|
|
Cover
Retail Rap
By Phyllis Schiller
 |
| Barbara Heinrich Studio |
The 4Cs are not the only things that make a piece of diamond jewelry a sales winner. In an ongoing series, Rapaport Magazine explores the “3Ws” — what’s selling, what’s not and why — by going straight to the people who really know — jewelry retailers. Each month, we ask a sampling of retailers to comment on the important issues that are facing the industry today. Here is what they had to say when asked: “What items that sold well for the holidays are you going to be reordering? What trends are you seeing for 2014?”
“We did really, really well with Hearts on Fire and Alex and Ani — they were the two biggest things we sold at Christmas. With Hearts on Fire, it was across the board; with Alex and Ani, it was their $28 retail bracelets. People were buying massive quantities of them; we sold more than 300 of them in December. We’ll be restocking both Hearts on Fire and Alex and Ani.
“Going forward in 2014, I think people are spending money more freely than they were in the years past. And being in the Midwest, we’re also affected by the oil and gas industry, which is getting big here locally, and people are definitely spending more than they used to. And a lot of new customers are coming in. They’re more brand oriented than they were in the past and part of the reason is the young people, who are doing their research on the internet and seeing what is advertised.”
“Diamond earrings were very popular during the holidays and I think there’s going to be a surge in rose gold. It’s coming back really strong.
“I think it’s going to get a little tighter as the year goes on because of all the things with the government that are going on. I think it’s going to slow down some and we’re not going to see a lot of the big-ticket items. But people will still come in and buy fine jewelry. They’re just not going to spend as much. And they’re going to be real picky about where they buy, so I don’t foresee them buying online because people need to feel, see and touch jewelry. And while I do foresee us being in a slower mode, people still get married and they’re still buying those 1- and 2-carat diamonds.”
“Loose diamonds and basically a lot of the fashion jewelry in silver with gold accents sold well over the holidays. The season was very similar to last year and, all things considered with the economy, we had a good year.
“January has been pretty strong, even with the weather and all. It’s been pretty consistent. I think people are spending a little more money. They are not buying a lot of the real large items but certainly a lot of the fashion. And there seem to be plenty of people out there buying the smaller things. In diamonds, we’re still selling a lot of G, H, SI1, SI2s; that seems to be the place people are most interested in right now.”
“I’m going to be stocking more colored diamonds in fashion pieces. They sold well during the holidays; blacks, browns and blues sold across the board. The price point is probably about $1,000.”
“Something new that we picked up that people are calling different names, such as Rhythm of Love and Dancing Diamonds — those sold very well for Christmas. So we’re going to stock them for Valentine’s Day in price points from a couple hundred dollars to several thousand dollars, with $400, $500 the sweet spot. And Pandora and Rolex and the brands, they’ve all been good. It was probably the best Christmas we’ve had, ever.
“I don’t think people are necessarily spending more; some people, yes, some people, no. But we’re getting more customers in — we’re averaging between 200 and 300 new customers a month. That trend, I think, is on the upswing, but what they actually spend is about the same.”
“A lot of our reordering is going to be bridal. We’re looking into new sterling silver lines, more designer, mid-range price. And as far as a trend, we’re seeing more yellow gold, more younger couples coming in looking for yellow.
“We had some requests over the holidays for different colored diamonds, necklaces and big, chunky rings, something more substantial with colored stone in it, under the $1,000 price point. We carry Tacori and that was really big this year.
“The ladies’ self-purchasing has increased quite a bit in fashion jewelry. When the recession hit, we moved so much into bridal, and now we see that the fashion is starting to come back and people are starting to spend a little more on that.”
“The holidays were pretty much standard all the way through — silver being our biggest volume, not necessarily in numbers but in quantity. We sold several unique pieces and emeralds. We had a good month with emeralds. I don’t know whether it was something unique to that month. I love color, so I’m going to lean more to that. I will always have it, but it’s not something I’m going to go after.
“I believe the real trend is going to be back to basics — diamond bracelets, diamond hoops, mostly diamond goods. I think we’re going to see a lot more engagement rings, hopefully, and I think the emphasis will be on quality. That’s where it seems to be going. People want something unique, something with better quality and they’re looking for value. It’s not so much discount as what they’re going to get in value. And that’s the type of stuff we’re reordering.”Article from the Rapaport Magazine - February 2014. To subscribe click here.
|
|
|
|