News Nugget – August 2021
Zulu Mien: Award-winning African jewellery with a heart of gold
Zulu Mien is a grassroots social enterprise dedicated to supporting female artisans in South Africa. This people-before-profits brand is the culmination of Nicola Robertson’s years of experience on the ground, working and living with women in remote communities. The jewellery emerging from this collaboration is as appealing for it’s beauty as it is for its philosophy: that we should live a life of grace and integrity, and never lose the awareness that we are all connected to each other.
Women run the show in the Cape Precious Metals lab
In-house training and development has always been a top priority for CPM, and one of our strategic core objectives is to empower our own staff rather than recruiting from outside the fold. This has consistently proven to be worth its weight in gold, if you’ll excuse the pun!
CPM celebrates Mandela Day by giving back
After the violence and unrest that directly preceded Mandela Day 2021, the spirit of the occasion was particularly pertinent this year. As fires still smouldered in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, the CPM team visited charitable organisations in all 4 provinces.
News Nugget – July 2021
Babalo Rozani – King of ‘Xhosa Bling’
Nobody could accuse Babalo Chuma Rozani of resting on his laurels. While the B.Tech he holds in Jewellery Design and Manufacturing may be nothing unusual in this industry, he’s also a qualified technical report writer and advanced project manger, as well as being an accredited moderator, assessor, learning facilitator, coach and mentor. Adding to this string of achievements, he also placed as a finalist at the PlatAfrica Awards in 2016 for his Isagweba Sceptre in wood, platinum and leather; and has completed an advanced course in Rhino 4.
News Nugget – June 2021
News Nugget – May 2021
Why shouldn’t jewellers do their own refining?
Refining is not as simple as it sounds, despite what that dodgy YouTube tutorial tells you. DIY projects may put your safety, reputation and profits at risk, and can have unpredictable and disastrous results for your finished jewellery pieces.
Promote your jewellery for Father’s Day
While generally not as lucrative as Mother’s Day for most jewellers, don’t overlook the potential sales opportunities presented by dad’s special day. According to a survey by dunnhumby (a customer data science company with a footprint in South Africa) 57% of respondents spend the same amount for Father’s Day as they do on Mother’s Day. Unfortunately, these amounts are reportedly on average between R100 and R300 for the majority, but if your clientele splurged for mom, they’re likely to do the same for dad.