We are deeply saddened to announce that
Mr. Lorenzo Yih
our honorable member,
the Chairman & CEO of the Lorenzo Jewelry Group,
passed away on August 5, 2016.

Lorenzo had more than 30 years of experience in the jewelry industry, including hands-on expertise in production engineering and colored gemstone cutting. As a former colored gemstone trader in Brazil, he cultivated extensive relationships in the industry and in-depth knowledge about gem sourcing and jewelry design.

Being born in China and growing up in Brazil, Lorenzo was an architect before building up his international jewelry empire. He had participated in various important architectural projects in Brazil, including a design project for the residence of the President, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building.

Lorenzo founded the jewelry manufacturing plant in the 1980s with Lorenzo Jewelry Ltd. headquarters being established in Hong Kong in 1987. As founder of the company, Lorenzo was responsible for setting the company's vision, mission and direction, leading a team of executives to formulate the company's strategy for continuous growth and business development. By the mid to late 1980s, the company's business had already spread all over the world, and had become the major supplier of many well-known jewelry brands, department stores, television and online shopping companies. An important milestone for the company was set in 1998 when it was listed on NASDAQ.

Lorenzo then further expanded his jewelry empire to retail with the launch of the retail brand, ENZO, in 2004 in China. Since its first shop opened in Shanghai, ENZO has developed a wide network of wholly-owned national chain stores and has become the trend-setter in the Chinese jewelry market. Lorenzo participated actively in branding, marketing, product development and most importantly the overall business direction of this retail brand. Since its first launch in China, ENZO has introduced many iconic collections to the market, such as the "Ocean Collection" & "Rainbow Collection".

By 2014, Lorenzo fully completed his vertically integrated "mine-to-market" business model with the official setup of the gem mining division, GMP.

Lorenzo had made remarkable contributions to the jewelry industry. He established the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) Hong Kong in 1994, acting as the founding sponsor from 1994 to 2002.

Yih was a strong supporter of gemological education, not only graduating from GIA, but also contributing to its success. The above images, courtesy of GIA, show (upper left) Lorenzo dedicating a classroom at GIA, along with Brook Ellis, Bill Boyajian (GIA President), and Jim Littman. On the right, it was in 1994 when Yih met with GIA national and international leaders, D.K. Kim (GIA Korea), Yoshiko Doi (GIA Japan), Richard T. Liddicoat Jr., (GIA Chairman), Seung-Hae Moon (GIA Asia), and Dennis Foltz (GIA VP of Education). Finally, in 2000, Yih was inducted into GIA's League of Honors, for his outstanding support of GIA and GIA Education, along side Helene Fortunoff, and GIA President Bill Boyajian.

Legacy of Leadership
A History of the Gemological Institute of America
WG Shuster

"By 1994, GIA was satisfied that it could make a successful, financially sustainable entry into Hong Kong. It had an enthusiastic sponsor in Lorenzo Yih, founder and chairman of Lorenzo Jewelry and associate chairman of the Hong Kong Jewelry Manufacturers Association (HKJMA)

A new, well-equipped school occupied a floor of its own in Yih's plant in Hung Hom, Hong Kong's jewelry manufacturing district. Within two years, GIA Hong Kong had 200 students, including several from mainland China. It had grown enough by 1998 to move into larger quarters at the tip of Kowloon Peninsula, not far from Hong Kong's famous retail section on Nathan Road. That same year, GIA Hong Kong also launched two accelerated graduate diamond programs, one in English and one in Cantonese. Students came to class three times a week and completed all assignments and exams within 10 weeks, which allowed more time in class for grading diamonds than was possible with the standard distance education programs. In 2002, the Institute assumed the sponsorship of the Hong Kong education branch, seeing it as a strategic entry point for China."

A Full Life of Colored Gemstones

With his in-depth knowledge and experience, Lorenzo established and kept enhancing industry standards. He was also actively involved in the growth and development prospects for the industry. He had been acting as the Honorary Chairman or members of various industry associations.

Joining ICA in the early 1990s, Lorenzo was an active member of ICA.
Our member, Mr. Lorenzo Yih

"During our 2009 Panyu Congress and 2011 Brazil Congress, Lorenzo had contributed greatly, supporting those ICA events, and also promoting ICA and colored gemstones throughout China."
- Wilson Yuen, ICA Past President

From the Panyu Congress, 2009
"I still remember when we opened the first ENZO shop in 2005, taking colored gemstone as the market-entry-point, and many fellow companies held unfavorable opinions. The domestic jewelry market was still dominated by gold and diamond, and the jewelry section in department stores were filled by yellow and white, only two colors. After more than four years' promotion, the jewelry sections now are colorful and ENZO succeeds having a significant place in domestic market." "Both the overseas and local market tell us definitely that colored gemstone leads the trend of jewelry industry. How can we ensure the sustainable development of colored gemstone and grasp this opportunity? The bi-annual Congress hosted by ICA is a very good start. In the future, it is necessary to have on-going promotion and education to help consumers to recognize the value of colored gems stone. More importantly, we should spare more effort in training in the area of stone cutting, stone sourcing and purchasing as well as and designing. We also need more experts with internationally recognized qualifications like a Graduate Gemologist. Lastly, if both the local and central government can give their support and provide a regulated business operating environment and favorable developmental platform, the colored gemstone industry would be lifted to a higher stage of development.
Thank you."
- Lorenzo Yih

Lorenzo was known as "the ONE of colored gemstone jewelry". His personal charisma and passion in colored gemstone benchmark the company's leading position in the industry. His contributions in the jewelry industry and his legendary journey of life will be remembered forever.