Jewellery World Magazine - February 2022

Palloys
Reza Bapooji
Business Development Manager
The highs and lows of 2021
The past two years has brought an incredible
transition to the industry. The disruption to
traditional business models meant we all had
to find a different way of doing things. The
recalibration was difficult for some, but easier
for those ready for ecommerce. Essentially,
the pandemic has propelled retailers five years
into the future.
The shift to ecommerce enabled local
businesses to become global. Smaller firms
that were once blocked from an international
audience can now reach a much wider access.
Plus, consumer taste has shifted as to how and
what is bought. Generic products have given
way to unique, bespoke pieces which support
local Australian companies.
At the same time, a transition to local
consumption also prompted a desire to
learn where metals came from. While
understanding the provenance of precious
metals was emerging prior to the pandemic,
the events of the last two years has seen it
become a priority for the consumer.
The jeweller of today is very different to
the jeweller of the past. Our clients take
advantage of so many Palloys services from
CAD design through to finishing. Jewellery
designers no longer need artisans under their
roof with these skills.
How has your company adjusted to
the increased focus on environmental
sustainability that the consumer is
demanding?
Palloys chooses to be a market leader every
day as regulations are lagging what consumers
demand. Already we use multiple companies
to recycle products we can’t internally reuse.
We want to reduce our environmental
footprint and not add to landfill. It’s expensive,
but our clients expect us to be industry
leaders in this regard.
Younger generations are more focused on
sustainability and as a business we understand
and support this desire. People are passing
over fast fashion in a bid to reduce their
environmental footprint. This shift is also
happening in jewellery. Consumers are
desiring a timeless piece with longevity from
a company that has sought to minimise both
their social and environmental impact. The
provenance of precious metals is becoming
increasingly important. We are so proud of
our 100% Australian Gold and Silver; our gold
and silver is mined, refined and fabricated in
Australia.
What areas of the industry do you think
need assistance and support?
A meeting of skills is desperately needed. The
industry needs to connect the experienced
with the inexperienced. Older jewellers have
many decades of knowledge and skills younger
jewellers don’t have. However, younger
jewellers have a firm grasp on e-commerce
and how to connect with an audience via
channels such social media.
There are traditional skills that could be lost if
older jewellers don’t share them with younger
jewellers. In turn, older jewellers could
prolong their business life by embracing new
media.
Creating an environment to establish
knowledge transfer between the two
generations of jewellers would benefit the
industry for many years to come.
What will you be doing differently in 2022 to
drive your business forward?
With international and interstate boarders
being closed we were no longer able to visit
state offices. To keep connected with our staff
we embraced the Teams meeting and Zoom
calls and as a team we are now more deeply
connected than ever before!
We will be harnessing our virtual
communication but quite frankly when
presented with the opportunity we will be
visiting as many of our Australian clients and
domestic teams in person as possible.
With the reduction of businesses in the
industry through retirement, businesses
folding etc. what advice do you have
for business to raise their profile and
awareness?
This is an interesting topic, because we’ve
seen many businesses retire operations earlier
than planned while other businesses thrived
as they were able to scale up a different
operating model.
Social media and email marketing allowed
many businesses to raise their profiles as
traditional media was no longer as powerful.
People were forced to communicate their
message differently. Social media creates
a different type of connection. Businesses
took the opportunity to introduce the people
behind the brand, allowing a more personal
connection with their audience which has
increased brand loyalty.
The makeup of the industry is changing.
What is your company doing to adjust to
the changing demographic of retailers and
jewellers?
The barriers of entry are lower now with the
process being more vertical. The traditional
bench jeweller has given way to a more
entrepreneurial jeweller. To adapt to this
changing environment, we’ve had to expand
our design and finishing services to cater for
this new group emerging.
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jewellery world - February 2022