Pandora. Solid to plated.
Pandora is ditching silver because the price tripled in three weeks and then fell by a third overnight. Its answer is platinum, or at least the name.
THE GIST ON PANDORA: "Solid to Plated"
Why is Pandora dropping silver?
Pandora buys 300 tons of silver a year, and the price has been all over the place since January. So it is switching to platinum, but not solid platinum: a thin platinum coating over a cheap, stable alloy. An 80 pound bracelet stays 80 pounds, it doesn't tarnish, and Pandora opts out of the commodity markets.
What is actually happening?
Customers think they're buying platinum. You'll never know the difference by looking. But you're going from solid sterling silver, a true and real metal, to a lookalike with a more valuable-sounding name.
Is it just Pandora?
It's happening everywhere. Solid silver becomes plated alloy, leather becomes bonded leather dust, solid wood becomes particle board veneer. You pay the same for less, and they change what they call it. Turns out the best solution to volatile metal prices is convincing you they didn't matter in the first place.
Is plated jewellery fine if the price stays put?
Your take. One tap, then see how everyone else voted.
Quick answers
Why is Pandora moving away from silver?
The price tripled in three weeks and then dropped by a third overnight.
Is the new Pandora solid platinum?
No, it is platinum-plated over a cheap, stable alloy.
What happens to the price?
An 80 pound bracelet stays 80 pounds.
See you on the next one.
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