweler program who value their brands and are capable to compete with our manufacturers even in a situation when prices for their goods go up practically one and a half time as soon as they are imported to Russia. Such an "evident" competition unequivocally corresponds to the interests of trade and the end buyer.
In his interview to our magazine Raul Barbieri, President of the Oro Arezzo Fair, expressing his view of the matter said that Russian wholesalers coming to Italy and admiring Italian jewelry nevertheless say that they will buy the same in Turkey, only cheaper. “No way the same!” Raul Barbieri exclaims. So, we also say to our Italian partners from Vicenza, Arezzo and Valenza: come to our exhibitions and show what the real Italy is! It will be useful to be exposed near foreign brands for our manufacturers as well since they should not only maintain the domestic market, but also by all means enter foreign markets as the protecting import duty is not eternal and one should get ready beforehand to work with borders open.
There are many fairs held at Crocus, and it is important what expositions will pass in parallel with jewelry shows. Thus, in November there will be launched a real estate exhibition in a hall which is adjacent to the jewelry pavilion. This is a very good neighborhood as in this case there are no competing groups of goods. Diamond Parking and Motor Show are a perfect match. It is clear that the both exhibitions will be visited by people having money.
We offer optimal terms to jewelry marketers (which may be corrected according to what market participants deem fit) and unequivocally the best conditions. It is a sound alternative based on the principles of civilized competition instead of scheduling exhibitions “head-on” with similar and “hyped” shows. Such “know-how” was used by St.-Petersburg’ RESTEC in their tough competition with the Jeweler Show run by the Sokolniki Exhibition Center. By the way, RESTEC does the same in Russian provinces: just look, now Ekaterinburg has two shows in the last decade of November – the ten-year-old and successful Ural-Jewler and newly emerged JUNWEX-Ekaterinburg. Such, to put it mildly, incorrect tactics has caused indignation among many exhibitors of Ural-Jewler-2009 who heatedly discussed it during an evening reception on November 24 suggesting to condemn RESTEC’s behavior in an open letter, etc. But the next day their bosses confusedly explained in private that an open action will cost them a good place at the September exhibition in Moscow and at the February show in St.-Petersburg. For the sake of two exhibitions successful from the point of view of exhibitors they are compelled to participate in the Jewelry Russia exhibition program, spending huge funds and without any payoff. It is possible to say that the main current absurdity is just that the central exhibitions instead of being a tool of jewellers and a “service boy” of manufacturers and sellers have turned into a major and most profitable segment of the jewelry market not fearing any crises: to sell air and apply the above-mentioned "know-how" you do not need monetary investments, commodity stocks and marketing networks. I shall finish this long answer saying the same words: we proceed from the interests of manufacturers and suppliers of jewelry goods and we wish to put our exhibitions to their service.
In what formats will Crocus-Expo and Jeweler-Fest cooperate within the frames of this program?
The general agreement stipulates various formats of cooperation. For example, the November exhibition will be based on a 50/50 principle, the one in April is a guest show, i.e. Jeweler-Fest will rent exhibition areas. Diamond Parking and Top Line, on the contrary, belong to Crocus, and our company attracts exhibitors on commission terms to these shows. Thus, in all the four positions our interests are closely interconnected and the main thing is that working together we have built an integral annual program.
What can you say in this respect about the competition with other exhibition firms: RESTEC, R.O.S. Yuvelirexpo and the Jewelers Guild of Russia?
As to the Jewelers Guild of Russia its general meeting in May decided to abandon the Guild of Jewelers Show held at the Moscow Manege. We have enlisted support for our project from some members of the Guild Council. Certainly, we have entered into direct competition with other Moscow projects. But please keep it in mind that we do not set up our exhibitions in the same intervals as it has been for many years practiced by RESTEC; we do not “tread on the heels” of long-term projects of our competitors, we do not force manufacturers to rush between two simultaneous expositions feverishly trying to guess, which of them will have one and a half wholesalers more? Incidentally, our colleagues from R.O.S. Yuvelirexpo took the news about Crocus-Jeweler in a rather reserved way, unlike the management of Jewelry Russia. The latter’s reaction goes within the range from “every cobbler must stick to his last” (this is addressed to Crocus-Expo) to offers to move their own exhibition program to Crocus as well. But no one is going to walk twice in the same water: our own reputation and the interests of the industry which has turned to the opened alternative are worth more than that. Breaking the monopoly is already a blessing for exhibitors, and we do not doubt that in September prices will go down and the attitude towards jewelers will change and become friendlier.
By the way, we and our partners from Crocus-Expo are open for cooperation offers and ready to see other interested organizations in the joint project. The fruits of the teamwork performed by Crocus with the Jewelry Review Holding which started as early as last year are quire visible. For instance, right now the areas allocated to Diamond Parking are occupied for 80%. Many applications have been submitted for Golden Globe and the initially allocated areas in the First Pavilion (10 750 square meters) are almost all assigned. Our purpose is not confrontation, but integration, alliance in the big work to implement the declared program.
Who are your special partners from the jewelry business?
Our natural partners are all participants of the jeweler market. The Crocus-Jeweler exhibitions will be held under the auspices of the Union of Participants of the Precious Metals and Gems Market and Confederation of Associations of Jewelers of the CIS assisted by many Russian and foreign public associations of jewelers. We have special relations with Almaz-Holding and maintain close partner ties developed during many years with such large-scale market entities as Krastsvetmet, Adamant, Choron Diamond, Yakutskie Brillianty, EPL Diamond, Intersilverline, Platina, Intalia, Alexandrit, Zircon, Krasnaya Presnya and many others. As it was already said, companies operating in the CIS countries and further abroad are ready to come to our exhibitions. We are now completing the formation of the Exhibitors Committee where you will see the general managers of the above-mentioned companies.
In the course of many years a wide range of partners and friends from the world of jewelry trade was formed around the Jewelry Review, Jewelry Festival and Jeweler-Festa tourist programs. We shall give the best representatives of jewelry trade not symbolical cards of members of this or that club “granting the right” for discounts from exhibitors but real preferences in the form of paid accommodation and other privileges.
The crisis is a convenient time for cutting wasted expenses and it is necessary to give back to exhibitions not only the character of the strongest mechanism for promoting jewelry goods, but also their service status.
Vladimir Teslenko for Rough&Polished
