We have only been a part of the Australian jewellery market for a short time and we were initially surprised to see how little jewellers were doing to ensure their stores provided unique shopping experiences. On the whole, merchandising in the jewellery retail environment was sadly lacking - in comparison to fashion/gift stores, and other retailers.
In our early days, I would sit outside a traditional jewellery store that was next to a trendy gift store and I would count the number of potential customers who would walk into both stores. Most often, I would find 10 would walk into the gift store for every one that would walk into the jewellery store. It was common practice for customers to browse in a gift store or a clothing store but customers generally didn't browse in a jewellery store.
It seemed to be generally accepted by the jewellery stores that customers would only come through the door if they had a specific purchase in mind. Most jewellers believed that this was the way it was and they would not question the customer's apparent lack of interest. We wanted to challenge this way of thinking!
What did jewellery stores need to do to enable them to attract customers to come in and browse in the same way that customers came to gift stores? Where was the enticer to inspire them?
If you have more people in your store, then you create more sales opportunities.
The challenge is to convert these people into customers.
Fashion retailers change their windows frequently and are constantly adjusting their displays and their message to keep up with the latest trends. This attracts people into their stores.
There are many stores competing in the jewellery retail segment and we have noticed that the ones constantly renewing themselves and the look of their stores, seem to be winning the race.
We've also noticed that the jewellers who are stocking watch brands have displays that support those brands - displays designed in such a way as to capitalise on the knowledge that customers already had about the watch brands.
Furthermore, the watch brands ensure that these displays are constantly renewed and updated, which is due in part to strong competition in the watch market and the fact that the watch brands know that good merchandising equals a strong competitive edge.
There is a huge amount of jewellery product in the Australian market but very few lines are branded; very few have a story - something that the customer can relate to and be inspired by.
The question we asked ourselves in preparation for launching a new brand into this market was, "How can we inspire potential customers into jewellery stores?"
We have only three seconds to capture the customer's attention, which is the average time it takes for them to walk past the front window. During this time we also need to get them into the store.
The most successful visual merchandising showcases the brand and its products, and highlights the link between a brand's advertising campaign and its merchandising display. This link encourages brand recall, which reinforces the brand message at point of sale.
All of this answered our initial question, which was to come up with a fully-integrated retail-support package, including advertising, visual merchandising, point of sale displays, packaging and public relations.
The results of this initiative are now tried and tested and have been hugely successful.
The challenge to implement the service has not been easy, as it is one thing to have brand recognition within the magazines, and another thing entirely to harness this message into an effective point of sale display. By far, the greatest challenge has been to convince the traditional jewellers of the benefits of changing the way they display their products and to convince them that they will inspire their customers and create more sales opportunities by creating a striking display.
There is not one answer for all businesses, but I say, "Have a go!" Consider new ways to display your products. Identify the key retail times and take this into account when designing new displays. Change the displays frequently, to keep the customers excited about your store. Monitor closely what works and what doesn't and make changes accordingly.
The world is getting smaller everyday and through the media and the internet, the customer's awareness of new products is growing rapidly.
The jewellery industry needs to show our customers that we are ready for the future and we are up for the challenge.
About the author
Name: Karin Adcock
Company: Pandora
Position: Managing Director
Qualifications: School Teacher, Entrepreneur
Years in the Industry: Four