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RETAIL NEWS: K-JON’S 15 TON FOOD DONATION; SAXON’S BETS BIG ON RAVENS January 31, 2013 (0 comments)

A Little Pain For A Lot Of Gain: K-Jon’s Fine Jewelers Donates Money For 15 Tons Of Food

Atascadero, CA—Hole-y tomatoes! One enterprising jeweler has convinced customers that a tiny bit of pain eases a whole lot of hunger pangs.

Since 2011, K-Jon’s Fine Jewelers (left) has donated all monies from its ear piercing service to the Food Bank Coalition here, and it’s a pretty tasty undertaking. So far, the money donated by the jeweler has provided 15 tons of food for the hungry.

K-Jon’s selected the Food Bank Coalition of San Luis Obispo County as its charity to be supported, because of its ability to provide $10 worth of nutritious food for every $1 donated. According to the food bank’s website, about 5.5 million pounds of food pass through its two warehouses every year, 46% of which is fresh produce. Through a large network of volunteers keeping overhead costs to just 6%, the food bank can turn each dollar into $10 worth of food. The organization works with more than 225 non-profit partners, including church pantries, recovery programs, after-school programs, homeless shelters, soup kitchens, and more. It also has a number of direct-distribution programs of its own.

“I pierce ears every day, and to see that this simple, fun service has provided 15 tons of food is so cool,” says Pam Maxvill of K-Jon’s Fine Jewelers, who has worked for the jeweler for more than 10 years and does most of the store’s ear piercings.  “It’s fun getting the kids involved, too. We pierce ears for children (over six years old) and you see them get even more excited when they know they are helping children who are hungry.”

Ear piercing starts at $25.00, including the earrings and the piercing service, but gold earrings can be purchased for $45.00. Either way, says Lindsay Vasgird of K-Jon’s, $25.00 goes to the food bank. The store averages about 11 piercings per month, she added. The jeweler doesn’t do any other body piercing, but will do upper-ear piercings as well as the traditional earlobe. 

“The Food Bank uses this food in our direct distributions at sites scattered throughout the county, as well as to supply the other non-profits that distribute food to those who don’t always know where their next meal is coming from,” said Carl Hansen, executive director of the Food Bank.

Every day, thousands of residents in the local community struggle to meet their basic nutritional needs, says the jeweler, hoping it will drive many more customers to K-Jon’s for new earrings. "Because after all, a little pain for an ear piercing can go a long way to help fight hunger pains in our community!"  

Left to right: Pam Maxvill, primary ear piercer at K-Jon’s; Carl Hansen, executive director of the Food Bank Coalition of San Luis Obispo County and California Association of Food Banks' vice chair; and Mary and Stan Sherwin, owners of K-Jon’s Fine Jewelers.

 

Quoth The (Baltimore) Raven: We Win, You Get Free Jewelry

Bel Air, MD—Forget the office football pool. Customers of Saxon’s Diamond Centers might find themselves holding free jewelry if their beloved Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl on Sunday night.

While the National Football League forbids any use of the word “super” in any advertising that refers to its championship game, the jeweler found a way to tap into the excitement of having its hometown team in the Big Game, and hopefully drum up some extra business before Valentine’s Day.

Working with Toledo, OH-based Fruchtman Marketing immediately following the Ravens’ clinching of the AFC Championship on January 20, the jeweler and agency devised a promotion offering customers a full refund (up to $5,000 per purchase) on any jewelry purchased from Saxon’s Diamond Centers between January 26 and February 2—if the Ravens shut out the San Francisco 49ers on February 3.

“It was win-win,” says Kevin Ferrell, one of the store’s two owners. The jeweler took out an insurance policy to cover the promotion—similar to the familiar weather insurance—so it can afford to pay out if the Ravens shut out.

“If I were someone who was thinking about buying jewelry for Valentine’s Day or getting engaged, I would have nothing to lose by shopping at Saxon’s. I could get my gift, and perhaps my money back too.” 

Fruchtman created email blasts, a website banner, online news website advertising, Facebook posts and a press release, all in less than two days, and built a media list of more than 2,100 jewelry, style, or sports journalists within a 50-mile radius of the jewelers’ stores. The release went out Thursday morning, January 24, and within 10 minutes, says Ellen Fruchtman, agency president, the phone started ringing with print, broadcast, and online reporters from as far away as Washington, D.C. who wanted to talk to the jeweler.

Regionally, the capitol’s number-one TV station and the Fox affiliates in Baltimore, plus a variety of local and regional print publications all scheduled interviews, and even national media picked up the story: both NBCSports.com and SI.com—Sports Illustrated’s online edition—are covering the story, and NPR is conducting a radio interview on location at Saxon’s to be featured on NPR’s Morning Edition and All Things Considered before the big game.

“That’s the kind of exposure you can’t pass up,” Saxon’s partner Lance Hersh concluded. “Everybody wins… except San Francisco of course.” Which, for Hersh and Ferrell, is the ultimate payoff.

 

Saxon’s Diamond Centers “Ravens Promotion” email blast. It also fills the store's homepage right now.