The summer edition of Melee the Show returns to New York next week with what organizers say is the largest lineup of first-time exhibitors since the event’s launch in 2017.
Of the 74 independent designers taking part in the fine-jewelry trade show — which runs from August 3 to 5 at The Lighthouse in Chelsea Piers — 15 are making their Melee debut. Among them is New Mexico-based multidisciplinary artist Martin Bernstein, whose bold designs feature chains and pearls. Not only is this his first Melee appearance, it’s his first trade show ever.
“It’s fun to have somebody who’s been a veteran in the industry and [is] really jumping in to get his toe wet in wholesale,” says Rebecca Overmann, who cofounded Melee with fellow jewelry designer Lauren Wolf. “I think [Bernstein will] have a really great show.”
Other new participants include fourth-generation Italian house Garavelli 1920, and Brooklyn-based brand Linn.
Mixing it up
The 400 or so retail buyers attending the show can expect “a lot of color,” according to Overmann. “A couple [of] years ago, we were seeing a lot more all-gold pieces. [Now,] we’re seeing a lot more colored gemstones across the board.”
There will be a panel discussion on colored diamonds on August 5. The same day, artist Yuko Kikuchi, a show sponsor who creates hand-painted porcelain ring boxes, will give a demonstration of her work.
Overmann and Wolf also run winter editions of Melee in both New York and Tucson, Arizona, as well as a fall event in Paris. Their purpose in founding the fair, says Overmann, was to create a “highly-curated” show in “an environment that felt as special as the jewelry.”
This was one of the attractions for Heather Guidero, whose self-titled brand has its atelier in Providence, Rhode Island. “Buyer and exhibitor needs are really well considered,” she says.
Guidero took part in Melee for the first time this past February in Tucson, having previously exhibited at the NY Now wholesale event. “I wanted to mix it up and see if I could reach a different group of buyers, and that’s exactly what happened,” she says; she took on a handful of new US retailers.
Guidero, who also has two European retailers stocking her designs, hopes to attract the attention of international buyers at her first New York Melee. She is showing a new sterling silver collection and one-of-a-kind pieces featuring stones such as labradorite and moonstone.
A tangible difference
The show is already “a huge part” of Ellis Mhairi Cameron’s business. The UK-based jeweler, whose Scottish heritage inspires her gold and diamond designs, has exhibited at Melee in New York twice a year since February 2023. She’s acquired the majority of her retailer clients through the event, she says, including London department store Liberty and designer-jewelry specialist Twist, which has stores in Portland, Oregon, and Seattle, Washington.
Wholesale accounted for 45% of her turnover for the latest fiscal year, which ended April 5. Three-quarters of her wholesale business is now in the US.
“If we weren’t doing those shows, we wouldn’t have the orders that we do have or the relationships…because seeing [jewelry] in person is such an important thing [for understanding] the weight of the ring on your hand, or the earring on your ear — that tangibleness of everything,” says Cameron. “It makes a huge difference.”
Main image: Aquamarine necklace from Martin Bernstein. (Martin Bernstein)
