Sriram “Ram” Natarajan is now GIA’s senior vice president of laboratory operations and is based out of the lab’s headquarters in Carlsbad.
Baselworld Is Rising From the Ashes as ‘HourUniverse’
In addition, Watches & Wonders, the former SIHH, is planning to hold a show in Shanghai this fall.

The replacement for Baselworld, which crumbled in the wake of its cancellation due to COVID-19 this year, is called HourUniverse and is billed as an online platform for networking and content that will be active and updated all year, with one annual live event.
The site will target both consumers and members of the watch industry.
The first live event, MCH Group said, will take place in Basel in April 2021, “aligned with the watchmaking events in Geneva, in the best interests of the international community, which will only have to travel to Switzerland once a year.”
Watches & Wonders Geneva, which also was called off this year due to the pandemic, is slated for next April, though organizers have not announced exact dates yet.
There is also a new watch show being organized for April 2021 in Geneva, created by five of the biggest brands in the business: Rolex/Tudor, Patek Philippe, Chanel and Chopard, which all cut ties with Baselworld this year.
MCH Group said it will release more details in late August, when it also plans to start marketing HourUniverse.
Also on Thursday, Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, organizer of Watches & Wonders (formerly SIHH), announced it is holding a show this fall in China.
The five-day show will include brand keynotes, product launches, talks, panel discussions, and a hands-on introduction to watchmaking.
Information on and photos of all the new watches presented at the show will be uploaded simultaneously on the Watches & Wonders website.
A total of 11 brands—all Richemont-owned, except for two—are slated to participate: A. Lange & Söhne, Baume & Mercier, Cartier, IWC Schaffhausen, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Parmigiani Fleurier, Piaget, Purnell, Roger Dubuis and Vacheron Constantin.
The Latest

The one-of-a-kind collar represents the beauty of imperfection and the strength to rebuild.

Three C-suite executives, including former CEO Tom Nolan, have resigned as part of what the company describes as a “transition.”

Jewelers of America is leading the charge to protect the industry amidst rising economic threats.

The retailer, which recently filed Chapter 11, inked a deal to sell its North American business and intellectual property.


Target CEO Brian Cornell will step down in February and be replaced by the company’s chief operating officer, Michael Fiddelke.

The group met with the president's senior trade advisor earlier this week to express the industry’s concerns about the effects of tariffs.

As a leading global jewelry supplier, Rio Grande is rapidly expanding and developing new solutions to meet the needs of jewelers worldwide.

The pop-up will display this year's Tiffany & Co. Singles Championship trophies along with a diamond-encrusted tennis racket and ball.

The New Hampshire-based store has expanded to Boston, propelled by the success of Alex Bellman’s TikTok page, “The Truthful Jeweler.”

The latest incident happened Monday at a store in Oakland, California, continuing a pattern JSA first warned about last month.

The new aqua green New York Harbor Limited Edition II is the watchmaker’s second collaboration with the Billion Oyster Project.

The investment company, founded by Dev Shetty, has acquired the struggling miner and its assets, including the Lulo mine in Angola.

Smith shares wisdom he gleaned from a podcast he was listening to one morning while being walked by his dog, a Malshi named Sophie.

The counterfeit Van Cleef & Arpels jewels would have been worth more than $30 million if genuine.

The MJSA Mentor & Apprenticeship Program received the Registered Apprenticeship Program designation by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Casio executive and watch enthusiast Masaki Obu is the new general manager of its U.S. timepiece division.

Barabash, Verragio’s client relations representative, was a vital member of the team and is remembered as being warm and full of life.

Originally introduced in 1992, the “Dot” collection is back with a capsule featuring five archival designs and three new creations.

The company had a solid second quarter, with sales of non-charm jewelry outpacing sales of pieces in its core collections.

Taylor Swift dons the vibrant pair in new promotional imagery for her upcoming album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” set to release in October.

Its investment in micromechanics expert Inhotec will preserve skills essential to the watchmaking industry as a whole, said the company.

Nicolette Bianchi joins the wholesale provider with more than 15 years of cross-industry experience in marketing and product development.

Her new “Ocean” collection was inspired by Myanmar’s traditional articulated fish jewelry, with depictions of flounder, catfish, and more.

Longtime Casio executive Yusuke Suzuki is the new president and CEO of Casio’s U.S. subsidiary.

The full-day sourcing and networking event, slated for Aug. 18, will be followed by the fifth annual Mega Mixer Summer Soirée.

Model Georgina Rodríguez received a rock of an engagement ring, with her diamond estimated to be 35 carats, experts say.