• In a 2018 survey of over 5,000 people in Europe between the ages of 16 and 75, 67% said they want fashion brands to tell them where the materials used in their products come from, however, only 10% said that local production was important to them. In terms of demographic breakdown, this was true for 10% of those in Germany, 14% in France, 6% in Italy, 14% in Spain, and 5% in the U.K. Similarity, this was also true for 9% of those between the ages of 16-24, 8% of those between the ages of 25-34, 8% of those between the ages of 35-44, and 9% of those between the ages of 45-54. In terms of income, this was true for 8% of those with an income below €18,000; 11% of those with an income between €18,001-€36,000; 12% of those with an income between €36,001-€60,000, and 7% of those with an income over €60,000. Lastly, the same was true for 9% of female respondents and 11% of male respondents.
• A survey of over 2,100 Americans asked, on a scale of 1-5 how important are claims that a product (in general) has been locally sourced, with 5 being the most important: The average answer was 3.26. Likewise, when asked about small businesses and locally owned businesses, the answer was 3.21 and when asked about Made in America products the answer was 3.04. Interestingly, buying Made in America / from small, local businesses / locally sourced products was reported as being slightly more important among Conservatives as opposed to Democrats, as their responses are respectively as follows: Made in America (3.92 vs. 2.66), small/local businesses (3.43 vs. 3.16), and local sourcing (3.38 vs. 3.25). In this same vein, when consumers were asked to rate the level of how guilty they feel on a scale of 1-5 in regard to buying cheap clothing products overseas, with 1 being not guilty/bad at all, the average answer was 2.41.
• A survey published in 2019 found that 62% of Americans prefer buying products that were made in the U.S.
• In August 2020, Accenture reported that 56% of consumers surveyed reporting that they are "buying more locally sourced products, with 84% of those saying they plan to continue doing so long term."

• "May Yee Chen, APAC director at Wunderman Thompson Intelligence and the author of a report on Gen Z, suggests what attracts Gen Z is brands with purpose. 'This purpose can be as simple as a commitment to locally sourced materials, or to local heritage and community,' she says..."
• According to survey data published by the Jewelers of America in 2017 found that many consumers prefer shopping for jewelry at local stores vs. websites/big box/duty-free shops, especially when shopping for fine jewelry. Local stores and small businesses were the second most preferred shopping local for find jewelry shopping.
• According to Nielsen, there isn't a clear definition of what it meant by products that are local. However, 34% of Americans believe that shelf-stable goods can be considered local when they come from within the U.S.
• "According to Personality Radar, those who said that they prefer buying locally made goods when possible are likely to be established homeowners with strong ties to their community. They’re also likely to be interested in fun experiences but also concerned about things like health and the environment."

Results of Initial Research

• Information specific to buying local jewelry is scarce, however, there appears to be at least some insights publicly available. The vast majority of information talks about buying local in general or buying local food. Despite this, it's possible to continue this research by focusing on insights across the following veins: buying local in general, jewelry or fashion accessories specifically, and fashion in general. Allowing our team to include a broader range of insights like this will yield more sufficient results.
• It's difficult to find specific demographic data about consumers who buy local, especially those who buy local jewelry and even when focusing on consumers who buy local in general, recent data is a bit limited and difficult to find. However, it is possible to triangulate some of this using creative techniques, such as sampling some specific brands with local claims and conducting research to understand the demographics of their audience. This can be done using sites such as SimilarWeb, Google Trends, Numerator, etc.
• There is no standard definition for what it means to buy local or how "local" local must be to be considered local. Most of the available information doesn't clarify what this means in regard to survey responses of consumers etc. Local could be considered buying products local to ones own country, state, or city and it could mean buying from a locally-owned business, a local craftsman, or buying products that are locally sourced. For the continued research, it would be most ideal to take a broad approach to the definition of 'local' so that as many relevant insights can be obtained as possible, because the more narrow this definition becomes, the more severe the lack of information becomes as well.