Appointments

Brook Ellis, vice president of education for the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), has been elected an academic member of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) Accrediting Commission. In this position, Ellis (and other members of the commission) will oversee the accreditation of educational institutes for various industries. Ellis also was appointed to serve as vice chairman of the research and educational standards subcommittee for the 2002-2003 council year.

H. Marvin Beasley has been named president and chief operating officer for Helzberg Diamonds, North Kansas City, Mo. In his new position, he will be responsible for marketing, merchandising, distribution, and store operations. Also at Helzberg, J. Kevin Fitzpatrick has assumed the role of executive vice president of human resources.

QVC has appointed Karen Fitzgerald to the position of vice president of jewelry merchandising. She will be responsible for the direction, development, and strategic planning of all jewelry categories, including gold, gemstones, silver, watches, costume jewelry, and Diamonique jewelry, QVC's proprietary line of simulated diamonds.

Robert M. Rough has been named president and chief operating officer of Chippenhook Corp., a Texas-based designer and manufacturer of displays and packaging. He will oversee all operations of the company and will work to improve the jewelry and optical divisions in the areas of customer service and distribution.

Ohaus Corp. has appointed Ted Xia as president of the company, which manufactures balances and scales for the laboratory, industrial, education, jewelry, and specialty markets. The manufacturer is headquartered in Pine Brook, N.J.

Cartier has announced the promotion of several members of its marketing and retail division. Olivier Stip has been named senior vice president of marketing and communications; Catherine Alix has been appointed director, retail planning; and Mary Grieve Smith has been appointed assistant vice president, director of retail operations. Wes Carroll is the new northeast regional director, and Hamida Belkadi has been named senior director, jewelry marketing. Cynthia Fiske has been promoted to manager of Cartier's Fifth Avenue boutique, and Karen Adams is the new manager of the Madison Avenue boutique.

Laura Weil, executive vice president and chief financial officer of American Eagle Outfitters, has agreed to join the board of directors of Chicago-based Ultra Stores Inc. Ultra Stores Inc. is an off-price fine-jewelry chain currently operating 100 locations in outlet malls and leased departments within other value retailers.