This coming September, the Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair will be celebrating its Golden Jubilee—the 50th Edition of the fair. Over the five days September 13-17 2012, at the Impact Challenger Exhibition Facility, the BGJF Golden Jubilee will be the best edition ever of the Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair—a truly iconic gems and jewellery event on the world stage. This most special edition of the BGJF will emphasize the fair’s role both as a regional and as a global industry event.
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Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has accepted the invitation to officially open the Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair Golden Jubilee on Thursday September 13th.
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| Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra |
To this 50th Edition BGJF, the organizers are inviting, as official guests, the senior representatives of all the gem and jewellery associations from ASEAN+6, that is, from the other nine ASEAN nations (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam), and from six more nations: Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, and New Zealand.
The representatives are being invited to see the Thai gems and jewelry industry through a number of study and fact-finding tours. There will be a tour to Gemopolis, the industrial estate in Bangkok developed specially to serve the gem and jewelry industry. Gemopolis has been operating successfully for over 20 years.
Another tour will be to the GIT, The Gem and Jewelry Institute of Thailand, a public organization. The GIT is the principal institute serving the Thai gem and jewelry industry in the areas of testing, research, and education.
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| Beauty Gems |
The ASEAN+6 delegations will be guests of honor at the Gala Evening Dinner, which takes place on the evening of the fair’s first day. In this informal and relaxed atmosphere, delegates will be able to network and exchange views on the future direction of the gem and jewelry industries in the region. With this gathering of distinguished industry leaders from around the region, the 50th BGJF will see the consideration of an important proposal concerning the region: a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on regional cooperation in the gems and jewelry industry. Such an MoU is now of vital importance, with the approach of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). The AEC free trade agreement, scheduled to come into effect in 2015, will develop a single market and production base within the ten ASEAN countries.
This MoU was initiated by Mr. Somchai Phornchindarak, President of the Thai Gem and Jewelry Traders Association, and President of The Gems, Jewelry & Precious Metal Confederation of Thailand. This MoU proposal is fully supported by the Thai government through the Department of International Trade Promotion. Mr. Somchai stresses that Thailand, as the epicenter of the gems and jewelry industry in the ASEAN region, has an important role to play in the ASEAN Economic Community. Mr. Somchai is convinced that Thailand can be the hub of gems and jewelry in both regional and global terms. Thailand has the most advanced gem and jewelry industry in the region. Thailand is in a position, in line with the proposed MoU, to train personnel of the ASEAN countries in all aspects of the gem and jewelry industry This would be a powerful stimulus to the industry throughout the region and in Thailand, as the AEC free trade agreement comes into effect in 2015.
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| Seven Stars Industries |
A first-time addition to the 50th Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair will be the dedicated delivery show area, which is effectively a factory outlet zone. In this special area encompassing 40 booths, buyers will be able to purchase gems and jewelry on a cash-and-carry basis. This will be specially useful to regional buyers who want to test-market Thai merchandise, but who, at the same time, prefer not place large orders at the fair.
Of particular interest on the design side at the 50th BGJF will be the Design Trends Pavilion featuring the display by Swarovski Gems. In the Design Trends Pavilion, Thai jewelry designers can see the very latest on trend innovations already anticipating the coming season.
The Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair began in 1983 as a local show with just 48 booths. Since then, the fair has grown by leaps and bounds, propelled by its own success. Now with its 50th edition, the BGJF is a truly international event with 3000 booths in the Impact Challenger, the largest gems and jewelry show in Asia under a single roof. Standing at the point where South Asia and East Asia meet, the BGJF is uniquely positioned to take up the role as the gems and jewelry hub of the ASEAN Economic Community.
