At the end of January, the Bijorhca trade show’s future seemed to be in
doubt, after the termination of the agreement between the event’s owner, French jewellery industry association BOCI, and show organiser Reed Expositions France.
The international jewellery show, held twice a year at the Porte de Versailles exhibition centre in Paris, featured 345 exhibitors and attracted over 12,000 visitors at its September 2019 edition. It is a mainstay for the industry, and BOCI is keen to keep it alive. Contacts were initiated with various show organisers soon after the end of the collaboration with Reed was announced.
“We have received enquiries from five companies. This confirms that Bijorhca has a remarkable international reputation,” said Dominique Gruson, president of BOCI, in a press release.
“We have selected two organisers and we are carrying out extensive negotiations with them, especially with regards to a royalty agreement. In order to be ready by September, we expect to announce a decision after April 15,” he added.
For the time being, BOCI did not wish to add any further detail about the two candidates, though it underlined that the decision is also driven by a consultation with the show’s exhibitors, who have filled in a questionnaire on their expectations for the leading trade event in the costume and fine jewellery sector in France.
“We are hoping to stage the 150th edition in September 2021, but it will all depend on the health situation. The majority of our exhibitors have expressed their preference for a show at Porte de Versailles, with two sessions per year. There are also expectations about the show’s digital dimension, though not all organisers have the same degree of technological capability. And they may not all be ready in September,” said Gruson.
The exhibitors consulted by BOCI also emphasised their interest in the show being open again to gold jewellery and watches, and that they would be able to present their entire brand range at the event. While an organiser has not been picked yet, BOCI’s management seems to have very clear ideas.
“We will again feature most of the elements which worked well in previous editions, notably the Fashion Trend section presented by Elizabeth Leriche, of the BOCI trend office. We also intend to hold a competition open to the entire sector. And we are planning to allow young designers to present their collections for the first time to industry professionals. We would like to feature again gold jewellery, watches, costume jewellery, precious metals and other elements. We’d like our event to be a showcase for the entire supply chain once more," said BOCI management.
The plan still needs to be worked out in detail with the new organiser. Bijorhca acts as key support tool for an industry whose output value in France fell by 5% in 2020 compared to 2019, down to €2.8 billion pre-tax according to Francéclat, which also indicated that “at €2.246 billion, the output of the fine jewellery sector remained virtually stable, losing only 1%, while the costume jewellery sector recorded a more pronounced slump, falling by 12% to €275 million.”
Jewellery retail sales in France lost 14%, falling to €4.8 billion.