The Philippine jewelry industry is projecting export receipts to reach $50 million by the year 2011.

This, despite the stiffer competition now posed by cheaper sources of jewelry like China that uses machines to make its pieces.

Cecilia Ramos, chairwoman of the Meycauayan Jewelry Industry Association Inc., said, “Philippine-made jewelry is very intricate. That is the reason the Philippine Jewelry Industry Association [of which MJIA is a member] is promoting more the high-end jewelry designs because we can’t compete anymore with other jewelry that are machine-made.”

One of the strategies by which the local jewelers are boosting their sales is by forging partnerships between fashion designers and jewelry designers and brands, she said. A number of local fashion shows featuring the Philippines’ top designers have been using jewelry supplied by established jewelry stores as Miladay, Jewelmer, M. Lhuillier Jewellers, etc.

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