Jewelry sales were a mixed bag over the third weekend of the holiday season, with shoppers showing interest in colored stones despite the recent controversy over "blood rubies," reported several retailers who spoke with National Jeweler today.
At Newton's Jewelers in Fort Smith, Ark., owner Kelly Newton said sales continue to be strong, citing Rolex watches and Journey diamond jewelry as two of the store's top sellers.
Newton said his sales are "way better" than they were at the same time last year with twice as much foot traffic, and that the average sale price is double what it was last year.
"We're busy every minute of the day," Newton said.
Georgia Burke of B.C. Burke Fine Jewelry in Orland, Maine, said her freestanding store is getting busy now, especially since people in her area hit the malls the first week of December.
"It's picking up," she said. "Every day is better than yesterday."
As for top sales, Burke said engagement rings and Journey pendants are doing well.
At Allen's Jewelers in Albany, Ga., owner Steve Allen said sales this last week have been fine and are in line with 2006 results.
"We've had some good sales," he said.
Sales at Susan Eisen Fine Jewelry and Watches, with two locations in El Paso, Texas, were also good over the weekend, but owner Susan Eisen expects the rush to occur right before Christmas and is trying to be three steps ahead to stay prepared.
At Anshus Jewelers in Menomonie, Wis., owner John Anshus said business is up slightly from the same time last year.
"It really opened up this past week," he said.
Top sellers at his store include gold chains and pendants as well as tanzanite, which he credits to television-shopping networks such as QVC that educate consumers about the stones. Rubies, emeralds and sapphires are also selling well.
Other jewelry retailers National Jeweler spoke with did not fare as well over the weekend.
At Evan James Ltd. in Brattleboro, Vt., owner Evan James Deutsch said sales this past weekend were dead on compared with last year.
As for top sellers, he said diamonds are always a strong category.
He also said an interesting trend is customers coming in requesting major restorations on jewelry pieces for Christmas.
At Leonard's Jewelers in Mount Airy, N.C., owner Walter Leonard Jr. said his sales have been poor considering it's the holiday season: They are happening but not in bulk.
"People are counting their pennies," he said, citing the closing of several factories in the area and the Internet as reasons for struggling sales.
Of the sales that are occurring, Leonard Jr. said diamonds are doing well.
"I have my fingers crossed about the rest of the season," he said.
At R.H. Bockstruck, a small private jeweler in Edina, Minn., owner Rob Bockstruck said it was a "fairly slow weekend" for him, but he's expecting the month to finish strong as he always has a rush in the last 10 days before Christmas.
At Alvin Goldfarb Jewelers in Bellevue, Wash., owner Steve Goldfarb had a split weekend: Saturday was robust while Sunday slowed.
He said moderately priced items—those in the $2,500 to $6,000 range—continue to be his top sellers. But he's surprised he's not doing more business with gift items, such as crystal pieces in the $100-$300 range.
Of the retailers National Jeweler spoke with, none had customers inquire about "blood rubies," considered to be among the most coveted rubies because of their rich red colors, but labeled as such by major news sources for their role in financing human-rights abuses occurring in Myanmar (formerly Burma).
Anshus of Anshus Jewelers said that even with robust ruby sales, customers haven't asked about the stones.
Both Bockstruck of R.H. Bockstruck and Newton of Newton's Jewelers agree, saying that no one has asked about blood rubies, just as no one asked about "blood diamonds" when they were at the height of media attention.
Goldfarb of Alvin Goldfarb Jewelers said he hasn't received any inquires about blood rubies either, although he acknowledges that he doesn't normally sell a lot of rubies.
"I've heard nothing about it," he said.
Similarly, Jim Jessop of Jessop Jeweler in San Diego, Calif., said he hasn't had any inquires about blood rubies, despite the fact that colored gemstones are a strong seller for him this holiday season.
Overall, he reported that he's had some larger purchases as well as "basic" Christmas gift buys, making for a good holiday season so far.
"We've had a really strong start to the month of December," Jessop said.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork
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