JWA 2021 Jewellery Industry Best Practices

customers, are offered at the lowest prices. While the company seemed to have its business model down pat, it, too, evolved to contend with the many challenges spawned by the pandemic. In response to lockdowns that resulted in massive disruptions to the supply chain, YLG beefed up its bullion inventory. “Dubbed as the ‘just in case’ model, this system was designed for stockpiling bullions in anticipation of any supply chain crisis that can be triggered by another wave of virus infection,” explains Pawan. She also adds that this enables the company to meet possible influxes of purchases whenever there is a steep drop in gold prices, which could happen quite often in this volatile period. “While pre-ordering does increase our business costs, we believe that one cannot put a price tag on the goodwill and convenience it extends to our stakeholders.” YLG also maximised its own trading platform that allows customers to monitor their investments in real time. The company turned to Zoom, Line and WhatsApp to keep in touch with its clients, while respecting prevailing social distancing measures. SAFETY FIRST A truly compassionate enterprise, YLG implemented measures to safeguard its workforce when COVID-19 struck. “To protect our employees’ well- being, the management team rolled out its pioneering ‘Safe Workplace Manual’ for both the headquarters in Thailand and our office in Singapore,” narrates Pawan. Among the guidelines stated in the manual are the temporary prohibition of inter-province or overseas travel, as well as the implementation of work rotation between office and home, flexible work hours, safe social distancing and even evacuation plans in case of actual COVID-19 infections in the workplace. These go on top of the company’s track record as an equal opportunity employer that treats everyone respectfully, regardless of gender, race, age and education. “We believe in fostering close relationships between management and the staff, so that we could cultivate a work environment where everyone can share their ideas and where exemplary performance is always recognised and rewarded,” Pawan says. 1. Zodiac-themed gold products from YLG Bullion Singapore Pte Ltd 2. YLG Group’s office in Thailand 3. Company CEO Pawan Nawawattanasub 4. Gifts of gold 3 2 4