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Better Jewelers’ Best-Sellers For Holiday 2020 | December 30, 2020 (0 comments)
Merrick, NY—It was a season for diamonds.
Jewelers responding to The Centurion 2020 Holiday Sales Success Index overwhelmingly reported diamonds (of all kinds) were their best-selling category for holiday this year. Given a checklist of their top three product categories (totals exceed 100%), 88% of jewelers said diamonds. In far second place, 29% listed watches (especially Rolex) in their top three.
About 12% respondents did well with colored gemstones and 6% cited pearls—but none mentioned silver jewelry. This might have something to do with the fact that this year also no respondents reported significant sales to Gen-Z consumers (under age 21), the just-starting-out demographic with limited budgets. In 2019, about 7% of respondents reported they were starting to see Gen-Z shoppers in their holiday mix, but 2020 was a tough year on this cohort. Deprived of graduation ceremonies and a normal campus life for college students, they’re also the demographic most likely to be working in—and subsequently laid off from—jobs in hospitality, gyms, and so forth due to the pandemic.
Not surprising in the current Zoom world, jewelers reported that earrings were the most popular purchase this season, followed by rings, and then necklaces. Still, a respectable number of jewelers did report selling bracelets, designer brands, and other items, since we won’t be living virtual lives forever and people will get dressed again and go out.
Overall, it was a year for classics. 71% of respondents to The Centurion survey said customers displayed a greater preference for classics than in recent years, which tracks with other fashion and home-design studies showing consumers are seeking fewer but better items, long-lasting and with timeless style. But that doesn’t mean they want plain or boring—53% of respondents said more customers were specifically seeking unique or custom items than in other years. Overall, 41% of respondents said customers seemed less price-sensitive than in other years, but a few (18%) reported more discussions around lab-grown vs. natural diamonds than in prior years.
What Were Your Three Best-Selling Categories For Holiday 2020?
Specifically for diamonds, the best-selling item—by far—were stud earrings (top image). 75% of respondents reported these blew out the door. Engagement rings were strong for 53% of respondents, also tracking with reports of consumers realigning priorities.
42% of respondents cited diamond pendant necklaces as brisk sellers, though they didn’t break down specific styles.
30% of jewelers moved a lot of loose diamonds, semi-mounts, and custom-designed diamond pieces (presumably the three are somewhat intertwined.) Hoop earrings and eternity bands, perennially popular, were strong for about 30% of respondents.
Specifically Among Diamonds, What Were Your Best Selling Categories?
Prices and sales. Centurion survey respondents’ best-selling price points were between $1,501 and $5,000, with 84% of respondents reporting strength in that category. But an equally strong number had strong sales in items over $5,000 and, of that, more than half of respondents (53%) had very strong sales in categories over $7,500. 35% said $7,501 to $10,000 was a solid price point for them, and 17% said items over $10,000 moved briskly.
50% of respondents said their biggest sale of the season was between $20,000 and $50,000. 18% of respondents said their biggest sale was over $100,000, compared with 26% of respondents in 2019. In both cases, more than half of those were over $200,000 but in 2019 another 6% of jewelers reported sales between $90,000 and $100,000, whereas no respondents to the 2020 survey mentioned any high five-figure sales.
What Were Your Best-Selling Price Points For Holiday 2020?
Finally, the biggest sale also was much bigger last year: the top sale reported in 2019 was a $750,000 pink diamond; In 2020, the highest sale reported was a $230,000 diamond, color unspecified.