[Jewelry making - Article 00762] - Re: [Orchid] Statistics, smaller retail stores?

[kevdan]

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    I live in Tucson were the gem show comes to town and it is a real
    killer of jewelery business here I don't even sell my work in
    arizona because of the show. Opening a store is a big commitment I
    have almost done it twice and I had a few hundred pieces all of them
    made by me to fill the cases with. I have seen some stores open and
    close real quick because of lack of inventory and then the ones that
    had inventory had the same as every other guy up and down the street
    so it turns into a race for the bottom who can discount the most
    without going bankrupt. If you open a store and advertise custom
    work then immediatly your showcases become a real expensive museum,
    you will have to make everything a little different than what is in
    the case just so they think theirs is special. I have been working
    as a jeweler for 14 years not that long by most standards but i have
    seen alot of stores fold up even when they had talented jewelers the
    one thing they all had in common was they didnt own the building
    they were in they are at the mercy of the landlord rents go up even
    if business doesnt nowadays most places have overages that you pay
    to the landlord anything over x amount of dollars a percentage goes
    to the landlord if the landlord wants to make improvements he bills
    them to the tennants. Buy your own building if at all possible, the
    stores that have managed to stay in business that are not chaines
    but independant all own thier own buildings. Plus it is easier to
    sell the business some day if it comes with realistate or you can
    rent it when you want to retire or better yet get a place that has
    room for renters to help subsidise the mortgage on the building. I
    dont want to rain on the parade but unless you got alot of money
    behind you a jewelery store is a bad idea and if you did have alot
    of money opening a jewelery store is a bad idea or a quick way to
    loose alot of money. I do work for a store here in Tucson that has
    been in business for over a century and they do real well the grand
    father was a jeweler but the father 

Sincerely 
Kevin


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