The event, which took place from Friday 3 May to Sunday 5 May at the Royal Pines Resort, Gold Coast, was attended by 210 members from 102 stores in Australia and New Zealand. Previously, the buying group’s attendance record was at its Fiji conference in 2011, when 100 stores took part.
Nationwide managing director Colin Pocklington believed the high visitor numbers were mostly due to the presence of keynote speaker David Geller.
“Having such a high profile jewellery expert in David Geller certainly helped. Members also enjoy having a free weekend at a 5-star resort,” he said.
The US-based jewellery expert’s presentation features 21 ways for retailers to reduce old stock. Geller specialises in assisting jewellers to improve stock turn rates as well as returns on investment.
According to Pocklington, another popular session was “Member Successes”, where a number of members shared details of some of their successful promotions.
Next year’s venue will be announced at the JAA international jewellery fair in September.