Diamond News – Week of October 20, 2014

Diamond Company Offers Homes, Cars and Jewelry as Perks in Employee Loyalty Program

Ahmedabad, India: About 1200 employees of Surat’s diamond industry have reason to celebrate this “Diwali”, or holiday of lights season. Hari Krishna Exports, a Surat diamond firm in Ahmedabad presented 1,200 employees with 200 two-bedroom houses, almost 500 Fiat cars or stunning jewelry pieces as rewards for exceptional job performance over the past five years.

Rewards were offered on a need basis. Employees that did not own a home were offered the houses first. Homeowner employees were offered the Fiat cars and employees that owned both homes and an automobile were offered the jewelry gifts.

Surat Diamonds employs about 6,000 workers worldwide with an additional presence in Hong Kong, England and Belgium.

Retailers Should See a Healthy Holiday Shopping Season for 2014

As the shopping season begins to ramp up, the National Retail Federation (NRF) announced earlier this month a forecast of 4.1% increase in holiday spending. While spending may be increased, the NRF still predicts that shoppers will be more careful with their dollars. Shoppers will seek out more sales and research for more discounts available. NRF President and CEO, Matthew Shay shares, “Recognizing the need to keep household budgets in line, we expect shoppers will be extremely price sensitive as they have been for quite some time. Retailers will respond by differentiating themselves and touting price, value and exclusivity.”

Brick and mortar stores aren’t the only retail outlets with anticipated growth. Online sales are also expected to post impressive numbers in November and December. Shop.org’s forecast for online holiday sales presents growth numbers of 8-11 percent over last year, logging an estimated $105 billion in sales.

Shopping for affordable jewelry this holiday season without sacrificing quality?  Check out the fine jewelry selections from Mark Broumand.