ADVERTORIAL 22 | JNA May/June 2023 Huw Daniel, CEO of Platinum Guild International (PGI), reveals the organisation’s priorities, targets and strategies for the China market. How significant is the China market to PGI? China is the market with the largest volume for platinum jewellery. Globally, Japan is the largest per capita volume market for platinum jewellery, while the fast-growing market is India. But China remains a top priority for us because of the size of the business. PGI’s role is to help the trade with product and design innovation while engaging consumers to grow demand for platinum jewellery. Since wedding rates in China are dropping, we have adjusted our strategy to Bridal Plus, which extends beyond pure bridal to love-gifting purchases. Due to platinum’s image as a valuable, premium and everlasting metal, its heartland is love-gifting jewellery, which includes bridal, anniversaries and other highly emotionally charged occasions. We work with retailers based on their priorities, whether it is bridal or fashion-driven collections. As custodians of platinum, we support both markets. How have the Pt Moment® initiative and branded jewellery collections evolved over the years? PGI launched the Pt Moment® branded collection five years ago to encourage small and medium-sized retailers in China to integrate platinum into their business at a time when the market carried mainly generic products. Our goal was to show how branding could make jewellery more meaningful to consumers, achieve higher margins and improve inventory turnover. We started with five retailers with around 40 stores and now work with over 50 retailers with nearly 1,200 stores. Those partners have embraced the concept of branded collections and are even customising Pt Moment pieces and creating their own designs. PGI supports traditional and non-traditional jewellers in developing and marketing branded collections to help move the business from generic products to more differentiated offerings. Pt Moment targets the younger, self-purchase market segment, and its slogan – Tenacity powered elegance, emboldened by Platinum – reflects that young, confident, empowered women increasingly comprise the bulk of our customer base. New technological advancements also enable the production of fresher and unconventional designs for platinum jewellery such as enamel-accented pieces, gem-set items and lighter, electroformed jewellery. What are the challenges and opportunities for platinum jewellery in China? The immediate challenge for the entire gem and jewellery industry is getting consumers back in the stores and willing to spend again. Platinum, however, is an heirloom material that is cherished for its beauty, value, significance and everlasting nature. This appeals to consumers seeking meaning and certainty after the pandemic. Platinum’s price is also at a historically low level, enabling retailers to stock up on inventory of premium white metal jewellery. We are working with manufacturers in China to address previous casting concerns and develop more gem-set platinum jewellery to offer fresh design options. Moreover, only 18 per cent of global fine jewellery is branded; this figure is 15 per cent in China. The opportunities with branded collections are therefore endless. Huw Daniel, CEO of Platinum Guild International 国际铂金协会(PGI)首席执行官Huw Daniel Platinum leads innovation in the China market Platinum Guild International is reinforcing platinum’s positioning as the premier innovator in China with product, marketing and business innovations. 国际铂金协会(PGI®)正在通过产品、营销和商业创新，让铂金成为珠宝行业革新先行者。 铂金引领中国市场创新
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