The visit of the Australian jewellery delegation was aimed at enhancing business opportunities between the two major jewellery centres.

During the visit, the Australian dealers exhibited their exquisite designs evincing a lot of enquiries from members of the Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group; which in turn helped in generating new business opportunities and developing successful relationships in future sales initiatives.

The delegation comprised some of the best designers and brands from Australia, including Benita Edwards (BE), CERRONE, OPAL Producers Australia Limited and Majestic Opals, who showcased the latest range of Australian gem designs (mainly opals), precious stones, pearls, gold and diamond jewellery, silver and other accessories.

Aimed at boosting the collaboration between Australia and Dubai-based jewellers the visit reflected the City's enhanced profile as a major trading hub for gems and jewellery and a retail market for designs from Australia. During the meeting, the Opal dealers were overwhelmed with the inherent demand in Dubai and discussed closer collaboration in the future to meet the market needs.

Mr. Tawhid Abdullah, Chairman of Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group, said: 'The visit by Australian jewellery traders, involved some prominent designers and manufacturers, introduced us to the intricate jewellery designs from that part of the world. It not only provided us with insights about Australian jewellery designs and manufacturers but also helped develop business relationship with key players there. I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank everyone involved with the success of this roadshow.'

The Roadshow, an initiative by the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade), was organized with an objective to raise the profile of the Australian jewellery in the Dubai market. Supported by the Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group and Gulf Air, the first-of-its-kind Australian Middle East Jewellery Roadshow also covered Cairo, Bahrain and Beirut.

Added Mr. Abdullah: 'The Australian delegation was highly impressed by the sheer variety of designs and volume of jewellery on offer. Dubai caters to tastes and preferences of over 160 nationalities residing in the city and over 12 million tourists annually. The local jewellery trade also showed a lot of interest in Australian jewellery, and also discussed export opportunities. There is a huge untapped potential for Australian opals, considering that 96 per cent of world's opals is mined in the country.'

Benita Edwards, the founder and owner of the brand BE and an award winning jewellery designer from Australia, was overwhelmed with the demand for expensive jewellery in Dubai and saw it as a very lucrative market for Australian jewellery. During the visit, BE displayed some very creative jewellery designs for the Middle East jewellery aficionado.

Representatives of CERRONE, another popular Australian jewellery brand, saw Dubai as the 'Hub of the jewellery market' and were eager to explore opportunities with local partners in the city. The beautifully designed CERRONE jewellery had a great influence of Europe and was targeted at the consumers of luxurious brands. The brand showcased Pink and Cognac Diamonds and South Sea Pearls.

During the visit, deliberations also focused on opening up avenues for Dubai-based jewellery organisations to expand retail operations in Australia. 'In fact, the Group is also exploring opportunities to conduct roadshows in various part of Australia next year to further enhance the business partnerships and opportunities,' said Mr. Abdullah.

The wide variety of opals on display by the visiting delegation was one of the highlights of the meeting. Considered as one of the national icons of Australia and sourced from various parts of Australia, including Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia, the opals were both colourless, white and light grey through to dark grey and black. The unique thing about Opal was that it displayed all the colours of the spectrum and the bright rainbow colours moved and changed depending on the angle at which the stone was viewed.

Peter Linford, Australia's Senior Trade Commissioner for the Middle East, said: 'The outlook trends are very strong and following this visit, we are confident that following on the booming Australian trade in the region, the awareness and presence of Australian jewellery too is now being recognised for its quality and innovative design work. The visit will help propel the image of Australian jewellery, which will surely find its pride of place among the discerning population of Dubai and the region.'

Significantly, Dubai offers the largest growth market for diamond with its market growing at a substantial rate of 17 per cent compared to the last year. With local retail industry worth US$3 billion, the UAE is second only to Saudi Arabia in diamond sales in the region.