Gem and Jewelry’s Preeminent Recruiting Event Inspires and Educates
GIA’s Jewelry Career Fair & Open House draws 600+ attendees
CARLSBAD, Calif. – Oct. 14, 2015 – More than 600 job seekers and guests packed GIA’s headquarters in coastal Carlsbad on Oct. 9, where 33 companies were looking to fill hundreds of positions during the Institute’s annual Jewelry Career Fair & Open House. The gem and jewelry industry’s most illustrious recruiting experience drew crowds for hiring opportunities, one-on-one career coaching and three panel discussions with award-winning designers, innovative entrepreneurs and top executives.
The event kicked off with the panel presentation “Job Success in Today’s Market.” L to R: Moderator Susan Jacques, GIA’s president and CEO; Douglas K. Hucker, CEO of AGTA; Dave Bindra, vice president of B & B Fine Gems; Jose Hess, president of Jose Hess Design, LLC; and Jordan Tabach-Bank, owner and CEO of Beverly Loan Company and New York Loan Company.
“Many of you are eager to embark on a new career in the gem and jewelry industry. And let me tell you, this is a fantastic first step,” said Jacques. “So strike up a conversation with the person sitting next you. Stop by a recruiter table for a company you’re unfamiliar with today. Networking will take you places you never imagined.”
JCK magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Victoria Gomelsky moderated a standing-room only panel “From Design to Finish,” featuring an exclusive lineup of American Jewelry Design Council members. L to R: Pascal Lacroix, jewelry designer/master goldsmith at Atelier Pascal Lacroix; Susan Helmich, owner of Susan Helmich Fine Jewelry; Scott Keating, designer, goldsmith and owner of Scott Keating Design, Inc.; Adam Neeley, gallery owner and designer at Adam Neeley Fine Art Jewelry; and Alan Revere, founder and director of Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts in San Francisco.
“Focusing too much on trends is dangerous. If you don’t pay attention to what you can contribute to the times, you’ll miss the beat,” advised Helmich. “Live at the edge, not in your comfort zone. That’s where the growth is,” added Revere.
Closing out the day’s events was a captivating panel on “Creative Careers.” L to R: Moderator Mark Smelzer, publisher of JCK magazine and JCK Online; Au-Co Mai, CEO of Emitations.com and CrummyBunny.com; Tim Adams, art historian and historical goldwork scholar; Michael Good, jewelry designer and sculptor at Michael Good Designs; and Randi Molofsky, co-founder of For Future Reference.
“Creativity means jumping into the unknown, not jumping into the known,” Good told a captive audience. “You only learn by making mistakes, not by any other condition.”
GIA hosted its first Jewelry Career Fair in 1991 in Santa Monica, California. Since then, the event has expanded and linked gem and jewelry companies with future employees at more than 50 events in India, and in Las Vegas, New York and the GIA world headquarters in Carlsbad. The free jewelry event marks the only time each year that GIA’s coastal 30-acre campus is open to the public without appointment.
For more details, visit GIA.edu/career-fair. Follow @GIANews #JewelryJobs for updates.
