Driving Equality: A Strategic Imperative for the Future of Luxury

The Personal Roots of a Powerful Conviction: Championing Gender Equality

Iris Van der Veken's unwavering dedication to gender equality stems from profound personal experiences. Growing up in a household with strong female role models and supportive male figures instilled in her a foundational belief in courage and integrity. Her extensive career, which involved working in diverse manufacturing environments across several continents, revealed to her the direct and often disproportionate impact of corporate decisions on women, who frequently form the backbone of the workforce but are underrepresented in leadership roles. This firsthand observation solidified her conviction that gender equality is not merely a moral aspiration but a strategic necessity for business success.

The Global Landscape of Gender Disparity: A Call to Action

Despite some progress, the global pace of advancing women's leadership remains regrettably slow. Current data from reports like the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report (2025) indicate that full gender parity is still generations away. Women hold only about 30% of senior leadership positions worldwide and continue to face a significant wage gap, earning approximately 20% less than men. Representation at managerial and executive levels is particularly limited, with women occupying only three out of ten managerial roles and a mere 6% of CEO positions globally. These statistics underscore the urgent need for accelerated progress and reinforce the idea that promoting women's leadership is not an option but a vital requirement for growth and fairness.

Why Gender Equality is Crucial for the Luxury Sector: Attracting Talent and Building Trust

For the luxury industry, renowned for its commitment to excellence, creativity, and craftsmanship, integrating gender equality is paramount. It is essential for attracting and retaining diverse talent, fostering inclusive supply chains, and delivering on a promise of trust to an increasingly diverse consumer base. Women, who are responsible for a vast majority of jewelry purchases and are projected to control a significant portion of discretionary spending by 2028, represent a powerful market segment. Therefore, a fundamental shift in mindset is required across the industry to actively advance this agenda. Organizations must integrate inclusion into their core identity to appeal to younger professionals who prioritize purpose and social impact, ensuring workplaces reflect the diversity of the real world.

Committing to Change: The First Steps Towards an Inclusive Culture

Building a genuinely inclusive corporate culture begins with a strong commitment from top leadership. The leadership's stance is crucial for embedding gender considerations into the overall business strategy. Gender equality must become an intrinsic part of the organization's fabric, integrated into every function, from executive decisions to daily operations on the shop floor. WJI 2030 encourages companies to adopt the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs), a framework developed by UN Women and the UN Global Compact. These seven principles offer a clear roadmap for businesses to promote gender equality and women's empowerment within the workplace, marketplace, and broader community. The journey involves understanding a company's current position, developing a phased roadmap, and utilizing educational tools and guidance that incorporate evolving compliance requirements.

Advanced Strategies for Empowering Women: Gender Responsive Procurement

For more established companies, WJI 2030 advocates for advanced strategies such as Gender Responsive Procurement (GRP). Given that the private sector spends trillions on suppliers, with less than 1% reaching women-owned businesses, GRP represents a massive opportunity for impact and economic empowerment. WJI 2030's pilot program on GRP revealed that while corporate gender commitments were strong, standalone GRP policies and the tracking of women-owned suppliers were still in early stages. These findings led to the development of a comprehensive Gender Responsive Procurement Toolbox, designed to provide practical guidance, supplier engagement checklists, contract templates, and training materials to embed GRP across supply chains, benefiting individual companies and the industry at large.

Ensuring Credible Progress: Transparency and Accountability

Credible progress in gender equality is contingent upon measurable and transparent actions. WJI 2030 has developed the Impact Action Journey Framework, a digital reporting system that allows for real-time updates on sustainability progress. This platform provides guidance and templates aligned with regulatory and policy requirements, enhancing transparency by ensuring easy access to information and evidence-backed documentation for all claims. Effective accountability involves tracking key performance indicators such as the representation of women on boards, in management, and ensuring equal pay. WJI 2030 actively collaborates with UN Women and industry associations like CIBJO and UFBJOP to create an updated transparency and accountability roadmap that is both ambitious and practical for businesses of all sizes, promoting an inspiring exchange of commitment and vision among industry leaders.

A Vision for the Future: Dignity, Excellence, and Inclusivity in Luxury

The luxury industry, with its significant cultural influence, holds a unique responsibility to demonstrate that beauty, excellence, and dignity can coexist for everyone. Iris Van der Veken envisions an industry where inclusivity is ingrained in every aspect, where individuals from diverse backgrounds have equitable opportunities to contribute to strategy, craftsmanship, and leadership throughout the value chain. By embracing this vision, the watch and jewelry sector can not only create exceptional pieces but also subtly yet powerfully exemplify how an industry can champion dignity, equality, and long-term resilience. The hope is for collective action, continuous learning, and shared commitment to these ideals.