Are Jewelry Trade Shows Still Crucial? Still Fun? We Get Into It.
Plus a thank you, best wishes, and salty-sweet hug from Alain—we love you!
So You Don’t Like Trade Shows…
Or maybe you do? Alain, JB, and Emili dive into what makes these massive industry events so beloved and reviled, seemingly in equal measure. A little teaser: We love the Melee Show’s curation, the Couture Show’s beautiful food, and JCK Las Vegas’ bazaar-like basement floor. But we get huffy over exhibitors requesting that we not take photos, and clumps of men on their phones pretending we don’t exist! You feel us? Hoping you’ll have a listen and enjoy the careening chit-chat.
Listen on Spotify
Listen on iTunes
And if you’re not subscribed to Rough Cut Newsletter, you can remedy that right here:
Holiday Message from Alain
“Well, what fresh hell do we have here?” we said every single day through all of 2024. Listen, it’s been a tough one for all of us for one reason or another, and I have no desire to do a year-end review with you kids. However, I want to start this note out properly by saying “Thank You.”
Thank you for all of your downloads, for continuing to listen to the show, which brings JB, Emili and me so much joy to work on, and for engaging with us well beyond subscribing to the show. That really means a lot. Three years ago, JB and I started this mess on a whim, and it quickly became an industry staple, thanks to all of you. We have always been blown away by all the love and support we’ve received from you, but the sense of community the show has created for all of us is especially valuable in these “Fascinating Times” we are living through.
Rough Cut has undergone a few evolutions and experimentation through 2024. Still, I feel we finally landed on a formula that works for us as a team and one that our listeners really seem to enjoy as well. We’ve seen co-hosts and formats come and go, but we are thrilled to have Emili Vesilind as a permanent fixture on the show. While JB and I revel in being outsiders looking in, Emili has a perspective that we feel is integral to the show's future and provides us with real industry insights while still maintaining a healthy dose of skepticism. Plus, she is whip-smart and so much fun to hang out with, which is even more critical. Thank you, Emili, for being part of the Rough Cut family and for everything you do!
As for the Substack, we plan on eventually monetizing this thing and populating it with articles and exclusive audio content once we pull those levers, likely in early 2025. We do have to pay for Emili’s train tickets somehow, and I always buy lunch for the ladies, so stop being so fucking cheap and throw a coin our way. Heaven forbid we make a buck doing this bullshit.
Video is a thing! It killed the radio star, and we’ll be damned if it kills us podcast stars as well. We are working on that with help from certain industry movers and shakers… More to come on that soon.
Please keep an eye on our social media. We will be posting updates and some fun extras as we go on our holiday break. Listen to the latest episode, or any episode, and tell your friends to do the same!
We love and adore you all. Thank you so much for helping us make this silly dog and pony show into a real thing.
Happy holidays, happy New Year, and remember to hang in there. You are never alone.
—Alain