The Wholesale Jewellery Boom
The wholesale jewellery market has a relatively low profile but over the past 5 years this fashion-driven industry has grown into a giant. The recent boom in throwaway fashion, fuelled by low cost retailers such as H & M, Primark and New Look, has had a knock-on effect on the wholesale jewellery market, increasing demand for high quality fashionable accessories.
Manufacturing jewellery for wholesale distribution is a highly competitive and lucrative industry. There are a host of companies and private individuals, mostly in China and other Far Eastern countries, who make excellent quality jewellery in bulk – the majority of which is destined for Europe and the United States.
In order to meet the demands of increasingly discerning customers, fashion jewellery designers have become more sophisticated in their manufacturing methods and are paying close attention to current fashion trends, as they aim to produce collections that appeal to a wide audience. To help gain a competitive edge many of the top wholesale fashion jewellery manufacturers will have researchers in their primary markets, whose sole purpose is to feed back information about the latest jewellery trends and designs.
Although precious jewellery will always remain popular, fashion conscious shoppers are increasingly turning to imitation jewellery because of its affordability, increasing quality of finish and the fact that as fashion changes they can easily update their accessories without breaking the bank. With convincing imitation diamond rings and necklaces available for under £15 it’s little wonder shoppers are opting for these items rather than spending a fortune on the real thing.
Jewellery wholesale doesn’t necessarily have to be a buy off the peg industry these days either. Most wholesale suppliers will create exclusive ranges on request, however with specific tools having to be made and amortised into the unit cost, in most cases, this strategy tends to be used by larger retailers only, as it is cost-prohibitive for independent retailers and small chains. Manufacturers can also be commissioned to make replicas of specific high-value jewellery, however this option will also carry additional tooling costs so the retailer must be certain that they will sell sufficient volume in order to cover costs. Tiffany jewellery tends to attract cheap imitations more than most because of their high profile designs. Given the quality of workmanship it can be very difficult to tell the difference between the imitation and the genuine article.
