Articles and News
Be Successful: How Be On Park’s Owners Built A Destination Store Just By Doing What They Love | April 08, 2014 (0 comments)
Winter Park, FL--When Janice Blumberg and Matina Saltsman decided to go into business together, all the pieces fell easily into place. Longtime friends. Check. Work together well. Check. Agree on inventory. Check.
Name of new business? __________. That's where the checkmarks stopped, at least for a while.
Blumberg, a jeweler, and Saltsman, an interior designer, were both at points in their lives where "we wanted to do something that we loved," says Blumberg. Both loved beautiful things and jewelry.
"So Janice calls me up one day, seven years ago, and tells me to quit my job, we're going to open a store," says Saltsman, who did just that. The two were set to open a small store. They secured a space, bought jewelry and did everything except find the right name. Finally, the two sat down together and decided neither could leave until their business name was found. They needed some inspiration. So far, nothing had clicked.
Janice Blumberg and Matina Saltzman with TaKai, the store mascot.
Needing inspiration, the partners turned to a book called "Be," by Kobi Yamada. Blumberg and Saltsman were tossing ideas around, "be this, be that, be inspiring," and they both looked at each other and said "Be!" And that was the name for the 110 square foot store where the two began working together.
Blumberg's husband David plays a large role in the partnership as well. "He has the business mind," says Blumberg. "Matina and I are the sales and merchandising part. David built out entire website and handles all our finances, analysis, budgeting, etc."
It was David's advice, knowledge and business expertise that encouraged Blumberg and Saltsman to expand their business after a few years of growth. They moved to new space and decided they needed a bigger name to fill the bigger space. Their new store was 2,500 square feet, on Park Avenue and overlooked the park, so the name changed to "Be On Park."
Be Unpredictable. Be On Park carries jewelry, fine arts and gifts. The jewelry and paintings are available online as well as instore, although the jewelry sells better online. "We sell more jewelry than art online," says Blumberg. "We find with more expensive items that the customer needs some kind of interaction which we are so happy to give."
The jewelry brands housed at Be On Park include: Anne Sportun, Armenta, Arunashi, Cynthia Ann Jewels, Dilamani, Elizabeth Locke, Estate, Frederic Sage, Gurhan, Heather B. Moore, Ivanka Trump, Jamie Joseph, JB Star, John Apel, John Hardy, Jordan Scott Designs, Kashmir Collections, Konstantino, Lauren Harper, Lauren K, Lika Behar, Lumier, Marco Bicego, Maylin K, Meira T, Moritz Glik, Nanis, Norman Covan, Paula Crevoshay, Penny Preville, Rina Limor, Roberto Coin, Sara Weinstock, Sethi Couture, Steven Richards, Suneera, Suzy Landa, and Tony Maccabi Designs.
Jewelry is the best selling category at Be On Park and within that, fashion is its niche. Blumberg and Saltsman don't consider Be On Park a mainstream jewelry store. They sprinkle unique items throughout the store. "We don't want to be predictable," says Blumberg.
The two work together to hand select every piece in inventory; they specifically look for pieces with a twist to intrigue their customers and in keeping with their "jewelry should be worn" philosophy.
Above and below: four interior views of Be on Park, Winter Park, FL.
Be Stylish. While the two partners are alike in many ways, they differ in personal style. "Matina and I are very different in our likes and our style of dress," says Blumberg. "Our differences work well together. Matina is a bit more bohemian chic, a bit more cutting edge. I'm tailored with a twist. Neither of us are too far out there. We have to love a piece to buy it and sell it. Away from our work, we both have casual lifestyles. We like to stock pieces that we can dress up or down."
The two worked together on the interior of Be On Park, as they do with all things store related. "We went with less formal carpet," said Blumberg. "We wanted to create an inviting, comfortable store. We have bright orange suede chairs. Matina pulled most of our colors and the feel of the store together. Same with the merchandising. We also have an employee who is very strong in visual merchandising, Kitty Handlesman. We buy, Kitty merchandises it like no other store."
Clever merchandising and a homelike atmosphere draw customers to buy.
The front part of Be On Park showcases the store's jewelry. As customers walk through the store, they can go into the Art and Gift Gallery that showcases gifts and art. There is jewelry in the art section and art in the jewelry section to keep the store's look fresh and interesting.
Be Together. The store has five sales people and two support personnel. Repairs are handled off premises. Blumberg and Salzman are mostly both in the store at the same time, although they do have separate days off; the store is open six days a week from Monday through Saturday. They prefer to keep one owner in the store at all times, although for trade shows, they both do pack up and go. Blumberg's husband is also a partner in the business and can also be found in the store.
"We have a great staff," says Blumberg. "We also feel it's important for an owner to be present for whatever comes up."
Be Social. Social media is a large part of Be On Park's marketing/advertising outreach. "We have a young employee, Heather Cunningham, who is working on her Master's degree that manages our social media," says Saltsman. "She's taken over our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest postings and has the energy and mindset to work it. She's been a godsend."
Be On Park also does a lot of direct mail. "We still feel that direct mail gives us the greatest advertising response," says Blumberg. "We have a large mailing list of 8-9000 names. We send out mailers for trunk shows every other month, our Christmas catalog, new designer introduction, special occasions/Holidays, etc. Those mailers really keeps our name out there."
"We also support local magazines," says Saltsman. "We do a full page in each monthly issue of selected local magazines."
Be The Go-To Store. So, who are Be On Park's customers? "We have a strong, female self purchasing clientele, also men purchasing gifts. We keep a strong wish list on a lot of our clients -- some of our male clients would be lost without that!" says Blumberg. Be On Park encourages wish lists online and instore with good success.
Blumberg admits that the staff often gets emotionally involved with their customers and their sales. "We have the nicest, best customers. A lot of repeat business; we keep the store fresh for them. My customers give me so much enjoyment; they are my reward. That's where my energy comes from!"
Be Canine. In addition to its seven two-legged employees, Be On Park has a special four-legged brand ambassador: TaKai, a friendly black Labrador retriever, who serves as a greeter and as a pick-me-up for customers who drop by and enjoy dogs. Blumberg, who TaKai lives with during his non-store hours, says he's popular. "He has his own fan club!"
TaKai, just waiting for customers to come give him a pet and a scritch.
Be Forward. The future looks bright for Blumberg and Saltsman. "Every year gets better and better," says Blumberg. "We want to grow the business. Matina and I want to keep growing the relationships that we have and keep moving forward."
From the Be On Park website, about the book: "A compilation of inspiring quotations, “Be” explores the core elements that bring life to living. “Be moved” – Live to the point of tears… “Be constructive” – Clear your mind of can’t… “Be excited” – The minute you begin to do what you really want to do, it’s really a different kind of life… “Be amazing” – It is up to you to illuminate the world… “Be resourceful” – Almost everything comes from almost nothing… “Be present” – In life there are no ordinary moments; most of us never really recognize the most significant moments of our lives when they’re happening."