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| JuLY 22, 2008: Volume 2, Issue 7 |
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World Jewelry Center Company Profile: International Gemological Institute Spotlight on Union Park: Lou Ruvo Brain Institute News from WJC Participating Firms
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A Message From Bill BoyajianIs Your Glass Half Full?
Where do you fit into this equation? Are you one who sees the proverbial glass half full, or half empty? I ask these questions to challenge you to think about the future of your business. Are you a supplier who is struggling to keep customers, collect on past-due accounts, or create new designs that attract retailers? Are you trying to hold on to the past and do things the way you’ve always done them? If so, good luck. Today’s rampant consolidation and rate of change is beyond what any of us would have imagined 20 years ago. The unease that many are feeling started with the onset of the Internet age, but has mushroomed to proportions most of us simply can’t believe. That’s why trying to maintain the status quo in a fast-changing world just won’t work. The World Jewelry Center in Las Vegas is destined to become the Western Hemisphere’s epicenter for both the wholesale and retail jewelry trade. The trade needs a permanent, well-located marketplace, and retailers need an easy, convenient place to shop a wide assortment of products from around the world. Retailers will be drawn there because it’s easy to get to Las Vegas, inexpensive to stay there, and fun to be there. Consumers will be drawn to the retail shops because they will know that by buying closer to the source, they will get both quality and value for their money. The World Jewelry Center is the right idea, at the right time, in the right place. And by the time the project is completed, it will be too late for others to get in. That’s why now is the time to act. So, will you be one of the leaders who takes advantage of this lucrative and unique opportunity to grow, or will you instead hunker down and remain inside your perceived comfort zone? Call or write me today, and I will show you how to fill your glass and enhance the future of your business. You owe it to yourself to find out.
WJC Company Profile: International Gemological Institute
Founded in 1975, IGI has 13 laboratories that adhere to internationally accepted standards for diamond grading. Additionally, IGI is the first worldwide laboratory to earn International Standards Organization (ISO) accreditation in four countries – the U.S., Canada, India, and the United Arab Emirates.
IGI services include independent diamond grading reports, colored stone reports, identification and appraisal reports, diamond authentication and attestation of origin, and diamond and colored stone courses offered through IGI’s School of Gemology. IGI also provides laser inscription services through its U.S. patented LaserscribeSM process.
“IGI will be an important part of the World Jewelry Center,” said WJC Managing Director Bill Boyajian. “We will have dozens of companies dealing primarily in diamonds and colored gemstones in our trade center. They will depend on laboratories like IGI to provide consistent and reliable services, with the added convenience of being located right on our premises.” For more information on IGI, please call (212) 753 7100, or visit www.igiworldwide.com.
Spotlight on Union Park: Lou Ruvo Brain InstituteEditor’s Note: The World Jewelry Center will be located in the unique master-planned community of Union Park, in Las Vegas. Starting with this issue of World Jewelry Center Insights, we will publish articles to acquaint our readers with some of the other organizations and firms which will be part of Union Park. We begin today with the Lou Ruvo Brain Insitute. The Lou Ruvo Brain Institute (LRBI) is dedicated to the conquest of Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s, Parkinson’s, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's Disease), and all forms of memory disorders. The ultimate aim is to prevent the disabling symptoms of chronic brain disease and to promote healthy, vital aging in people at risk for dementia or memory impairments. The Institute is forging worldwide, cooperative research networks to validate new treatments for prevention. These networks will also seek to develop new technologies for early detection and diagnosis of memory disorders in healthy asymptomatic people at risk for dementia or other neurodegenerative diseases. The LRBI aspires to build a unique national research center in Nevada and to find a cure for these various disorders.
The Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization working as the medical-scientific affiliate of Keep Memory Alive (KMA), also a Nevada-based, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. KMA and LRBI are devoted to the promotion of healthy “vital aging” for all citizens of Nevada, and seeks to enhance the quality of life for the growing number of people with cognitive impairments or dementia. The LRBI aims to create a world-class research and development resource center in Las Vegas for designing, testing and validating new models of care and services for people with dementia. The goal is to build the much-needed research capabilities in Nevada that will accelerate the discovery of novel interventions to maintain the independent functioning of patients with brain impairments for an additional five to 15 years. Groundbreaking for the LRBI was in February 2007, and completion is projected for late 2008.
Dream Team Frank Gehry is the internationally-acclaimed architect who has designed the building for the LRBI. It has been widely argued that Gehry is the most important architect of our time. Zaven Khachaturian, Ph.D. is the president and CEO of Keep Memory Alive and the LRBI. He is the former director of the Office of Alzheimer’s Research at the National Institutes of Health, and is also the former director of the Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Institute of the Alzheimer’s Association.
News from WJC Participating FirmsStrong International Sales Spurs Bidz.com’s Growth Online jewelry auctioneer Bidz.com says it expects an increase of more than 50 percent in international sales for its 2008 fiscal second quarter, compared with the same period last year. A participating firm in the World Jewelry Center, Bidz.com says it is greatly encouraged by the recent launch of the Spanish-language version of its Web site. In June, Spain, Mexico, Chile, and Columbia were among the top 10 countries represented in Bidz.com’s site visits. Building on this progress, the company expects to launch more foreign-language translations of its Web site, with an Arabic version to open in the third quarter. “We believe our jewelry offering at value prices and in a fun and exciting format is attractive to consumers all over the world, and we look forward to tapping into new markets,” said David Zinberg, Chief Executive Officer of Bidz.com. [Source: Bidz.com] Las Vegas News of InterestFascinating Facts about Fabulous Las Vegas There were 6,800 new Nevada residents each month in 2007, on average. Las Vegas had the highest net gain of any U.S. city, followed by Charlotte, Atlanta, and Portland. As one of the top tourist destinations in the world, Las Vegas not only draws about 40 million visitors annually, but 19 percent of them are first-time visitors. One new school has been built each month in the Las Vegas metropolitan area over the past 10 years to keep pace with the growing population. Many of the world’s renowned chefs have added Las Vegas to their choices for restaurant locations. As a result, fine dining has become another of the city’s great attractions. Las Vegas now has 21 of the 100 top-rated restaurants in the United States. Visitors can now choose from menus created by chefs such as Emeril Lagasse, Wolfgang Puck, Bobby Flay, Joel Robuchon, Alain Ducasse, Daniel Boulud, Charlie Palmer, and Tom Collichio, to name just some.
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UNION PARK - 2007 YEAR IN REVIEW VEGAS RETAIL ON A ROLL DEAL WITH SKY HIGH POTENTIAL: ANALYSTS SEE POSSIBILITIES IN LAND ACQUIRED WITH TOWER |
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If you would like further information about the World Jewelry Center please visit us at WORLDJEWELRYCENTER.COM or contact: |
Bill Boyajian Jerry Buckley Newsletter and Media Inquiries |
Jane Lynch-Rush Robin Bartolo General Inquiries |
Some business leaders tell me that this is not the time to expand. They seem hesitant to commit to any new initiatives. In contrast, others I speak to are keen to grow their businesses and see the current economic climate as an opportunity instead of an impediment.
The International Gemological Institute (IGI), one of the world’s largest independent laboratories for testing and evaluating gemstones and fine jewelry, is a proud World Jewelry Center participating firm .
IGI draws upon its skilled staff of Graduate Gemologists and accredited appraisers, all dedicated to its standard of excellence. When engaged to evaluate a diamond, a team of no less than three experts examines each stone and reaches a concurrent opinion on its quality. That opinion is then translated into a report that authenticates the essential Four Cs of the stone.
