The price of jewelry and diamonds keeps going up, but the economy still is in the dumps. Many speculate that the world market is causing the higher prices of jewelry as demand in more economically sound countries keeps rising. Polished diamonds and gold are rising at a high rate, but gold is definitely soaring as it has reached over $1,600 an ounce, which is staggering considering that gold was one-fifth of that price less than ten years ago. These price rises would normally cause people to run and hide from any of those types of purchases, but things are well in the jewelry retail industry. Many are skeptical of the economy here in the United States and have turned to discounting and coupons to help their clients save money. They have no choice but to raise prices as the cost of making the designs is always going up it seems. Some of the promotions are simple an entail a small percentage off for certain items while other promotions are outlandish, but seem to be getting a lot of press coverage, which is good for the shop and its owners.
Mitchell’s Jewelry Store in Norman, Oklahoma has taken the promotion idea and really put it to the test. He offered a promotion where if you bought jewelry between June 1st and June 22nd, you could get your money back. Sounds like a great idea, but there was a catch, the temperature had to reach 100 degrees at Will Rogers World Airport before the payout could happen. Well, it hit 102 degrees and now Mitchell’s is paying out. You would think that it is pretty crazy of a promotion, but the payout was covered by an insurance policy that was pretty expensive I would imagine. In a gambling world, this one paid off for Mitchell’s as well as their customers, not so much for the insurance company that had to pay out over $220,000 to a bunch of very excited folks who may have only bought in the first place because of the promotion, so kudos to them for making that decision. Mitchell’s made the payout, which occurred on July 14 and 15, a media event where they showed the customers around hoping they would buy more stuff and it was also catered, which is a nice touch and not so common when you have to payout that much money.
The jewelry business is fraught with stress. Who knows how many people will buy and how many will stay home and hold onto their money. Jewelry stores go out of business all the time and if they are not aggressive, they can really lose a lot of money. When you are in a retail business, promotions can help, but if they are not done right, they can lose you money or cause your business to be devalued in reputation, so you have to be very careful when you put one into place. Make sure it will work as best as you can and be true to your word and honest with your customers.
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