Service Merchandise names new prez, opens 3 units - Gary Witkin named as president

Discount Store News, Nov 21, 1994

NASHVILLE, TENN. -- Service Merchandise, the hard lines/jewelry specialty chain, surprised industry observers by naming a former Saks Fifth Avenue executive as its new president and ceo.

Gary Witkin, 45, a former vice chairman of Saks, fills the newly created position, reporting to co-founder and chairman Raymond Zimmerman.

Earlier this month, Service also debuted three of its new jewelry superstores in the Dallas/Ft. Worth market. The 50,000-sq.-ft. units opened Nov. 3 and follow a Jacksonville, Fla., unit as the first ground-up examples of the new prototype, which debuted as a conversion in Fairlawn, Ohio, in May.

The stores more than double the jewelry department, with 100 cases of jewelry, compared to 44 or so in standard Service stores. The format shifts the watch selection into overdrive, from 700 skus to more than 2,000, with boutiques dedicated to sports, licensed characters and other subcategories.

Another major improvement is a vastly higher level of service. The company has added on-site jewelry appraisal, testing, mounting and repair; and in-store insurance video and photo documentation.

Also new are a secure loose-gem viewing room with custom design available, and a two-tiered associate approach, with generalists to help casual shoppers and steer more demanding ones to specialists in various areas (gold, diamonds, colored stones, watches).

The color scheme, particularly within the jewelry cases, has been updated to show fine jewelry to better effect. For instance, white and teal satin have replaced the more traditional black in some cases.

Price points have also been expanded at the upper end, with some products ranging into the tens of thousands of dollars.

Otherwise, the stores feature a standard Service Merchandise mix and layout. Housewares, consumer electronics and computers, furniture, exercise and sporting goods, juvenile products, collectibles and toys make up most of the rest of the store.

Service now operates 14 stores in the Dallas/Ft. Worth market, equalling WalMart and rivaling Kamart among the area's most dominant retailers. Overall, the company has nearly 400 stores in 37 states.

The retailer reported a net loss of $10.3 million in the third quarter.