Two major Hong Kong jewellery associations, the Hong Kong Jewelers’ & Goldsmiths’ Association and the Kowloon Pearls, Precious Stone, Jade, Gold and Silver Ornament Merchants Association launched the Code of Practice of the Jewellery Retail Industry (the Code) together with the Consumer Council on 31 July 2017.
In July 2015, the Consumer Council signed a collaborative agreement with the two jewellery associations and a Working Group on the Code of Practice of the Jewellery Retail Industry was subsequently established. Over many rounds of meetings and consultation with stakeholders in 18 months, a code of good trade practices and operational guidelines was devised.
Underpinning the set of wide-ranging and effective guidelines, the Code fosters self-regulation and promotes standards beyond existing legislative requirements to raise service standards and increase value to the consumers. The measures include the establishment of an independent review committee to handle consumer complaints, and the introduction of after-sales protection for online shoppers.
The Code consists of six operational areas, including product quality assurance, advertising and promotion, customer services, intellectual property rights, fair competition and online retail. Moreover, in order to promote sustainability in the industry, the Code calls for the use of environmentally-friendly designs, materials and packaging in response to consumers’ concerns over the environment.
Approximately 500 members of the two associations, which constitute over half of the jewellery retailers in Hong Kong, are encouraged to subscribe to the Code on a voluntary basis. The two associations and the Consumer Council hope that 60 percent of the association members will adopt the code within the next three years.
To strengthen the complaints review committee’s independence, the nine-member committee is chaired by former legislator Vincent Fang and is composed of four industry and four non-industry representatives. The two jewellery associations and the Consumer Council will periodically review the content of the Code of Practice, the level of compliance among industry operators as well as the effectiveness of the complaints review committee.
At the launch ceremony, Lau Hak-bun, chairman of the Kowloon Pearls, Precious Stone, Jade, Gold and Silver Ornament Merchants Association, stated: “In early 2015, the two jewellery associations considered the long-standing Code of Practice had fallen short of the changing business environment and could possibly violate the Competition Ordinance. Therefore, we approached the Consumer Council and requested assistance in developing a new Code of Practice, so as to uplift the industry’s image and public confidence.
Professor Wong Yuk-shan, chairman of Consumer Council said: “The Code of Practice not only offers distinct and professional operational guidelines for the jewellery retail industry, but also encourages consumers to patron traders that are willing to embrace more stringent self-regulation and participate in the Code.”
← Back