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Merrick, NY—For the majority of prestige jewelers, Valentine’s Day saw a repeat of the kind of sales success they enjoyed during the 2012 holiday season. Almost two-thirds of respondents to a Centurion spot check survey reported their Valentine’s Day sales were up over Valentine 2012 (the same percentage who last year said sales increased from 2011), but this year there was a gain in jewelers who had significant increases. Fully half of all respondents reported sales gains of at least 10% or more over last year, compared with 40% who reported large gains over 2011 figures. 57.1% of respondents reported their average ticket grew from last year as well, while 23.8% said it stayed even. 19% saw their average ticket decline from Valentine 2012 sales.

Fully half of all respondents to The Centurion's spot-check survey said their Valentine's Day sales increased 10% or more over last year (orange slice). 13.6% saw more modest increases between 1% and 10% (blue and purple slices), while the same number reported sales even with last year (salmon slice), or down slightly (green slice). Only 5.1% reported a significant drop in sales for the holiday over last year's figures.

Among luxury consumers, it seems Valentine’s Day is more about gifting the one you’re already with than popping the question. The best selling product category among Centurion respondents was diamond fashion jewelry, including pendants (hearts, of course, being a favorite), halo jewelry, and earrings. Only a few respondents reported a strong engagement/bridal holiday, though a few others listed “diamond rings” without specifying if those were bridal or fashion.

Among branded lines that performed well for Valentine’s Day, Pandora was the strongest, with 22.7% of respondents listing the product as their top-selling Valentine item. Other brands mentioned were David Yurman, Hearts on Fire, Forevermark, and Simon G. Relatively few respondents (9% each) identified silver jewelry and colored stone fashion jewelry as their top Valentine sellers.

Though jewelers reported stronger sales in total, it wasn't a big-ticket holiday for most. The best-selling price points at prestige jewelry stores were either under $250, followed by tickets between $1,000 and $5,000. The stores who did report a strong bridal holiday also reported higher tickets (around $7,000), in line with the typical bridal spend in a prestige jeweler.

More than half of Centurion respondents said their average ticket grew this year over Valentine's Day 2012 (orange slice); 23.8% said it was about the same (purple slice) and 19% said the average ticket dropped since last year (blue slice).