Jeweller - February 2019

NEWS
Sam makes Australia Day Honours List
Renowned Australian watchmaker Sarkis
‘Sam’ Der Bedrossian has been made a
Member of the Order of Australia.
The founder of SAMS Group Australia, best
known for designing and distributing the
Classique timepiece brand, featured on the
2019 Australia Day Honours List for service
in a particular locality or field of activity or
to a particular group.
Der Bedrossian, who is of Armenian
descent, emigrated to Australia from
Egypt in 1964 as an accountant, but soon
turned a childhood dream into a profession
working for the Railway Clocks Contractors
repairing train guard pocket watches and
bus-stop clocks.
His experience with Swiss watches came
a year later at Neuchatel Watch Sales, but
in 1967 Der Bedrossian decided to start his
own business, Sams Watchmaker Jeweller,
and within months he had enough clients
to move to an office in Sydney’s Market
Street and employ his first watchmaker.
His focus shifted from assembling watches
for others to designing his own Classique
brand, with the Swiss-quality timepieces
becoming a flagship product for his
company. Today, Classique’s wide range of
watches include men’s and women’s dress
watches, fashion, solid gold, chronographs,
as well as pocket and pendant watches.
Although better known as Classique
Watches, in 2011, Sams Watchmaker
Jeweller rebranded as SAMS Group
Australia and expanded its offering by
taking on the distribution of fashion
jewellery brand Tresor Paris and RM
SAM DER BEDROSSIAN AWARDED AM
Williams’ watches. Today, the company
also represents Pink Kimberley Diamonds
Australia and Blush Pink Diamonds.
Alongside his contributions to the
watchmaking sector, Der Bedrossian has
also been a highly active member in
Australia’s Armenian community.
In being made a Member of the Order
of Australia, he was recognised for his
involvement in a range of roles, including
the Diocesan Council of the Armenian
Apostolic Church of Australia and New
Zealand, Homenetmen - Armenian General
Athletic Union and Scouts (pan-Armenian
diaspora association) and Homenetmen
Regional Committee of Australia.
He is a benefactor and supporter of both
TAFE NSW and Watch and Clockmakers
Australia, and was a past benefactor
and supporter of the WOSTEP Program
at RMIT University, Melbourne. He was
also a recipient of the Arjanyats Medal,
Homenetmen in 2013 and the Ardagark
Medal in 1995. In 1987 he was named New
South Wales Exporter of the Year.
Baselworld and SIHH collaborate
Two of the world’s leading timepiece trade
fairs are collaborating by syncronising their
show dates in a bid to reinvigorate the sector.
Organisers of Salon International de la
Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) and Baselworld
have agreed to hold their respective events
back-to-back on the 2020 Swiss trade show
calendar. SIHH will run from April 26-29 in
Geneva, followed immediately by Baselworld
– 255km away – from April 30-May 5.
The move came in response to several
exhibitor cancellations, including the Swatch
Group, which owns brands such as Omega,
Breguet and Harry Winston, which withdrew
from Baselworld.
SIHH also had its share of exhibitor defections
last year, with participants saying it was costly
to attend two fairs in a calendar year, given
their geographical proximity.
“Our two events have always been different,
yet complementary,” Fondation de la Haute
Horlogerie president and managing director
Ms Fabienne Lupo, which organises SIHH, said
in a statement.
+ MORE BREAKING NEWS
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Applicants pour in
for Nationwide’s free
diamond training
Australia’s largest jewellery group,
Nationwide Jewellers, has experienced an
overwhelming uptake in its free diamond
training program since its launch last year.
According to the company’s managing
director Colin Pocklington, “Booking
forms started arriving before the formal
email announcement was sent and even
more applications came in via the group’s
Facebook page.” So far, more than 30
members are on the 2019 waiting list.
With more than 500 stores across
Australasia, Nationwide’s diamond expert
Cindy Eidukevicius-Jones conducts
the training for the region’s members
and staff, aiming to enhance industry
knowledge, skills and, ultimately, sales.
Jones is a Fellow of the GAA, a GAA
Gemmology Graduate, an HRD Graduate
and has obtained a Diploma in Diamond
Technology. She has also conducted
diamond training at trade fairs for
more than 15 years, and guided group
members through Antwerp diamond
transactions.
“With trading continuing to be difficult
in the jewellery industry, we are always
looking at ways to further assist our
members,” Pocklington said.
“The demand for custom design and
make continues to grow, so it is important
that jewellers have strategies to attract a
significant share of this market.”
The group will set to schedule the
dates for its Retail Jewellery Business
Management Course. The course is part
of its Industry Best Practice Program
and is comprised of 10 modules which
includes marketing, visual merchandising,
personnel and business ownership.
Launched in August 2018, the course
developed as part of a response to
difficult trading conditions in recent years.
“It covers all of the components or ‘hats’
that a successful jewellery business owner
or manager needs to be competent with.
But it goes a step further and introduces
several aspects of retail science that until
now have not been implemented by
smaller retailers,” Pocklington said.
February 2019 Jeweller 15