Being the expert or hiring someone
Another option is to have an in-house CAD designer. We are all creative, but is there someone on staff who really has a flair for design? Could you cultivate this person into being a designer? Kevin Luttjehuizen of Harmony Jewellers in Grimsby, Ont., has done that with one of his staff, Melissa Falcioni. Melissa’s background was in set design, but after her husband accepted a professor position in Sault Ste. Marie, she found work at Savoy’s Jewellers. Savoy’s taught Melissa to do sizing on the laser welder, and she enjoyed working with metal. The Falcionis then got transferred back to the Toronto area, and Melissa was hired by Harmony.
Kevin saw how much talent Melissa had for designing and finally decided to purchase a CAD program for her. He had wanted to purchase the software for many years, but felt he did not have the time or passion to learn. Melissa has done very well with learning the program, and she is developing her skills as a jewellery designer to be able to offer the client a unique experience.
Designers do not always have to create a custom-made piece, since they have the knowledge of how things are made and the cost involved. Perhaps you have a beautiful piece in the showcase that needs a new home and could be better suited for your client’s wants and needs than something custom.
Selling luxury
You do not have to have a store in the big city to sell luxury items. In my article, “Have a heart,” in the July 2014 issue of Jewellery Business, I mentioned a book called Selling Luxury by Genevieve Tour and Robin Lent, two people from the jewellery industry. It is a great, quick read with 88 tips to selling luxury items, and is full of stories you can apply to different scenarios. It could inspire you to come up with your own ideas to get people coming back into your store.
So how did I do with buying a lens online? Actually, very well. The company even stocked them in purple, so my phone is blinged out with colour—and I did get it the next day. It looks like Amazon is the new Sears catalogue…but I still would rather have had the human experience.
Shele Letwin is a graduate of the jewellery arts program at Toronto’s George Brown College, an award-winning designer, and a CAD/CAM instructor. She has been a regular guest speaker at trade shows in both Canada and the United States. Her new business is CAD designing for Shele’s Jewelry Design Factory, and she also teaches online classes for Matrix 3D. Letwin can be reached via e-mail at design@shelesjewelrydesignfactory.com.
