Industry Processes: Body Jewelry Manufacturing And Technology

Since ancient times, body jewelry has been a part of many civilizations, using it as a rite of passage or a sign of honor and bravery. Today, body piercing and jewelry have a more unique use: to establish self-identity and individuality, standing out and going for non-conformity. This does not mean that body piercing jewelry is a maverick practice but with the changing social perception and the importance of standing for things that a person believe in, it plays a vital role to not just blend in the crowd.

Jewelry used in body piercing has evolved significantly, from ancient civilization only using natural materials like bones and horns of animals to now modern jewelry utilizing alternative metals like stainless steel, titanium and others. Now, there is a wide variety of materials used from contemporary metals to man-made materials like carbon fiber, acrylic, plastics and more which give more and more choices for consumers and retailers alike. Though the rising trend of organic body piercing jewelry is reviving the use of natural materials like wood, animal bones and horns which further enlarge the market for such products.

Most manufacturing process of body piercing jewelry are mass production, utilizing automated machineries to keep up with rising demand for such jewelry. The use of alternative and contemporary metals also gave retailers more opportunities to expand. Stainless steel body piercing jewelry is particularly popular nowadays because of its unique characteristics which include corrosion resistance, durability, affordability and flexibility in manufacturing. Titanium is also rising in popularity in body piercing jewelry because like stainless steel, titanium can be processed to have different colors and can even resemble precious metals like gold using anodization. Stainless steel on the other hand can be made to produce different colors using PVD coating technology also known as physical vapor deposition.

Designing body piercing jewelry also has evolved with more and more high end designers expanding to body piercing jewelry instead of just focusing on the established markets of fashion or costume jewelry. Previously unavailable, smaller gauges of body piercing jewelry is now getting more and more popular due to the comfort and design styles available. Also, people who do not wish to have permanent modification like piercings can purchase non-piercing body jewelry like magnetic or clip-on jewelry.

Most body piercing jewelry are distributed as wholesale products that retailers, piercing shops and other novelty stores can offer customers a wide range of products. Wholesale body piercing jewelry is also relatively cheaper for retailers and piercing shops compared to fabricating their own jewelry. The affordability of piercing jewelry gives consumers more variety and choice. In an industry perspective, body piercing jewelry has been a profitable venture for more entrepreneurs as it has proven to resist unstable economic crisis like the recession because many piercing shops reported that their profits remained the same during the period.

The body jewelry and piercing industry has come a long way from the ancient practice of only using natural materials and crude piercing techniques. With the improving technology and piercing techniques, the body piercing jewelry industry is believed to grow more and more in the future.