A jewelry distributor is needed if you want to open an online jewelry store or a brick and mortar store. Jewelry distributors have various profiles depending on the type of jewelry that is being offered. Most costume jewelry distributors have their back offices in China, India and elsewhere. Either that or they are wholesale importers with contacts in Asia and their marketing and sales tentacles in the West. Jewelry distributors operations are not huge enterprises since jewelry is not that huge a part of the retail economy relative to everything else.

Wholesale jewelry distributors that deal in fine jewelry are usually vertically integrated because jewelry is a lot like fashion in the sense that tastes change and a wholesale jewelry distributor that controls what is manufactured and when is usually in a better position than one that simply purchases ready made jewelry and wholesales it to retailers. Also you need to keep in mind that jewelry does not take up a whole lot of space and so when you think of someone like a gold jewelry distributor, they are not a huge operation space wise. However a costume jewelry distributor will have more warehouse space because non precious jewelry is obviously a less value dense product and you need more of it to offer selection to your customers.

Fashion jewelry distributors are the same way. I see their products as pretty much the same as costume jewelry in that their product is more related to accessories than fine jewelry. There is also a huge distinction between silver jewelry and costume jewelry. Silver jewelry distributors are still working with a somewhat precious metal and they do need to keep up to speed with trends in the retail market and should also be vertically integrated in the sense that they have some control over their design and production.

The body jewelry distributor has a product that is for the most part made of surgical steel because of the fact that people would rather not break out on their most sensitive body parts because of an allergic reaction to nickel in gold or poor grade alternative metals. A Body jewelry distributor is not as vertically integrated as is a silver jewelry distributor because most of that product is not as design intensive and the content value of the merchandise is not that great.

Wholesale fashion jewelry distributors can be found online or in merchandise marts like the one at the Radisson in Miami Florida. It is basically a mall of fashion and other wholesalers collected under one roof where you need a special pass to get in because you have to prove that you own a retail business to have access to the wholesale selection and pricing. You can also go to major downtown districts in big cities like New York or Los Angeles. The other venues include jewelry trade shows that occur in conventions across the country where distributors of jewelry set up booths for the weekend and play host to retailers from all over the world. Some examples include the JCK Jewelry Show in Las Vegas and the JIS Show in Miami Florida.