Eurostar Diamond Traders Enters Bankruptcy

Eurostar Diamond Traders, one of the biggest names in the Antwerp industry, has entered bankruptcy following a legal battle with its banks.

The Antwerp Corporate Court ruled Thursday in favor of that outcome. Eurostar plans to appeal the decision, according to the company’s chairman and founder, Kaushik Mehta.

“For Kaushik Mehta and Eurostar, this is a very disappointing day, which he still is appealing and fighting,” the diamond-manufacturing firm said in a statement to Rapaport News.

Eurostar blamed its main lenders, ABN Amro and Standard Chartered, for being too aggressive in demanding repayment of debts. Both banks declined to comment.

The company owes an estimated $500 million, according to court-appointed administrator Alain Van den Cloot.

Source: DCLA

Eurostar Diamond Traders Enters Bankruptcy

Eurostar Diamond Traders, one of the biggest names in the Antwerp industry, has entered bankruptcy following a legal battle with its banks.

The Antwerp Corporate Court ruled Thursday in favor of that outcome. Eurostar plans to appeal the decision, according to the company’s chairman and founder, Kaushik Mehta.

“For Kaushik Mehta and Eurostar, this is a very disappointing day, which he still is appealing and fighting,” the diamond-manufacturing firm said in a statement to Rapaport News.

Eurostar blamed its main lenders, ABN Amro and Standard Chartered, for being too aggressive in demanding repayment of debts. Both banks declined to comment.

The company owes an estimated $500 million, according to court-appointed administrator Alain Van den Cloot.

Source: DCLA

Basel to Drop Prices by up to 30%

Baselworld will reduce booth prices by 10% to 30% at next year’s show and move diamond dealers to a more attractive location, organizers have confirmed.

Management will reopen Hall 2, which was empty at the 2019 show, and place gem and pearl exhibitors in that area together with a new innovation zone dedicated to smart watches and wearable devices.

The plan as it stands would see the innovation center on the ground floor, with gems and pearls one level up.

“This is still at the stage of an idea. It’s possible the gems and pearls sector may be located on the ground floor, but we still have to see what is most appropriate,” Michel Loris-Melikoff, managing director of Baselworld, said in a presentation on Tuesday, the final day of the show in the Swiss city. “What is certain is that they will be in Hall 2.”

Diamond companies’ current location in Hall 3 has been unpopular with many exhibitors, who felt they were too far from the high-end watch and jewelry brands in Hall 1.

The number of exhibitors in Hall 3 dropped 10% to 120 at this year’s show, despite a price reduction of 10% to 15%. That compares with a 20% decline in the total number of exhibiting brands at Baselworld to 520, while the visitor count dropped 22% to 81,200.

Loris-Melikoff vowed to slash per-square-meter prices across the show by up to 30% next year depending on the position, as well as simplifying the pricing structure. He noted, however, that booth rental only represented about 15% of the cost of attending the show for average exhibitors.

The 2020 edition will take place later than usual, from April 30 to May 5, so visitors can also attend the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie in Geneva, which ends April 29, organizers of both shows announced in December. That synchronized schedule will continue until at least 2024.

From next year, Baselworld plans to rebrand itself as an “experience platform” and a community for the jewelry and watchmaking industry, rather than a classic trade fair, it said. To that end, the 2020 show will feature a retailer summit, talks by CEOs, and a virtual-reality zone.

“Our strategy met with strong approval from the exhibitors during the presentations,” Loris-Melikoff noted. “We will tackle change with vigor and passion.”

Source:Diamonds.net

Basel to Drop Prices by up to 30%

Baselworld will reduce booth prices by 10% to 30% at next year’s show and move diamond dealers to a more attractive location, organizers have confirmed.

Management will reopen Hall 2, which was empty at the 2019 show, and place gem and pearl exhibitors in that area together with a new innovation zone dedicated to smart watches and wearable devices.

The plan as it stands would see the innovation center on the ground floor, with gems and pearls one level up.

“This is still at the stage of an idea. It’s possible the gems and pearls sector may be located on the ground floor, but we still have to see what is most appropriate,” Michel Loris-Melikoff, managing director of Baselworld, said in a presentation on Tuesday, the final day of the show in the Swiss city. “What is certain is that they will be in Hall 2.”

Diamond companies’ current location in Hall 3 has been unpopular with many exhibitors, who felt they were too far from the high-end watch and jewelry brands in Hall 1.

The number of exhibitors in Hall 3 dropped 10% to 120 at this year’s show, despite a price reduction of 10% to 15%. That compares with a 20% decline in the total number of exhibiting brands at Baselworld to 520, while the visitor count dropped 22% to 81,200.

Loris-Melikoff vowed to slash per-square-meter prices across the show by up to 30% next year depending on the position, as well as simplifying the pricing structure. He noted, however, that booth rental only represented about 15% of the cost of attending the show for average exhibitors.

The 2020 edition will take place later than usual, from April 30 to May 5, so visitors can also attend the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie in Geneva, which ends April 29, organizers of both shows announced in December. That synchronized schedule will continue until at least 2024.

From next year, Baselworld plans to rebrand itself as an “experience platform” and a community for the jewelry and watchmaking industry, rather than a classic trade fair, it said. To that end, the 2020 show will feature a retailer summit, talks by CEOs, and a virtual-reality zone.

“Our strategy met with strong approval from the exhibitors during the presentations,” Loris-Melikoff noted. “We will tackle change with vigor and passion.”

Source:Diamonds.net

Diamond Services introduces new lab-grown diamond identification system

Diamond Services, the Hong Kong headquartered developer of technological systems and services for detecting treated diamonds, laboratory grown diamonds (LGDs) and simulants is introducing a new device which widens the range of detectable merchandise to include all rough and polished stones in the lower yellowish to light brown colour ranges.

Like other detection apparatus developed by Diamond Services, the new system, called DND (Diamond Natural Device), scans diamonds at the temperature of liquid nitrogen, which the company has shown provides a higher degree of accuracy than detection devices which examine diamonds at room temperatures.

“To provide as accurate results as possible, we insist that all diamonds being tested to detect the possible presence of synthetically produced goods be examined at temperatures in a liquid nitrogen atmosphere,” explained Joseph Kuzi, Diamond Services’ founder and president. “Since this can only be done reliably and safely in a proper laboratory setting, we have selected not to sell the equipment we develop, but rather to use it exclusively as part of the service we provide the trade.

The new DND system improves that offering, widening the range of goods that can be screened to include all goods at the lower end of the standard colour range.”

Source: DCLA

Diamond Services introduces new lab-grown diamond identification system

Diamond Services, the Hong Kong headquartered developer of technological systems and services for detecting treated diamonds, laboratory grown diamonds (LGDs) and simulants is introducing a new device which widens the range of detectable merchandise to include all rough and polished stones in the lower yellowish to light brown colour ranges.

Like other detection apparatus developed by Diamond Services, the new system, called DND (Diamond Natural Device), scans diamonds at the temperature of liquid nitrogen, which the company has shown provides a higher degree of accuracy than detection devices which examine diamonds at room temperatures.

“To provide as accurate results as possible, we insist that all diamonds being tested to detect the possible presence of synthetically produced goods be examined at temperatures in a liquid nitrogen atmosphere,” explained Joseph Kuzi, Diamond Services’ founder and president. “Since this can only be done reliably and safely in a proper laboratory setting, we have selected not to sell the equipment we develop, but rather to use it exclusively as part of the service we provide the trade.

The new DND system improves that offering, widening the range of goods that can be screened to include all goods at the lower end of the standard colour range.”

Source: DCLA

Tiffany Weathers Slow 4Q for Record 2018

Tiffany & Co. reported record annual sales in 2018, despite the challenging economic environment that caused a slowdown in the fourth quarter.

“In 2018…net sales surpassed levels not seen since 2014,” said Tiffany CEO Alessandro Bogliolo. “Softer trends in the second half of the year reflected, in part, what we believe were external challenges and uncertainties.”

Group revenue grew 7% to $4.4 billion, the company said Friday. Sales increased 13% to $1.2 billion in the Asia-Pacific region, while revenue in the Americas climbed 5% to $2 billion. Sales in Japan rose 8% to $643 million, and proceeds in Europe went up 3% to $504 million.

The jewelry retailer’s new marketing strategy, including its “Believe in Love, Believe in Dreams” and holiday campaigns, buoyed sales, Bogliolo noted in a conference call with analysts last week, transcribed by Seeking Alpha.

Worldwide comparable-store sales — at branches open for at least a year — rose 4% at constant currency rates.
Profit for the year jumped 58% to $586 million, its highest in a decade, according to Rapaport records. Earnings were boosted by a lower income-tax rate, which included a $16 million benefit related to the enactment of the 2017 US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Tiffany explained.

During the fourth quarter ending January 31, 2019, global sales declined 1% to $1.3 billion, due to softer demand from local customers and foreign tourists. The lower spending was attributable to market volatility and external uncertainties, the company observed.

Profit for the three-month period more than tripled to $205 million versus $62 million a year ago, also as a result of the lower tax payment.

The company expects net sales for 2019 to increase by a low-single-digit percentage over 2018, as the lower foreign-tourist spending it encountered in the fourth quarter continues into the new fiscal year, it said. Higher expenses relating to its six-point program to stimulate growth will also negatively impact earnings, Tiffany noted.
Among its 2019 initiatives, the jeweler is strengthening its message on diamonds via a campaign on social media, accelerating its product renewals and launches, as well as delivering a more exciting omni-channel experience, Bogliolo explained in the analyst call.

Tiffany will begin selling engagement rings on its US website, he added. Phone orders were previously the only outlet for purchasing outside its store locations. Additionally, the company will launch an e-commerce site in China later this year.

Tiffany’s stock rose 3.1% on Friday following the results.

Source: DCLA