The Something Old & Something New Dichotomy
I was having a yarn with a new jeweller here at the start of the week. Typical ramblings on what pisses me off about the jewellery industry - in particular, its archaic approach to manufacturing processes and its inability to innovate.
I jot this down to how old the industry is and these system being taught through the notion of, 'thats just the way the industry does it', mentality. No Socratic method of breaking down WHY we do things, just pegging it up as 'thats the way I was taught, so it must be right'.
Halfway through cussing someone out, our jeweller who I was yarning with, stopped me in agreement, adding that his grandpa was a jeweller during the war and that he had even noticed how little some of the tools had changed.
My ears obviously pricked and I got him to bring those tools in yesterday.
Just seeing these tools, over a hundreds years old, really made me reassess my previous days assault on the industry. Not a complete turncoat, but at least it has made me realise that being a part of an industry with such heritage and history, has this very unique charm. I'm half a twit to be putting the age of the industry in my crosshairs, whilst it is this very nature that has moulded a key part of our brand ethos - legacy and tradition.
Without the grammatical titillation, (in simple terms), I've got to pull myself up on the hypocrisy of ridiculing the slow moving, 'old' industry, whilst so building a brand identity and product focus around legacy and the traditions of heirloom signets.
Some of the tools have come a long way with modern functionality of power, however most of these tools hold a similar swagger.
Look, there's obviously room to improve and the industry as a whole needs to be a little more open to the introduction of new ideas and approaches to manufacturing or consumer behaviour. However, its equally important to tow along these rich traditions, as there is significant value in not only provenance of an individual ring, but provenance of the techniques that sculpted the way we produce jewellery today.
Enough on that, let me show you...
