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Home > Focus On
THE ITALIAN JEWELLERY STAR SHINES ALL OVER THE WORLD
Rome (Ign) - Italian jewellery continues to shine in the world. Its success has been built up over time thanks to quality craftsmanship which has managed to continuously reinvent itself and improve, achieving the highest levels in the international market. Inventiveness and skill, whether on the part of artisans or industrial producers, design originality and creativity: these are the elements behind the elegant products, and the large variety of beautiful finished models. Basically, these are unique products on the international scene, which can be offered only by an ancient tradition combined with constantly updated technology. This is what makes it possible to introduce innovative elements aimed at improving product quality, without compromising the artistic nature of the jewellery.
A positive synergy between the changing market demands and technological process innovations has thus contributed to making Italian jewellery a status symbol the world over. In 2005 exports of Italian jewellery in fact achieved a value of almost €4 billion, thanks to the commitment to internationalisation supported by the sector's 10,000+ companies, ranging from artisans to industrial companies, and its workforce of 112,000. And the first five months of 2006 saw growth of 14.1% on the previous year. Foreign sales are directed above all towards the United States, the largest customer for Italian jewellery, accounting for 18.8% of export sales. But Europe also increasingly appreciates Italian jewellery, so much so that there was 7.1% growth in purchases on 2005. But the most surprising results come from the East: China and Japan have in fact discovered Italian luxury products relatively recently, yet already represent important Italian export markets.
The offer of Italian companies in the sector now presents such characteristics of quality and variety that it acts as a benchmark for all markets and in all subsectors of the gold industry: haute couture jewellery, jewellery, fashion and fashion accessories. The USA, for example, appreciates above all the products at the top end of the market, while Europe is increasingly interested in fashion accessories, and the East seems more attracted by traditional jewellery.
Whatever the demand, Italian companies today appear to satisfy it fully, above all thanks to a widespread and differentiated business network, leading to a continuous capacity for stylistic innovation, involving all the sector's main production districts, from those most rooted in tradition, such as Arezzo, Valenza Po and Vicenza, to those which have most recently moved onto international markets, such as Rome, Naples and Milan. Vicenza, above all, continues to be one of the most famous gold-working district in the world, and has managed to provide a continuous thrust towards internationalisation, which has also involved small artisanal businesses. The district of Vicenza is an example of excellence also due to its capacity to establish ideal synergies between artisanal workshops and industrial companies. This has made it possible to realise and offer an extremely wide range of products, from traditional jewellery to semi-jewellery, from mesh and printed silverware to fashion silver jewellery, from gold mini-jewellery and furnishing accessories to engravings and inserts for sculptures and pictures. It is such a wide offer that it guarantees the district of Vicenza a leading role on many foreign markets, with business of over €3.3bn in 2005, a third of which was realised abroad, thanks to the commitment of over 1000 companies and 11,000 workers.
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