Supplier Spotlight Sponsored by GIA
50 Jewelers/50 States: Georgia
Tassels Jewelry brings cool designs to their fashion-forward Atlanta clientele.
Atlanta--In 50 Jewelers/50 States, National Jeweler interviews one retailer in each of the 50 U.S. states to find out how they are meeting the challenges of the changing retail environment.
Atlanta, Georgia’s Tassels Jewelry prides itself on being a destination for designer jewelry not easily found in the region.
It was this designer void in the local marketplace that led owners Lynne Halpern and Juli Bauman, who previously owned a coupon business together, to start Tassels in the first place, in 1987.
“Atlanta needed a store like ours,” Halpern said. “There weren’t any cute, boutique-y jewelry stores in Atlanta so that’s why we decided to do it.”
Twenty years later, Halpern and Bauman’s partnership is stronger than ever. They spoke to National Jeweler about their rock-solid foundation and the trends their fashion-forward customers are embracing.
National Jeweler: What’s the biggest challenge your store is facing?
Juli Bauman: Trends change so quickly. We’re not really facing challenges …
Lynne Halpern: One of our biggest challenges is to keep updating our website, to keep things on Instagram. I think all of that is probably our biggest challenge.
JB: And we don’t have tourists so that puts our store in a little bit of a different category because Atlanta is not a tourist city.
LH: So we have to count on people from Atlanta. We do have the St. Regis. A new St. Regis hotel opened here and we do all the jewelry there so that’s brought us some new business, some tourists and things.
NJ: What’s the top-selling category and brand at your store?
JB: Earrings. It’s really just edgy jewelry, the latest and greatest.
LH: For popular brands, we carry a lot of Italian jewelry. We also carry Lizabeth, she’s from Austin, Texas--we do great with her.
JB: And Dana Rebecca.
LH: We also carry Phillips House and Andrea Fohrman. Also we carry two very big Atlanta designers …
JB: L.A. Stein and S. Carter.
LH: They do really well for us.
NJ: Describe your regional customer.
LH: Lots of repeat business; that’s why we like to keep changing our designs.
JB: It’s really independent women who buy jewelry for themselves.
LH: One of the best things we have is a wish list, which we try to make every customer fill out, and then we get a
NJ: What bridal trends are you seeing? What’s the most popular style of engagement ring with your clientele?
LH: Well we’re seeing a lot of girls who don’t want diamonds. They’re doing beautiful wedding bands. For those who do want a diamond, we’re seeing lots of princess cuts, lots of emerald cuts.
JB: A lot of halos.
LH: A lot of people still like the halos.
JB: Nothing’s changed with that.
LH: I wouldn’t say there’s anything fabulous, new and different with wedding jewelry. We do sell a lot of wedding earrings and that’s a really nice little niche for us. People don’t want long, crazy chandeliers but we sell a lot of beautiful little diamond earrings for weddings.
NJ: What’s your social media presence like? What accounts do you have or actively use?
JB: Instagram and Facebook and we do a lot of e-mailing. We do all three; we are really strong in all three.
LH: We have a woman who does all of our social media. We have a huge e-mail list.
NJ: Does your website have e-commerce?
JB: No. We always think we’re going to do it, and maybe this coming year that will be one of the first things we do, but we haven’t done it so far. We feel like people really love to touch jewelry and feel it and try it on.
LH: Some of the jewelry stores that are similar to us in different cities--that we see at different trade shows--say that they get so many returns (from having e-commerce). You almost have to hire someone and dedicate them to the e-commerce. We get (inquiries) from our Instagram and we’ll send jewelry out to them but, overall, e-commerce just seems like a whole other beast.
NJ: What’s the best piece of advice you’d offer to other independent jewelry stores?
JB: Just dive in and have fun.
LH: And customer service is really number one. We really pride ourselves on that. We bend over backwards for people. When they’re spending a lot of money it’s a great thing to do. And we really try to get people what they want. If we have a great wish list and a guy comes in and (the woman he’s buying for) has four pairs of earrings on her list and he says he wants to buy her a necklace, then we try to steer him to what she wants.
I would say customer service is our number one thing.
NJ: What’s a fun fact about you we can share with our readers?
JB: We’re related!
LH: We met each other in high school.
JB: And we’re also relatives.
LH: My sister is married to Juli’s first cousin.
JB: So we’re pretty closely related, not by blood, and we’re like sisters and that’s it.
LH: We’ve never really had a cross word between us. Occasionally I can say, “Come on, we’re not going to do that.”
JB: It’s an easy relationship. You’ve really got to keep a sense of humor.
The Latest
Sales will be paused while the relocation takes place over the next few months.
“SIS x MISA Denim and Diamonds” is a collaboration between the designer and celebrity stylist Misa Hylton.
Meet Ben Claus—grand prize winner of For the Love of Jewelers 2023 Fall Design Challenge.
The retailer is moving to a newly designed space in the same shopping center.
The necklace is featured in the brand’s “Rebel Heart” campaign starring Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo.
The two organizations will host a joint event, “Converge,” in September 2025.
With Ho Brothers, you can unlock your brand's true potential and offer customers the personalized jewelry experiences they desire.
Big changes appear to be on the horizon for the diamond miner and its parent company, Anglo American.
Padis succeeds Lisa Bridge, marking the first time the organization has had two women board presidents in a row.
Jesse Cole, founder of Fans First Entertainment, shared the “five Es” of building a fan base during his AGS Conclave keynote.
The Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar "John Mayer" was celebrated at a star-studded party in LA last week.
The announcement came as the company reported a 23 percent drop in production in Q1.
The three-time Pro Bowler continues to partner with the retailer, donating to a Detroit nonprofit and giving watches to fans.
A double-digit drop in the number of in-store crimes was offset by a jump in off-premises attacks, JSA’s 2023 crime report shows.
Inspired by the Roman goddess of love, the designer looked to the sea for her new collection.
The luxury titan posted declining sales, weighed down by Gucci’s poor performance.
The selected nine organizations have outlined their plans for the funds.
The mining company’s Diavik Diamond Mine lost four employees in a plane crash in January.
The crown introduced a dozen timepieces in Geneva, including a heavy metal version of its deep-sea divers’ watch.
Emmanuel Raheb recommends digging into demographic data, customizing your store’s communications, and retargeting ahead of May 12.
Located in the town of Queensbury, it features a dedicated bridal section and a Gabriel & Co. store-in-store.
A 203-carat diamond from the alluvial mine in Angola achieved the highest price.
Ruser was known for his figural jewelry with freshwater pearls and for his celebrity clientele.
The “Rebel Heart” campaign embodies rebellion, romance, and sensuality, the brand said.
Editor-in-Chief Michelle Graff shares the standout moments from the education sessions she attended in Austin last week.
The overhaul includes a new logo and enhanced digital marketplace.