J.C. Penney reported that same-store sales rose 4 percent in Nov. and Dec. and said that it plans to close only a very small percentage of its stores this year.
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The Independent Jewelers Organization has named three retailers and one vendor to its board of directors for a three-year term.

With wearable tech continuing to heat up, a number of companies, including the Richline Group, have announced their entry into the category in recent days with the launch of new smart products.
Israel exported only slightly more polished diamonds in 2014 than it did in 2013, as the diamond industry faced “major challenges” worldwide.
Pandora announced Monday that it is aiming to acquire as many as 78 store leases in Germany and convert them all into company-owned and -operated concept stores.
“Celebrate New York,” a now-annual event for Jewelers for Children, is back and will take place on Jan. 18, the evening of the opening day of the JA New York Winter Show.
Remembering Scott Kay, a jeweler pleading guilty to selling fakes, and the biggest mistakes jewelers make in displaying merchandise were among National Jeweler’s most-clicked-on articles of the year.
Four--David Yurman, Tiffany & Co., Alex and Ani, and Swarovski--ranked above the rest in a recent study evaluating the industry’s online presence.
Articles on bridal jewelry trends for 2015 and three of the five forces that have transformed the jewelry industry over the last 35 years were among the top stories on National Jeweler last week.
Analysts and independent jewelers offer their prognostications on the forces that will shape retail in the coming year.
Earlier this year, it would have been hard to believe that anything could top the consolidation of the industry’s two largest players, Zale Corp. and Signet Jewelers Ltd., in terms of news for 2014.
The retail industry as a whole will lose an estimated $10.9 billion to return fraud this year, with more than a third of that occurring during the holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation’s 2014 Return Fraud Survey.
At first, I thought this blog would be easy as pie. Pick my favorite gemstone jewels that I saw this year? You got it.

In part two of a two-part series, columnist Jan Brassem examines the final three factors he says disrupted and transformed the jewelry industry over the past 35 years.
Scio announced this week that a group of three investors calling themselves Heritage Gemstone Investors Inc. are providing $2.5 million in funding to the company.
The opening of a class action lawsuit against EGL International and major retailers in early 2015 and the closing of another lawsuit against a retailer for using the lab’s grading reports were among the top stories on National Jeweler last week.

When it comes to bridal jewelry, expect the unconventional--unusual shapes, modified halos and color--to become more common next year.
Three men have pleaded guilty in federal court to charges stemming from their involvement in a violent kidnapping and jewelry store robbery in April 2013.
The Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) recently completed a training program for three senior officials from the government of the Ivory Coast, which saw the decade-long ban on its diamond trade lifted earlier this year.
Three men have pleaded guilty in federal court to charges stemming from their involvement in a violent kidnapping and jewelry store robbery in April 2013.

In part one of a two-part series, columnist Jan Brassem examines the first two of the five factors he says disrupted and transformed the jewelry industry over the past 35 years.
Google has released its report on the top searches in the United States this year, with the nuptials of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West leading the list of celebrity wedding searches.

Johnson Matthey just announced the sale of its gold and silver refining business to Japanese metal recycling firm Asahi Holdings for $186 million in cash as part of an ongoing shift to focus on chemistry and technology.

Citizen Watch Company of America has opened its first global retail concept store in North America, in New York City’s famed Times Square.
The three remaining lawsuits filed against Tennessee retailer Genesis Diamonds over its use of EGL International grading reports have been settled.















