The jewellery market - France (2024)

1.2 A growing global market

The jewelry market is doing well, estimated at ***.* billion euros in ****, up *.*% on ****. According to specialists, the compound annual growth rate should be *.*% over the period ****-****, reaching ***.* billion in ****. The market remains highly dynamic, despite the pandemic and the crisis in Ukraine.

Global jewelry market size World, ****-****, in billions of dollars Source: ****

The world's largest jeweler is from Hong Kong. His name is Chow Tai Fook, and he expects sales of over $** billion by ****, as the Chinese are big fans of gold. In second place is France's LVMH (***), whose Watches and Jewelry division posted sales of **.* billion euros in ****. Rounding out the podium is Switzerland's Richemont, with Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels, whose jewelry division posted sales of *.** billion euros.

The world's leading exporters by value are China, followed by the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland and India. France comes eighth, exporting sales worth * billion euros by ****. World's leading exporters of jewelry articles (***) World, ****, in billions of euros Source: ****

1.3 French production on the rise

The value of jewelry production in France has been on an upward trend since ****, with a slight slowdown in growth in ****, due to the pandemic, but an unprecedented recovery in ****, showing growth of **.*% compared to ****. In * years, the sales index for jewelry manufacturers has risen from ***.* in **** to ***.* in ****, representing average annual growth of **.*%. Sales index for jewelry manufacturers (***) France, ****-****, sales index base *** in **** Source: ****

This upward trend can be seen in the graph below, showing the evolution of jewelry production in value terms. While for many years this production amounted to around * billion euros, it has almost tripled to reach *.* billion euros in ****, up **% on ****.

Trends in French jewelry production France, **** - **** by jewelry category, millions of euros Source: ****

In ****, precious jewelry represented a total of *.* billion euros, while costume jewelry production was worth *** million euros.

While French jewelry exports were on the rise between **** and ****, with a jump of * billion euros in **** (***), they experienced a sharp decline in **** during the pandemic. The recovery in exports and re-exports of precious jewelry has been slower than that of production, but the value of exports has now exceeded that of ****, reaching *.* billion euros in ****, although still below that of ****. Value of ...

1.4 Interview with Alexis Blez, co-founder of 58 Facettes

Marine: Welcome to the Niche, the podcast that analyzes the niche market with the entrepreneurs who are shaking things up. I'm Marine and I work at Businesscoot, the start-up that's dusting off market research. Before you start, subscribe to our podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcast. And now for today's niche, the jewelry market. For this, I welcome Alexis Blez, founder of ** Facettes. Hello Alexis.

Alexis : Hello Marine.

Marine: So, to start with, I'll let you tell us a bit about ** Facettes.

Alexis: Yes, with pleasure. ** Facettes is the first Market Place dedicated to responsible jewelry. I'd say we have two main facets. The first, the circular economy via our offer of second-hand jewelry, and the second, the promotion of French know-how via our selection of designer brands that are obviously made in France. Today, we have *,*** pieces of jewelry for sale on the platform, *** partners and I'd say that we're responding to a problem specific to jewelry, which is that of visibility and low accessibility to the offer in this sector. Why is this? It's an ultra-fragmented industry with an extraordinary wealth, but it's not very visible, it's not digitalized and it's still too confidential.

Marine: So, to begin this ...

1.5 The impact of COVID-19 on the jewelry market

The **** pandemic had a major impact on the luxury goods market, and on the jewelry segment in particular. Indeed, the closure of shops in France and around the world during the various confinements caused jewelry sales to plummet. This decline can be explained by the fact that most sales in this sector are made in physical boutiques. [***]

The watch and jewelry division of LVMH, a French luxury conglomerate, has seen a **% drop in its stock market valuation, not least due to a decline in Chinese demand, which typically accounts for **-**% of European luxury companies' revenues. Similarly, the Richemont group, which owns brands such as Cartier, Vacheron Constantin and Piaget, sold **% less this year, with an even greater decline in its watch division of around **%. [***]

In mining production, too, producers voluntarily cut output in anticipation of the drop in prices that would result from the coronavirus crisis.

The crisis has prompted jewelry retailers to transform their distribution channels and adapt their offer to the demands of digital technology. Jeweller Courbet decided to go one step further, devoting part of its capital to enriching the platform with functionalities based on *D video and augmented reality.[***]

The following graph clearly shows the sales ...

2.1 French household consumption of jewelry items

Seasonal purchasing

Trends in interest in "jewelry" searches on Google France, **** - ****, index Source: ****

The graph above represents the interest in searching for a term on Google (***), from February **** to April ****. The index of *** corresponds to the maximum number of searches, while * means insufficient data. It can be seen that interest in jewelry purchases is highly seasonal, with a peak during the festive season.

Jewelry budget

**% of jewelry sold was purchased for less than *** euros. There is a discrepancy between sales for women and men. In fact, women who buy more often spend less money on jewelry, paying an average of *** euros for a piece of jewelry, while men pay an average of *** euros. By contrast, only **% of men say they buy jewelry. [***]

Jewelry budget in France France, ****, in Source: ****

2.2 The most popular types of jewelry

Most worn jewelry France, ****, % of total Source : YouGov The chart above shows the types of jewelry most worn in France in ****. Rings are the jewelry most worn by the French, with **% of French people claiming to wear rings. Necklaces are worn by **% of French people, and bracelets and earrings by **% and **% respectively. More generally, French demand for jewelry in all categories is quite dynamic, with **% of French people wearing jewelry every day.

In terms of sales breakdown, the jewelry ranking remains similar. Rings are the best-selling jewelry item, accounting for over **% of jewelry sales.

Breakdown of jewelry sales by category France, ****, in Source : The French Jewelry Post Two remarks can be added to this [***] :

rings are the jewelry most worn by men, by **% of men ; bracelets are the jewelry most worn by **-** year-olds, by **% of them.

Finally, while the ring remains the flagship product for jewelry made from gold, this is not the case for silver jewelry, sales of which are dominated by bracelets. The silver bracelet segment owes its success in particular to the development of bracelets with links and charms[***].

By ****, gold jewelry will be the most popular, accounting for **.*% of production, followed by precious metals and miscellaneous ...

2.3 Jewelry budget

Average jewelry budget France, ****, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, %, % Source: ****

The average budget French people spent on jewelry in **** was mostly over *** euros, with **% of jewelry-buying individuals declaring this amount for this expenditure item of their annual budget. This was followed by budgets between ** and *** euros (***).

The lowest budget bracket is between *** and *** euros, with "only" **% of those surveyed.

2.4 Women and young people, the heart of the jewelry market

Women:

Women consume far more jewelry than men in France. In fact, the core target of traditional jewelry is women aged between ** and **, belonging to relatively high socio-professional classes. Most of these women are the ones who buy their own jewelry, and don't buy it as gifts. Their profile is therefore marked by independence.

On the other hand, the core target group of the online jewelry market is slightly different, since Internet companies are looking for a consumer group with a lower average age. While women are still the main target group, this younger focus means that women aged between ** and ** are the main target group here. Here again, they generally belong to higher socio-professional categories. The desire of online jewellers to target younger female consumers ensures that these people have mastered the techniques of buying and consuming online. As with traditional jewelry, these women want to indulge themselves by buying jewelry without having to make a physical trip to the store[***].

Women's expectations of jewelry have also evolved. Today, the main characteristics sought when buying jewelry are (***)[***]:

originality ; quality ; personalization or customization options.

Today, around **% of women jewelry consumers prefer unique pieces.

Young people :

It'sthe "young" who consume the most ...

2.5 France's favorite jewelry brands

The graph below is based on OpinionWay's survey of French people's favorite brands in February ****. For each brand, the percentage corresponds to the proportion of respondents who answered "yes". Histoire d'Or is the favorite jewelry brand of the French: **.*% of respondents said they liked it.

French people's favorite jewelry brands France, March ****, in Source: ****

The graph below compares the approval ratings of the * jewelry brands most loved by the French, according to respondents' age category. For all * brands, the level of appreciation decreases with the age of the respondents: the category of respondents over ** is the one which, in proportion, appreciates the least the jewelry brands in the graph. Comparison of the level of appreciation of * jewelry brands according to age category France, March ****, in % Source: Opinionway Marque préférée des Français survey conducted in March **** - Base: representative sample of *,*** French Internet users aged ** and over The graph below compares the approval ratings of * jewelry brands according to respondents' socio-professional category. The biggest gap between the ratings of respondents in the lower and upper socio-professional categories concerns Swatch. In fact, only **.*% of CSP- respondents said they liked this brand, compared with **.*% of CSP- respondents. Comparison of the ...

3.1 Distribution channels

Against a backdrop of post-covid recovery, sales exploded between **** and ****, with total growth of **% over the period. This growth mainly benefited specialty stores (***), with department store sales growing "only" by *% and those of the Maisons de la place Vendôme also by +*%.

Source: ****

3.2 Breakdown of jewelry manufacturers' sales

Sales structure of jewelry and goldsmiths' manufacturers France, ****, in Source: ****

The sales structure of jewelry and goldsmiths' manufacturers in France in **** is dominated by subcontracted manufacturing (***), with no less than **% of sales coming from the manufacture of jewelry by companies for their own collections. Another **% of sales come from subcontracting for a third party.

It's clear, then, that French jewelry and goldsmiths are interdependent.

3.3 Jewellery market news

In recent years, the jewelry market has become increasingly concentrated, with some players growing at the expense of others, but also as a result of several mergers and acquisitions.

Among the main actions, AGATHA was acquired in April **** by THOM (***) and by ALTESSE. [***]

These acquisitions and investments are proof that the jewelry sector has a promising future. According to several studies, the jewelry sector is driving the growth of luxury goods, with annual global growth of around *%. [***]

On the consumer side, Chinese customers account for **% of the global luxury market, and this figure is rising, with the number of wealthy Chinese increasing every year. [***]

3.3 Structure of the jewelry market

The jewelry sector (***) saw a decline in its workforce between **** and ****, proof that the market was becoming more concentrated. Nevertheless, with strong market growth from **** onwards, the number of establishments in **** will return to ****-**** levels.

Number of companies operating under NAF code **.**Z France, ****-****, in number of units Source: ****

In ****, there will be a total of *,*** companies in France operating in the jewelry, jewelry and goldsmithing sector. There is a high geographical concentration of companies in the Ile-de-France region, which accounts for almost **% of the total number of companies in France. The Rhônes-Alpes region is the second most active, with *** companies, or **% of the total.

Source: ****

3.4 The rise of responsible jewelry

Interest in synthetic diamonds has only increased in recent years in response to the controversial production of diamonds in underdeveloped African countries under precarious and dangerous conditions. This interest is in line with the contemporary values of an increasingly responsible society[***].

The Courbet house, known for its emblematic presence on Place Vendôme, is paving the way for the "diamond of the future". With properties identical to those of mined diamonds, this alternative has the advantage of being ethical. This synthetic diamond has been the subject of extensive technological research since the ****s, but it is only in recent years that scientists have succeeded in creating diamonds white and brilliant enough to be used in the jewellery creations of the greatest designers[***].

Synthetic diamonds are evaluated according to four criteria, exactly as for natural diamonds: the * Cs:

Carat (***) Color (***) Clarity (***) Cut (***).

to these *Cs, Courbet adds a fifth: the C for Conscience[***].

The market for synthetic diamonds is still a niche, as the graph below shows, but with prospects for growth in the near future.

Production of natural and synthetic diamonds World, ****-*****, in millions of carats Source : Paul Zimnisky Likewise, global jewelry giant Pandora has announced that it will soon ...

4.1 Typology of the jewelry offer in France

It's difficult to give an exhaustive presentation of jewelry, given the diversity of products on offer.

We can, however, segment the products according to the classic categories used to segment a classic jewelry offering:

Jewelry type:

Earrings ; Rings, bracelets ; Charms ; Necklaces ; Pendants ; Piercings ; Brooches ; Other items.

Raw materials used:

Gold (***) ; Platinum ; Silver.

Precious stones used:

Diamond (***) ; Ruby ; Sapphire ; Emerald.

Fine gemstones[***]:

Agate ; Alexandrite ; Rose quartz ; Amethyst ; Anatase ; Jade ; Onyx ...

4.2 Trends in the prices of the main precious metals

Trend in the price of an ounce of gold France, ****-****, euros Source: ****

The price of an ounce of gold has not followed a linear trend over the past ten years. The first period of decline was from **** to ****, when the price of an ounce of gold fell from *,***.* euros to *,***.* euros. Gold then stabilized at around *,*** - *,*** euros between **** and ****, before rising again, with a real jump between **** and **** (***). Finally, in **** and early ****, the price rises again, reaching **** in **** and even ****.* in the first * months of ****.

Price trend per ounce of silver France, ****-****, euros Source: ****

The overall trend in the price of an ounce of silver is downward between **** and ****, before rising again from **** onwards.

4.3 The consumer price index

Consumer price index for jewelry and watches (***) France, ****-****, index base *** in **** Source: ****

The CPI is on the rise over the period observed, rising from an index of **.* in **** to ***.* in April ****.

4.4 Average jewelry prices by material

Average price of precious jewelry France, ****, euros Source: ****

The graph above shows the average price in different categories of so-called precious jewelry over the period January **** - December ****. While ***% gold is by far the most expensive jewelry category, with an average price of *** euros per piece that year, ***% gold jewelry is sold at an average of *** euros.

Gold-plated and silver jewelry are the most affordable for households, with average prices of ** and ** euros respectively in ****. Finally, costume jewelry will sell for an average of ** euros.

4.5 The success of e-commerce

For several years now, online sales of jewelry have been growing in popularity. Jewelry e-commerce is mainly used by urban consumers from higher socio-professional categories. Most representative of this trend are women aged between ** and ** and men aged between ** and **. The choice of e-commerce is driven by:

attractive prices ; time efficiency; a wide choice of products.

This last point is extremely important, as many consumers feel that having to physically visit a jewelry store immediately reduces their choice.

Online sales grew by *% in ****, accounting for **.*% of watch sales and *% of gold jewelry sales. [***]

As a result of this increase in sales, many companies have been attracted to this market segment. As a result, many of them are implementing innovative marketing strategies, particularly through their communication techniques. They generally build up a strong visual identity to attract and retain consumers.

5.1 The regulatory framework for jewelry in France

Declaration of existence

Before starting business, jewelry professionals whose activity involves the possession of gold, silver or platinum materials, whether shaped or not, must file a declaration of existence with their local guarantee office.The declaration must be accompanied by one of the following documents:- for craftsmen, a certificate of registration with the Chambre des Métiers et de l'Artisanat,- For self-employed traders, a K extract certifying registration with the RCS,- For companies, a Kbis extract certifying registration with the RCS, . For a company, a Kbis extract mentioning the business of manufacturing, importing, selling or purchasing precious metal articles, or of doubling or plating gold, silver or platinum. [***]

Legal titles and hallmarks

Items marketed in France, even if manufactured abroad, must comply with the following legal titles:Gold: ***, ***, ***, *** and *** thousandths,Silver: ***, *** and *** thousandths,Platinum: ***, ***, *** and *** thousandths.Only gold articles with a fineness of *** thousandths or more may be called "gold" when sold at retail to private customers[***]

Every gold, silver or platinum work must be marked with * hallmarks:- The manufacturer's hallmark, known as the master hallmark, or the importer's hallmark, known as the responsibility hallmark.- The title hallmark, known as the guarantee hallmark.[***]

Tax on the ...

6.1 Player segmentation

• LVMH Groupe
• Chanel
• Cartier (Richemont groupe)
• Agatha
• Lou Yetu
• Defi International (Emma & Chloe)
• Hermès International
• Thom Group (Smizze, Marc Orian, Histoire d'or)
• Philippe Tournaire Joaillerie
• FG Manufacture (Dior)
• Messika
• Usi2M
• Orest Abysse Group (LVMH)
• Tiffany (LVMH)
• Gemafi Maty
• Courbet
• Dinh van
• Poiray
• Mauboussin
• Van Cleef & Arpels (Groupe Richemont)
• Mikimoto
• Gemmyo
• Pérouse Paris
• Oteline (Dior)
• FM industries Sycrilor
• Salmon Paris
• Valérie Danenberg Paris
• Chaumet (LVMH Groupe)
• Boucheron (Kering Groupe)
• Chopard
• Piaget (Richemont Group)
• Burma
• Fred (LVMH)
• Pomelatto (Kering groupe)
• Repossi (LVMH groupe)
• Qeelin (Kering group)
• Martin du Daffoy
• Bäumer
• Compagnie des gemmes
• Celine (LVMH group)
• Graff Jewels
• Tasaki
• Anna Hu
• Harry Winston (Swatch Group)
• LVMH Montres et Joaillerie
• J Magazine
• Pedemonte (LVMH Groupe)
• MCGP Groupe
• Louis Laurent Joaillier