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Vicenzaoro September 2026 has drawn to a close, and it leaves behind more than just impressive numbers. From 4 to 8 September, Vicenza Expo Centre once again, the world capital of jewellery, this time with a new heart beating at its centre, and a set of results that speak to an industry navigating uncertainty with remarkable resilience.
The edition opened with a milestone a decade in the making, the inauguration of Hall 2, a striking 23,000-square-metre, two-storey structure designed by architect Volkwin Marg of the Hamburg-based GMP studio. Fittingly, the ribbon-cutting coincided with the tenth anniversary of the company managing the Rimini and Vicenza Expo Centres. Connecting Halls 1, 3, 4 and 6, the new building reshapes the visitor journey across the fairground and brings T.Gold, the jewellery technology exhibition, inside the Expo Centre for the first time, alongside a new home for jewellery manufacturing companies at the very heart of the venue.
“It is not often that an anniversary and a promise kept fall on the same day,” said IEG President Maurizio Ermeti at the opening ceremony, framing the investment as a direct response to a commitment made to the industry in 2024. The occasion drew an unusually high-level welcome, including a message from Adolfo Urso, Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy, who described the fair as a platform capable of representing every segment of the sector while confirming Vicenza’s role as the world capital of jewellery. Days later, Minister for European Affairs Tommaso Foti toured the new hall in person, calling it “truly spectacular.”
By the close of the fair, Vicenzaoro September 2026 had welcomed 1,300 exhibiting brands from 40 countries, 45% of them from abroad, and a record 910 hosted buyers from 73 countries, a 33% increase compared with the previous September edition. The buyer incoming programme, developed with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Italian Trade Agency, brought 700 international buyers to Vicenza alongside 210 Italian buyers, with the United States, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, China and Spain leading the hosted delegations.
The final figures told an equally encouraging story, total visitor numbers rose 4% compared to September 2025, with international attendance up 9%, and representation from 136 foreign countries, also a 4% increase. The United Kingdom, Germany, China, India and Romania led international visitor numbers, while the strongest growth came from markets including South Korea, Singapore, Kuwait, South Africa and Saudi Arabia. “Since September ’24, attendance figures from abroad have risen steadily, and now, boosted by T.Gold, they are up by 12% despite an increasingly complex and uncertain international context,” noted Matteo Farsura, head of IEG’s Jewellery & Fashion division.
Beyond the exhibition floor, Vicenzaoro September once again served as a platform for the sector to reflect on its own trajectory. A joint analysis by Confindustria Federorafi and Intesa Sanpaolo painted a nuanced picture of an Italian jewellery industry adjusting to a challenging global backdrop, with turnover and production softening year on year yet still standing well above pre-pandemic levels, and exports showing renewed strength once markets like Turkey are set aside, particularly in the United States. A Federpreziosi Confcommercio survey added a further layer of insight, revealing that foreign tourists spent an estimated 910 million euros in Italian jewellery stores in 2025 alone, a clear signal of the enduring pull of Made in Italy craftsmanship. Elsewhere, a Confindustria Federorafi case study turned attention to the future, showing how artificial intelligence is reshaping the path to purchase, with visitors arriving via AI platforms converting at far higher rates than those from traditional search.
The fair’s centenary edition of the CIBJO Congress, chaired by Gaetano Cavalieri, brought over 600 international delegates to Vicenza, reinforcing the city’s role not just as a marketplace but as a genuine forum for the standards and dialogue shaping the industry’s next hundred years.
Alongside the business of trade, Vicenzaoro September wove in moments of genuine cultural depth. The Educational Hub hosted sessions ranging from Assogemme’s exploration of coral heritage with Enzo Liverino to a fresh, distinctly Italian narrative around Akoya pearls launched with the Japan Pearl Exporters’ Association, while the Jewellery Technology Forum brought design, 3D printing and Industry 4.0 into conversation inside T.Gold’s new Smart Hub. In the historic centre, VIOFF transformed Vicenza into an open-air stage under the theme “Golden Road,” while inside the Basilica Palladiana, the Vicenza Jewellery Museum’s exhibition traced a journey from gold to coral to contemporary design.
Running alongside the main show, VO Vintage closed its ninth edition on a high note, with 53 dealers of vintage and pre-owned jewellery and watches drawing collectors and curious newcomers alike. The event’s now-signature “Watch of the Year” awards, voted by readers of L’Orologio magazine, crowned standout pieces across twelve categories, from the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Ultra-Thin Automatic to the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch “Reverse Panda” and the Patek Philippe Celestial, a fitting celebration of horological artistry to close the week.
As the halls empty and Vicenza returns to its everyday rhythm, IEG’s calendar already points to what comes next: JGTD in Dubai from 27 to 29 October, the Valenza Gem Forum on 22 October, and the Italian Jewellery Summit in Arezzo on 3 December. Vicenzaoro and T.Gold will return from 15 to 19 January 2027, with VO Vintage following from 15 to 18 January, ensuring that the conversation started this September carries forward without pause.
Vicenzaoro September 2026 leaves Vicenza with a new landmark, a strengthened international footprint, and, once again, confirmation of its place at the very heart of the global jewellery industry.
