There’s an idea that doesn’t get enough attention in jewellery. It explains more about who wins commercially in this industry than almost anything else. It’s called a product franchise, not a brand, not a collection, but a single design that keeps generating revenue year after year.

The word is borrowed from business, where a franchise is a system that replicates value reliably. Applied to a product, it means the same thing: a design idea that keeps producing returns long after the initial launch investment has been made.

Read more: What Vegas revealed about the future of jewellery

A CEO that I once had the pleasure of working for and who shall remain anonymous, always referenced the Nike Air Force 1 as the ultimate example of a product franchise.   Launched in the early 1980’s the Air Force 1 has been in continuous production ever since – and I believe it’s the only shoe in Nike’s history that has never been officially retired.  Estimated annual sales are close to $1 billion, based almost entirely on the strength of the original design.  

What makes it the clearest example across any consumer category is that it hits every point on the franchise tick list simultaneously. The identity is fixed. Cultural adaptions are used to drive demand, think new colourways, Travis Scott collaborations & limited-edition drops.  Each update creates a new reason to buy again without ever altering the base identity of the product and consistently creating relevance to refresh the Air Force 1 franchise.