With a little help from Nevada-based Odds On Promotions, Worcester, Mass. jewelry retailer will refund up to $250,000 based on the outcome of Saturday's football game between New England and the Giants.
Reno, NV (PRWEB) December 29, 2007 -- While football fans everywhere will be tuning in Saturday to see if New England can pull off the perfect season, in Worcester, Mass., Arpine Azizian, owner of Shavarsh Jewelry, will be watching to see if she'll be handing out $250,000 in free jewelry. This fall, Azizian ran a season-long sales promotion offering her customers a 100% rebate on their jewelry purchases if New England could finish the regular season undefeated, something that hasn't happened since the Dolphin's perfect season in 1972.
While most retailers would be concerned about the prospect of refunding $250,000, Azizian isn't the slightest bit concerned about the outcome of the game. In fact, she'll be cheering New England on to victory, thanks to an insurance policy underwritten by the Reno, Nevada-based insured-prize promotions company, Odds On Promotions.
According to Mark Gilmartin, President of Odds On Promotions, whose company will be picking up the tab for the free jewelry if the New England defeat the Giants, "Retailers utilize these kinds of promotions in order to attract more shoppers. In fact, conditional rebates are quite popular because they are fun for customers and are effective at helping retailers grab attention."
http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2007/12/prweb594742.htm
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Costume jewelry has more value if it's a signed piece
Bling is back -- and couldn't be more appropriate than during the holidays and on New Year's Eve, when a little sparkle adds to the festiveness of the season.
Today's fashionistas have even rediscovered the bling of the past, making yesterday's costume jewelry big business and a hot collectible, says Judith Miller, co-author of "Costume Jewelry (DK Collector's Guide)" (DK Publishing, $30).
"Costume jewelry is essentially a 20th-century term for jewelry made from non-precious metals, such as imitation gemstones and faux pearls set in silver or inexpensive base metals," she explains in Costume Jewelry. "Costume jewelry was often produced in large quantities, with pieces designed to go with each new season's outfits. Much of it was unsigned and was never intended to last for a long time. However, despite the inexpensive materials used, much costume jewelry is just as beautiful and as highly crafted as its precious counterpart and is now considered highly collectible. All that glitters may not be gold, but it certainly can be addictive."
Many of our mothers and grandmothers had jewelry boxes filled with the types of pieces that now bring top dollar at antique shows. Sharon Kennedy's mother was a fan of costume jewelry, she says, and she is lucky enough to still have many of her pieces.
"My mother was a big fan of jewelry and loved glitter," says Kennedy, of Detroit.
"When she passed away, I acquired numerous amounts of jewelry that she had collected over her years of living and traveling because of gospel singing in National Baptist conventions."
Kennedy brought a number of those pieces to Robert DuMouchelle for evaluation during a recent appraisal session.
DuMouchelle praised the jewelry's "sparkle factor," and its affordability and reinforced costume jewelry's growing popularity in the ever-changing world of antiques and collectibles.
"We definitely sell a lot of costume jewelry these days," he confirms. "While we often sell them in groupings, the individual pieces are collectible and bring varying amounts. The nice thing is that many people can afford to collect costume jewelry, and it's fun to wear."
DuMouchelle says that certain pieces bring a premium. "First, signed pieces are always worth more than non-signed," he says. "Big names such as Miriam Haskell, Chanel and Trifari bring more than later or lesser-known names. Unusual styles and rare pieces also command more."
Sharon brought in five or six pieces, saying she had even more at home. DuMouchelle thought that, although unsigned, her enameled parrot pin could bring $75-$125. The rest varied in value.
Kennedy has considered selling them, but can't seem to part with them.
"I have had some offers, but I haven't really decided what to do," she says. "I'm thinking of making a shadow box out of some of them and keeping one or two to wear. I wore one to an event the other day and got a lot of compliments.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071229/LIFESTYLE01/712290390/1038/LIFESTYLE01
Today's fashionistas have even rediscovered the bling of the past, making yesterday's costume jewelry big business and a hot collectible, says Judith Miller, co-author of "Costume Jewelry (DK Collector's Guide)" (DK Publishing, $30).
"Costume jewelry is essentially a 20th-century term for jewelry made from non-precious metals, such as imitation gemstones and faux pearls set in silver or inexpensive base metals," she explains in Costume Jewelry. "Costume jewelry was often produced in large quantities, with pieces designed to go with each new season's outfits. Much of it was unsigned and was never intended to last for a long time. However, despite the inexpensive materials used, much costume jewelry is just as beautiful and as highly crafted as its precious counterpart and is now considered highly collectible. All that glitters may not be gold, but it certainly can be addictive."
Many of our mothers and grandmothers had jewelry boxes filled with the types of pieces that now bring top dollar at antique shows. Sharon Kennedy's mother was a fan of costume jewelry, she says, and she is lucky enough to still have many of her pieces.
"My mother was a big fan of jewelry and loved glitter," says Kennedy, of Detroit.
"When she passed away, I acquired numerous amounts of jewelry that she had collected over her years of living and traveling because of gospel singing in National Baptist conventions."
Kennedy brought a number of those pieces to Robert DuMouchelle for evaluation during a recent appraisal session.
DuMouchelle praised the jewelry's "sparkle factor," and its affordability and reinforced costume jewelry's growing popularity in the ever-changing world of antiques and collectibles.
"We definitely sell a lot of costume jewelry these days," he confirms. "While we often sell them in groupings, the individual pieces are collectible and bring varying amounts. The nice thing is that many people can afford to collect costume jewelry, and it's fun to wear."
DuMouchelle says that certain pieces bring a premium. "First, signed pieces are always worth more than non-signed," he says. "Big names such as Miriam Haskell, Chanel and Trifari bring more than later or lesser-known names. Unusual styles and rare pieces also command more."
Sharon brought in five or six pieces, saying she had even more at home. DuMouchelle thought that, although unsigned, her enameled parrot pin could bring $75-$125. The rest varied in value.
Kennedy has considered selling them, but can't seem to part with them.
"I have had some offers, but I haven't really decided what to do," she says. "I'm thinking of making a shadow box out of some of them and keeping one or two to wear. I wore one to an event the other day and got a lot of compliments.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071229/LIFESTYLE01/712290390/1038/LIFESTYLE01
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Diamond Rings - 3 Quick Tips to Avoid Paying Too Much
Most of us are true novices when it comes to shopping for diamond rings and other jewelry. There’s a lot that goes into the process of evaluating the relative worth of diamonds, primarily centered around what are called the ‘4 C’s’ (clarity, cut, color, carat-weight). Unless you’ve bought a number of diamonds, chances are you’re more or less clueless. That’s certainly a common occurrence, so don’t feel bad!
Here are three easily remembered tips for the next time diamond ring shopping confronts you. Print this out or jot them down and keep in your wallet or purse. Assuming you remember you did so when the moment arrives, you’ll be armed with the basic knowledge necessary to avoid being taken to the cleaners by a clever jewelry shop salesperson.
Tip #1 – Always Get a Guarantee
This is a must. Never ever, under any circumstances, take the word of a diamond jewelry “expert” in a store on the value of a diamond (loose or in a setting). The shifty ones prey on excited customers who are novices and, thus, prone to making impulse purchases. Even if the seller offers official-looking paperwork as proof of the diamond’s quality, demand an ironclad written guarantee. If they balk, leave and shop elsewhere.
Tip #2 – Don’t Let Size Decide
If there’s one enduring myth about buying diamond rings and other jewelry, it’s that big diamonds are always worth more. In fact, the exact opposite is often true! Remember the ‘4 C’s’ mentioned earlier. Carat-weight is just one of four. A simple example will suffice to illustrate this point. If you have the choice between a large diamond that rates lower on clarity and color than one with the same cut that’s smaller but has a higher rating on clarity and color, choose the smaller option. The overall quality of the smaller diamond almost always makes it worth more as a long-term investment than the lesser quality big one. The bottom line: only let carat-weight decide if the clarity and color of two diamonds are identical (or at least very close).
Tip #3 – Ignore the Ring
This one trips up a lot of impulse buyers who fall in love with the ring setting, to the point of virtually ignoring the diamond it holds. If you remember one simple fact, you might be able to keep a rein on your emotions: diamonds are forever; settings can be changed easily. Don’t let the ring itself distract you from the primary concern, which is the quality and long-term value of the diamond that the ring merely holds in place.
Of course, at the end of the day, you have to really love what you’re buying. If you see a diamond ring you just have to have, you can ignore all of this and go for it. If you have the monetary means, why not, right? But, for the vast majority of us, following the simple tips outlined above will prevent a disaster in the making. Good luck!
© John Schwartz (all rights reserved)
John Schwartz is a freelance writer and website publisher. For more information and tips on diamond rings and other jewelry, visit his site at http://www.diamond-rings-1.com today.
Digging for Diamonds
Jewelry has become a major online category, in a counter-intuitive development within the e-commerce business.
Online jewelry sales are expected to reach $3.2 billion this year, compared with $2.5 billion last year. Overall, 8% of all jewelry sales in 2005 are expected to come from the Internet, up from 6% in 2004 and 3% in 2002. BlueNile forecasts 2005 sales of $205 million to $215 million, up from $169 million in 2004.
Ann Poletti at eBay said, they do $1.6-$1.7 Billion in jewelry and watches, and she gave me these two statistics:
50% ($0.8M) is in diamonds and watches.
50% ($0.8M) is in rings and watches.
These are very compelling numbers, indicating a very compelling opportunity.
An easy way to get into this business for an investor could be by buying Odimo (Nasdaq: ODMO) that owns the portal diamond.com, as well as other internet brands such as Ashford. The company did $52 Million in 2004 sales, but is currently valued at a mere $13 Million. Of course, they are losing beaucoup money. However, some of the P&L problems seem to be artifically created by their majority shareholder, The Steinmetz Group, who remains the sole supplier of diamonds to the company, but at questionable terms. Gross margin numbers seem suspicious.
Bottomline, jewelry online is an opportunity worth pursuing, and TAM is expected to continue to rise as more of the web savvy generations enhance their buying power.
Silicon Valley Entrepreneur and Strategy Consultant Sramana Mitra writes about Entrepreneurship, Business Strategy, Emerging Technology, Market Moves, and sundry other topics in her Blog "Sramana Mitra on Strategy". Read more of her writings at http://www.sramanamitra.com
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