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| Gabriel & Co. |
November is hunting season in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
(UP), but not necessarily just for deer. At Richardson Jewelers’ two UP stores
in Marquette and Escanaba, it’s a time for ladies who prefer to shop rather
than shoot to target the jewelry they’d like to find under their Christmas
tree. November 15 is Deer Day in the UP, the official first day of deer hunting
season, an activity that is so popular local schools and businesses are closed
in honor of the event. With the men off hunting, owner Jeff Richardson hosts
Ladies Night at his stores for women to come in for a party and fill out their
holiday wish lists.
Other promotions and product lines also tap into the area’s
reputation as a sportsman’s paradise and home to some notable football teams.
Richardson’s website recently offered male customers a bonus pair of Red Wing
boots or a knife from Rapid River Knifeworks when they purchase an engagement
ring or anniversary band. And camouflage-patterned men’s rings inlaid with
titanium, cobalt, chromium or black zirconium were featured website products.
In mid-December, there is Men’s Night, at which revelers are presented with their
wives’ and girlfriends’ wish lists, as well as a chance to win one of many
sports-related giveaways. “It’s a huge event,” says Richardson. “In fact, it’s
our largest one-night event of the year.”
The two Richardson stores, located about 70 miles apart, serve
quite different customer groups. Escanaba, on the shores of Lake Michigan, is a
town of about 12,000. The major industry in the town is the logging business
and local people are very active in outdoor activities and sports. The
Marquette store, just off Lake Superior, is located in a more diversified
community that includes Northern Michigan University and Marquette General
Hospital. This small city recently also had the distinction of being named by
CNN/Money as one of the five top places in which to retire in the U.S.
Owning a jewelry store wasn’t on Richardson’s mind when he
was in college, where he studied teaching, with a vision of becoming a school’s
football coach. But he agreed to help out a friend who owned a jewelry store in
a mall in Marinette, Wisconsin. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Richardson became hooked on jewelry and enthusiastic about being a jewelry
retailer.
“In the beginning, I had absolutely no product knowledge,
and had to learn on the job,” recalls Richardson, adding that he took
home-study Gemological Institute of America (GIA) courses. “When my friend
decided to sell his Escanaba store, he offered it to me. I discussed it with my
wife Peg and we decided to become store owners. We had our official opening in
1998.” The couple opened the second store in Marquette in 2003.
In both stores, Richardson provides a full range of products
and services for customers, including some branded jewelry — Gabriel & Co.,
Leslie’s and Pandora, as well as smaller lines such as Frederic Duclos and Elle
— but tends to avoid the big marquee names. Lately, there has been a lot more
interest in silver jewelry, the retailer notes. The store also stresses custom
designs and services that include diamond upgrades, jewelry and watch repairs,
appraisals and gold buying.
The retailer sells finished goods and maintains a large
inventory of loose diamonds.
Qualities in general range from D to J in color, SI and above in
clarity. “We don’t have much VVS and better and don’t stock I1 and lower,” he
says. “My customers want a diamond that is clean to the eye and faces up
white.” With diamond engagement rings, the minimum size is usually a
half-carat, but he also sells a lot of 1-carat sizes.
Custom work is a big part of Richardson’s business. He says
computer-aided design (CAD) has been revolutionary. “You are the designer;
we’re here to help” is what he tells his customers. They meet and sketch out
the design, he emails a three-dimensional picture to the client, has the wax
made for their approval, then has the ring cast and finished, often in a matter
of days.
Although he has two bench jewelers on premises — one being his 20-year-old son,
Brennan — Richardson says he outsources the CAD design, wax carving and
casting. Since his sources can offer a 24-to-48-hour turnaround, there’s no
need to do this production in-house.
Richardson says his website has been highly effective in
drawing in both younger shoppers and potential customers who live a distance
away. “It’s a great way to give information without being intimidating,”
Richardson says. While his web-based sales are growing, he says, for the most
part, customers do their research on the site, then come into the store to see
the products.
One of the more popular sections on the site is Richardson’s
PPK (Proposal Planning Kit). The design of this section, known as Richardson’s
Official Step-by-Step Guide and Playbook, resembles a sports playbook and the
copy includes play-by-play ideas with sports-related terms. Overall, it’s a
casual, friendly outline of ideas for how and when to pop the question, ranging
from quiet personal moments to over-the-top public declarations involving
billboards and the internet.
Richardson says he “studies his numbers” for each month and
if they are lower than expected, he creates an event that builds traffic. For
example, January is traditionally slow, so Richardson dubbed it “custom design
month,” a time for clients to bring in their old or unworn jewelry and create
new pieces.
March wasn’t so strong a couple of years ago, so Richardson
initiated March Mayhem, a diamond-upgrading event. Christmas in July has proven
to be a fine time to clear out old stock and in October, a “mystery envelope”
is included in the local newspaper that people must bring into the store to
open and claim prizes. “It’s important to be proactive in this business,”
Richardson says.
In addition to his son Brennan, Richardson’s other children
are involved with the day-to-day workings of the store. Son Tim, who recently
graduated from college, is managing the Escanaba store and daughter Maggie,
still in school, helps in the office and with special events. While he’s trying
not to make definite plans for the future, Richardson hopes his children will
want to take over the business someday.
Not that he’s ready to retire anytime soon. “While I’d never
want to leave the industry, I’d like to get to the point where I am able to do
other things, such as travel. But I still want to keep connected. You see, I
never feel that I come here to work; I have a passion for it.”
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - October 2012. To subscribe click here.