Vicenza: the jewellery capital, hosting the trade fair and the world congress
A record-breaking edition of Vicenzaoro and the centenary event of the international confederation CIBJO, from 4 to 8 September
Vicenza will be the international capital of the jewellery sector from 4 to 8 September 2026. A record-breaking edition of Vicenzaoro – Europe’s leading jewellery fair and one of the world’s top events – is set to open its doors. It will kick off with the inauguration of the new pavilion designed by the German starchitect Vokwin Marg (of Studio Gmp in Hamburg), in which the Italian Exhibition Group (IEG) has invested 60 million.
The CIBJO World Congress is also getting underway; CIBJO is the jewellery confederation that has been chaired for 26 years by the Italian Gaetano Cavalieri. “Following previous editions in Colombia, Bahrain, India, China and France, the annual CIBIJO congress has chosen Italy to celebrate the confederation’s centenary, thanks to a partnership with IEG and as a testament to our country’s manufacturing capabilities in fine jewellery,” explains President Cavalieri. Among the approximately 600 delegates from 50 countries across all continents are the world’s leading figures in the jewellery and precious metals industry, starting with Gareth Penny, head of the consortium shortlisted by Anglo American and the Government of Botswana as the preferred bidder for De Beers. Also prominent is the presence of Cyrille Vigneron, former president and CEO of Cartier and now chairman of the Cartier Foundation.
Vicenzaoro September 2026 is set to be a record-breaking edition, particularly due to the large number of international buyers (a third more than the September 2025 edition): no fewer than 910, from 73 countries, hosted thanks to the support of the ICE Agency and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The fair will feature 1,300 exhibiting brands from 40 countries. Meanwhile, 170 brands are on display at T.Gold, a parallel B2B exhibition making its debut at the September event. There is also a focus on vintage watches and jewellery, with the VO Vintage areas open to the public upon online registration.
“We are seeing international demand that is growing in terms of both geographical origin and volume, confirming Vicenzaoro’s ability to attract trade visitors from the world’s leading markets; we are responding to this demand by reorganising the exhibition areas, thanks to the new hall: from high-end jewellery to packaging, from gemstones to technologies and goldsmithing, the entire supply chain is now under one roof”, emphasises Matteo Farsura, head of jewellery trade fairs at IEG (a group that is among Europe’s leaders in organising trade fairs and conferences, led by CEO Corrado Peraboni and Chairman Maurizio Ermeti).
There are many notable events on the programme (the full programme is available on the vicenzaoro.com website). The opening ceremony on Friday 4 September will be attended by Mara Bizzotto, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy; Matteo Zoppas, President of ICE Agency; Maria Cristina Squarcialupi, President of Federorafi Confindustria; senior executives from IEG, and representatives from city, provincial and regional institutions, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI).
