Lucy hill, cmj

HOT 100 2013: Lucy Hill, CMJ

Phew. Lucy Hill – as many of you probably know – is a force of nature.

An effervescent presence as engaging as her hair is curly (which is natural, in case you were wondering), she is the membership services manager of The Company of Master Jewellers, and one of those few people in the trade who can rightly claim to be the glue holding us all together.

This year she has brought the members of the CMJ closer with more – and arguably more exciting – brands than ever before at the buyers’ meetings.

It has not been easy recently. Alive to the wider economic picture, Lucy notes: “The mainstream watch side of the retail jewellery business has had a hard time over the last few years. Retail jewellers lost confidence in selling watches, not helped by online discounting. And at the same time the consumer went licensed brand crazy.”

Despite this, she has worked hard to recast the CMJ trade events “to create an atmosphere where the suppliers can show retailers what they have to offer”.

In response, the retailers have readjusted their views on the watch sector, looking afresh at new brands or even revisiting old ones. As Lucy says: “They are finally starting to accept that you don’t have to have Rolex and Omega to build a successful watch business.”

This year it all came to glorious fruition at the March show. “Seeing the fantastic effort our suppliers had gone to in order to give our retail members an exhibition that was both exciting and stimulating was wonderful, and a far cry from the days of tables with white cloths and reps reading newspapers.”

Her business achievements have come in the same year that her partner Stephen Reece-Raybould proposed and her daughter gained a first class degree. As you can see, Lucy is beaming with joy, pride and love.

 

CMJ membership services manager Lucy Hill was an Innovator in the WatchPro Hot 100 2013 in association with The Company of Master Jewellers. To read a digital version of the book in full online, click here.

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