Engaging Holiday

RAPAPORT… As U.S. jewelry stores prepare for another holiday season, one of the primary topics on everyone’s mind is bridal sales. Traditional wisdom in the diamond industry has it that December is one of the most popular months for engagements. However, while retailers report that engagement rings continue to be a top seller in December, bridal business does well year-round.
Changing Seasons for Bridal?

“Years ago, it was this: May, June and December,” says Gary Gordon of Samuel Gordon Jewelers in Oklahoma City, referring to the traditional months when bridal jewelry sold best. “Now, those months are somewhat heavier, but the business has evened out, and bridal is busy all year long.”

Across the country, the story is very much the same: December is still the top month for bridal, but certainly not the only month seeing engagement ring sales. At Fox’s Gem Shop in Seattle, Washington, assistant manager Kenneth Gustafson says August is the best month for engagements. According to Peter Luplow, vice president and merchandise manager for Ben Bridge, “We do well with engagement rings during the holidays, and that’s still probably the highest sales in bridal. But we see April, May and June as the second strongest [time of year]. At Fortunoff’s in New York, Ann Curran, vice president and merchandise manager of the company’s jewelry buying division, is seeing more sales across the calendar, noting that the bridal business pulls in about 7 to 9 percent each month, though she also acknowledges, “We do see a strong surge in December and at Valentine’s.” David Sternblitz, vice president and treasurer for Zale Corp., agreed that December is the top month for bridal sales, but notes that February, May and June are also important months in this category.

New Shapes are Gaining Ground

In addition to some seasonal shifts in sales, stores are reporting that some of the traditional ideas about what a bride wants to wear are changing, too. Fortunoff’s Curran reports that today’s brides are individualists. “Every woman feels empowered to make her own choices,” she says. “So many women want to tell their own story.” Curran reports that round, cushion and princess cuts are still the standard, but says she is also seeing resurgence in pear and marquise shapes.

At Zales stores, Sternblitz reports strong sales in marquise and princess, and also indicates that larger center stones and multistone princess rings are doing well. Fox’s Gustafson reports that cushions are doing very well at the moment, and at Samuel Gordon stores, Gary Gordon reports that round and princess are current favorites, with “emerald cuts in distant third place.”

Ben Bridge’s Luplow says round is still the most popular shape, but he’s also seeing a small trend toward marquise, and he says princess is slightly soft. “However,” he says, “you have to remember that princess cut was huge two or three years ago, so ‘a little bit soft’ is still a lot of princess cut.” Luplow is also seeing movement in certain fashion styles right now. “What I’ve seen recently is stones assembled incredibly well to look like one larger stone.” Ben Bridge plans to feature one such bridal piece on its holiday cover. Luplow is also seeing an increase in the popularity of bridal sets. “The shift has gone more toward two-piece and three-piece rings,” he said. “That’s what we’ve seen the most in the last three years.”

Platinum is Still Strong

As for metals, yellow gold is less in demand and platinum is winning almost everywhere, with few exceptions. One such exception is at Zales, where Sternblitz reports, “we sell very little platinum,” noting that “white gold is still outselling yellow.”

Elsewhere, however, platinum reigns supreme or, as Curran summed it up, “Platinum is still king.”

Besides yellow gold, another weak-selling metal is palladium. While some stores carry it, it’s mostly in men’s wedding bands and even then, it’s not selling particularly well. According to Luplow, “We carry palladium in wedding bands, but when we tested it in engagement rings, we had some repair issues, so we’re walking away from palladium in engagement until the industry figures out how palladium works.”

Nonbridal Holiday Sales

Of course, there is still plenty of nonbridal business to be done leading up to the December holidays. At Samuel Gordon’s, Gary Gordon reports that diamond hoop earrings and micropavé necklaces are very strong, and at Ben Bridge, Luplow is seeing sales in its Journey pendants and solitaire earrings. Finally, Fox’s is very excited about watches for the holidays. Adding in these sales to the already strong bridal figures, and it seems clear that these stores are planning to have an excellent December.

The Marketplace

• Average prices for engagement rings are between $2,000 and $3,500.
• Platinum is the best-selling metal, with yellow gold slower in bridal.
• Round is still the top shape, but marquise is slowly growing in popularity.
• Preferred clarities are in the SI range.
• All colors are seeing sales, but F through H are selling the best.
• Diamond prices are rising.