Industry Backs the 2026 NAJ Awards

The National Association of Jewellers has confirmed the full sponsor line-up for the 2026 NAJ Awards, bringing together suppliers, service providers and specialist businesses from across the UK jewellery industry.

Curteis will return as headline sponsor for a fourth consecutive year, continuing a relationship that has accompanied the awards through a period of significant growth.

The 2026 ceremony will take place at ICC Birmingham on Thursday, 8 October, recognising achievement across retail, design, manufacturing, customer service, community engagement and professional development.

Fifteen Categories, Fifteen Sponsors

Each of the awards’ 15 categories will be supported by a dedicated sponsor:

• Collection of the Year — Emrise

• Community Engagement of the Year — UK Protection

• Digital Engagement of the Year — Squash Media Group

• ESG Initiative of the Year — SGS

• Store Design of the Year — Visionary Displays

• Customer Champion of the Year — Cooksongold

• Designer of the Year — National Business Register

• Rising Star of the Year — CMJ

• Unsung Hero of the Year — JQV Gemstones

• Workshop Professional of the Year — At The Bench

• Bespoke Retailer of the Year — Bespoke Quarter

• Jewellery Retailer of the Year — TI SENTO

• Product Supplier of the Year — Jewellery Show

• Service Supplier of the Year — Retail Jeweller

• Team of the Year — TH March

The breadth of the list reflects the structure of the modern jewellery trade. It includes businesses working across product, media, insurance, protection, education, manufacturing, retail presentation and professional services.

Rather than concentrating solely on commercial performance, the categories also recognise the people and initiatives that sustain the industry, including workshop professionals, rising talent, customer champions, community projects and those whose contribution often takes place behind the scenes.

Curteis returns as headline sponsor of the 2026 NAJ Awards, joined by businesses and organisations supporting categories across the jewellery industry. Image courtesy of the National Association of Jewellers

Curteis Returns as Headline Sponsor

Curteis’ return for a fourth year gives the awards continuity at headline level while the wider group of category sponsors continues to expand.

For an industry event, sponsorship is more than branding around a ceremony. It allows different parts of the trade to support the areas most closely connected to their own experience and values.

Visionary Displays, for example, is backing Store Design of the Year, a category that recognises how physical space, lighting and presentation shape the customer’s experience of jewellery. At The Bench will support Workshop Professional of the Year, while CMJ will sponsor the Rising Star category.

Together, the partnerships connect commercial organisations with the people, skills and ideas the awards have been created to celebrate.

ICC Birmingham prepared for the NAJ Awards, with blue lighting, illuminated balloon centrepieces and tables set for the jewellery industry’s annual celebration. Image courtesy of the National Association of Jewellers

A Reception Focused on Emerging Talent

AG Group, comprising Allied Gold, Brown & Newirth and AuOS, will sponsor the drinks reception and showcase that welcomes guests to the awards.

The reception display will feature work created by students from Birmingham City University’s School of Jewellery and the Aston University Goldsmiths Institute.

This places emerging makers in front of retailers, designers, manufacturers, suppliers and other established figures from across the trade. It also gives guests an opportunity to encounter the next generation’s work within the setting of one of the industry’s principal annual gatherings.

The student showcase adds a forward-looking dimension to the evening. While the awards recognise achievements already made, the reception will provide visibility for those beginning to shape the sector’s future.

Growing Support Across the Trade

NAJ Chief Executive Ben Massey described the response from sponsors as an encouraging sign of industry engagement.

“It’s hugely encouraging to see such strong support from across the jewellery industry for the NAJ Awards,” he said.

Massey added that the 2026 awards are supported by more businesses than ever, reflecting the continued development of the programme and wider participation from the NAJ membership community.

That support matters because awards can perform several functions at once. They recognise individual and collective achievement, give businesses a reason to examine their own progress and bring different parts of an otherwise geographically dispersed industry into the same room.

They also create visibility for work that might not ordinarily receive widespread attention, from community initiatives and responsible business programmes to workshop skill and exceptional customer service.

Ben Massey, Chief Executive of the National Association of Jewellers. Image courtesy of the NAJ

An Evening at ICC Birmingham

The ceremony returns to the International Convention Centre in central Birmingham on Thursday, 8 October 2026.

Tickets are priced at £195 plus VAT for NAJ members and £245 plus VAT for non-members. A 10% discount is available when purchasing five or more tickets, while bookings of tables for ten or more include complimentary VIP drinks packages.

The event’s three pillars — Great Ideas, Great People and Great Businesses — will support The Benevolent Society, the NAJ Educational Trust and the Silversmiths & Jewellers Charity, helping the three organisations continue their work across the trade.

The Jewels Club Take

The strength of the 2026 sponsor line-up lies in its breadth.

The jewellery industry is an interconnected network of designers, retailers, craftspeople, manufacturers, educators and service providers. The awards’ sponsors reflect that ecosystem, with each business lending its support to an area that helps the wider trade function and progress.

The involvement of Birmingham City University and the Aston University Goldsmiths Institute is particularly valuable. Giving students a professional platform alongside established businesses connects education with opportunity and ensures the evening is not focused exclusively on past achievement.

For the awards to retain their relevance, they must recognise established excellence while making space for new talent. The 2026 programme appears designed to do both.

Discover More

View the finalists, event information and ticket options on the official NAJ Awards 2026 page.