By Danielle Max

It was inevitable, really, with the current economic situation being so tough that numbers would be down at the events that make up Las Vegas’ mega show week. Rumors put figures at 40 percent below regular attendance.

Exhibitors accepted the drop-off with the stoicism that is characterizing business at the moment and took comfort in the number of serious buyers at their booths rather than dwelling too much on the fall in foot traffic.

As a warm up to the main show, JCK Las Vegas, high end manufacturers exhibited in the more intimate and invitation-only Premier and Luxury shows. Many of those selling at these two shows confidently described themselves as “recession-proof.”

Mooss Le Vian, president of Le Vian Corp., was one such exhibitor and cited the company’s emphasis on fashion as one of the reasons for their ability to stay ahead of the game. This year, the company put their sights firmly on two favorite color choices – chocolate and strawberry, themes present throughout their eight lines in materials such as pearls, diamonds, gemstones and gold. Like many other companies, Le Vian said their position at the higher end of the market is also helping them emerge relatively unscathed through the economic slowdown, although this is not the only reason. “We have the high-end covered,” he said, “but we also have a number of different price categories to suit a number of different needs. We are not just one price and we are not just one look.”

While Le Vian prides itself on being at the forefront of fashion, Jingirian Fine Jewelry is working to be seen as classic. “We stopped working with colored gold and diamonds because everyone is doing it,” said Khatching Jingirian Jr. “It’s a fad and not necessarily something that will last.” Instead, the company is working strictly in 18 karat yellow or rose gold.

Rather than using the price of gold to make lighter, hollow pieces, Jingirian is actually making their product chunkier. “We are making it as solid as we can get it and we are receiving a great response. The high-mid ends to luxury are looking for substantial pieces and they want weight,” said, Jingirian. Regarding the price of gold, Jingirian thinks that it is a misconception that people are not buying, although he admitted that consumers across the board are being more cautious. He said that many consumers are looking to invest in gold and are choosing to do so with a piece of jewelry, even if it is not the soundest financial move. “We’ve noticed that the higher the price of gold, the more people are buying.”

Kendra Bridel Weinman, brand ambassador of Nikos Jewels and Caressa, said that spiraling gold prices are exactly the reason that Nikos Jewels has launched its first silver range. “We ran an advert in Details magazine in which we tagged a number of retailers who carry our brand. They told us that they received more calls for that advert than any other in which they had been tagged.

The problem was, all the callers thought that the product was silver when it was actually gold. The price of the pieces meant that they couldn’t afford to buy it,” she said. In response to ongoing demand for a silver range, many Nikos Jewels pieces are now being rendered in the less expensive metal (all the items are under $1,000), while a number of new pieces are being produced only in silver.

Bridel Weinman’s expectations for the new line were, she said, extremely high. “It’s the right price and it falls in line with what the consumer is asking for. Men can now go out and buy jewelry spontaneously, something that the price of gold didn’t allow them to do before.”

Designer Toby Pomeroy is also designing more silver items these days in response to climbing gold prices. The Oregon-based jeweler uses reclaimed gold and silver and says that these days his line is split fairly evenly between the two metals, with demand for silver actually being the stronger of the two.

While he said that he has not seen his overall sales fall off, mainly because he is moving more upmarket, Pomeroy said that re-orders have become quieter. Nevertheless, with his unique selling point of reclaimed and recycled metals, Pomeroy is optimistic about the outlook for the future. “There are a lot of opportunities,” he said. “We are moving higher-end, although we are not pricing out or away from the smaller stores,” he promised.

At the JCK Las Vegas Show itself, enthusiasm was a little more muted. “Traffic is down but we have had all our appointments show up,” said Marcee Feinberg, vice president of marketing at Lazare Kaplan. “Those who are here are quality buyers.”

Feinberg was philosophical about the downturn in traffic, saying that it was a given this year. Jewelry designer Arden Kartalyan of Diaco Diamonds, a New York-based company, said that traffic was so low that he had joked about being able to go bowling along the near-empty aisles.

Diaco, which supplies chain jewelers such as Sterling and Fred Meyer and top-end AGS stores, has just launched its latest collection – Hot Chocolate – which utilizes this season’s ubiquitous brown diamond.

“We create a lot of bridal and engagement rings and bridal sets,” said Kartalyan. “I hope one day to see brown diamonds make their way into the engagement market.”

Another trend seen on the show floor was jewelry incorporating scroll work. “It’s a trend that actually started on the street with tattoos,” said Daniel Bogue of Mattiolli. “It’s one of those trends that has worked its way upwards to the runway.” Mattiolli’s take on the style – the Siriana line – includes pendants that are backed against different colored discs made of material such as colored mother of pearl, onyx and tiger eye. The pendant sets come with two additional colored discs and buyers can add to the collection as they want. Diamond-wise, scroll work pendants are available in 3.5 carat brown, icy and black diamonds.

Bogue said that Mattiolli was not suffering from a lack of customers at the show. “We have a hot line, so the show is going great for us.” However, he conceded that the current economic situation is forcing the company to adapt somewhat, albeit in a positive way. “It’s forced us to be very creative. Our retail partners come to us to find the new and the different. Their customers just aren’t buying unless it fulfills these criteria.”

A relative newcomer to JCK Las Vegas, Russian company Rifesta Holding was in town looking for distributors for their up-market jewelry lines. While the company is doing well in its native country, which is not suffering from the same financial problems as the U.S., it has yet to gain similar recognition in the rest of the world. The company’s many lines each consist of 30 pieces of 18 karat gold, diamond heavy jewels, selling at an average wholesale price of $3,500. By the end of the show, manager Maria Kirillova noted that distribution agreements had been tied up with Chicago and Las Vegas retailers. “I cannot complain about the show,” she said.

Phyllis Bergman of Mercury Ring Corporation summed up the show by saying that people were still buying but they were generally cautious. “If they were writing [orders] for $20,000 last year, they took $12,000 this year. Business was half of last year. Most people are waiting until September to place orders.”

Even so, Bergman was satisfied with the show, especially the reactions to her company’s move towards the paradoxical-sounding attainable platinum. “Major retailers understand the huge credit crunch consumers are under. They can no longer get credit and are now buying only what they can afford.” She said that one such retailer had placed a large order, although the philosophy has yet to filter down to the smaller independents.