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6 tips for entering the estate jewelry market
Diving into the estate jewelry category for the first time can be daunting for a jeweler. Fortunately, Alan Nacht of Bernard Nacht & Co. has outlined six steps jewelers can take to be sure they’re entering the category the right way.
Essentially, there are three types of jewelry that fall under the category of estate (a term which applies to anything pre-owned but is not synonymous with antique): period jewelry, such as Art Deco and Victorian; antique jewelry, which refers to pieces that are 100 years old or more; and modern estate jewelry, which are pieces from the 1960s to present day.
Nacht said a jewel can be both a period piece and an antique. For example, a brooch made in 1866 would be both antique and Victorian.
Jewelry that isn’t considered antique but was made prior to the 1960s -- currently encompassing pieces made between 1915 and 1959 -- are period jewels, falling into the Art Nouveau, Edwardian, Art Deco or Retro periods. The periods also can overlap; the Art Nouveau period began around 1895 and ended around 1915, while Edwardian lasted from about 1901 to 1920.
“Every period has a distinct look,” Nacht says.
Below, Nacht outlines six steps jeweler should take to sell estate jewelry.
1. Learn about estate jewelry and educate yourself and your staff. “The Internet is a great place to start,” Nacht says, noting the Gemological Institute of America’s online bookstore. “Try to learn as much as you can about the different periods in jewelry history.”
There’s also Antique Jewelry University, a site hosted by Suzanne Martinez of Lang Antique & Estate Jewelry in San Francisco.
2. Research estate jewelry vendors. Nacht says vendors need to be reliable, trustworthy and someone you can work with. A good place to find them are tradeshows, in publication listings and by word of mouth.
3. Dedicate an area of the store to estate and antique jewelry. “You want to make the estate jewelry a focus, so showcase it separately from everything else,” Nacht says. “In my experience, customers go right for the estate case, wherever it may be.”
“You (also) can put a few pieces in the window
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and use props,” he notes, “but props also take up space.”
4. Merchandise the estate jewelry by taking into consideration the price points that sell in your store. “The items you carry have to work within your store. You wouldn’t carry a $100,000 antique piece if the most expensive modern jewelry in your store is $5,000,” he says.
5. Begin to educate your clients about estate and antique jewelry. This will create an appreciation for the category, Nacht says, even if they don’t understand it right away. There’s always something to learn with estate jewels.
6. Don’t just promote the estate jewelry; promote that you and your staff are experts at what you do. Coming full circle back to the first step, the more you know about the estate business, the more fun it is, Nacht says.
New York-based Bernard Nacht & Co. is located on Fifth Avenue in New York and can be reached at 212-371-8100.
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