What the report revealed is:

• Jewelry chain stores are having the worst impact in this economy by over 13%
• Sales at independent high-end retailers were down slightly but not as steep
• Mid-range retailers were down 5.5 percent
• 2008, the diamond category (loose and set) remained the majority, with 49 percent of sales
• Timepieces saw growth, up from 3 percent of sales in 2007 to 6 percent in 2008
• Repair sales remain an important category, bringing in 10 percent of sales

How does this translate to Jewelry Public Relations and Marketing?

Bridal jewelry press on engagement rings remains vital, while designer jewelry may seem at times not as much of a necessity as wedding bands. Consumers are not shopping in the chain stores as much as they have in years past, publicists of those brands and retail stores should focus on e-commerce publicity to drive sales to their website verse foot traffic.  I think what’s the most interesting is the fact that timepieces are still going strong.  Our jewelry team does not get many requests for watches and the pages in magazines of strictly timepiece editorial have become quite limited. We factor the boom of cell phone sales to this mix. But wearing a watch does exude confident in this economic time of uncertainty. It projects an agenda, importance and responsibility and if you are looking for work it’s important to wear a watch during your interview. Lastly, as salons like CIRCA become more and more popular it's becoming social acceptable to wear vintage and estate pieces. If repair for jewelry remains at 10% of the overall business it's more affordable today for consumer to fix what's broken then buy anew. 2010 could be a big year for estate pieces.

Remember that your jewelry communications strategy should reflect the culture of today's climate and not project an aspirational lifestyle that may deem of false pretenses. The media today can see right through it and does not welcome it with open arms.