JNA Nov/ Dec 2020

JNA Nov/Dec 2020 | 21 專題報道 Pranda Group Chairman 集團主席 Prida Tiasuwan T he year 2020 is one like no other. The Covid- 19 pandemic disrupted business and trading conditions throughout the gem and jewellery pipeline. For months, the international jewellery industry was at a standstill as virus-containment efforts forced the cancellation of physical trade fairs, ushered in digital initiatives to replace in-person trading, and essentially reshaped commercial strategies and operations. The new normal required jewellery establishments to exercise agility and resilience in order to sustain momentum amid the pandemic. In a series of Return & Recovery webinars organised by JNA magazine and the JNA Awards programme ahead of Informa Markets Jewellery’s virtual event, the Jewellery & Gem Digital World from October 27 to 29, industry leaders and stakeholders shared their key takeaways from this unprecedented crisis and their outlook for recovery. Diversification Market diversification, business restructuring and digital initiatives are essential to maintaining growth in a coronavirus-afflicted world, noted speakers at the JNA Conversations: Return & Recovery – The Asian Perspective webinar on September 16. Ken Lo, chairman of the Hong Kong Jewellery & Jade Manufacturers Association, said that from January to July 2020, the city’s fine jewellery exports fell by nearly 40 per cent due to virus-related slumps in its main markets – the US and Europe. Exports to China and Taiwan however grew by 55.7 per cent and 36.3 per cent respectively. Noting that the Covid-19 crisis taught the industry not to be too dependent on a single market, Lo cited China and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) as the economies to tap moving forward. China was the first economy to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, with businesses reopening in May. It is poised to become a major market for fine jewellery, he added. “ASEAN is a much more diverse and fragmented market so we would need to keep a bigger inventory to cater to the various consumer preferences,” he continued. Suttipong Damrongsakul, chairman of the ASEAN Gems & Jewellery Association (AGJA), agreed that Southeast Asia offered great potential for growth. “We learned very expensive lessons from the pandemic. Most of the Thai and ASEAN companies export to Europe, the US and China. When these markets have problems, everything in our part of the world shuts down as well. It is time to consider catering to Asia, which has a population of four billion people,” he said. The post-coronavirus era is likely to start in the middle of next year when the world has a vaccine. We are now in the Covid-19 period where the mode of operation is survival. The goal is to ensure our cash flow is intact to keep important elements in our organisation, namely our people. We want all our people with us when we reach the post-Covid-19 world. – Prida Tiasuwan, chairman, Pranda Group ASEAN Gems & Jewellery Association Chairman Suttipong Damrongsakul 東盟寶石與珠寶貿易協會主席陳蘇迪鵬