Accessories, jewelry sparkle basics - Discount Industry Annual Report: part 2: Merchandising and Productivity Analysis

Discount Store News, July 16, 1990

Accessories, Jewelry Sparkle Basics

Fortunately for jewelry and accessory retailers, more women decided to stick to basics in clothing last year but played them up with fun and trendy accessories.

Jewelry and accessories have steadily increased their percentage of the soft lines market in the last few years. This category is especially prone to holiday selling periods, from Christmas to Grandparents' Day. It has managed to sustain a healthy momentum through the year.

Specialty retailers were quick to jump on the jewelry bandwagon. Accessory Place and Xtras, which have since merged, were among the first stores which cropped up exclusively devoted to this burgeoning market. Full-line discounters and apparel off-pricers were not far behind in realizing the importance of bracelets, bangles and beads. High sales per square foot, and the small amount of space actually required to make a jewelry department viable were among the major attractions.

In the last year, both full-line discounters and apparel specialty stores gave new importance to the category by either expanding the merchandise area or changing its placement within the store, all to capture the impulse buyer's attention.

Goldbro Jewelers, a catalog showroom chain based in Birmingham, Ala., recently opened an 11,000-square-foot specialty jewelry and giftware store in Huntsville, Ala. The chain considers jewelry "the key profits and expansion category of the `90s." It is not alone in that belief.

Though Burlington Coat Factory does not run its own jewelry department, it leases space to independent merchants. The company credits the department with attracting customers that may not otherwise come into the store.

Discounters such as K mart and Target moved part of the category into the apparel area, where shoppers could pick matching jewelry pieces, and where the possibilities of multiple sales were greater.

Others, like Ross Stores, put the jewelry and accessory departments front and center.

T.J. Maxx does run its own jewelry department and has been aggressive in creating a profitable merchandising center for the category. It has increased the number of jewelry departments in its store, lured by the amount of money to be made in a small space requirement, which amounts to two to three sportswear racks.

T.J. Maxx initially debuted jewelry departments in 120 of its 367 stores. By the end of this year, it plans to offer jewelry in close to 200 of its units.

The merchandising trends that emerged in this area are as diverse as the apparel offerings at these same stores.

Silver jewelry and ethnic looks were big sellers last season. Ethnic referred to anything from Indian or American to Guatamalan and Brazilian. Natural materials and earthy colors did best. In addition, the familiar hot pink and glow-in-the-dark lime green seen in beachwear, especially for juniors, also trickled down to the jewelry counter. The look of a perfume bottle as a charm at the end of a rope is also a continuing trend at retail.

Watches continue to be among the biggest movers on jewelry counters. With sporty watches now a wardrobe completer, everyone now needs more than one to make a fashion or style statement. For the young or young at heart, watch faces with pop art designs, planet earth and the phases of the moon continue to be big sellers. In addition to the nostalgia styles reminiscent of Indiana Jones, dressier Channel looks and various Rolex look-alikes in gold and silver combinations are becoming prevalent at discounters.

In the watch category especially, some manufacturers have taken an apparel industry phenomena into the jewelry category: licensing.

Gitano, McGregor and Brittania are familiar names that are now mainstays in watches. In addition, licensed characters are also a selling point for watches. Disney may have set the standard with Mickey Mouse. Today, Snoopy and Garfield join licenses of the moment such as Batman and Dick Tracy in the watch display counters.

These character products also spurred an interest in children's jewelry. Packaged earring and pendant sets are among the popular holiday items in both children's and adult lines.

Trendy styles and the correct merchandising displays are the more important characteristic of this category, more so than price. In the last year, more stores have consciously upgraded their mix. The price points for the jewelry category, even at discounters, now go as high as $200.

Ross, for instance, was one discounter that brought in higher-priced items and expanded its jewelry counter.

In the prototype stores opened last year, fine jewelry and higher-end accessories helped upscale the look and purpose of the store. Department store-style glass cases housed 14K gold and pearl jewelry as well as national brand name watches such as Guess?, Monet and Bill Blass.

Rose's, the full-line discounter based in Henderson, N.C., opened a smaller prototype store last year, but jewelry was one of the categories it decided was important enough to emphasize. Among the merchandising adjustments it made in all of its 250 units was a better, more varied mix of jewelry vendors and suppliers, most notably in the all-important watch category. Timex basics were mixed with alternative trendy choices such as Casio and Armitron watches.