IDE President Says Buyers Are Regaining Trust In Diamond Market After Hong Kong Jewelry Fair

Yoram Dvash, IDE president

The sentiment among returning Israeli exhibitors at the close of the September Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair was optimistic, according to Yoram Dvash, Israel Diamond Exchange president.

“In contrast to the last several years, this year’s show was marked by very good traffic,” he said. “Buyers came in large numbers and in addition to buyers from India, who come every year, there were many buyers from other East-Asian countries.”

Dvash said that although expectations had been modest due to the economic challenges facing Asian markets, the traffic on the first and second days was strong and centered on diamonds. “Sales were reasonable, if not in perfect congruence with the great number of buyers who attended, but all in all, we are feeling very optimistic.”

He added, “In Hong Kong we felt that buyers at the show were regaining trust in the market. They were very interested in the merchandise, and that’s an excellent sign for the future. The stability in polished prices in recent months has contributed to the trust by jewelers and manufacturers, and we are hopeful that buyers will stock plenty of merchandise ahead of the holiday season.”

During his stay in Hong Kong, Dvash met with global diamond leaders to discuss some of the most pressing challenges facing the industry. He conferred with WFDB President Ernie Blum about ways to improve credit conditions for the diamond industry, including finding additional financing sources and increasing bank credit to diamantaires. Dvash also met with Alrosa President Andrey Zharkov and Alrosa VP Andrei Polyakov to discuss the impact of synthetics on the natural diamond market.

The Israel Diamond Pavilion, organized by the Israel Diamond Institute Group of Companies, is one of the largest national exhibitors at the Hong Kong show, with 84 companies in more than 1150 square meters. There were also 15 additional Israeli companies exhibiting at different locations throughout the show. 

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Your Most Remarkable Emotional Tool: Surprise

This is one of a series of articles by Mónica Arias, "Excellence Expert" specialized in sales and customer service for luxury brands based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. These articles will focus on ways that sales and marketing professionals in the jewelry and luxury industries can improve their techniques.

If you are a good, experienced salesperson, chances are you love to continue your sales education. In fact, I believe that reading more and attending seminars and courses improves the quality of your customer service. However, it is not enough. Today, you need to learn more strategies. The main reason why you will be remembered by customers is what I call the emotional tool of surprise.

What do I mean? I will answer this question with some questions (after all, you already know of my passion for making them). How would you feel if you got something unexpected from a salesperson? Wouldn´t you agree that in such occasion your mind would probably make an effort to go back through its files and find the memory attached to the person who sent the surprise? Wouldn´t this simple act of being surprised make your day a happier? And because of that, wouldn´t you immediately attach this gesture with excellent service? Absolutely, is my answer.

Let me clarify. To send a surprise to your customers does not mean counting on a huge budget to do it. Nor does it mean hiring a detective to find out what each of your customers prefer (Once more questions are your best allies when it comes to learning about them).

Essentially, customers love surprises, and surprises can be strategically crafted for each of them. The more you know about them, the closer you will be to send the right surprise.

For example, years ago I used to have a client who loved dogs. She was single, lived on her own, and had two lovely dogs she bragged about all the time as if they were her own kids.

A few weeks after one of her purchases—and after having sent her my email acknowledgement to express gratitude for her acquisition—I decided to surprise her with something that would emotionally ring a bell in her brain and heart: I sent her two dog toys for both her “babies.”

Her response was amazing: She called me immediately to thank me for the presents, expressing her joy at watching her little pets playing around the house. She became one of my best customers for many years ever since. Budget? I believe I spent around 20 dollars for both toys (maybe less). Result? Outstanding: I managed to offer her my help for many years as a salesperson, closed fantastic sales, and build a strong and trusting long-term relationship that she still honors today.

Your surprises can also include beautiful crafted letters of acknowledgement you can enclose into lovely envelopes the color your customer adore, nicely arranged bunch of season flowers sent to office or home and useful desk accessories.

If you are the shop owner, your gifts will have to reflect this. Do not send 20 dollar gifts if you wish to make an emotional impact to your customers. I have met jewelry owners who did this (reputable, very well known ones, mind you) only to get logical, horrible responses from clients. I would suggest for example an original accessory like a fine pen—the one-of-a-kind- like that people adore—with your company´s logo and, if possible, the name of your customer engraved on it.

Love your customers. Make them feel they are special for you with surprises here and there and enjoy long-term happy clients and great results.

Mónica M. Arias
Excellence Expert: Helping you discover how to reach your next level through excellence.
contacto@monicaarias.com.ar
Copyright 2012

Crafting a Customer Database: Have Fun With It!

This is one of a series of articles by Mónica Arias of Excellence Consulting, a luxury sales and marketing consulting firm based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. These articles will focus on ways that sales and marketing professional in the jewelry and luxury industries can improve their techniques.

Your own sense of style, a smile and your creativity are the keys to crafting one of the greatest tools imaginable in your sales repertoire: the customer database.

It is no news that today more than ever customers in the worldwide luxury market are experts at searching the web for companies that match simplicity and excellence and offer superior items on a consistent basis. Moreover, luxury market customers have been networking through social media for years now and have learned to use social media to interact with those companies that get them inspired, effortlessly clicking the button to say “Yes” to the products they find irresistible and to recommend those products to their peers.

In this digital age your job as a salesperson has radically changed, as I have explained in previous articles. You now must move from the mindset “I know how to do my job pretty well” to “I need to learn more in order to serve my clients best.”

Don’t worry, though, there is no great mystery to this process. This is the secret: You must serve your customers in such a way that they feel and experience your excellent service during the sales process. More important, you must develop the ability to revive that experience of excellence long after the moment the customer visited your store or decided to purchase with you on line.

Start by asking each of your clients many questions (my favorite sales trick). Then, use the answers to craft a focused customer database that will help you immensely in providing superior customer service in the future.

An Excel or Word sheet will do as the place to store your data, but you might instead opt to hand write your own database on a beautiful and colorful notebook, probably posting there some encouraging phrases, shiny stickers or simply highlighted texts that can easily be retrieved when needed.

Let me share another secret: whatever means you use to craft your customer database, do it with grace and color; our brains work much better when our eyes are treated to lovely and beautiful images, especially if we create these images based on our own taste. Also, while you create your database, smile, even if you don´t want to. A key concept to remember and use: our brains do not distinguish between fake and real smiles, they just work much better the more we smile, even for no reason whatsoever (this of course is no news to seasoned sales reps).

Your Customer database is your best asset. Once you have crafted a list of each client’s information and have divided this valuable information into specific topic areas—name, address, language, likes, dislikes, family, product preferences, etc.—you will have an amazing tool enabling you to shine as the excellent service provider you are.

This gorgeous list, full of color and relevant information, is now your staunch ally, helping you to successfully pursue your unique "Emotional Strategic Campaign."

While enjoying the pleasure of crafting your unique customer database, think beyond the present moment to your of future fantastic sales. Fun guaranteed!

Mónica M. Arias

Excellence Expert & Consultant: Helping you discover how to reach your next level through excellence.

contacto@monicaarias.com.ar

Copyright 2012

Fossil 2nd Quarter Sales Up 30%

Fashion accessories designer, marketer and distributor Fossil Inc. said net sales increased by 30.6 percent to $412.6 million in the second quarter of the year. The company credits an improving global economy and an increase in watch sales as the cause for the strong results.

The Richardson, Texas-based company said gross profits for the period rose 41.7 percent $236.9 million, or nearly 58 percent of net sales. Operating income increased by 186.3 percent to $64.3 million, or 15.6% of net sales. And, net income increased by 227.8 percent to $54.5 million.

“An improving global economy, a resurgence in the fashion watch category and our laser focus to be a leader in the introduction of new materials and design innovation combined to deliver a 42 percent increase in our wholesale watch business during the second quarter,” said Mike Kovar, Fossil Inc. executive VP and CFO. “We are seeing balanced growth on a global basis and strong momentum among our major watch brands. In our FOSSIL retail and e-commerce channels, double-digit comparable stores sales, in addition to the strong performance in our Fossil brand watch sales, propelled a 28 percent increase in Fossil branded sales globally. All of this places us in excellent shape as we begin the second half of the year.”

The company, best known for its fashion watches, branded jewelry lines and leather goods, reported strong increases in watch sales globally, and to a lesser extent, the growth of the jewelry category in North America and Europe and the expansion of leather categories internationally.

Net sales from the North America wholesale segment for the period rose 37.percent, led by a resurgence in the overall fashion watch category. MICHAEL KORS, FOSSIL and MICHELE watches experienced the strongest performance. In addition, a steady flow of inventory replenishment as opposed to retailers generally de-stocking a year ago resulted in North American watch shipments increasing by 59.2 percent.

Meanwhile, North America wholesale accessory sales volumes increased 1.9 percent, primarily due to increased shipments of FOSSIL women's leather products and the expansion of the company's footwear and accessory jewelry categories, offsetting by a sales volume decline in men's leather products.

Internationally, European second quarter wholesale net sales rose 30 percent. Wholesale watch shipments increased $18.6 million, or 28.9 percent, in constant dollars, with all major watch brands contributing to this increase. Leather and jewelry categories also contributed solid double-digit increases. The largest net sales contributions were FOSSIL watches and jewelry and licensed brand watches led by EMPORIO ARMANI.

Asia Pacific wholesale shipments in the second quarter increased 28.8 percent, in constant dollars, year-over-year, led by watch and leather sales.

Direct to consumer net sales for the period rose 28 percent, or $22.5 million, on a constant dollar basis. Same-store sales gains of 15.5 percent and an 8.4 percent increase in the average number of company-owned stores open during the Second Quarter. Additionally, net sales from the company's e-commerce businesses increased 44.2 percent.

In its guidance, Fossil said it expects reported net sales to increase in a range of 25 percent to 27 percent with constant dollar net sales increasing in a range of 27 percent to 29 percent, respectively. For the fourth quarter, the company said it expects reported net sales to increase in a range of 14 percent to 16 percent with constant dollar sales increasing in a range of 18 percent to 20 percent.

Bulgari Posts Modest Sales Gain in Second Quarter

  

Italian luxury jeweler Bulgari Group is slowly climbing out from a disastrous 2009 as it post results Thursday for the first half of 2010.

The Rome-based company said sales for the period increased by 8.2 percent (11.8 percent at current exchange rates) to 443.3 million euro ($578.3 million) for the first half of 2010. It had an operating profit of 12.3 million euro ($16 million) and a net loss of 7.7 million euro ($10 million). However, the company says it was “a great improvement” compared to the 40.5 million euro ($52.8 million) loss of the first half of 2009, and it was negatively affected by exchange rates.

Bulgari also notes that it had a net profit of 600,000 euro ($782,783) for the second quarter.

During the half year, all product categories, with the exception of watches, contributed positively to growth.

Jewelry rose by 10.5 percent at comparable exchange rates (14.8 percent at current exchange rates). Watch sales decreased by 4.6 percent (1.2 percent at current exchange rates). Perfume sales grew 13.6 by percent for the period and accessory sales grew by 20.7 percent led by handbag sales in Bulgari-owned stores.

Sales in Europe grew by 1 percent (led by Italy’s growth at 2.7 percent) with clear signs of improvement in the second quarter in its directly owned stores, benefiting from increased tourism.

Business in the Americas grew by 52.7 percent, while sales in Japan, fell by 4 percent. Sales in the rest of Asia are still growing briskly at 21.4 percent led by China (29.7 percent). Sales in the Middle East were up 6.1 percent for the period, but couldn’t offset sales in other parts of the world, which was down 6.1 percent.

“I am pleased with the results achieved by the Group in the first half of the year, as they are in line with our forecasts and they confirm the validity of the strategies adopted and focused, on one hand, on cost containment and, on the other, on investment in our creativity and in the growth opportunities offered by the market,” said Francesco Trapani, Bulgari Group CEO. “In particular, the excellent performance of accessories is rewarding our project for diversification and verticalisation in this product category, which we carried out years ago, and our strong commitment for its subsequent development in terms of distribution and image. In light of July sales trends, I think it is reasonable at this time to confirm the validity of the ‘mid single digit’ growth guidance at comparable exchange rates for the yearly turnover, which we had already provided to the market, though I do hope that all the initiatives already in place and set to continue for the rest of the year will allow us to beat the guidance."