Live from Vegas - Day 4

Live from Vegas – Day 4 – JCK Opens

Breakfast session with Robin Lewis and Michael Dart told us about The New Rules of Retail.  They covered the last 160 years and made a good case that we’ve progressed from producer power, to marketing power and now to consumer power.  The current status of retail yields “unlimited access to increasing volumes of goods instantaneously.”  Their conclusions were encouraging for the people I write to, because among all of these issues, those who can react to client wants and give them a great experience will triumph over mass-market retailers.  Developing “neurological connections” means not just fulfilling consumer needs, but satisfying dreams.

The session finished, and we hit the sales floor, selecting new product for Courtney Gold from two of our major suppliers.  Yes, our suppliers exhibit in Vegas.  You can go and see a feature presentation of some of the latest product, but no individual retailer could effectively purchase the minimum orders to buy directly from them.  I did have the pleasure of working one a client who loves one of those lines, and we ordered some special pieces for them that we would otherwise not be carrying in Canada.

It was fantastic to see so many Canadians in attendance at JCK.  What is even more encouraging is that they were highly visible in the educational forums.  I love to see us learning, because I’m convinced that smarter jewellers compete more effectively against other consumer goods. 

A number of Western Canadian, including the Austens, Fishers and Cardiffs got together for some wine and lively conversation after the show closed.  It was also my privilege to attend the Canadian 24kt dinner as a guest of Steve Parker.  I enjoyed visiting with Susan Cartwright-Coats of Cartwright Jewellers, Connie Kitigawa of Digem, Varouj Tabakian (jewellery designer), Carmen Rivee (Montreal based retailer,) Doug Irwin of Citizen Watch, Andrew Foster of Foster & Sons, Richard Smith of 5^th Avenue Jewellers and many others.