I.W.J.G. Trade Show Chelsea New York

Jewelry Trade Shows

This past October I.W.J.G. was in New York City again in Chelsea. It was supposed to be in the Metropolitan Pavilion like always but because of some scheduling issues was moved last minute to a much smaller venue next door. We showed up to the show at 6:30 am opening day and there was already a line down the street. Security was really terrible, worse than usual. Anyway once inside you could barely walk down the isles, it was so tight. Apparently a bunch of exhibitors that had paid for booths never got them because of the last minute space issue. People were offering to pay more than booth cost to buy your booth. I should have sold ours because we brought no merchandise to sell.

By 9 am there was a buzz in the room. There were more buyers at this show than I had seen in a long time. Not just Asians, Americans were buying as well. Not to mention the South Americans. We heard a lot of complaining about the prices at the show, due to the Rolex price increase and the anticipation of Christmas. However, there were quite a lot of deals on the floor, you just had to look. Overall everyone we spoke to was happy with their sales and our company bought very well on the floor. I did notice towards the end of the day that there were a hand full of dealers down stairs. No one knew they were down there. That was badly planed. I.W.J.G. Recently sent out an email about adding a west coast show which is great because a really good solid part of the club is from the west cost. Our vote is for San Diego…..

We are currently getting ready to attend the WWT Show in Daytona Beach, Florida. This is our favorite World Wide Traders show of the year. It’s cheap to get in and we can drive up for the day with no hotel. After that before we know it, it’s IWJG Dallas. Thats the last show of the year and our last opportunity to buy good Christmas watch inventory. I’m sure we won’t be alone. See you there…..

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Jewelry Trade Shows: Miami Beach

Jewelry Trade Shows

It’s that time of year again for the Miami Beach Antique Jewelry & Watch Show.  This is one of Raymond Lee Jewelers’ favorite jewelry trade shows because it is right in our back yard.  Usually we have to travel by plane to various jewelry trade shows but since we are located in Boca Raton, Fl, it is only a 45 minute drive.

Like years past, it is located at the Miami Beach Convention Center.  There are hundreds of exhibitors from all over the world who are showcasing their antique jewelry and watches.  Common designer pieces at the show include David Webb, Cartier, Tiffany & Co, and Van Cleef & Arpels.  Some of the common pre owned luxury Swiss watches are Rolex, Bulova, and Movado.

The best thing about jewelry trade shows is the sheer size.  In one day clients can see thousands more pieces than in just one jewelry store.  In the same respect, it’s great for exhibitors because they are getting much more traffic.

Jewelry trade shows in Miami are always a great location because of the weather.  Since this is a mid October show the weather should be perfect.  It will provide for a great atmosphere and people will be more upbeat and willing to take a look around and maybe buy some pieces.

Another great thing about the Miami show is the price.  It’s only $15 for all three days: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  Most shows I have been to in the past charge $15 for one day.  This discount in price should make room for more customers coming in.

We are anticipating a great show as the year starts to approach holiday season.  With almost certainty it should be better than last year as we are coming out of a recession.  We will see in a couple days exactly how it went.

If you can, come visit Raymond Lee Jewelers at the show at booth #2511.  We have a huge selection of estate pieces, designer pieces, and luxury Swiss watches.  And if you cannot make it all the way down to Miami be sure to visit us in Boca at our retail store.

by, Seth at Raymond Lee Jewelers

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Jewelry Trade Shows: Baltimore Summer Antiques Show

Baltimore Summer Antiques Show

Last week Raymond Lee Jewelers exhibited its fine collection of estate jewelry at the Baltimore Summer Antiques Show.  This jewelry trade shows has been running for 30 years and gets more vendors every year.  This show also travels to Miami, Fl and Dallas, Tx.  Raymond Lee Jewelers exhibits at both the Baltimore location and Miami location.

This year the show was full of vendors with a variety of different booths.  There were booths like ours dedicated specifically to jewelry and watches, booths that only had artwork, booths that had antique Chinese art, and etc.  There was even a section of over 40 vendors that sold nothing but antique books about antiques.

The show lasted four days (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday).  All four days had a good turn out, with the weekend drawing the most customers.

I had never been to the Baltimore before so I decided if there was one thing I could not miss out on it was going to Camden Yards.  I saw the Baltimore Orioles play against the Boston Red Sox.  The stadium was one of the nicest I have ever been to.  You can even see the stadium from neighboring hotel rooms.

Overall the show was a good experience into the world of fine antiques.  With such a variety of products at the show it drew a variety of people.  Every year the show seems to grow in popularity and we look forward to exhibiting at the Baltimore Summer Antiques Show next Labor Day.

by, Seth at Raymond Lee Jewelers

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Jewelry Trade Shows: IWJG New York

Jewelry Trade Shows

One of the most popular jewelry trade shows is IWJG.  IWJG stands for International Watch and Jewelry Guild.  At these shows dealers and traders from all over the country come to display their jewelry, but mostly watches.  Because this show is only open to members and exhibitors, there are great bargains.  Many come to the IWJG show just to move inventory.  In a given year there are somewhere between 12 and 14 different shows in cities across the United States.  Sites include Las Vegas, New York and Atlanta.

The show that just passed was in New York City July 28th and 29th.  It was at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea.  While the venue was small there was still a lot of traffic.  It seemed like most of the action was due to a bunch from Hong Kong.  They were doing a lot of shopping and buying.  Other than that it did not look as if people were too anxious to buy.  Prices were right but due to the current economic situation people were not as risky as in past shows.

While this wasn’t my company’s first time at IWJG it was mine.  I was excited to see all the trading, dealing, and bargaining that goes on.  For my first time I can say it was everything I expected, no real surprises.  It seemed to me like most of the business goes on within the first few hours the show is open and the rest of the day is a little slow.

New York City is a great place to have jewelry trade shows because of its global access, as seen in this show.  People from all over the world can get to New York with one flight.  Next time, hopefully, the economy will improve and more people will be willing to buy.

by, Seth at Raymond Lee Jewelers

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New York Antique Jewelry and Watch Show Review

Although this show was in the middle of a great part of New York City and open to the public I’m sorry to say there was no retail traffic period. It wasn’t all bad. This show and the others that US Antique Shows put on through out the year draw huge amounts of dealer business. The fact is, most of the shows we do welcome the trade only. The New York Antique Jewelry and Watch Show is one that welcomes the trade and the public. Our company expected to do a fair amount of retail business based on the local demographic. This was just not the case. This must be down to a few things. The show is brand new and not known well yet. As well as not enough local advertising. We hope that as time goes on we will get more “park ave” type customers at this small venue.

The Las Vegas Antique Jewelry and Watch Show Review

Image by Exothermic via Flickr

The Las Vegas Antique Jewelry and Watch Show took place June 3rd-6th 2010. Our company has been an exhibitor at this show for the past 6 years. Between May 26th and June 7th we visited or exhibited at four trade shows. They included World Wide Traders, International Watch and Jewelry Guild, Las Vegas Antique Jewelry and Watch Show (I.W.J.G. ) and JCK. Our overall opinion after visiting all shows is that business is moving in the right direction. The Antique Show that D.M.G. Media puts on is one of our favorite shows of the year. The buying is always good and the selling is always good. As usual, there were plenty of cash buyers in the room. More Indian and Asian buyers than anything. Next to no European buyers and virtually no Europeans buying watches. The big sellers at the show were large loose diamonds and nice signed jewelry. Jewelry from makers such as Tiffany, Cartier and Van Cleef are among the hottest this year. Large off color clean diamonds are still the easiest diamonds to move. All prices have firmed up. Overall business has picked up. There were a few minor complaints at the show, they included: AT&T products did not work inside the hall, all other cell phones did somehow. As soon as the show was over at 4, the at&t phones started working. The ac was broken for a few hours the last morning and was 100 degrees plus. We will see how this continues at the Hong Kong Show this month where we are exhibitors and IWJG in Chicago.

Be sure to visit this page to see all upcoming jewelry shows that Raymond Lee Jewelers will be attending.

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World Wide Traders Show Las Vegas Review

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Our Company just returned from a Las Vegas jewelry show trip that started on the 26th of May and ended on the 7th of June. During this time we exhibited or visited all of the major Las Vegas summer jewelry and watch shows. The Las Vegas World Wide Traders Show or Las Vegas wwt show was good, to say the least. There seems to be a very high demand for quality pre-owned watches. Hands down, there were way more buyers than sellers at this show. Not even close to enough product to meet demand. This World Wide Traders show took place at the Sahara Hotel. Not the nicest hotel but this keeps costs down. We thought the room was great. We did here a lot of people complaining about the level of lighting in the room. Overall we liked it and there was good action. There was quite a bit of vintage products for sale that did not get looked at. Overall, modern luxury watches were the number one seller. This show was a great kick off to all the Vegas shows. The only thing we could possibly comment on is the fact that there were two days between the World Wide Traders Show and I.W.J.G. It would be better if they were right after one another.

Be sure to check out this page for additional upcoming shows that Raymond Lee Jewelers will attend.

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The New York Antique Jewelry And Watch Show And IWJG NYC

The New York Antique Jewelry and Watch Show July 23-26 2010 usually comes at the same time as IWJG NYC. One usually comes right before the other. It is good for all the dealers when these two shows run in a row. There may be something we don’t know but we would like to contact IWJG and see if we can convince Olga and the rest of the staff to have a show right before the dmg antique show.

The New York Jewelry and Watch show is a really small venue being at the Metropolitan Pavilion. However, its a great little show. Located in the heart of Chelsea gives it a great location. The show is open to the public and is advertised heavily locally. If you are with us, give IWJG a call and see what we can do!