Jeweller – February 2024

2024 STATE OF THE INDUSTRY REPORT
JAA - WHO REALLY BENEFITS?
The Jewellers Association of Australia’s
support and promotion of industry
wholesalers and suppliers is:
The Jewellers Association of Australia
is my first point of contact for business advice
and wholesaling best practice.
40%
30%
20%
40.38%
19.23%
25.00%
Excellent
Above average
Average
Below Average
Very Poor
40%
30%
20%
28.85%
36.54%
28.58%
Strongly
Agree
Agree
Neither agree
nor disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
Supplier Survey
The supplier survey was opened on
9 November and closed on 17
November. While the exact number
of jewellery suppliers (wholesalers) is
unknown because of the complexities of
various business models, it is estimated
to be somewhere between 500-750.
The survey received 52 responses, which
is estimated to be between 8-10 per cent
of the market.
10%
0%
5.77%
9.62%
10%
0%
5.77%
Interestingly, even though the JAA has
been led by supplier presidents for 10
of the past 13 years, suppliers appear to
have little regard for the JAA’s support
of the wholesaler sector, with around 85
per cent saying it is average to very poor.
The same could be said of many other
accomplishments listed in the document – they
cannot be seen as a core or ancillary member
benefit, which leads to retailers and suppliers
questioning the reason to join the JAA. Jeweller
contacted Sharp to clarify which accomplishments
could be described as a core benefit to jewellery
retailers and supplier members.
An example of a fuel card was provided. Members
could benefit from a fuel card supplied by the JAA;
however, they could also acquire a fuel card from
various sources, and thus, it’s not an outright
motivation to join the association. Sharp opted not to
discuss the matter further.
“It was a general document listing achievements and
progress. You mention that you cannot report certain
parts as an accomplishment. We are certainly not
holding you to any news report,” he said.
“Should you wish to write an article and scrutinise
the information, I will leave that to your creativity.”
Public perception challenges
At one time, membership with the JAA was perceived
to offer great value to retailers and suppliers,
reflected in strong membership figures.
As the recent survey results demonstrated, the
perception of the JAA among retailers and suppliers
is negative – despite members of the association
being overrepresented among the respondents! The
2023 industry surveys reflect the same data as a
similar study completed in 2017.
This point to be emphasised is that this is not the
‘editorial’ opinion of Jeweller – this was feedback
from current JAA members.
The following was put forward: Membership to a
buying group offers more benefits than membership
to the JAA.
More than 43 per cent of retail respondents said they
‘strongly agreed’ or ‘agreed’ while only 12.5 per cent
said they ‘strongly disagreed’ or ‘disagreed’. It would
appear Australian jewellery retailers do not see
much benefit in the JAA compared to buying group
membership.
Suppliers were asked a similar question: The JAA
is my first point of contact for business advice and
wholesaling best practice.
More than 65 per cent of supplier respondents said
they ‘strongly disagreed’ or ‘disagreed’ while a mere
five per cent ‘agreed’. Around 24 per cent of supplier
respondents were JAA members.
If the JAA intends to resurrect its membership
figures and represent a large percentage of the
industry in the future, this perception must be
addressed.
What has the past taught us?
As previously noted, the JAA has always been a
trade association dominated by retailers (70-80 per
cent). Yet, for 10 of the past 13 years, it was ‘led’
by presidents who owned wholesale businesses -
suppliers serving retailers.
When Sharp was announced as president in October
2022, there was a suggestion that change was in
the air – as he comes from a retail background as
general manager of Ian Sharp Jewellery. The last
retail president was Peter Beever in 2012.
That said, Sharp has held the position for more than
one year, and the JAA appears to be maintaining the
same trajectory it held under previous leadership.
In November 2022, it was reported that Sharp had
contacted Expertise Events managing director Gary
Fitz-Roy. The telephone call occurred after JAA vice
president Ronnie Bauer created another controversy
by making statements about Expertise Events.
Only one month into his tenure as president,
Sharp found himself issuing a media release titled
‘Retraction on comments made by Ronnie Bauer, JAA
Director and Vice President’. Bauer apologised to
Fitz-Roy and retracted four comments he had made.
Sharp later told Jeweller, “The JAA is looking to
assist in uniting the industry and ensure it prospers
in the future. We will work with whomever is willing
to help our industry prosper”.
Seven years since the industry JAA divided the
industry - and more than one year since Sharp called
Fitz-Roy - there has yet to be any indication that
industry unity is coming anytime soon.
Like Tory before him, Sharp has also made no
attempt to contact Pocklington or resurrect the
JAA’s relationship with Nationwide Jewellers.
During the extensive six-month research for the
SOIR, Jeweller uncovered other information that
indicates the JAA’s focus remains on industry politics
rather than benefits for members.It would seem
that listing legal obligations and expectations as
achievements is merely the tip of the iceberg.
As previously observed, it’s arguable that a State
of the Industry Report is a project the JAA itself
should be undertaking. With that said, two former
presidents opted to remain silent rather than accept
an invitation to reflect on the past 13 years so that
the industry could better prepare for the future.
It is not possible to solve problems with the same type
of thinking that created them. Mistakes have been
made; however, the industry will remain divided until
the JAA attempts to resolve the conflict it created with
Nationwide Jewellers and Expertise Events.
Perhaps the one decision made by the JAA that is
supported by this study was the choice to no longer
refer to itself as ‘the peak industry body’.
SOIR ADDENDUM EXPLAINED
This article is an addendum to the State of the Industry
Report published in December 2023. The purpose of the
six-month study into the Australian jewellery industry is
two-fold – it’s a historical document offering an in-depth
examination of the trade from which a glimpse of the future
may be obtained.
As is often the case with studies of this nature, the research
often uncovers unexpected insights. These include significant
changes due to advances in technology, the evolution of
consumer habits and expectations, and the unforeseen
impact of an unprecedented global pandemic.
In some cases, the space allocated to specific sections of
the report was insufficient because of the additional detail
and information obtained. This article is one such case where
it was noted that although the JAA has historically been a
member-based trade association of retailers (buyers), it was
found that in the past 13 years, it had been led by presidents
from the wholesale channel (sellers). This was deemed
worthy of further analysis.
There is a host of additional information uncovered during
the SOIR research period, which was also unable to be
included in the initial report due to space and time limitations.
Jeweller will continue to publish addendums to the SOIR to
analyse and clarify an ever-changing industry.
February 2024 | 33