Is the appetite for silver jewellery as strong as ever? It would seem that it is, particularly now that prices have a settled down a little. Belinda Morris looks at who’s creating and selling what… and why.
ENDURING
silver aving stuck my neck out in last month’s issue and said that there’s a growing interest in gold jewellery (thanks, in part, to more stable raw material prices), the fact still stands that silver collections are performing as well as ever. Despite the escalating cost of this metal also (or maybe because of?) the consumer’s appetite for designer and branded silver jewellery continues to be strong. And as a result of this there are some retailers who have had to rethink their buying strategy – there is a place for silver amid the gold, platinum and diamonds. Martin Fleet of Sheila Fleet has noticed the shift: “We are getting more enquiries from customers who would have traditionally been classed as goldsmiths or fine jewellers, who are now looking at our silver and enamel collections to complement a smaller range of gold and platinum stock they now hold,” he says. “Silver has long been thought of as a precious metal and as the recession
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34 The Jeweller July 2013
continued for a number of years, the price has become an important part of customers’ choice when buying.” Has silver always been thought precious? Observed from a consumer angle it’s all about personal perception. If budget (or fashion)
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has dictated that costume jewellery in base metals is for you, then silver represents an aspirational step up the ladder. Traditional jewellers of course have taken a different view – but that’s changing. “Silver is increasingly becoming recognised as a precious and valuable metal,” says Diane Smith, head of product management at Links of London. “When Links was founded we had a unique proposition, but the abundance of brands and own-bought ranges in silver signifies that its presence is now fully established in the market place.”