Jewelry sales are a lucrative industry, bringing in an average of $4.6 billion annually for sellers. However, jewelers retail is not without its challenges. With online competition gaining momentum and the COVID-19 pandemic driving people to stay home instead of shopping, jewelry stores must create a love-worthy customer experience, develop a technical pathway to their website, and establish the foundations needed to scale.
A successful jewelry business starts with a good supply chain, with a reliable wholesaler who understands market trends and consumer demands. A wholesaler can help a store identify its target audience and find a niche to make it stand out from the crowd, while ensuring it provides the highest quality of jewelry at an affordable price.
In addition to having a strong product mix, a jewelry store must have the right display equipment and merchandising techniques to appeal to consumers. The layout of the store, its theme, and the space available are important factors in deciding how to merchandise items. Jewelry trays, earring displays, necklace/bracelet displays and other specialized gondolas are popular methods of displaying jewelry. In addition, unique barcodes are assigned to each piece of jewelry, which makes it easier to track inventory and simplify the billing and check-out processes. The POS system in jewelry retailers allows owners to categorize each product by name, description, unit numbers, material used, brands and more.
Local jewelers are also better at understanding their customers and helping them choose the most suitable jewelry for their budget. Family owned jewelry shops are run by real people who are invested in their company on a fundamental level, meaning they can offer an open, honest, and genuine level of customer service that large chains simply cannot match. Moreover, many independent jewelry stores contribute to their communities, giving back and supporting the local economy in ways big box stores can’t.
Whether they are a small boutique or an established jewelry brand, all jewelers need to establish their reputation. Reputation is an important factor in attracting shoppers, and it can be achieved through marketing and word-of-mouth reviews. Having an excellent reputation can attract loyal customers and encourage repeat purchases, while a negative reputation will drive away potential buyers.
A jewelry store’s business strategy should focus on creating a unique and loved customer experience, as well as building a solid technical pathway for its website and making it easy for consumers to find products. In addition, the business should be transparent about how its products are sourced and made.
The jeweler’s retail environment should be safe and clean, and it must have an attractive and appealing atmosphere. In addition, the jewelry store should have a knowledgeable staff who can answer any questions that a customer might have. The company should also maintain a high BBB rating, as this shows that the shop takes its customer satisfaction seriously.
Many baby boomers are reaching retirement age and may be looking to sell their businesses. This is a tough decision, as it can be hard to find a buyer with the same passion for the jewelry business as the owner. Moreover, it’s increasingly difficult to find young people to take over the job of running a traditional jewelry store, which can make it harder for these stores to adapt and survive.
