Conclave 2026

AI is everywhere, but for jewelry, most of it falls short. Generic tools produce unmanufacturable designs, dilute brand identity, and put your proprietary IP at risk.

In this forward-thinking session, Madeline Fraser, an expert at the intersection of art, software, and AI—shares how to actually use AI the right way in jewelry.

You’ll walk away understanding how to:

• Leverage AI to scale design, sales, and operations

• Protect your proprietary designs and brand integrity

• Ensure outputs are manufacturable and aligned with your standards

• Avoid the common pitfalls that make most AI unusable in this space

This is not hype. It’s a practical framework for using AI as a competitive advantage, without compromising what makes your brand & jewelry designs valuable.

Most jewelry business owners and managers became leaders by accident. They were great at the craft, great at the sale, great at the product—and one day found themselves responsible for people, culture, and performance without ever being taught how. The leader they imagine themselves to be rarely matches the leader their business actually demands. In this session, Andrea Lucille Pooler, COO of Modani Jewels, draws on more than 25 years leading, coaching, and transforming jewelry businesses to help attendees honestly assess where they are, identify the specific gaps holding their teams back, and leave with a clear, actionable path forward. This is not a motivational talk. It is a leadership diagnostic, with the tools, frameworks, and next steps to begin closing the gap.

Most jewelers who've experimented with AI know the basics—using ChatGPT to write a caption, generate a product description, or ask a question. That's AI as a tool. What very few people in this industry understand is AI as an agent.

Agentic AI doesn't wait to be asked. It monitors, decides, and acts. It can watch your website for low-converting pages and flag them. It can monitor your review platforms and draft responses. It can check your inventory against your marketing calendar and alert you to mismatches. It can follow up with appointment inquiries automatically. It can run your email sequences without you scheduling them.

This session introduces agentic AI in plain language—what it is, how it works, and which tools and use cases are most valuable for jewelry retailers right now.

Join Howard Stone, VP of Asset Protection & Claims at Jewelers Mutual, and Scott Guginsky, EVP of the Jewelers' Security Alliance, for a timely discussion on how organized retail crime continues to evolve—and what luxury retailers must do in 2026 to stay ahead.

As criminal networks become more coordinated, mobile, and tech‑enabled, understanding current trends is critical to protecting your business. This session will explore emerging organized crime tactics impacting luxury and jewelry retailers, practical prevention strategies, and proven approaches to safeguarding your people, inventory, and customers.