Matthew Alexander is a jeweller on the move, literally. Not content with sitting at a workbench in a studio, the 25-year-old has instead decided to roam the streets of Brisbane in his mobile van cum jewellery workshop.
It’s not just any van either; Alexander spent about four months fitting-out the 1993 Toyota Hilux with the appropriate fittings, tools and equipment so that he could provide on-the-spot jewellery services to those in need.
The business model for Matthew Alexander Mobile Jewellery, which launched in early 2015, is akin to other on-the-move operations like the mobile mechanic, mobile locksmith or mobile pet groomer.
“You do need a certain type of personality to do something like this,” Alexander attests. “I know a lot of jewellers like to do their own custom work but they don’t necessarily want to interact with the customer. To do what I’m doing, you need to value and enjoy dealing with the customer to the same extent as the actual jewellery task.”
The innovative jeweller says he spends just as much time speaking with customers as he does performing the job at hand; the majority of work involves repairs, resizing or rhodium plating.
“Before starting any job, I always ask the customer if they would like to watch while I’m working,” he explains, adding that although not everyone chooses to stick around, many take him up on the offer.
“I do get a lot of clients who like to ask questions, so they’ll stand there while I’m working and ask me various things about jewellery.”
Industry accountability
Alexander believes this customer interaction not only provides his business with a point of difference but also could assist in promoting the skills and workmanship of the industry as a whole.
“I’m passionate about the industry and I want to help it by explaining to customers what quality is and sort of building up that knowledge so they can hold the industry accountable, and get it going strong by picking those good brands that do have quality over the ones that might not,” Alexander explains.
He is no stranger to the challenges faced by those working in the current market; he lost his job at a manufacturing jewellery store due to “financial trouble” in 2013. There was, however, a silver lining as it proved to be a catalyst for his novel idea, which originally involved custom-made work before evolving to what it is today.
Alexander says business is good, sometimes having five to six appointments per day as well as additional custom and repair work on the side.
“I think it [the business model] works because it’s quick, convenient and affordable for the customer.” Minimal overhead costs mean Alexander can keep prices at an ‘affordable’ level.
“I’ve had a number of customers refer to me as ‘their jeweller’ and that’s the sort of reputation that is building – they’ve got their own personal jeweller who comes out to their house.”
Alexander believes other jewellers might consider a similar model – he has been told of one jeweller in Melbourne offering a mobile service – especially given the increasing overheads of operating a physical store or workshop.
“Rent is becoming so expensive that it’s hard to afford a store anymore,” he says. “I’ve found recently, and also when I started up, that people will often ask, ‘How are you starting a business when a lot of other places are going bust?’
“I was sort of lucky in that before I started my apprenticeship, I was doing jewellery as a hobby so I bought all of my tools pretty much back then when I was working and had a bit more money,” he explains.
When it comes to service demand, Alexander says rhodium plating and resizing are by far the most common requests.
“A lot of people have wedding rings that need resizing but they might be putting it off because they don’t want to have to send it away for weeks on end for repair. I can actually just come along and do it on the spot, which means they can get it back straightaway.”
He also notes an increasing trend for rhodium plating on yellow gold wedding rings: “They might have been married for 20 years and in the beginning wanted yellow gold but now they want white gold. It’s just a change in taste and style and saves them from having to buy a new ring.”
Workarounds
Given Alexander works from a Toyota van, it’s reasonable to assume there will be some tasks he is unable to perform; however, it doesn’t appear to be a major obstacle for the jeweller.
“Even if I don’t have the tools myself – for example, a laser welder – I do know other jewellers who let me access their tools but that obviously means I have to take the job away off-site,” he says, adding that this will result in about a three-
day turnaround.
“There is also metalwork like steel and titanium that I am unable to do but I’m not too interested in getting into that side of things because it’s really a different sort of trade – there’s not much you can do with them [the metals] and you need specialised tools and it’s not something that’s a real big market.”
The young entrepreneur says he is hoping to complete a setting course soon though, which will allow him to expand the service offering.
“It [setting] would be pretty handy to be able to do. A lot of times I get re-fits or have pieces where stones are missing and I can do some basic setting, but a lot of the time I have to take it away to a setter to finalise.”
Investing in appropriate tools to offer a watch battery service – a frequent customer request – is also on the cards.
As for additional goals and aspirations, Alexander says he would like to expand his reach by owning multiple vans and employing other jewellers.
“I want to have a custom-made workshop too but I still want to be the face of the business. I’ll go out and meet up with all the customers and do that side of things and then all the work will come back to the jewellers who are working in the workshop or that are out and about doing the mobile stuff as well.”
On that note, the man and his van must make tracks – another jewellery mission awaits.