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SELLING PEARLS

The town of Broome has many pearling shops and boutiques offering pearls direct from the sea, as well as pearl jewellery, in a wide range of products, unmatched in the world for variety and quality. Retail sales in Broome totaled several million dollars in 1994 of which is expected to pass $10,000,000 a year before the end of the 1990's. This is an extremely important contribution to the towns economy, and the development of pearl retail stores and businesses has promoted Broome as a tourist attraction as well as generating jobs.
Large scale pearling companies, such as Paspaley Pearls, establish annual auctions which are held at various locations in the world, some major centres being Tokyo, Darwin, Brisbane, and Hong Kong. They are attended by top buyers from all over the world, who spend as long as 4-5 days examining pearls in minute detail, before the actual auction takes place. When bidding commences, sums in excess of US$1,000,000 are paid for exquisite pearls.
These auctions bring the world's best known jewellery agents and buyers together, assisting in widening international exposure to the splendour of Australia's South Sea pearls.