Did You Go To The Vegas Show?

Lagos

DANIEL GORDON, PRESIDENT
SAMUEL GORDON JEWELERS
OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA

“ I did go to the shows, along with my sales manager. We had a plan of action. We stay on a pretty consistent reorder system and we use the show more for fall and the holidays. And then we took on two new lines: Lisa Nik — colored gemstones and gold or white gold, very colorful — and Royal Asscher’s Stars of Africa fashion jewelry with the floating diamonds.

“I thought the show was upbeat. You could really tell that people are networking more efficiently. It’s about turn and turn ratios. Vendors were much more accommodating. I see the trend of big stores, and ours is a pretty big store, with a lot of brands wanting to be more important to fewer people. I think our industry is finally figuring out you can’t be a store that doesn’t carve out a niche and that has 20 or 30 brands, unless you’re in a huge market. And I think people are wising up and it might even have a little to do with technology. We’re all saying how successful Apple is. They have very few products but they’re all the best they can be. I get the vibe that our industry is going toward picking fewer items and doing real well with that. I think everyone is realizing that’s the way.”

PETER MANKA JR., OWNER           
BEN GARELICK JEWELERS
BUFFALO, NEW YORK

“We didn’t go this year. I went to Centurion in February and I will probably go to Luxury Privé in July. Too many shows!”

RONDA DAILY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
BREMER JEWELRY
PEORIA, ILLINOIS

“We went to the Continental Buying Group, Couture, Luxury, JCK and Swiss Watch. We have a consistent ‘open to buy’ about what we need to have in the store. We keep our in-stock stuff up to date; we don’t let things slow down and then buy it all in Vegas. We did some trade-backs, exchanges for new merchandise with people we do a lot of business with. We looked at everything new and then we came back and we looked at where the new lines might fit in with our budget for the third and fourth quarters. Going to the shows was a good educational opportunity for my staff and myself.

“We bought things we needed to buy. TAG Heuer has its new summer and fall and Christmas stuff and we bought that. Belle Étoile, which we already have in our stores, came out with some new, cool items. So we’ll probably do some good stuff with that.

“I’m the outgoing president of the Continental Buying Group and I think from a retailer point of view, that show was amazing. It was a buying show and the vendors were very happy with what the retailers did. At Luxury, I only heard good things from the floor. Simon G did some beautiful things that I’m very excited about. Tacori had a new booth that was one of the best of the show. And I thought they brought a lot of new and exciting things to the table. JCK is just JCK. There were a lot of people there. You don’t really have time to talk with people; you’re on a mission to get what you need done.”

WAYNE ADDESSI, PRESIDENT
ADDESSI JEWELERS
RIDGEFIELD, CONNECTICUT

“I did not go. I didn’t need to go. I think JCK is just too big of a show. I like the smaller, boutique-type shows. There’s too much there.”

AMANDA COLEMAN-PHELPS,
ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER
NELSON COLEMAN JEWELERS
TOWSON, MARYLAND

“We did go — our buyers just came back from the JCK show — and we did buy. We do a lot of ‘hold for confirmation’ so our sales team can see the line and whether or not it’s something they believe they can sell. We find that our stock turn and our inventory benefit from that immensely. We were looking to both add new lines and restock. We balance to buy so we did have holes in our stock that we needed to fill. We did purchase loose diamonds and some estate and fashion. We carry Tacori fashion and we filled some holes there…we did a little bit of everything.   

“The feeling was that it was a good show — the buyers worked very hard. We’re part of Independent Jewelers Organization (IJO), so we go to their show, and we’re part of Leading Jewelers Guild and we go there. We try to attend as many shows as we can — there’s always a mission when we go.”

PHILIP FAULK, OWNER
JERGER JEWELERS
THOMASVILLE, GEORGIA

“I went and I bought. I knew what I was looking for to fill in fashion stock, not adding a new line. I did the gamut — JCK, Luxury, Couture, AGTA and Estate. I did my shopping at Luxury and Couture. I thought the show was very good; I enjoyed it. I felt it was upbeat.”

JIM ANDERSON, OWNER
MORGAN’S JEWELERS
WINONA, MINNESOTA

“We have gone to the Vegas shows at times in the past, but I go to four other shows during the year. Sometimes I hit them, other times I don’t.”

JAMES ORLOFF, PRESIDENT
ORLOFF JEWELERS
FRESNO, CALIFORNIA

“We were at JCK, Luxury and Couture. We were looking for something that would stand out this year, something that would make a statement and that wasn’t the ordinary. I don’t generally buy diamonds at the show. I was looking for something unique, something a little bit special. We lean toward quality and we love color, because the world is not black and white.

“I didn’t find any tremendous standouts at the JCK show. I did find some interesting companies at Luxury. But it was at the Couture show that I found the most unique items.
We bought some items and we’re ‘mulling’ about others, looking toward working some arrangements in the next 60 days.

“The mood was much better this year. I found people seemed much better spirited. I didn’t get to spend as much time in the JCK event as I did in Luxury or Couture. I do find that show very difficult to maneuver. But I found the people we were working with were more gracious. There was a lot of warmth this year; it felt a little bit like the old days and that was kind of nice.”

Article from the Rapaport Magazine - July 2012. To subscribe click here.