Tough times for Italian jewellers

Wed, 20 May 2009

At a recent jewellery fair in northern Italy, in an attempt to tempt customers with lower prices, there were pieces that featured light-weight metal, steel and wood instead of gold and brightly coloured gems instead of diamonds .

Jewellery output in Italy, which is Europe's biggest jewellery maker and the world's leading exporter, is expected to fall this year because the economic downturn has led to even the well-heeled clients cutting back.

To try and win back customers, jewellers are using new technology to make big-size but super-light, hollow or gold-filled, web-like or cut-out pieces which look expensive, but are affordable because of the reduced gold content.

Italian jewellery designer Roberto Coin, famous for his bespoke diamond-rich gold pieces, has created a Capri Plus collection in which pieces of identical design are made with materials from ebony to silver and gold. "The materials and prices are different, but we have not cut back on quality. It is the same style, the same class, the same look," Coin told Reuters .
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