New York, NY – Oct. 10, 2018. In a sunny-colored room at the Liberty Hotel in Saigon, a crowd of journalists and pearl enthusiasts learned about the Cultured Pearl Association of America’s (CPAA) new Pearls As One course in Vietnamese.

The affair took place in late September, and CPAA board member Richard Blake addressed the crowd of 50-plus individuals invited by Circle of Love Founder Tam Mavroudis, who also translated the course into Vietnamese.

Tam Mavroudis (lt.) of Circle of Love and Richard Blake (rt.) of CPAA and Grassmann-Blake at a press conference in Saigon to unveil a Vietnamese-language edition of Pearls As One

“Vietnamese consumers and those in the pearl business in Vietnam have trouble understanding the quality differences in pearls,” explained the Vietnamese pearl wholesaler and jewelry maker with an office in San Francisco. “Pearls As One is exactly what we need for honesty in business and to represent quality pearls; this is the first time we have had a pearl course offered in Vietnamese!”

The idea to translate PAO into Vietnamese was born at the 2018 American Gem Trade Association’s Tucson GemFair, where Mavroudis met PAO creator Jeremy Shepherd. Mavroudis knew that PAO was already available in myriad languages and that her own countrymen would benefit from it, so she volunteered to translate the course. To date, CPAA has never charged anyone to take PAO, part of an effort to increase the number of pearl enthusiasts around the world.

The bright room where the press conference took place

Violinist at the press conference

“Now Vietnamese pearl lovers and dealers have the knowledge they need to confidently buy and sell good-quality pearls,” Mavroudis adds.

Tam Mavroudis explaining the importance of the
Vietnamese-language Pearls As One course

CPAA board member Richard Blake, of Grassmann-Blake, attended the event and addressed the crowd. In his speech, Blake talked about the history of CPAA and how it strives to improve education and awareness, and how Pearls As One furthers those goals.

Richard Blake accepting a gift after presenting his speech

“It was a great forum for us to explain who the CPAA is and how we help the pearl industry,” he explains. “Plus, Tam got about 40 new student sign-ups that day.”