JCK Celebrates 30 Years in Las Vegas

JCK Las Vegas has for the past 30 years built a reputation as the destination for order writing, inspiring education, idea incubating, networking, and catching up with colleagues! The experience at JCK goes beyond business; it’s personal, uniting a community that continues to shape the future of the jewelry trade.

After cancelling the show in 2020 due to COVID and postponing the 2021 event to late August, JCK is back on track in 2022 scheduled June 10-13, at The Venetian Expo in Las Vegas.

Helping to make JCK Las Vegas the jewelry industry’s leading trade event, The Plumb Club (TPC) has been an anchor and supporter from the very beginning.

From its plush carpeting, central snack bar and complimentary business center to its diverse mix of nearly 50 companies representing over 100 brands, The Plumb Club is one of the premier must-visit pavilions at JCK.

To celebrate JCK’s big anniversary, The Plumb Club is hosting a cocktail reception in its pavilion, prominently located on level two, Saturday, June 11, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. All JCK retailer attendees are invited to enjoy specialty cocktails, champagne, wine, cheese, cake and light entertainment to toast this historic milestone.

Retailers visiting The Plumb Club this year are invited to take a virtual tour of its comprehensive, user-friendly Jewelers Resource Center on its dynamic TPC-365 virtual sales platform, and also spend time at the pavilion’s “Innovations” hub to explore new ideas and cutting-edge sales tools for jewelry stores.

Ray and Fran Mastoloni, of the pearl house Mastoloni share their excitement with the direction the Plumb Club is taking. “Upgrades to The Plumb Club pavilion will make it the stand out pavilion of this year’s JCK show,” they cheer. “We expect JCK Las Vegas to be an absolute success!”

Growing Together
What started out in 1983 as a social club with a small group of jewelry manufacturers has become even more than a successful pavilion of companies that choose to exhibit together. The Plumb Club has grown to be an important supplier organization that is actively connecting its members and their customers to positively impact and responsibly shape the future of the jewelry industry.

This unique coalition of leading suppliers spans all facets of the jewelry, diamond and watch industries, and represents a significant percentage of the U.S. fine jewelry market. TPC has a curated membership that it is not overloaded in any one category.

Visitors to The Plumb Club pavilion will get to experience firsthand the resources the organization is providing its members, their customers, and the industry at large. Working from blueprints created in 2018, the organization prioritized in its growth plan, due to COVID, the development of its 24/7 virtual sales platform where members interact and conduct business with their customers.

Over the past two years, The Plumb Club has been developing a variety of learning tools and channels to share information, including podcasts and webinars on timely topics lead by jewelry experts in their field. Among the subjects recently tackled: “Is a Tsunami Coming? The Diamond Dilemma;” “Game Changers! Shifts Affecting Retail;” and “What Do Russian Sanctions Mean to Your Business.”

The purpose of The Jewelers Resource Center, the final phase of the immersive TPC-365 sales platform, is to supply the industry with easily accessible educational materials in video, audio, and written formats from a range of professional sources. InStore Magazine is the official news agency for the center, providing daily industry headlines with live newsfeed. It also includes a reference area with a searchable collection of charts, tables, documents, and links to help jewelers be successful in their everyday business.

“We wanted to build a resource center that can help retail jewelers on the front lines on a variety of topics,” describes Lawrence Hess, TPC executive director.  “The goal is to cross-pollinate, to work together to provide an experience for jewelers with our vendors.”

Theresa Namie, merchandise manager for the manufacturer Ostbye appreciates having these resources at her fingertips. “I have attended every webinar, and find great value in the resources The Plumb Club provides, from great professionals inside and out of our industry to enlighten everyone, even us old timers!”

The Plumb Club is a destination for many retailers, believes Namie, as they know its vendors follow guidelines important to the industry. In 2019, Plumb Club membership overwhelmingly voted to require its members to join the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC). “They can trust us for being a member and meeting those expectations for our retailers,” she underscores.

Good Turnout Expected
Namie is excited to see customers from across the country at the show, which really helps her to stay in touch with what’s happening in the jewelry business. “I’m excited that many stores will get to see new product, even product from the last two years that they may not have had the chance to see yet.”

Michael Holland, marketing manager for The Kingswood Company predicts a good turnout at this year’s JCK. “With COVID feeling like it is at a manageable place, we feel this year’s show is going to be one of our best in recent memory,” he shares. “We’re excited to get back out to the show, and interact with all of our peers, as well as the retailers that attend the show. It’s always an exciting time to be able to interact and catch up on what has been going on with everyone.”

There are high expectations for business this year, which remains strong, cites Ray and Fran Mastoloni, who are looking forward to catching up with clients over coffee at TPC’s pavilion cafe. “We are eager to see our retailers at JCK and build on the momentum of last year’s show.”

Kathy Grenier, vice president of business development for Imperial Pearl, concurs:  “We had a good show last year and anticipate an even better one in 2022.” She expects that retailers who have not been to the show in a while will be going this year, and that those making the effort to travel to Las Vegas will be buying. “We also think we will see lots of new face this year.”

With 2022 likely to be the first “normal” holiday season since 2019, many exhibitors are expecting JCK Las Vegas this June will be the best yet.