Every company in the world has cost inputs, some of it is people or human capital, some of it material costs. In terms of materials, often there are choices, but at some point something will be compromised to save costs. If a company saves costs, the better the potential margins which translates into profits which translates into dividends.

In an article by Eshe Nelson of the New York Times News Service, Pandora, the world’s largest jewelry brand by volume, typically buys 300 tons of silver every year. Silver prices have increased by so much that Pandora will use less silver in the charm bracelets and add platinum to hold down costs and keep prices similar to last year.

Silver at $80 an ounce is twice as expensive as it was a year ago.

Pandora, which prides itself on offering affordable luxury, the rapid increase in silver prices has affected its business model.

A year from now, the jeweler plans to have shifted at least half of its silver products to platinum plating on a metal alloy. The rise in platinum this year is about 3%.

Berta dee Pablos-Barbier, the CEO of Pandora said it is very risky for any business to be dependent – so highly – on one commodity price. Pandora is headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark and last year had revenue of $5.1 billion up about 2%.

The company makes most of its jewelry in Thailand and sell a substantial amount in the US. A successful rebranding and embrace of lab-grown diamonds helped propel Pandora’s shares to a record high in early 2025, then came US tariff policies and shares have slumped. Pandora was diversifying from Thailand with new facilities in Vietnam, but President Trump imposed 20% tariffs from both countries.

Linking to dividend paying stocks, what are the choices? what are the options? for every profit-making company these questions drive cost savings on a regular basis. For most companies almost everything has a choice which companies whether they make profits or trying to make profits examine on a regular basis. It is natural for processed foods to change successful formulas of food processing to less varieties to save costs. In this example, the cost of the raw material increased and the company tries to use less while trying to increase the use of another mine.

There are more questions than answers, till the next time – to raising questions.