(COURTESY OF ANGLOGOLD ASHANTI)

Make it real 

Seeing the growth potential in the Chinese market, AngloGold Ashanti and its partners, through the AuDITIONS design competitions, are seeking to raise the benchmark of design in gold jewelry and prove that gold jewelry can be exciting, fashionable and wearable.

To retain consumer groups, particularly the young, urban females, AngloGold Ashanti has attempted to make the innovative designs available at retail level. Take the second competition for example. The company, together with Just Gold, a Hong Kong-based gold jewelry fashion brand, manufactured a range of commercial jewelry, which was made available to consumers at its retail outlets in China soon after the competition. "Such commercial offers have been translating design inspirations from the competition into wearable jewellery at accessible prices."

Pun said that in the Chinese market, older consumers are mostly touting gold jewelry as hedge against economic turbulence, with 24-carat gold their perennial favorite, while trendy jewelry companies like K-gold and Just Gold cater to people aged at 22 to 35.

Sun, a female designer, believes that people can use gold to express their personality and various feelings. Her piece, submitted for the second AuDITIONS China, aimed to "represent these elements while combing fashion in order to make consumers stand out as stylish trendsetters," she wrote in her design description.

Since its launch in May, AuDITIONS China has received thousands of entries. The overall response to the contest has exceeded expectations, says the competition organizer.

All entrants are invited to jewelry design seminars to hone their skills before submitting their designs for preliminary judging. The final judging session will take place in December and the finalists will display their creations at a gala show in March next year. Like previous competitions, final winners may have the chance to receive design contracts.

"The company invested millions into the competition, but it is not profit-oriented," Pun told ChinAfrica. "This non-profit promotion is designed to enable contestants to create original jewelry that establishes fashion trends, and to woo potential consumers in an attempt to further tap the market."