Sales Strategy
The Fifth C: New Platinum Crown Program Helps Retailers Get Ahead | June 05, 2018 (0 comments)
Las Vegas, NV—Want to add at least $37,000 to your bridal revenue with little to no effort?
Enter the “Fifth C,” Platinum Guild International’s new Platinum Crowns initiative. During a presentation at the JCK Show last week, PGI vice president Kevin Reilly explained how an investment of just 33 minutes can translate into $37,000 of additional revenue.
“It takes approximately three minutes to explain the characteristics of platinum to a bridal customer. It takes about 30 minutes for a bench jeweler to set their diamond in a platinum crown if there’s a different head on the ring. The average jeweler sells 107 [engagement] rings per year, which at about $350 per crown, is an additional $37,000.” Peg head or not, he said it’s an easy step to earn extra revenue and keep the customer’s diamond more secure.
Platinum is on the rise in general, says PGI president Jenny Luker. Platinum sales were up 17% in 2017, as nine years of economic growth led to rising consumer confidence. Platinum sales are of course dominated by engagement rings, but it’s not just bridal anymore. PGI is seeing new opportunities beyond bridal, such as trendy stackable rings and the new Platinum Born collection of high-quality platinum necklaces from Japan priced for female self-purchase. Suna Bros. is the U.S. distributor of the collection.
The Platinum Born collection is a line of jewelry priced for self-purchase. Made in Japan and distributed in the United States by Suna Bros., it's all diamond-cut to give sparkle but keep the price point down.
But the “Fifth C” is a very profitable prospect for retailers, she said. “Results to date have been extraordinary. There’s a 10% growth in platinum sales since its introduction in 2017.”
The Fifth C program seeks to educate retailers and consumers about the advantages of having diamonds set in platinum, no matter what the metal of the ring.
“Lots of people in industry call the part of an engagement ring that holds the diamond a head. But it’s not a great word to hold the most beautiful thing you own, so in platinum it’s a crown,” said Kevin Reilly.
PGI did a research study with MVI last year, asking consumers how important it is to protect the diamond in their engagement ring.
Obviously very. But when they were asked if they knew platinum was a more secure setting for diamonds than other metals, most didn’t, said Reilly.
“They didn’t know that even if the ring is a different metal, the crown can still be platinum. The study showed consumers didn’t care about diamond settings because they didn’t know, but once they learned, 94% of consumers in the study were willing to pay more to have their diamond set in platinum.” 74% said they’d pay whatever it cost; 22% said it would depend on how much more.
“When asked how much more they’d pay, the responses averaged out to being willing to pay an additional $469 dollars. But at current prices, a platinum crown should only cost around $350,” said Reilly. “If that diamond is so important, why would you ever jeopardize its security by setting it in something else? Platinum gets stronger with wear.
“Make a vow to make the Fifth C a part of every bridal customer conversation in your store,” he continued.
Retailers can get up to speed on sales training by logging into platinumjewelry.com and clicking on the sales training button. There are six training modules, each about four minutes long and designed to educate salespeople to talk about the Five C’s with every bridal sale.