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Industry News: Website Set Up For Victims Of Stolen Jewelry; Silver Jewelry Sales Continue To Rise March 22, 2017 (0 comments)
PA County Establishes Website To Help Victims Find Stolen Jewelry
Lower Merion, PA—Montgomery County (PA) district attorney Kevin Steele, together with police departments from townships and boroughs across Montgomery County, last week announced the creation of a website showing thousands of pieces of jewelry evidence seized from four defendants involved in a string of burglaries of high-end homes in suburban Philadelphia. Burglaries occurred in Montgomery, Delaware, and Chester counties in Pennsylvania, as well as Camden County in New Jersey and New Castle County in Delaware. An engagement ring on the website is shown left.
According to The Main Line Times, the website allows victims to look for their stolen watches, rings, bracelets, earrings and other items. If victims see their stolen property, they should contact law enforcement.
“These four defendants — Kebbie Ramseur, Jerrel Jaynes, Shron Linder and Ralph Mayrant — were involved in a corrupt organization that [stole] money, jewelry and designer purses, then worked with jeweler Wasim Shazad to fence the jewelry,” said Steele. “When law enforcement served a search warrant on Shazad’s three jewelry stores and home, about 50,000 pieces of jewelry, coins and precious metals were recovered. We want to find the rightful owners of as many pieces of jewelry and other items as possible and be able to return them as soon as the prosecution will allow.”
Separately, police in Upper Merion Township, PA, are asking for the public’s help in finding the thief who rappelled from the roof into a Costco store in King of Prussia in the middle of the night and made off with merchandise from the store’s jewelry cases.
Strong U.S. Silver Jewelry Sales Continued in 2016
New York, NY—Silver jewelry sales in the United States grew an average of 16% in 2016, according to a new Silver Promotion Service study released Tuesday. 62% of jewelry retailers surveyed reported increased sales of silver jewelry, and for 8% of respondents, those sales increases topped 25% year-on-year from 2015. The results also confirmed that silver jewelry continues to be a leading merchandise category for retailers in driving sales and providing margin.
Other highlights from the 2016 survey include:
- Retailers said their silver jewelry sales, as a percentage of their overall jewelry sales, were on average 35% of their unit volume and 27% of their dollar volume.
- 54% of retailers said silver experienced the best turnover rate in 2016, followed by bridal and diamond jewelry as the best turns (17% of respondents), gold (10%), and platinum (2%).
- 49% of respondents said the best-maintained margins during the holiday season were on silver silver jewelry. 21% cited diamond jewelry, 18% cited bridal jewelry, 10%, gold jewelry, and 2%, platinum jewelry.
- 89% of retailers say they are optimistic that silver jewelry sales will continue to grow.
SPS Director Michael Barlerin commented, “The Silver Promotion Service is obviously gratified by what the survey demonstrated. Silver’s outstanding performance was the result of multiple interrelated factors, including the fact that 62% of retailers reported they increased their silver inventory an average of 24%.”
The survey, conducted by INSTORE, was fielded in February this year. For more information, visit www.savorsilver.com.