Hospitality

Everybody wants to make huge sales to the rich and famous in your marketplace.  “It’s not fair” is a common complaint against locals who buy big expensive pieces of jewellery elsewhere.  But ask yourself two questions. 

• ·      Do you have the ability to show them a selection of designs in their price range?
• ·      Do you have a facility that caters to the added comfort that “carriage trade” clients are fond of?

I got a two-bit tour of a jewellery store the other day that knocked my socks off.  Get a load of the first thing clients see as they walk-in.  Even if you don’t have professional-grade fridges, granite counter-tops, leather couches and wide selection of beverages, you might want to think about doing something.

The name of the game is to have a level of hospitality that caters to the kinds of clients you’d like to serve.  If you want to serve the masses, make shopping simple, quick and convenient.  If you want to serve high-end clients, make shopping relaxed and comfortable.  In order to move from the former to the latter, you might have to sacrifice some of your square footage (which makes shopping simple quick and convenient) to create a space where you can take the time to entertain, and build relationships with your higher-end clients while selling them fabulous designs.  It’s always a treat for a valued client to be invited into some sort of “inner sanctum” from which the riff-raff are excluded.