RAPAPORT… US consumers still favor purchasing diamond jewelry in a brick-and-mortar shop, but want store owners to provide proper safety measures against the coronavirus, according to a De Beers survey.
“While consumers increasingly desire a diamond-acquisition journey that blends the digital and physical, when it comes to making purchases, they still prefer the personalization of the in-store experience, despite the pandemic,” De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver said Monday.
More than 62% of those surveyed like the in-store experience better, where they can receive expert advice and personal attention. Some 59% of millennial and Gen Z consumers also chose physical over digital when it came to jewelry purchases.
However, customers expect retailers to have safety measures in place before they enter a store, with 68% citing a limit on the number of clients in a store at one time as the most important. Some 66% wanted to see hand sanitizer used in shops, while 64% thought staff needed to wear face masks and gloves at all times.
Some 39% of respondents said they placed most trust in department stores implementing safety measures. Independent jewelers grabbed the second spot, with 21% of those surveyed believing proper procedures would be followed, De Beers noted.
“Those retailers that are able to provide a safe and welcoming in-store environment for consumers in what is a strange and unsettling time will be best placed to benefit in the weeks and months ahead,” Cleaver added.
De Beers also noted a rise in the number of consumers who saw diamond jewelry as the gift they would most like to give or receive, selected by 38% of respondents versus 32% last month. The pandemic has also changed the way purchasers view holiday gift-giving. Meaningful gifts topped the list as the most important quality in a present consumers would give their loved ones, followed by something sentimental.
De Beers surveyed 500 Americans over the age of 18 for its second Diamond Insight ‘Flash’ Report, which was completed June 22. Its first survey collected data until May 25.
Image: A customer trying on a diamond ring. (De Beers Jewellers)
Survey: Shoppers Prefer to Buy Jewelry In-Store
The Bottom Line
- Over 62% of US consumers favor purchasing diamond jewelry in physical stores for expert advice and personal attention.
- Safety measures such as limiting store capacity, hand sanitizer availability, and staff wearing masks and gloves are expected by the majority of shoppers.
- Diamond jewelry is increasingly seen as a meaningful and sentimental gift, with 38% of respondents naming it their top gift choice.
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