The U.S.’ preeminent trade show for fine and high jewelry and timepieces, Couture, has touched down once again at the Wynn Las Vegas, hosting a mix of buyers, influencers, executives and creatives all eager to take in the selection of the jewelry and timepiece category.
“In addition to our thoughtful curation of the world’s most exceptional designer fine jewelry and luxury timepiece brands, I think what sets Couture apart is the sense of community that exists among our brands, retailers, press and industry influencers,” explained Gannon Brousseau, Couture director and executive vice president of Emerald. “All of our designers feel they are exhibiting among their peers, our retailers share a sense of camaraderie with one another, and our media and industry partners are some of our most vocal advocates. And of course, our partners at Wynn, Las Vegas are simply phenomenal. The venue and all of the amenities are world renowned, and their customer service is best in class, ensuring that everyone feels absolutely taken care of and catered to.”
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The 2023 edition sees about 300 designers and brands on the show floor and villas — with 39 making their debut at the show. While attendance numbers cannot be shared publicly, it is understood that around 4,000 members of the expansive jewelry community were expected to walk the show floor over the preview night on Wednesday and over the show’s four full days.
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“We launched the preview night event in 2021 in order to maximize the limited amount of time our attendees had in Las Vegas that year and, since our event space was new in 2021, we thought it would be a great opportunity for everyone to familiarize themselves with the show floor layout,” Brousseau explained.
The response, the executive reported, has been so positive that “we’ve decided to make this a permanent part of our show. Some of our attendees really enjoy the opportunity to get a jumpstart on their appointments, while others use it as a chance to meet with designers and brands who they may not have anticipated meeting with. There’s also such a great energy in the air during the preview night event; our community is coming together for the first time in a year and the excitement is evident.”
This year’s Opening Night Event is white-party themed, shining a light on all of the jewelry being worn poolside on the Sunset Terrace, while live, ambient music will enhance the vibe created by attendees’ most sophisticated white ensembles.
Considering the level of one-of-a-kind pieces and show stoppers that are expected to be on display, the 2023 show will have enhanced security, with badges being checked against government issued IDs for every person entering the event space at all times, along with daily briefings with the security team, the Couture operations team, the Las Vegas police department and the Jewelers Security Alliance in order to ensure and maintain a safe and secure show environment.
Running concurrently to Couture, the Las Vegas Antique Jewelry and Watch Show will also set up shop at Wynn, with all Couture attendees having access to that show.
“The footprint of the show is actually more edited than in years past, and attendees can expect to see a curated selection of the upper echelon of true, period jewelry and luxury timepiece dealers. Along with signed pieces from venerable brands such as Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Tiffany & Co., Bulgari, Suzanne Bellperon, Rolex, Jaeger LeCoultre and Patek Philippe, visitors can also look forward to seeing unsigned pieces from Georgian to Retro eras,” Brousseau said.
As is tradition, the Couture Design Awards will take place Saturday evening.
“We establish a new panel of judges each year, which includes two retailers, two members of the press, and one designer, so that there is always a fresh, unique perspective applied to establishing finalists and winners,” the executive said. “With that said, we find it remarkable that there are a handful of designers who end up winning or placing nearly every year, including Nikos Koulis [Mike Joseph actually thanked Nikos from the stage for not entering in his same category when he accepted his award in 2019], Stephen Webster, Mariani1878, Fernando Jorge and Silvia Furmanovich. We are also always excited to see who wins in the Best in Debuting category each year.”
There also will be the Design Atelier, an incubator for new and emerging talents, created to uncover an original point-of-view and distinctive aesthetic from some of the industry’s most promising designers.
“It’s hard to narrow it down, we’ve had so many fantastic talents ‘graduate’ from Design Atelier into their own salons or Villa spaces. A few notable ‘graduates’ include Jade Trau, Buddha Mama, Spinelli Kilcollin and Melissa Kaye,” Brousseau said.
Year after year, the Couture show helps set the pace for the jewelry market, and while it is U.S. based, what happens in Las Vegas helps set the trends and influences creatives globally, with buyers and executives from the worlds’ top-tier luxury retailers making the show a priority.
“Couture doesn’t just take place in the days we spend together in Las Vegas, we are in touch as a community throughout the year, but to have everyone come together in one place is such a joyous occasion. And we love welcoming new people to the community, so in addition to seeing long-time friends, we’re excited to establish new friendships. Our entire team works incredibly hard all year—we leave nothing to chance, every last detail of our event is strategized and deliberated over before anything is implemented — so Couture is like our movie premiere, it’s our Super Bowl, and we’re just excited to see everyone at Wynn, Las Vegas,” Brousseau said.