The World Pearl Forum Dubai, 2009

Dubai has done it! The Dubai Pearl Exchange (subsidiary of the DMCC (Dubai Multi Commodities Centre)) is hosting the mother of all pearl events, the world's first ever world pearl forum.

We are all aware that this area of the Gulf was once the pearl center of the world. This was replaced by gold in the last century, black gold that is. But a country with so much money and so much pride in its history is set to reclaim its pearly stature.

Leading up to this forum the DMCC has several initiatives underway:

Pearls of Arabia is a 6000-square-meter experience center on Antarctica created in association with Paspaley Pearling Company.

The Dubai Pearl Exchange, an exclusive trading platform for the pearl industry.

Pearl Essence, an international pearl jewelry design program specifically focused on pearls.

Not too shabby for a country that no longer produces pearls on a commercial scale!

The line-up of speakers is like the who's who of the industry.

Keynote address: Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman - Dubai World

Regional Pearling - History and Heritage

Gaiti Rabbani, Executive Director, Coloured Stones and Pearls - DMCC

Vision for the Pearls of the World

Nicholas Paspaley, Executive Chairman

Branding a Modern Classic - The South Sea Pearl

Robert Wan, Chairman - Robert Wan Tahiti

Polynesian Black Pearl - The Influence in Today's Market

Noriyuki Morita, President, K. Mikimoto & Co., Ltd.

'I would like to adorn the neck of all women in the world with pearls' - Dream or Reality?

Jacques Branellec, President - Jewelmer

The Golden Age of the Pearl

Justin Hunter, Founder - J. Hunter Pearls Fiji
A New Source of Black Pearl

Bill Reed - Managing Director, Linneys of Broome

Setting up and Sustaining a Pearl Farm

Jeremy Shepherd, President - PearlParadise.com

Double-digit Growth in Pearl Jewelry Online Sales - Opportunities in the New Economy

Jorg Gellner, Managing Director - Gellner

Redefining a Family Business to Meet Challenges of Today's Marketplace

Sonny Sethi, President - Cultured Pearl Association of America

Creating Demand for New Pearls

Kenneth Scarratt, Director of Research - GIA Thailand

Challenges of Creating a Universal Grading System

Robert Cepek, Managing Director, Iridesse

Success Story in Experiential Marketing and Retail

Rosario Autore, CEO and CFO - Autore
Celebrity Placement: Formula for Positioning Pearls

David Bennett, CEO, ME & Europe - Sotheby's

Natural Pearls - An Investment, Luxury or Both?

And a few others, but I am running out of space on this blog!